Parrot Behaviour & Enrichment Consultations

Parrot Feeding Strategies - Part 1: Free Feed

2011-12-13T19:10:00.000-08:00

I was reflecting on my recent workshop day and probably the session that generates the most interest is when I discuss diet management for enrichment and training. One thing I love about this time of year is the abundance of seasonal fruits and vegies on offer for the birds. I thought this might be a good time share a few images and insights into how I feed my flock of birds. Basically I look at managing the daily food intake of my parrots in three different contexts...

Free Feed: Where food is freely available in bowls. This feed strategy represents `low behavioural criteria' for access.
Enrichment Feed: Where food is presented away from bowls and in contexts such as foraging toys, F&V kebabs, or scatter feed throughout the enclosure. This feed strategy represents `high behavioural criteria' for access.
Training Feed: Where food that is isolated from free feed access is offered during hands-on training or handling sessions.

For this post I just wanted to touch on my `Free Feed' approach. A few tips to share...

I cut all of my fruit and vegetables that are delivered as free feed into pieces no larger than pea size. This is very successful in not only getting the birds to feed for longer durations (rather than the `taste and waste' result when feeding large chunks) but also in being better able to work out exactly how much F&V they are consuming and to work their daily intake down to the point where I am not wasting large amounts of fresh food.
Chillis are great for parrots! A lot of parrot owners aren't aware that parrots lack the capsaicin receptors in their tongue therefore they feel no heat sensation from eating peppers. Packed with Vitamin A - these are a great addition to the feed out.
I `shave' the head of broccoli and mix it through the salad as I find it's the only way to get some consumption of broccoli. Most parrots ignore it if you place it in as a chunk with the stem.
The peas and corn are just from a frozen pack - I thaw them out with warm water for a few seconds and they're good to go.

To make free feed a little more variable always place 4 to 6 different bowl holders in the enclosure to give you options each day to change the position of where they need to go to access their food bowl.

Basically my aim is for my parrots (non-lorikeets) to be consuming about 50% fresh produce, 30% formulated pellets and 20% seeds and nuts as their daily food intake.

The selection for today - Mango, Banana, Kiwi Fruit, Apple, Pear, Pomegranate, Rockmelon, HoneyDew Melon, Watermelon, Lychee, Snow Peas, Brocolli, Chillis, Peas & Corn. My parrots pretty much get this mix each day as part of their Free Feed.

My fruit and vegetable mix is always cut up into `pea' size portions and mixed into a salad for their Free Feed. This helps with monitoring intake, increasing feeding duration and reducing waste.

CWS Companion Parrot Workshop 2011

2011-12-13T18:42:00.000-08:00

Long time no post!!! Well - I've been kinda too busy to get some posts up but hopefully over the summer months I'll have time to resume the ramblings here :-) To re-start things I just wanted to give a big thankyou to the participants at the 2011 Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary Companion Parrot Workshop. This is an annual experience that I coordinate each year and last Saturday our 2011 class had an absolutely fantastic day of bird nerd immersion in all things parrot related. This particular class seemed to really take up the opportunity to acquire some enrichment products that we have available on the day courtesy of The Parrot Rescue Centre (www.parrotrescuecentre.com). I took home a few things myself (thanks Zarita ;-) and I think I've finally found the ultimate `lasting' chewable toy for my Macaws. Zarita's partner Jamie Carpenter is the man behind the tools behind the `Natural Toys' that are made by PRC and one particular product - the `Natural Boing Large' has been a hit with Bonita and Maya since I placed it in their aviary on Monday. Nothing overly special about the Macaws getting something to chew up - the difference here is that it's Wednesday and it's still there! My Macaws generally work on the principle of `the more expensive it is - the quicker we can destroy it'. I sometimes kinda feel like I may as well open up my wallet and just give them a few 50's to chew up and get it over and done with (not that I ever really have 50's in my wallet these days). The Natural Boing though has been a winner - both for maintaining their destructive perseverance (a good thing!) and it's longevity thus far. Compared to the $25 bag of various foot toys that they turned into wood chip in less than an hour (seriously) these boings are better bang for the buck. If you are keen to get your parrots some enrichment products for Christmas then definitely go and check out the PRC Shop - they've got everything a parrot wants to see under their tree. Thanks to Zarita and Bella for the set up of the enrichment stand at the workshop!!!

Bonita getting stuck into her PRC Natural Boing Large - a ripper of an enrichment item for large macaws!!!

The Tender Lovin’ Towel Hold

2011-09-20T16:46:00.000-07:00

I was going to start this post off with `It never ceases to amaze me…’ but ya know what? When it comes to hearing about really outdated and downright destructive advice given to parrot owners it really doesn’t amaze me - I've heard it all and keep hearing it. The tragedy is that bad advice is common advice – good advice is still the exception. The following is an excerpt from a recent e-mail I received that demonstrates the point I make fairly regularly here about the perpetuation of bad behaviour management information and improper handling techniques with parrots. The context is a 10-year-old Galah that has completely lost trust in human hands…

`We took him to (location removed – as tempting as it is to name and shame) and the handler there advised that this can be normal behaviour in male birds preferring a female owner. We were also shown how to use a towel to handle him properly and to scratch him on his head while holding him. Unfortunately he won't even let (name removed) scratch him then - he just keeps trying to bite him.’

