Commentary on Bird Tents, Nest and Snuggle Toys

Sleeping tents & other snuggle toys are not a good idea for adult birds. In the wild, birds do not use nests to sleep in & they would only be snuggling with a mate. Nests are only used during breeding season. Providing anything that resembles a nest will at some point trigger hormonal & breeding behavior. In the case of female birds - especially small species like parakeets, lovebirds & cockatiels - sleeping tents/nests/etc. can stimulate egg laying & can lead to the bird becoming a chronic egg layer, eventually endangering the bird's health.

Sleeping tents & such can be great for baby birds, but should be discarded as soon as the bird has grown out of the baby stage. A wild baby parrot would not survive if it was allowed to hide in a nest once it is old enough to be on its own. Leaving a tent in the cage for too long can cause a bird to want to breed at too young of an age. Again, the risk is greater for female birds because it can trigger early egg laying.

Triggering hormonal/breeding behavior in a pet birds can result in unwanted egg laying, aggression, or a constant state of heightened hormones - something that is often linked to feather destructive behavior. In the wild, environmental changes are key in birds going in & out of breeding condition. In captivity, we tend to provide a stable environment year round & therefore need to be aware of possible stimulants that we accidentally provide.

(name withheld by request)

Bird in Weight Training Program

My mom took this picture of Jolly when she was a baby. It is one of my favorite pictures! Jolly loved to lay on her back in her food dish so she could better play with her foot toys! This one shows her lifting weights to tone up those thighs!!

Kermit... or is it Kremit?

Kermit was the second baby that my parents handraised from Coco and Charlie. He did not get a lot of handling as a baby because shortly after weaning my mother was hospitalized and then not able to do a lot with the birds. I got Kermit when he was 4 years old. Of all the parrots I have known, Kermit has been the most brilliant talker! He constantly amazed me with the things that he said and their appropriateness. When we were packing the birds up to move them to Iowa, my dad opened the big door in the bird room, which the birds had never seen open before. Kermit immediately said, "Shut the door, it's cold in here!" When I was handfeeding Java and Kiwi, he loved to eat the left over baby food. One day he was anxiously hopping from one foot to the other saying his name over and over as a reminder to me that he was waiting his turn. Finally, in an exasperated tone of voice he said, "Why do you think it's taking so long?" The next day, when Alissa brought him over to see the babies while I was feeding them, he said, "Why don't you just get them off the table?" He always seemed to know what he was saying, and would come up with the most appropriate things, entire sentences that we had never heard him use before or probably not ever use again! One of the baby's landed on his cage on day, frightening Kermit. He flipped upside down on his perch and cried out, "Oh No! What do I do now?" He loved to play peek A boo with company, ducking his head around the corner of his cage. One day, when my niece came to visit he stood on top of his cage and said, "Look up" and he twisted his head to look at the ceiling, he followed with "Look out" and he swung his head to look out the window, and then he said, "Look down" and he bent over his cage to look at the floor. I have no idea where he learned that but his words definitely corresponded with his actions.

Kermit had not been handled a lot, and at four years of age had a reputation for giving some fairly good bites. We worked with him and he became the most loving bird of all. He went to live with Maxine who had recently lost her Amazon parrot who was about 65 years of age. She had known him since she was a little girl. Sorry the camera was sideways. I don't know how to straighten out a video clip. You can see what a sweet bird Kermit came to be!!

Baby Listens carefully

I should have labeled the pictures immediately. Now I don't remember which baby is which. You can see Java and Kiwi in the background. They always paid close attention when I worked with the babies. They never seemed jealous, just helpful! Java always had comments and helpful suggestions. When I reach to pick up a baby, he tells them to "Step up!" He praises them when they do what I want! He tells them to come to me with his cute "Come here!" When I give them something to eat, he says, "There you go!" When the baby's were just learning to fly, he said "oh oh!" when they landed badly. One day when #3 was heading straight for the wall, Java could see that the baby was going to crash, just before he hit the wall, Java cried out, "Oh no! Oh no!" I call Java my assistant and my commentator. It seems that it is his job to make comments on everything that happens!

