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Enrichment Tip of the Month by Kris Porter | |
Quite often your own parrots will give you ideas for providing them with enrichment. This tip comes straight from my Congo African Grey parrot, Zorba. My husband, Jerry, and I had been to lunch at our favorite Chinese restaurant and I put the fortune cookies in my pocket for later. When we got home I emptied the contents of my pockets on the kitchen counter.
Later, the parrots were all out and I was fixing their evening supper when behind me I heard Zorba's wings. I looked around to see him land on the counter, steal one of the fortune cookies and fly off to his basket perch hanging from the ceiling. I had forgotten they were on the counter. My initial reaction was this was not something he should have. Realizing there was no way to retrieve the fortune cookie from him without getting bitten; I got the camera and watched to see what Zorba would do.
I watched as Zorba tore off the cellophane wrapper. Then he took bites off the cookie, tossing them down to the floor. He took out the fortune, dropped the rest of the cookie and beaked the paper strip of fortune for a few seconds. He didn't eat the cookie or the cellophane wrapper. Instead he treated it more like a shredding toy. He was more interested in getting the paper fortune out of the inside of the cookie.
This is another one of those ideas where I feel the need to add a cautionary note at the end. I'm satisfied this is a safe enrichment item to give Zorba. But for your own parrot - it may not be. Here is where you need to know your parrot to determine if this item is safe to give to your own bird. |
For more great enrichment ideas check out:
www.ParrotEnrichment.com |
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Hello Friends!
First of all, let me apologize for my long absence. It's hard to believe that it's been three months since our last "monthly" newsletter. It has been quite a lifestyle change having a new baby in the house. Gizzy, my almost 7 month old African Grey, is an absolute delight with the exception of her fascination with everything electronic. I now have the pleasure of typing on a laptop with 6 missing keys and surfing the TV using a remote control with half chewed buttons. Such is the life with birds.....
We are hopefully back on track and have plans to bring lots of new articles and fun for the rest of 2011.
This month we are featuring an article from a guest author, Adrianne Mock, who presents us with an article packed with ideas on simple and inexpensive enrichments we can easily provide our birds at home. Enrichment guru Kris Porter is also back this month with her African Grey Zorba's fun Fortune Cookie enrichment idea.
While preparing this newsletter a friend questioned why, as a small business owner, I would be promoting the idea of doing anything other than the purchase of the products we sell. Sure, I'd love to sell tons more toys but the answer is very simple, it's about the birds first!
The first step to effective enrichment, to borrow another company's slogan, is to "Just Do It". Just do it by whatever means is feasible to you and your family. If that means buying pre-made toys, great! If it means designing and building your own toys, great! If it means recycling bird-safe objects at home, great! Just do it, it's about the birds!
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Lots of Stuff for Your Birds to Do
by Adrianne Mock
Parrots are active, curious and busy creatures. Wild parrots may spend hours foraging for food and water, eating, playing, flying here and there, preening themselves or each other, raising and caring for young, as well as watching for and avoiding predators. But in our home environments many individual birds may spend hours in their cages with nothing to do. And as Dr. Susan Friedman reminds us "Birds are built to behave, not be still."
Bird owners, frustrated by their bird's behavior, often flock to bird related internet sites and discussion lists as well as to their veterinarians, to behavior consultants and to their friends searching for solutions. The most common behavioral issues include the following:
- Screaming, especially for long periods of time (more than five to ten minutes at a time)
- Feather destructive behavior
- Clinging. The bird wants to constantly be with the caregiver. The caregiver has become the entertainment center for the bird!
After all the dietary, physical, physiological and medical reasons for these behaviors have been ruled out, it appears that, for many birds, the common cause for these maladaptive behaviors is a lack of activity.
As responsible caregivers and owners, we need to be sure our birds are actively engaged. Providing foraging and other stimulating activities that involve chewing, shredding and playing, often referred to as "enrichment", are important to increase the activity levels and independent play in our birds.
Read More
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Quote of the Month
"Living with animals can be a wonderful experience, especially if we choose to learn the valuable lessons animals teach through their natural enthusiasm, grace, resourcefulness, affection and forgiveness."
- Richard H. Pitcairn, American Veterinarian, Pet Nutritionist and Author
Video of the Month
Check out this curious new video of an African Grey showing off his math skills:
 | | Graupapagei Pitti löst Kettenaufgaben (Addition, Subtraktion) |
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Offer Expires: April 30, 2011 |
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