Yellow collared macaw

I am sure you have heard it said before that there is a huge difference between dogs and parrots. Yes, the feathers and the wings should be the first hint. You have probably also noticed that squeaky toys and dog beds are cheaper than even the tiniest budgie toy and cage. But what about behavior, are the two really so different?

Let me tell you a story… Years back I worked for a major upscale retailer – I was an assistant manager. When the store’s general manager went home ...

Cockatiel.

It is very difficult to write, but as some of you may have read in a previous post, our cockatiel passed away on New Year’s Eve. She dive-bombed a closing door. There was no party, no hubbub, nor anything out of the ordinary. Mishka the cockatiel simply made a bad decision.

It has been a terrible shock to everyone – to me 3,600 miles away and not sure how to process this, and to my partner, who has been left with the aftershock of losing ...

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That not so fun moment when you have just received an emergency text message from fire authorities saying you’re in “immediate danger” in your present location due to an out of control bushfire. I was the blue dot (with the ring around it). The larger red circles relate to different levels of danger from a nearby bushfire. Would you know what to do if this happened to you?

We talk a lot about being disaster ready at BirdTricks because even getting people ...

Goffins cockatoo, Theo nesting in her pellet bowl. The bowl has been replaced with foraging toys for her pellets.

“Hormones” may be a bird owner’s least favorite word. It is hormones that bring on the breeding behaviors that cause peculiar routines, odd interests and sometimes intimidating aggression. The likelihood of being bitten increases dramatically and sometimes we react to their behavior in ways that results in problems that last long after the season has passed and the hormones are gone.

The funny thing about the reproductive hormones is that they are self-perpetuating. ...

Umbrella cockatoos may be quiet sometimes, but they have the capability to produce an ear-splitting scream like a dying, wounded animal.

We can’t expect our parrots to be quiet all the time. Many species are naturally noisy, such as sun conures, amazons or cockatoos. While we can train our birds that excessive screaming isn’t okay, I feel that it’s important to allow them to let off steam sometimes.

Enter the scream session…

Try making time for a sanctioned (and planned!) ...

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Blue and gold macaws

This summer I had the opportunity to meet Chris and Misty, a couple that Dave Womach worked with on a behavior consultation involving their moluccan cockatoo. They were at the Womach’s house graciously offering their time to disassemble some of the indoor cages for the Womach’s final move to Idaho.

In talking to them, I realized that Dave had managed to drive home a really important message during the consult. Chris said to me that he was relieved to find that the source of the problem was him ...