The Youngest Baby

Help! I want a picture that shows their color

The baby's are very comfortable on their T-stand. They are eating better all of the time! I used Paint Shop Pro to try to get the color to be more accurate but I am afraid it gave a greenish tint to everyone. This is the only picture that I have colorized at all in this blog. The others are as natural as I can make them.

Glow in the Dark Baby

The baby's feathers have come in so beautifully, they just look like they are glowing neon! I have had a hard time getting a picture that really does justice to their new feathers! They are so hard on this first set of feathers that they don't seem to stay perfect for long!

Pretty Baby

This is the baby's first time to sit on the T-stand! The perch is a little big for them, because I bought this T-stand for Angel, who is an Umbrella Cockatoo. But the babies seemed to like it and it is such a good place for them to sit and really be able to watch and listen to their speech lesson.

This is a video clip showing the babies beginning to pick up and play with objects. They have actually been interested in them for awhile now. The clip is mostly of #1 but #3 is right beside him and #2 is back in the corner just watching. They love to pick up objects and are much like a baby in wanting to put everything in their mouths. The like to taste everything!

Handling Baby Amazon Parrots

Pretty Babies

I kind of fell down on my resolve to take pictures every day! Oh, now I wish I had because the babies just keep getting cuter every day! They have so much personality and just soak up all the attention that I give them. They all love neck scratches and push each other aside to make sure they get their turn! #3 ended up with as much red as #2!! Aren't they just gorgeous!

Family Portraits

Trying to get a good picture of these babies is worse than trying to photograph children! They are constantly moving and my camera speed is too slow to catch the best shots! So I was happy to get this one with them all looking at me and no one moving to make the picture blurry! I included the second picture so you can tell which is which. I know it now, but from my other experiences where I thought so easy to tell I have learned that memory often fails me! Look at the size of #3's feet compared to his brother who is a week older! Their feet seem to grow the fastest of anything!

The responsibilities of caring for a parrot

I am so happy with this batch of babies! They have been so healthy from the start and have just thrived! I remember when Java and Kiwi hatched, I was a nervous wreck. I had raised so many baby cockatiels I cannot even count them, but never had I hand fed a baby parrot. And to make it even more complicated, I was taking these on from the day of hatching! I worried so that I would do something wrong. I remember dreaming one of the first nights that one of them was sick, and I was carrying the newborn baby parrot around, and he was the size of a chimpanzee in my arms! It does not take a psychologist to see that the weight and enormity of the responsibility was getting to me! But with each batch that I have raised, I have learned so much and with each batch gained confidence so that I can enjoy them more!

What always weighs on my heart though, is the responsibility that bringing these birds into the world places on me to find them good homes. My son, Ryan, raised hamsters for a time when he was in 4-H. We carefully selected our breeding pairs using offspring of a many year breeding plan my brother had started. We put weeks into handling them, making sure they were tame and well socialized so they could become good pets. When it was time to find them homes, I agonized over each and every one of them. But there is no comparison in my mind between the responsibility of owning a hamster vs the responsibility of owning a parrot.

Parrots are one of the most intelligent animals on the planet. That alone makes having one in your home a real responsibility to make sure that their minds are engaged and that they are well adjusted. Combine that with the fact that parrots are challenging pets, and definitely not a pet for just anyone, then add the fact that they can live for 65-80 years, or longer. You want them to have a life where they are loved and appreciated for the long haul! One batch a year is enough for me! I have been relieved that with this number we can give each of these babies the start in life that will help to ensure they make excellent pets and live happily ever after!

#3 has his 3 week old birthday!

Even though he is a week younger than the other two, this little guy holds his own with them very well. I wonder if he will be more precocious for having to follow the footsteps of a baby so much older than himself. He definitely watches and attempts to copy what he sees his older siblings doing!

Happy Birthday #1! One month old today

It is the oldest baby's one month birthday today. I am continually amazed to see the growth and changes that these babies go through in such a short amount of time. Their intelligence and inquisitiveness reminds me so much of a human baby. They seem to take the same pleasure in their accomplishments. When one is working hard to stand fully upright and they manage to make it, I take joy with them, and they do seem to respond and appreciate the recognition. I believe this lays the groundwork for later training and hopefully give them a greater understanding of the parntership in which they find themselves.