Ahhh – the good old fashioned `Towel Hold’. That old chestnut. Love the way the parrot owner referred to the person giving the advice (and demonstration!) as the `handler’. Anyone getting visions of a burly kaki clad lion `tamer’/`bird whisperer'. I bet he had a multi-tool in a leather pouch on his belt too. Ahh... maybe that’s just my colourful imagination. Anyways - nothing like a relationship building session that entails wrapping your petrified polly in a towel like a big old carpet python and giving him some tender lovin’ strokes on the head to let him know that it’s all good in the hood eh? And all involved are still surprised at why such a strategy resulted in a parrot that wanted to bite them and still won’t go near them? I’m all for a good cuddle every now and then but I’m pretty sure if that involved being straight-jacketed and patted on the head repeatedly I’d probably develop a wee bit of an aversion to that experience after a while. Wouldn’t matter how many sweet nothings were being whispered in my ear. The above excerpt isn’t unusual. Last month I had another client who had purchased an Alexandrine from a pet store in Logan (Brisbane south) under the assertion that it was eating food fine and only give it some formula if it’s hungry (Huh? It was a 10 week old Alex!) and it would make a fine `friend’ for their existing pet Green-cheeked Conure (Wha?). No prizes for guessing the outcome there.

I want to note that not all bird stores fail in properly educating their staff on non-invasive, trust building approaches to behaviour management and sound husbandry information. Indeed, at my recent seminar day in Sydney, a prominent Brisbane bird retailer had basically their whole bird department team in attendance! Such a commitment to the professional development of retail staff is to be applauded (three cheers to Pet City Mt Gravatt and the staff in attendance – inspirational stuff! I’ll spend my hard earned there thanks). The problem is that proper staff training at bird retailers simply doesn’t happen outside of a few exceptional stores. The retailers can cry all they like about not being able to afford PD for their staff but I’m not sympathetic. It doesn’t cost anything to tell staff that instead of giving crap advice on behaviour and training they should instead refer the client to properly qualified sources. They stand to gain more from that person seeking out and obtaining information that actually `works’ and improves their relationship with their bird than potentially lose that client as a result of them implementing damaging advice and making the situation worse rather than better. With resources such as those produced by Barbara Heidenreich (www.goodbirdinc.com) easily available through multiple sources in Australia there’s a perfect opportunity to sell products that have sound advice rather than attempting to be the source of solutions that are a bad reflection of our past approaches to parrot care. That for my mind is a win-win approach – income generated for the retailer and a sense of responsibility for self-education placed back on the bird owner.

Got a similar tale to tell? E-mail it to me - keeps me inspired to keep doing what I do.

Regaining trust with parrots - more about relationship building, reinforcement and respect - less about UFC towel holds.

Next ABK – New Series Starting

2011-09-20T03:39:00.000-07:00

After 34 issues of ABK magazine featuring the Pet Parrot Pointers column I have covered an immense amount of ground in regards to foundational thinking for change in the way we manage the behaviour of our companion parrots. Reflecting on that scope of information sharing, I decided to put together a series of articles for the next 6 issues that take a specific species or species group focus based on my first-hand experiences in the behaviour clinic. In this series I discuss some of the common problems presented by the focus species and offer some practical advice on why those problems are seen and how to best develop some strategies to help manage them. The pre-print copy I received this week of the graphic layout for the new series looks fantastic!!! I’m hoping that these are well-received and, over time, build a small library of species-specific information on companion parrot behaviour management. The first focus species is Rainbow Lorikeets. I’ll be looking at Eclectus Parrots for the second, Major Mitchell’s Cockatoos for the third and Aratinga Conures for the fourth. Not sure about the 5th and 6th – that’s a long way off! You can subscribe at http://www.birdkeeper.com.au

The above image is a snapshot of how each specific species discussion will be summarised in the form of a clinical `case study'. Looks pretty neat! In good news agencies second week of October.

Latest ABK – Correction

2011-09-20T03:34:00.000-07:00

If you grabbed the latest issue of Australian Birdkeeper magazine you hopefully had the chance to read my latest Pet Parrot Pointers article. The article compares and contrasts the `Traditional’ model of companion parrot keeping with what I consider to be the `21st Century’ model that we all need to start advocating. It’s the first time (anywhere) that such a clear comparison has been made and I’m hopeful that the underlying philosophical approach to our keeping of parrots as companions within the framework of the 21st Century model will replace the traditional approach set that unfortunately is the most common and persistent mind set applied today. One problem with the final print version in the latest issue of ABK is a significant error in the final summary note on each of the visual models. Each model flows into an `outcome’ – a critical statement. Unfortunately, the same `outcome’ statement was printed for each model – they should be different. For those of you who may have read the article, please consider the following as the `correct’ way it should have been presented…

The `Traditional’ model (built on dominance based approaches and limited application of positive reinforcement based learning) should culminate in the outcome statement `Establishing conditions that lead to dysfunctional behaviour and challenge’. Conversely, The `21st Century’ model culminates in the outcome statement `Establishing conditions that lead to functional behaviour and success’.

