New Parrot

[Katzpur]

I'm terrified of birds.

That's weird -- especially coming from you. Why is that? Did you have a Hitchcockian experience as a child, or what?

 

[jamaesi]

Is canned baby food good for them? I didn't even think of using it.

Yep, it's good for them. I try to get the organic kinds without artificial preservatives. I like feeding her baby/toddler foods because they are human quality foods- I'm a little iffy about what goes into a lot of food/treats for animals.

I'm not sure about the diets of conures, but I'll sometimes get some that have meat in them for Squishy. Bare-eyed cockatoos eat bugs and carrion and whatever they can kill in the wild so it doesn't hurt her to have a little meat. A lot of birds do need animal protein.

Squishy's favourite food is... chicken. It never fails to horrify people, LOL!


And I found the name for the Finger Foods I was talking about, Gerber Graduates, especially the "Yogurt Melts". I try to give Squishy yoghurt every so often because even though parrots shouldn't have dairy, they can have yoghurt because of the bacteria in it that's good for them. When Squishy was a baby she was underweight (no matter how much or what I fed her) and had a few mild respiratory infections*- she's perfectly healthy now (normal weight that's just a little on the low side) and I'd like to keep her that way. She won't eat normal yoghurt but she'll happily nom the melts.

*Speaking of parrots and their respiratory systems, birds are pretty much all lung which is the reason you can't have any sort of fumes/perfumes/air fresheners/anything burning around them/telfon (which is in EVERYTHING- heaters, hair dryers, lampshades, cookery, lightbulbs can be coated in them...). Using a cool air humidifier in the room they're in is really good for their lungs (just as long as it doesnt blow directly on them), and cool air humidifiers don't usually have teflon in them.

Here are pictures of her cage!

Looks awesome! I see there's a stereo right next to the cage, you should see if she likes music. Squishy likes country and metal music (she'll dance to metal, LOL!), and my budgie likes rap music, she'll chirp along to the songs.

Hey, Jamaesi! I'd love to hear the story again about how Squishy got mad when she didn't get to watch Hannah Montana and what she does when she is watching her.

Oh, LOL! Yeah the first time I realized she likes the show was one evening when it was coming on and I was between her and the TV, she threw an epic temper tantrum trying to get me away from the TV. When it comes on she'll flap around until she's got a good view of the TV and settle in to watch. :3 I used to be able to trick her with playing the theme song off YouTube but she's smart enough to know the TV schedule- and since she knows when it should be on, she gets cranky until you put it on TV. I know a couple who has an African Grey parrot who says "Wanna watch Big Bird!" whenever Sesame Street is supposed to be on and the TV isn't on for him. It's hell when the station rearranges their schedules because it's a little hard to explain that to a parrot who wants something RIGHT NOW.

 

[Stellify]

Yep, it's good for them. I try to get the organic kinds without artificial preservatives. I like feeding her baby/toddler foods because they are human quality foods- I'm a little iffy about what goes into a lot of food/treats for animals.

I'm not sure about the diets of conures, but I'll sometimes get some that have meat in them for Squishy. Bare-eyed cockatoos eat bugs and carrion and whatever they can kill in the wild so it doesn't hurt her to have a little meat. A lot of birds do need animal protein.

Squishy's favourite food is... chicken. It never fails to horrify people, LOL!


And I found the name for the Finger Foods I was talking about, Gerber Graduates, especially the "Yogurt Melts". I try to give Squishy yoghurt every so often because even though parrots shouldn't have dairy, they can have yoghurt because of the bacteria in it that's good for them. When Squishy was a baby she was underweight (no matter how much or what I fed her) and had a few mild respiratory infections*- she's perfectly healthy now (normal weight that's just a little on the low side) and I'd like to keep her that way. She won't eat normal yoghurt but she'll happily nom the melts.

*Speaking of parrots and their respiratory systems, birds are pretty much all lung which is the reason you can't have any sort of fumes/perfumes/air fresheners/anything burning around them/telfon (which is in EVERYTHING- heaters, hair dryers, lampshades, cookery, lightbulbs can be coated in them...). Using a cool air humidifier in the room they're in is really good for their lungs (just as long as it doesnt blow directly on them), and cool air humidifiers don't usually have teflon in them.




Looks awesome! I see there's a stereo right next to the cage, you should see if she likes music. Squishy likes country and metal music (she'll dance to metal, LOL!), and my budgie likes rap music, she'll chirp along to the songs.


Oh, LOL! Yeah the first time I realized she likes the show was one evening when it was coming on and I was between her and the TV, she threw an epic temper tantrum trying to get me away from the TV. When it comes on she'll flap around until she's got a good view of the TV and settle in to watch. :3 I used to be able to trick her with playing the theme song off YouTube but she's smart enough to know the TV schedule- and since she knows when it should be on, she gets cranky until you put it on TV. I know a couple who has an African Grey parrot who says "Wanna watch Big Bird!" whenever Sesame Street is supposed to be on and the TV isn't on for him. It's hell when the station rearranges their schedules because it's a little hard to explain that to a parrot who wants something RIGHT NOW.

My stepmom recently fed chicken to her birds...my siblings, my father, and I were all:
lol!

Good to know about the baby foods, though. I'll have to keep that in mind. I know one of her favorite treats is Honey Nut Cheerios

I've tried to figure out all the stuff that's harmful for their lungs (self-cleaning ovens, hair dryers, incense, etc.), but I DID wonder about house heaters.....
are those dangerous? I don't know how I can get around it during the winter...the rooms just get too cold! Poor little thing would freeze to death, and so would I! :cover:

I can't wait to figure out what kind of music she likes....I have all kinds of things playing here, so it should be interesting to see what she does.

Haha Squishy sounds absolutely adorable! And spoiled You're very lucky to have such a wonderful companion

 

[jamaesi]

My stepmom recently fed chicken to her birds...my siblings, my father, and I were all:
lol!

Good to know about the baby foods, though. I'll have to keep that in mind. I know one of her favorite treats is Honey Nut Cheerios

I've tried to figure out all the stuff that's harmful for their lungs (self-cleaning ovens, hair dryers, incense, etc.), but I DID wonder about house heaters.....
are those dangerous? I don't know how I can get around it during the winter...the rooms just get too cold! Poor little thing would freeze to death, and so would I! :cover:

I can't wait to figure out what kind of music she likes....I have all kinds of things playing here, so it should be interesting to see what she does.

Haha Squishy sounds absolutely adorable! And spoiled You're very lucky to have such a wonderful companion

Some space heaters are dangerous. Generally an oil-filled space heater is safe but you need to contact the manufacturer to be sure there's no teflon in the heaters... here's a site with more info on heaters. When you run a heater near the parrot make sure you also run a humidifier. Oh, and make sure you clean the humidifier weekly or else mould could be a problem.

 

[vq40mastiff]

beautiful animals