The babies are becoming cuter every day with the covering of soft gray downy feathers! They love to be held and are very happy snuggled up under my chin. I have found that three babies are much harder to hold safely than two, which creates a problem in holding them. So what I have been doing is bringing their basket over to the sofa and then sitting and holding them while watching TV. They snuggle up under a warm blanket and gently nuzzle my chin. They are so gentle with their beaks! I feel this time of just holding them is so important to their emotional development, having taken them from their mother who would have been with them this way.

New video of the Babies

I am not sure how to embed these nice YouTube videos. So instead I will paste in the link and hope that it will take you there! Notice baby #3, who is the youngest, but who is so precocious! It never ceases to amaze me how these babies change from one day to the next, or even from the start of the day to the end of the day. It is such a miracle to see them developing. In so many ways their development parallels a human infant! Not surprising because they have the same Creator!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-KNYnV-TUc

I am really excited about all the color this baby is showing already. I have never had a baby who showed so much red at this stage! He is definitely going to be colorful! Java has a lot of red on his wings but it does not show all the time. I hope I can get a good picture of Java.

Hard to believe the difference a week makes

Baby Bird update

Lot's more color today

Today saw new changes! All of the birds are showing more color, but #2 showed the beginning of some very bright red and yellow on the front of his wings. I don't think I've ever seen so much red on a baby this age! #1 has a lot more green showing on his pin feathers today and notice the beginnings of some tail feathers!! The green tips coming out of his pin feathers look like little paint brushes dipped in emerald green!

I loved the picture of all three babies looking at the Marguerittaville sign. They definitely are alert and love bright colors! One can kind of imagine they are planning where they will go when they are ready to fly! I do believe that early stimulation of their minds helps them to develop more intelligence. I never would have thought that I would apply my background in early child development and speech therapy to the upbringing of baby parrots, but it really has helped!

Brotherly love and affection

The first picture gives a really good comparison of their sizes and development.

In the second picture, you can see where the coloring on baby #3's forehead is beginning to show. It looks like he will have more color on his head than the other two!

Here is a picture of #2 giving his older sibling an affection grooming on the face. Their awareness of one another is very clear! Baby amazons are very expressive of their emotions even from a really young age. These babies are only 3 weeks old and yet they are already beginning to use their beaks to touch, taste and feel things! The oldest one has started caressing my fingers with his beak and giving me tender little kisses.

The fourth picture is of baby #2 and #3 cuddled together. They defnitely like the closeness, which I am sure preserves their body temperatures. I am very cautious of keeping them an appropriate temperature at this stage, because they do not yet have downy covering. The room in which I care for them is in the upper 80's and they are not left out of the incubator for long at a time. But the temperature in the room is not very different from their incubator temperatures at this point. When they are fully feathered they will be able to tolerate room temperatures much better.

Aren't they just sweet?

This baby seems to be saying, "I am the oldest! Why does she insist on treating me like an infant!" Just look at my big feet! They were made for walking! Well, at least for now! But this baby is eager to get on with the business of life and if only those feathers would grow faster, he would be all for taking off for the skies!! That is not all there is to his personality though, he loves neck rubs and just melts when I offer a good beak rub and neck scratch! The beak is also changing daily, and taking on more and more of the shape of an adult Amazon beak! The lower beak is becoming more narrow and less of a "shovel!" Now why can't they just get in their feathers all nice and evenly? Those bald patches are a little embarassing! But it won't be long!

Or is it only a face that a mother could love? Again true to personality at this stage, #1 is off exploring and #2, and #3 are behaving nicely for the camera! Notice the appearance of distinct pins on #3! He will soon be hard to tell apart from the other two! The age difference on the babies is pretty easy to tell at this point because #1 is clearly showing the other two the way! They do seem to watch one another quite a bit and tend to copy cats. This has caused some problems for #3 who can't do everything his older siblings are able to do!

Family Portraits

You know how there is always one kid who won't hold still for a family portrait? Well, this is the one! #1 is already showing that incredible Amazon determination to do what he gets in his head to do! I kept repositioning the babies and #2, #3 stayed put really nice for me, but #1 continued to move himself over where he wanted to play with the shiny satiny material of the comforter. I thought he was just slipping at first but when he got there it was clear that he knew what he was doing all along!