If anyone would like a PDF copy of the two models then please e-mail me.

Workshop for Sydney - September 11th

2011-07-13T17:45:00.000-07:00

I had planned to only present the one workshop in 2011 - my annual gathering at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary in December. However, I received a call a few weeks ago from Dr Stacey Gelis at the new Animal Referral Hospital in Sydney with the offer to put on a set of lectures as part of some opening events for the new clinic. It was too good an opportunity to pass up and we have scheduled a really great set of presentation for the delegates to experience. Registrations will be limited so I would recommend that if anyone is thinking about going to get in touch with ARH asap via seminar@arhvets.com to ensure that you don't miss out. Cost is $95 pp (includes morning tea, lunch and the opportunity to tour the new Hospital). The scope of the day will be as follows...

A 21st Century Approach to Companion Parrot Keeping
Diet Management for Training & Enrichment of Companion Parrots
Behaviour Analysis 101 - An Introduction to How Best to Understand Behaviour and Establish Lifelong Relationships with your Companion Parrot
Non-behavioural Causes of Feather Plucking

There will also be a focused Q&A opportunity at the end of the day. Lunch and coffee break included!

Look forward to seeing you there :-)

New FIlm on WA Black Cockatoo Conservation

2011-07-01T16:16:00.000-07:00

This is going to be a really important film for generating awareness of the plight of Black Cockatoos in Western Australia. Looking forward to it being released...

Latest ABK Magazine - Managing Return to Cage Behaviour

2011-06-26T02:12:00.000-07:00

If you haven’t tracked down a copy of the latest (June/July) edition of Australian Birdkeeper Magazine then I would really encourage you to do so. In this issue we have a guest writer for the `Pet Parrot Pointers’ column – Chris Wyness from New Zealand. Chris and his wife Paula are very dedicated birdkeepers who have established a large flock of parrots with whom they interact with each day. Most of their parrots are kept as pairs or within a small species group and they benefit from an excellent 21st Century approach to their management and care. Some time ago Chris got in touch with me to discuss issues he was having with his Red-tailed Black Cockatoo `Zulu'. Over time, Zulu had become reluctant to return to his enclosure after the late afternoon/early evening communal flight time. Chris and I workshopped some behaviour theory, training philosophies and strategy approaches to help get Zulu back on track. Thanks entirely to the reflective, considered and positive reinforcement based approaches that Chris put in place he now has Zulu keen and eager to return to his enclosure each night. It's a really valuable read for all parrot owners (particularly with flighted parrots) and one that I am indebted to Chris and his wife Paula for sharing. If you have a good story to share about managing the behaviour of your companion parrot then I would love to hear about it. It may just end up helping others learn through your experience in the pages of ABK Magazine!

Aviary `Re-scaping'

2011-06-26T02:04:00.000-07:00

It’s been a busy time over the past week with some major re-perching happening around the aviaries as well as an overdue re-substrating of the Macaw flight. I have a preference for `Decomposed Granite’ as an aviary flooring. It’s earthy in colour and texture, compacts hard, drains well, easy to surface rake and maintain and is perfectly safe for birds. Our only problem up here is limited supply and relatively high cost. The alternative, and one that I have used for many years (and many other aviculturists), is crusher dust. It has many of the same qualities as decomposed granite but in its normal form is a blue-grey colour and isn’t as aesthetically natural looking as decomposed granite. Needing to go with whatever was available I ordered a couple of cubic metres of crusher dust to be delivered and much to my surprise was greeted with a sensational looking `red’ variety. It looks fantastic in the aviaries and is just the same as regular crusher dust but its source material is a different type of rock. The images below show the difference. The top image is the new aviary flooring with the red variety and the bottom image is another aviary with the regular blue variety.

Macaw flight with `red' variation of crusher dust for aviary floor

Amazon flight with normal `blue' colour crusher dust for aviary floor

Yellow... Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo

2011-05-18T22:47:00.000-07:00

I've posted previously about a red mutation African Grey breeding in South Africa - now it's time for an Australian example. Whilst I'm not a keeper of mutation parrots myself, pure bred (non-hybridised) examples of colour mutations in parrots are certainly fascinating from a genetics study. A buddy of mine recently bred a particularly stunning example of what happens when those alleles throw out something out of the ordinary. The image below is of a mutation Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus funereus). First bred in captivity in Australia? I'm not sure - I forgot ask! Too busy getting over how completely off the richter this thing looks compared to a `normal' version...

So...How far have we come?

