Cockatiel.

Each of my birds has been instrumental in teaching me something, be it the importance of certain aspects of their lives, like training, or that persevering does pay off. But Mishka the cockatiel taught me nearly everything I know about birds. It was usually slow going. She was not the best teacher, true, but I was not always a fast-study, either.

I mentioned in my first post, here, that she – who is actually a he, by the way! – came to ...

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Can dogs, cats and birds live together?

Photos and videos of birds with other pets tend to start wars on social media. There are many people that swear their dogs and/or cats are best friends with their birds but there are just as many tragic stories where those friendships end in disaster. It’s a tough topic.

There are two main reasons to be concerned about letting your birds interact with your dogs and cats. The first and most obvious is the fact that you’re trying ...

Wax warmer photo from amazon.com

This question comes up often and creates enough confusion that it merits a blog post.

When I am asked questions about the safety of a product, I get online and I research. I consider the opinions of all sources, both pro and con, and take what information they offer and further dissect it.

Because most of the products in question are on the market for human use, there is precious little out there that is directly relative to birds. This means looking hard at not only the ingredients ...

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Budgies

We may talk about large birds here a lot at Birdtricks.com, but the fact is that we are also small bird keepers and we have learned that the smallest of our birds sometimes occupy the largest places in our hearts. My cockatiels are beyond precious to me.

Something that really bugs me is when the small birds are treated like second class citizens. Even though the message about appropriate parrot diet and enrichment has reached more and more people, somehow the small birds are still being overlooked.

People getting larger birds are ...

Mating ringnecks form my.opera.com

Q: I only have one bird, a green cheeked conure. I woke up this morning and there was an egg in the cage. How is this possible? When will the egg hatch?

-Gary M., Ann Arbor, MI

A: The appearance of an egg can shock the owner of a single bird. And why wouldn’t it? We understand that babies are the result of male and female relations. They do not just appear. The confusion seems to come from the idea that an egg contains a baby bird. It ...

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My elderly galah, Cocky Boy is in position for my annual Christmas pic.

My birds aren’t getting a stack of awesome new toys for Christmas this year. Sounds a bit lousy of me, doesn’t it? I’ve got a good reason for this though.

Christmas is actually a very stressful time for a lot of pet birds. It definitely is for my flock. My extended family tend to descend on my house at Christmas for a large gathering. It doesn’t end there either. The day after ...