Running away....well maybe shuffling off

#2 has been determined to get over to the toaster oven and keeps leaving the towel! Looking at that fat little body you would not think he could move anywhere very fast! I wonder how mama parrots handle this in the wild? I imagine her sharp beak is able to teach a recalcitrant baby to listen to mama pretty quickly. Here is a video clip so you can see how well he is able to move himself!

This is a picture of all three, which is hard to get without having someone moving! Typical children, aren't they? It is fun to compare them at the three different stages of development. They continue to have great appetites and seem like bottomless pits! How do the parents do it? I am talking to them constantly as I feed them and they seem to be quite attentive. I assume that at this stage they are beginning to comprehend the value of speech and like a human baby have a receptive language capability much larger than their ability to express themselves. They have one sound down pat at this point, and that is the sound they make as they beg for food!

I love the strength and personality of the youngest one! I really debated whether to leave him a week longer in the nest box, but I was not sure how Coco would handle the loss of her babies and I did not want her to take it out on the one that remained. But I am glad they all got to spend their earliest days with mama and papa who gave them such good around the clock attention and nurture. It is much easier at this stage when they do not need to be fed night and day and can go a little longer time between feedings. I am feeding them every two to three hours at this point. I watch for their crops to empty and then feed them. I have been careful not to stretch the crop to full at a time and they are emptying their crops really well. Given their grown, nice fat little bodies and activity levels, I think they are doing beautifully. I tend to be kind of a worrier when it comes to the babies. They are so vulnerable at this age.

Look at #3 lift up that big bottom!! You almost have to hold one at this stage to imagine the weight that they have on their hind ends! Of course, he is making maximum benefit of big brother to keep himself from tipping over. They are never still when they are awake, they are constantly moving, stretching, pushing. I have a video clip that I took today that I will try to post on the blog. Just think, #1 was that size and coloring just one week ago!!

#2 continues to head toward "Stanley' the pet rock. I work hard to keep the babies on the towel where they have good footing. If they get on a slippery surface they can hurt themselves when their legs splay out in all directions. I also watch their feet to make sure they are moving the toes well, and not keeping them clenched all the time. They still like to sit like this one a lot of time time, but seem to becoming more aware of managing their feet.

With the growth of pin feathers on #2 it is going to be harder to tell them apart. So far it looks like the markings on the head are going to be distinctly different! I have found with all of Coco and Charlie's babies they have more of the blue front coloring with the beautiful torquoise blue on the head and bright yellow on the head, and brighter colored feathers over the whole body, with the darker edging. None of them really have a lot of yellow on their napes and a far more colorful than Coco!

I took lots of pictures today!

This is a picture of #2 who continues to be the most curious of the three babies. It is really incredible that at this age, all three babies have such distinct personalities! The oldest baby is the most independent. He is the least likely to be found in the "huddle" with the others and will often go off on his own. The second baby seems to be the most alert and curious at this point. He is interested in looking at everything! He seemed particularly fascinated by Stanley, the pet rock that Alissa made for her dad in ceramics class. The youngest baby, not surprisingly is the most "needy" at this point and more interested in cuddling and being held. But given his age difference I think that is totally to be expected for his age.

It is hard to believe it has just been a few days since we took the babies from their nest box. They are alert and curious and showing an interest in their surroundings. They change every time I look at them!

This picture is of the oldest baby, and a comparison of the feathers from yesterday shows the incredible growth that is occurring in the emerging pin feathers. He is getting more completely covered with a soft gray down as well. They are able to walk "E.T." fashioned, and I have to keep a close eye on them every moment.

The yellow on his head is much brighter now thanit was yesterday! The beaks are also changing shape and color. When they first hatch, their bottom beak is like a large flat shovel... or like a spoon, the better to receive the food regurgitated by the mom and dad. Beaks are initially pink, but now are turning gray and will eventually turn black. Baby Amazons have black beaks which are very attractive. As they get older their beaks turn a dark gray or "wood" color. You can still see the shovel shape on his baby, but his beak is starting to look more like a parrot's beak!

At this stage the feet look enormous! I compared them to Java and Kiwi who have full grown adult feet and they are almost the same size as #1's.