2011-03-18T05:02:00.000-07:00

At the Parrots 2008 Convention I gave a presentation titled `Taking the Next Step: Perspectives on the Keeping of Parrots as Pets’. Pretty darn good presentation I thought. It was one of two presentations being given as concurrent sessions and a few punters stuck around to hear what it was all about. Either that or the other session just happened to lack the after lunch appeal of the worst timeslot of the day so they stayed put to ruminate and catch a few Z’s on the marginally better seating on offer in my room. Besides - why move when staying put means a shorter walk if you win something at the end of day raffle draws? If you ever get asked to do that post-cheap buffet lunch timeslot at a speaking convention do yourself a favour and make up some excuse as to why you can’t do it. It really is a killer. I’ve been stuck there a few times at aviculture conventions that I’ve presented at and I now feel I’ve paid my dues. I want to be upgraded to the post-jam scones and dry biscuits morning tea timeslot if I ever get asked again. At least at that time most of the delegates are looking at you with eyes like a possum caught in headlights thanks to the caffeine hit from the ubiquitous Caterer’s Blend International Roast on offer. Gives you the impression that they’re `into it’ even if they aren’t. Anyway, in that presentation I had a slide that used the question `How far have we come?’ in reference to our management of companion parrots. The slide featured a quote on parrot keeping from one of the early 20th century works on aviculture written by the Marquess of Tavistock, a British aviculturist who was undoubtedly ahead of his time. I have an original printing of his 1929 reference `Parrots and Parrot-like Birds in Aviculture’. It makes for a fascinating read when you consider that it was written almost 100 years ago – particularly when you read it in light of that simple question - `How far have we come?’ The answer, as I tried to give it during my presentation in 2008, is… probably not as far as we think we have. The following might serve as a 2011 example of how/why I think that’s still true.

About two or three times a year I find some time to check out various online parrot discussion forums to see what’s happening out there in the companion bird community – what’s topical, and what advice is being given for working on managing behaviour problems. I always assume that some quantum leaps will have been made concerning the way that both behaviour and the consequences being applied by parrot owners for their bird’s behaviour are being understood, and how the discussion community is approaching/supporting problem issues raised. There has definitely been some really uplifting integration of a lot of `positive reinforcement’ centered advice, thanks largely to the work of people such as Barbara Heidenreich. You can also come across some decent cracks at using behaviour science and operant conditioning terminology – no doubt as part of that wonderful cultural shift generated by the inspirational Dr. Susan Friedman.

Unfortunately, there is also a lingering lack of progress in either department. That in itself doesn’t usually concern me. Usually the most offensive posts on chat boards come from the person who simply lacks the education and foundational understandings to begin with. Can’t blame them – usually. What does bother me is when posts that demonstrate a very clear lack of understanding about behaviour and how to best manage the behaviour of our parrots following a least intrusive, most positive hierarchy of strategies go unchecked by fellow forum members who are indeed reasonably well-educated and up-to-date with the latest information and teachings. I realize that for the sake of world peace, love, bed-ins etc that we’re all a little hesitant to start our own Middle Eastern conflict at `chataboutyourparrotproblems.com’. But sometimes ya really do shake your head at how some of the absolute crap that some people post is received and responded to. That brings me to the subject of this here Blog post. Here’s a little dialogue I came across from my most recent excursion into the land of such luminaries as `parrotluva78’, `ownedbyaparrot81’ and `IluvConures4eva’ (God I hate aliases. Just use your darn name people. Your parents thought it was a good one and besides, we all know you’ll only `luv’ conures until you become `ekkiegirl4eva’. Sheesh). For the following excerpts the bird name has been removed to protect the innocent parrot. Everything else appears as it was posted (I did fix some of the punctuation and grammar – couldn’t help it folks, teacher thing).

Post: `My parrot will NOT stop screaming!! He’s been doing it for the past 6 weeks!! We’ve squirted him, screamed at him, comforted him, loved him, gave him food, flicked his beak, said no, covered him up, put him outside, we've tried everything!!! He starts at 8am and doesn't stop till 8pm. I’m going to either throw him out the darn front door or sell the bastard!!!’

Reply: `Well for a start you have reinforced his bad behaviour by doing everything you said you did. When he screamed you did something. To you it was punishment, to him it was attention.

My suggestion would be to put ear plugs in for a while and make your whole family do it and maybe put him somewhere a little out of the way so everytime you come into sight it is not necessarily a reward to him. It might take a few weeks to curb this but honestly you have been reinforcing him without knowing it.

Also if you can ignore him and literally not go near him when he is screaming then when he is quiet you rush over and praise him and give him treats, really lavish him, but you must totally ignore him when he is screaming. If you can do this you will also find his screaming will probably get worse for a while, possibly a few weeks, because he is not getting the attention of you or someone coming to his cage to do something exciting to him. He will almost certainly scream more and louder because it is not working anymore. But really try hard to lavish praise and treats when he is quiet even for a few seconds to start off with. You need to start in small steps and being quiet for say 5 seconds might be your first step and then gradually lengthen the time. It can work but it is going to take some time and patience and it will take for everyone in your house to work together.

Another thing to think about... Has anything new happened, anything?? A new pet?? New furniture? New hair colour?? New nail colour?? Changed furniture around?? New toy/s in his cage?? Look back to when it started. Maybe there is a clue there as to what might have started it off.

