Koko is also famous for destroying things. I had to hang a shower curtain behind Koko's cage to prevent him from chewing on my wallpaper. I have plenty of holes to prove his cage was in "that" spot! *laugh* He chews on the shower curtain now, but, not on my wallpaper. Woodwork? Well, let's just say that I don't have any woodwork that is still intact in my house! It's still there, yes, just with pieces missing!
I also own a Yellow Cockatiel, Herbie. Herbie was living with my grandparents. We went on vacation earlier this year, and took her there before we left.. We took Koko with us. Well, my grandparents fell in love with her, so, I decided to let her stay for awhile. She has been a changed bird (so has my grandparents! *smile*) She and my grandfather were nearly inseparable! He talked to her constantly. She has learned how to whistle at him, we think it's her way of "calling for him". He responds to her whistling, and she wwould fly from her cage right to him. She never did this before, with me. We do think she was a little scared of larger birds. But, she got along just fine there, so, we left her there until they can no longer care for her. I guess we bird people/animal lovers sure do rub off onto people, don't we?
As I'm sure you can tell by the above, birds are a joy, but, they are also a major responsibility! If you have never had children, then, you won't know what I'm talking about. But, if you have, then, you will understand when I say that you will have to "child-proof" your house x 10!!! Really!
#1.....Cockatiels or Budgies (sometimes known as a Parakeet) are good, first
time birds. You can find them in a variety of colors. They are just as sweet as the bigger birds. They just don't scream like the bigger ones and don't cause AS MUCH damage with their chewing as the bigger ones. But, they still chew on things, just the same as any other bird.
#2....Be sure to ask the person/pet store you are buying the bird from, everything that you can. If they are selling you a bird, they should be able to answer each question you have. Never be afraid to ask questions. You can never know too much, and you never know it all!
#3....I highly recommend a hand fed baby! That means that sometime after the
birds layed the eggs, or after the chick was hatched, the person who owned the birds, took the babies and feed them their self. There are a number of different formulas to feed a baby bird. Hand feeding is just like getting up every two hours with a baby, but, you have a bird that is well adapted to humans. They will bond with you, if you are hand feeding them.
#4....Be sure to find out what kind of pellets/seeds the bird is eating. I recommend pellets to be fed to birds. You can buy a number of different types of pellets from many pet supply retailers. Be sure that you also feed plenty of fruits and vegetables. They are excellent sources of vitamins that your bird will need. This should be provided fresh daily, along with fresh water daily!
#5.....Be sure that you have the right size of cage for your bird. They require a lot of room, especially the larger birds. A good rule of thumb is, measure the wingspan of the bird (this is the measurement from the tip of one, outstretched wing to the other, outstretched wing), and add at LEAST 6". I prefer to add a foot, or more, if your house can accomidate a cage that size. This will give the bird plenty of room to be able to "excersize" it's wings.
#6....Be sure to provide plenty of toys for your bird to play with. There are a lot
of toys out there for your bird. Most people recommend changing your birds toys (giving him/her a new one) once a month. You don't have to hang them all in the cage at once. Hang one or two, then, the next month, replace those with some new ones. If your bird hasn't destroyed them, just put them away to use another month. Toys come in a mixture of different shapes, sizes, colors, to suit your bird. The bigger the bird, the bigger, and more expensive, the toy.
One last thing that I would like to add is something about Pet Stores. Some owners of pet stores don't often treat their birds with the love and kindness that they deserve. If you go into a pet store that sells birds, and those birds don't look very healthy, chances are, they aren't. Unfortunately, this is a major problem around the country. Please, if you encounter one of these types of pet stores, don't buy anything from this. If you do, you are supporting their inability to create a better environment for those birds. I will give you an example of a pet store that did not care about their birds.
One day, I entered a fairly new pet store. I was impressed for about 5 seconds. I had walked directly to the birds that they had. Two cockatiels and one Scarlet Macaw. The Macaw was in a big cage. But, the only food that I saw in this cage was seeds. All of the seeds had been ate, there were only shells left. This bird was so hungry, he was chewing on the hulls of sunflower seeds. There was no fresh water in his water dish either. It was so dirty, I wouldn't have drank it if there was NO water left on this earth.
To this birds right were the cockatiels. They were housed in a budgie cage together! They also had only seeds that were gone, with nothing left but the hulls. And, they too, had no fresh water. I was just so sick that I couldn't stand it. If money had allowed me at the time, I would have taken every one of those birds home with me. But, unfortunately, I was not in a situation to do so.
I immediately turned to the man who was working there and asked if the owner was present. He said that he was the owner. I asked him if he knew that every one of those birds were out of food and fresh water. He said he did. He hadn't yet got around to feeding them. I asked him if he fed them anything but seeds. He replied that on occasion, when they were good, he fed them "treats". I asked him what those treats were. He said they were seeds, mixed with dehydrated fruits and vegetables. I asked him if he EVER gave them fresh fruits and vegetables or any type of "healthy" food besides seeds. He said that the only type of food available in our area was seeds. (In my years of owning birds, there has never been a local place to buy pellets. Yet, I WAS able to order them through some Nationally known magazines.)
Needless to say, I cursed him up one wall, and down the other. I stomped out of the store, after getting nowhere with this man and went straight home. I called my local Sheriff's Office to get the number for the Human Society. I called them. Unfortunately, they had too few people in their department for the wide range that their office covered, so, I was told that if they could manage it, they would look into it. I felt that this was wrong, but, I do understand that their office was located some 5 hours from the pet store. I was just happy to get a "We'll look into it."
I am happy to report that six months later, out of curiosity, I stopped by this pet store. They were gone. Apparently, shut down. The man had opened this pet store as a "hobby". Seeing fit to come in as he pleased, which might not have been for days.
This type of pet store should NOT be supported in any way, shape or form. Anything that you buy in that store, be it food, toys, or what ever, is supporting them. So, please, don't buy from these pet stores!!!
This Wings Around the World site is owned by Amy Summers . Want to join the Wings Around the World? Wings graphics copyright 1997 by Lori Bucevicius |
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