Below: Apple being cuddly
Below: Candy, a cockatiel, enjoys her ring toy.
Provide Attention and Toys
Attention: Birds are incredibly smart and social. They love interacting with people. They love to mimic the things we say or do.
We have one bird, Apple, a quaker, who coughs when we cough, laughs when we laugh, and plays a game of whistling one part of a tune and waiting for us to finish it. Then he waits for us to whistle the first part so that he can finish it. Our other birds have learned to play this game from him, and we often hear them all playing it together.
Our birds love to talk, some of their favorite phrases are "pretty bird" "hey baby" "hello" "hi" "thank you" and "apple". Apple is a bird we have had for 16 years and he is a great teacher, so all of our talking birds say "Apple" from time to time!
You never know what you will hear coming from them when you spend a lot of time with them. Several of the birds imitate a dog barking. Skipper even imitates the sound of the microwave buttons perfectly! Apple imitates other breed's calls and we often hear him singing a cockatiel song, or Bob White call.
Toys: Birds also love toys and swings. Providing them with toys they can chew gives them a way to expend their energy. Make sure toys are painted with non-toxic paint (we use food coloring to paint ours). Do not allow rope toys to become frayed; this can cause a bird to become stuck on them. Make sure toys do not have loops or rings that are small enough to get their heads stuck in. Switch out toys from time to time to give birds additional stimulation. Our birds love small foot toys and they will play with these for hours. I once heard of a bird named Jack who would throw a little ball and then try to sneak up on it and say, "get back Jack".
Perches: We make sure to provide different types of perches to keep our birds from getting sore feet. They make wooden perches, rope perches, even edible perches. Keeping a sandy perch (pedi-perch) available helps to keep their toenails trimmed.
Baths: Birds like to take baths in bowls of water. This helps to keep their feathers in good condition. With some birds, this also helps to control dust. Some birds like to be spritzed with water from a water bottle.
Poisons: Toxic fumes are fatal to a bird. Teflon cookware can release toxic fumes if it is heated with nothing in it. Some scented candles can be deadly too. Use caution when using pest controls and cleaning products. If you think your bird has been poisoned, call the National Animal Poison Control Center at 1-888-4ANI-HELP (1-888-426-4435). This is a 24-hour helpline.
We have one bird, Apple, a quaker, who coughs when we cough, laughs when we laugh, and plays a game of whistling one part of a tune and waiting for us to finish it. Then he waits for us to whistle the first part so that he can finish it. Our other birds have learned to play this game from him, and we often hear them all playing it together.
Our birds love to talk, some of their favorite phrases are "pretty bird" "hey baby" "hello" "hi" "thank you" and "apple". Apple is a bird we have had for 16 years and he is a great teacher, so all of our talking birds say "Apple" from time to time!
You never know what you will hear coming from them when you spend a lot of time with them. Several of the birds imitate a dog barking. Skipper even imitates the sound of the microwave buttons perfectly! Apple imitates other breed's calls and we often hear him singing a cockatiel song, or Bob White call.
Toys: Birds also love toys and swings. Providing them with toys they can chew gives them a way to expend their energy. Make sure toys are painted with non-toxic paint (we use food coloring to paint ours). Do not allow rope toys to become frayed; this can cause a bird to become stuck on them. Make sure toys do not have loops or rings that are small enough to get their heads stuck in. Switch out toys from time to time to give birds additional stimulation. Our birds love small foot toys and they will play with these for hours. I once heard of a bird named Jack who would throw a little ball and then try to sneak up on it and say, "get back Jack".
Perches: We make sure to provide different types of perches to keep our birds from getting sore feet. They make wooden perches, rope perches, even edible perches. Keeping a sandy perch (pedi-perch) available helps to keep their toenails trimmed.
Baths: Birds like to take baths in bowls of water. This helps to keep their feathers in good condition. With some birds, this also helps to control dust. Some birds like to be spritzed with water from a water bottle.
Poisons: Toxic fumes are fatal to a bird. Teflon cookware can release toxic fumes if it is heated with nothing in it. Some scented candles can be deadly too. Use caution when using pest controls and cleaning products. If you think your bird has been poisoned, call the National Animal Poison Control Center at 1-888-4ANI-HELP (1-888-426-4435). This is a 24-hour helpline.