But honestly squirting him or yelling at him, or covering his cage, or putting him outside all of these things is "someone coming to him and giving him some sort of attention". Even if to you it is punishment, to him it is attention and it is exciting and he "thinks" his screaming is working. Did that make sense at all???

Well… not to me it didn’t. Obviously the person who wrote the initial post could probably do with some quality time away in rehab if they think that screaming at, flicking, squirting, covering up and sending the bird outside are reasonable responses to an unwanted change in their bird’s behaviour – regardless of how annoying it might be. Actually, rehab’s probably a reasonable proposition for anyone who would type that initial post for everyone on the internet to get a bird’s eye view of their insanity. Sure is a weird world we live in.

But how is this person supposed to learn just how potentially damaging those consequences for behaviour can be when the responses to such posts fail to properly explain the differences between reinforcement and punishment? Or the critical importance of the trust account between a parrot owner and their bird? Or how behaviour modification strategies with an antecedent arrangement focus are exponentially more effective than those that are too focused on consequences when it comes to our parrots? Or simply that being squirted, flicked, covered and yelled at is actually not the sort of attention a parrot is looking for at all! Can’t imagine I’d get too `excited’ about copping a flick or a squirt to the face every time I opened my mouth. Think I might actually end up pretty pissed off at the person delivering those little `punishers’. Whilst I’m sure the responder had every good intention – they really need to revisit `reinforcement vs punishment 101’. I'm kinda thinking that if I was that parrot that the `out the front door option' would be about the best one on offer. Says parrot to human... `Just make sure you shut it behind you when you crawl back inside won't ya!'

I won’t bother re-inventing the wheel here by going over all the alternative pathways that should be considered by someone dealing with an extreme noise issue with their bird. My advice on how discussion board users can better support one another in these situations was given in an older post (Feb 2010). This time around I really just want us all to reflect on how we can achieve better behaviour management outcomes with our birds when we put aside our culturally ingrained compulsion to solely consider the consequences for unwanted behaviour as our magic, quick-fix strategy and instead really empower ourselves with some reflection on careful antecedent arrangement for achieving alternative behaviour first. Hopefully if the discussion board junkies start chatting in those terms I’ll fell a little better about the answer to that question - `How far have we come?’

Stranger than fiction...

2011-02-28T02:47:00.000-08:00

About a year ago I added a Nanday Conure to our flock, primarily with a view to having `Nandy' (yep - that's her name, full marks to me for creativity) provide some stimulation in our large flight for our Green-winged Macaw `Maya'. We obviously plan on pairing Maya up with a `real' Macaw sometime in the future (rather than a parrot that `thinks' it's a Macaw) but knowing that the two species groups - Aratinga Conures and Ara Macaws share many behavioural and biological similarities I took a punt on a little Nanday filling a social/stimulation gap for the big girl. I should qualify that the only reason such a plan was even feasible was the size of the enclosure. Integration of mixed species flocks can be loaded with problems but the ultimate variable that can set up success or failure is the enclosure size and the level of opportunity for the inhabitants to establish their own spatial comfort and access to their own resources. Sure enough, we observed plenty of aggression from the Macaw towards the Nanday initially but in every circumstance the Nanday was simply able to fly to an alternative perching area and the aggression didn't extend beyond displays and the odd squawk from the Macaw to let Nandy know that she wasn't welcome on the same perch. Over time we saw the spatial distance between the birds lessen and the level of tolerance on Maya's part increase. We also observed `mirroring' of behaviour between the birds. When one would feed, the other would do likewise - same for browsing, preening, drinking etc. All signs of comfort and acceptance of other birds in the environment.

Over the past 6 months the relationship between the birds took on another dimension. I walked out to the aviaries one day and caught a little `mutual' preening going on. Well, maybe not `mutual' - more a case of a Green-winged Macaw kicking back and being `serviced' by her Nanday slave. I've caught them a few times since and as soon as they see me they stop, move apart and start rearranging themselves like two sheepish teenagers caught in the act. It's very amusing to watch and although such situations are not uncommon in captive parrots it still seems to look completely ridiculous! Another variable was added to the equation about 3 months ago with the addition of a male Nanday Conure that we acquired with a view to pairing up with Nanday. That didn't go so well initially as both Maya and Nandy ganged up on the poor little guy. I removed Nandy from the enclosure as she was the main instigator in the aggression. We kept them separated for two weeks while the new guy gained his flight confidence and learnt the boundaries of life with a Macaw. We re-introduced Nandy and although she went back to being aggressive towards her `arranged' partner, she seemed less persistent and he was more confident in handling the situations. Over the past 4 weeks the Nandays have actually formed a very tight pair bond, interrupted only by a few daily `excursions' on the side when Nandy is summonsed by Maya for her daily grooming session. I took a quick snapshot of the two of them today. Unfortunately, as soon as I appear they separate but imagine that little green Nanday in the pic above up on the wire at head level with Maya giving her a going over - hilarious! Stranger than fiction? not really - this stuff does indeed happen fairly commonly in captivity. Pretty captivating nonetheless.

Our dilemma now is that we have a pair of Nandays blatantly trying to breed (even without a nestbox). Hopefully we can work something out for Maya to have a replacement buddy now that her preening mate has found `greener' pastures elsewhere. Anyone interested in Nandays? I may have some babies this time next year!

The WIld Cafe

2011-02-28T02:16:00.000-08:00

We have a resident flock of around 15 Sulphur-crested Cockatoos that divide their day between 5 or 6 properties adjoining ours. The primary reason why they have become permanent residents is simple - they have plenty of access to every resource they need. Food, water and nesting sites. It doesn't hurt that a neighbour of ours supplementary feeds them every day but they still partake is accessing plenty of natural foods - and the occasional dessert of non-indigenous cuisine on offer, thanks to what we've planted. In the most recent example, they decided that the time was right to hit our passionfruit vine. I was alerted to this via the sound of loud banging on the roof of our aviaries. When I ventured out to investigate I was confronted by at least a dozen Sulphurs gleefully extracting the choicest passionfruits from the vine, getting stuck into the contents, and then doing their best to annoy my birds by discarding the casings on top of them.

What I found interesting was the stage of development of the passionfruit they were taking. It wasn't the nice ripe yellow ones, but the fruit that was probably a week or two away from being fit for human consumption. Like most examples of parrots eating fruits in the wild, the optimum stage of development that is preferred by the birds is quite different from what we tend to deliver to our pets. If you're struggling with getting your parrots to sample some healthier food alternatives to seed then it's worth trying slightly unripe produce (providing it is known to be non-toxic of course). You might find that whilst it doesn't exactly suit your palate it might just be relished by your birds!

New ABK Magazine - Get it!

2011-02-28T02:03:00.000-08:00

Hey - I missed February! Well, I didn't really - it just kinda went by and every time I thought about doing some blog entries I was hijacked by my kids. Happens when you have three of them - all still in nappies. Anyways - if there's one thing you shouldn't miss it's the latest Australian Birdkeeper magazine. Why?... Hmmm - plenty of great articles - including a really cool `Part 1' article in the Pet Parrot Pointers column. I discussed it in one of my January blog entries but I got the release date all wrong. The current issues featuring the first part of the article is out now - Feb/Mar. It will be followed by Part Two (which I just finished penning today - finally beat a deadline) in Apr/May. If you keep forgetting to get to the newsagent then subscribe - that way it comes in the mail and you get before everyone else! Check it out at http://www.birdkeeper.com.au/subscribe

Think… Before asking

2011-01-30T16:26:00.000-08:00

I recently did a photo session with ABK photographer Peter Odekerken for an upcoming addition to the ABK `A Guide to…’ series that will focus on the Amazon Parrot group. The Amazona are my favourite genus of psittacines so I’m really looking forward to the arrival of the book – hopefully mid year some time. Looking back at some of the photos that Peter took I pulled out two that show reasonably well the importance of body positioning when making the `step up’ request with our parrots. Watching yourself handle your parrots is an excellent eye opener. I remember when I was first at university studying teaching and we had to video tape ourselves and critique our teaching style. I was horrified at all the things I was completely unaware of that I was doing that were really poor examples of how to communicate effectively with a group of students. If you can get someone to video you working with your birds you really should do it - and sit back and watch objectively to see where you can improve your communication skills.

For me, `step up’ is always a request – one that my parrots have the choice to respond to. Antecedent arrangement (setting the environment up so that the behaviour you are keen to capture is best able to be achieved) is critical in facilitating the desired response to the request. Before asking a parrot to `step up’ (by presenting established visual and verbal cues) consider the following mental `checklist’ to make sure you’re setting yourself and the parrot up to succeed…

What do your observations of his body language tell you? Consider his level of observable acceptance of your presence, receptiveness towards your hands, and interest in any reinforcer that you may be presenting. If the body language indicators aren't suggesting that he's keen to interact with you then it's right here that you take a step back and re-evaluate how you have arranged your antecedents.

Are you asking him to step up or down from a position that is uncomfortable for him and therefore resulting in him needing to use his beak to assist with balance or increasing his level of hesitancy in movement? Consider your hand positioning and the simple mechanics of how a parrot most comfortably moves. You might be more successful if you shift the parrot to a different perch or position before asking him to step onto your hand.

Are your hands positioned too close to his body inadvertently resulting in negative reinforcement to achieve the step up? Hesitancy (or latent response to the cue) can often prompt an impatient trainer to move in closer to the bird and place their hand onto the abdomen to coerce a step up. This can result in a loss of trust between parrot and handler and should be avoided.

Have a look at the following two photos that illustrate some of the points above…

Lola is being asked to step down from a perch with poor hand positioning that is resulting in her being hesitant to move from a safe, secure and predictable platform to an uneven and moving one. It's all wrong - she's unbalanced, uncomfortable, the hand is too close to her body and the mechanics of an easy forward motion are actually being impeded - not assisted. She resorts to leading with her beak – which can often result in a bite occurring due to fear and uncertainty. At this point a poor handler resorts to thinking about `height dominance' and `Oh.. she's being stubborn'. Uh-uh - this is an uncomfortable and uncertain bird - nothing to do with `dominance' peoples ;-)

I've moved to a different position in the aviary and given her time to come over to me at a different perch. Here you can see hand positioning that perfectly facilitates the best and most comfortable bio-mechanical movement of the parrot, and therefore the position that is most likely to result in a positive response to the cue.

Companion Parrot Workshops… Anything in 2011?

2011-01-30T16:14:00.000-08:00

2010 was a huge year for me – both personally and professionally. The Companion Parrot Workshop went on the `road’ again and with the help of a very dedicated Lisa Kearney from Tasmania we had some fantastic days of learning in both Hobart and Melbourne. My sincerest thanks to Lisa and everyone who attended those workshops – you were brilliant! In May I presented a series of lectures as special break out workshops at the Pan-Pacific Veterinary Conference held at the Brisbane Convention Centre. The lectures were followed by a two-hour hands-on workshop with some birds of mine. Working with veterinarians was a lot of fun and hopefully there will be more opportunities to continue supporting them in learning about progressive methodologies for working with parrot behaviour. These workshops were followed up mid-year with the organisation of the Behaviour, Training and Enrichment stream of the Parrots 2010 Program. I presented two lectures at that event, which was really a culmination of over 10 years of involvement with the `Parrots’ convention concept. I’ll look forward to being a delegate at the next one – time to move on from being an organiser. I was due to then present at the AAVAC Veterinary Conference in Hobart in October. Unfortunately this was a date I couldn’t make thanks to the (very premature) arrival of my twin boys – Will and Archie in late August. An instant life changer right there. Since their arrival I have had very little time to do much beyond my monthly clinic consultation work at Brisbane Bird & Exotics Veterinary Service – another achievement that I’m particularly proud of. Most months are now booking out and it’s just a fantastic opportunity for parrot owners to access advice and support that can really make a difference.

I did however manage to get a leave pass in December to present my annual workshop at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. We were fully booked and unfortunately had to close off registrations even though we had additional people wanting to attend. Heading into it’s 7th year in 2011, the CWS Companion Parrot Workshop is definitely like nothing else in Australia and we’ve refined the program to such a degree that it perfectly caters for absolutely anyone with an interest, at any level, in parrot behaviour, enrichment and training. It’s really a true immersion in everything parrot related for full day. We have set a date for 2011 – Saturday December 10th. This will be the only workshop that I will be presenting this year. I have decided to take a rest and focus on my young family – Darcy, Will & Archie. Registration forms for the December workshop are available. We cap the registrations at 20 people and as 2010 was fully booked more than a month in advance I would strongly recommend that people register early to avoid missing out!!!

April/May ABK Magazine

2011-01-30T16:11:00.000-08:00

Looking ahead to the next two editions of Australian Birdkeeper Magazine… I have written a two-part article titled `When the honeymoon is over… Preventing problem behaviour development in companion parrots’. The first part will appear in the April/May issue of ABK and will focus on getting over the inherent problems of assuming behaviour change in our parrots is due to hormonal/physiological changes as they mature. In the article I discuss how my own diet management practices and reinforcement schedule with my birds can provide me with a much clearer understanding of the association between their observable behaviour and the state of their environment. In Part Two we’ll discuss a whole range of other key issues and mistakes that companion parrot owners make in the first year of owning a parrot that inadvertently create the perfect set of conditions for problem behaviours to develop and why such changes really aren’t just about `hormones’. I’ve pulled out two really critical thought bubbles that you’ll encounter in Part One…

Interpreting Behaviour Change: `What serves us best is to look at behaviour change not as a result of an internal state that we don’t understand but as a combination of the natural biological tendencies of our birds, the environmental conditions the behaviour presents itself within, and as a consequence of the reinforcement history the parrot has experienced’

Importance of Diet Management: `We need to manage the choices and options available to them to ensure that their primary source of nutrition is one that sets them up with the healthiest food intake whilst maintaining motivation to interact with us for additional positive reinforcement treats’

To make sure you don’t miss out on ABK Magazine head on over to their website and consider subscribing – http://www.birdkeeper.com.au

Here’s an idea of the daily food intake of Maya – my Green-winged Macaw. The level of seeds and nuts are regulated daily depending on whether or not all of the fresh food and formulated food are consumed. The only food component missing here are Harrison’s pellets, which I also offer but was out of at the time I took the pic.

Pet Parrot Pointers `Guest' Writers...

2011-01-27T16:25:00.000-08:00

A new year - and hopefully a little time every now and then to get some blog posts out there! I hope everyone had a safe and festive Christmas/New Year period.

Just a quick mention of the latest Australian Birdkeeper Magazine issue. It's been out for a while now and features a fantastic shot of a Sun Conure on the cover. As some blog readers may know, I contribute a regular column to ABK Magazine titled `Pet Parrot Pointers'. The column has received some great feedback over the years and I think it's a wonderful education access point for Australian parrot owners. In the latest issue we have a guest writer stepping in - Ann-Louise Allen. Ann is a long-time friend who has some wonderful insights into life with a trio of African Grey companions. I would really encourage everyone to go and pick up this issue and read Ann's story. I would also like to encourage everyone to consider contributing their own insights and learnings to the Pet Parrot Pointers column. My goal is to write three columns each year and to have the other three filled by guest writers. Our aim is to provide information on the husbandry, general care, enrichment, training and behaviour management of companion parrots. If you would like to get in touch with me to find out what some of our article guidelines are for a PPP contribution then please do! My e-mail address is jim@pbec.com.au

Maya’s Training Diary – Accepting `Touch’

2010-09-20T03:23:00.000-07:00

I’ve had an incredibly `full’ time over the past few months and one aspect of my lifestyle that tends to take an unfortunate back seat during busy times is focused training with some of my own birds. Kinda happens when you have a pretty demanding 22-month-old daughter and 3-week-old twins to take priority over `other’ stuff. Over the past couple of weeks (in between hospital visits to see `me boys'), I had a few windows of opportunity to work with my Green-winged Macaw `Maya’. Check out some older posts for the background with this bird. Thanks mostly to the inconsistency of my training time with her we hit a speed bump in getting some behavioural momentum in regards to stepping on to hands consistently without aggression. There were obvious behavioural indicators from her that suggested that I was more than likely setting myself and her up to fail if I stuck with the criteria schedule I had set. Sometimes when you are working with a really challenging bird and have reached stagnation in behavioural momentum towards a specific training goal it can help to change focus and work on something completely different that has a lower set of expectations and greater opportunity for success in order to build back the trust and momentum you were previously working towards. This is beneficial not just for the bird, but also for the trainer or owner to avoid the frustration that can settle in when you feel like you’re not getting where you want to go. The interesting dynamic with training animals is that it’s not just about reinforcement for the animal – the trainer needs it continually too to keep their own confidence and behavioural momentum progressing positively and maintaining that sense that they're succeeding as well. One goal I was keen to achieve was for Maya to be less sensitive to hands and hopefully even accept some tactile touch in the form of a head scratch. She had never allowed this – at any time in her life thus far, and certainly any attempt to put a hand near her head would absolutely result in an aggressive `jab’ to deter it from intruding into her personal space. It still does actually, but with some careful and patient training I can actually get some really cool tactile head touch without aggression. A big milestone for us and something that will hopefully pay off as another reinforcement option and a growing level of trust between her and my hands. The following sequence of images gives some insight into where we're at with Maya. I won’t go into elaborations as I’d like to do some writing on working with her for my ABK column next year. Good magazine that – go buy a copy! www.birdkeeper.com.au

Birds, Beak Bubbles, Blah!...

2010-09-20T03:04:00.000-07:00

You gotta hand it to us humans. When it comes to our quest for mastery over the animal kingdom we sure can be an inventive bunch. I’ve come across some fairly ridiculous inventions directed towards the gullible parrot owner in my time but the `Beak Bubble’ might just take the cracker. Check out the magnificence of this little S&M number turned Parrot Grooming Support Device at the Parrots and Props website - http://www.parrotsandprops.com/BeakBubble.php to see what I’m talkin’ about. I particularly like the unintended self-confessed insanity plea tucked in there on that page with the whole `The Lord made me do it’ vibe. Nice. I think the English used to use a similar device back in the 15th century on Gallic intruders. Inspiration for parrot props can be found anywhere peoples – even in the artefacts of deepest darkest medieval history!

But seriously - What you’ve got here with this sort of contraption folks is perhaps the pinnacle example of a whole bunch of warped reasoning when it comes to `solving’ perceived problems with keeping parrots. Whilst the aesthetics of it all are wrong enough as it is, you know what? For me the line of thinking that bugs me most isn’t the desperate attempt to avoid being bitten by a parrot (I can appreciate that), but the whole concept of `grooming’ a pet bird in the first place. If parrots aren’t subjected to the problems of anthropomorphism enough, they then have to face a growing reference point of `Poochism’ – the only term I can come up with to describe the apparent socially embedded way of thinking of the husbandry and maintenance of a parrot in the same way society tends to think of a pet dog. These days you can even get fresh `cooked’ meals in the form of canned parrot diets to stick in the microwave and serve warm – hmmm, just like you get at the woodland diner I suppose. Nail trims? Sure – can’t have those pesky little prickly toes of theirs walking up and down your arm. Let’s just forget how important it is for a parrot to have nice sharp toenails for its perching confidence and how darn easy it is to make an absolute mess of a trust account with a parrot by trying to file them away. Ever clipped your own nail and just been a few millimeters out? Hurts like hell don’t it? Second hmmm. Remember the `Birdie Diaper'? It looks like a little cloth bucket you strapped under the tail and around your parrot's vent to `catch the poops' - I'm not shitting you, that was a marketed product! (pun definitely intended there folks). And let’s not get me started on harnesses. Just like a walkin’ the dog – except, hang on... it’s a parrot. I know the whole harness concept has plenty of buyers, including many of my peer trainers, but I’m just not going for it and I’ll leave the debateable justifications up to those that endorse their use. My perspective gets informed by what I’m now seeing in a growing number of clients at my behaviour clinics seeking advice on how to undo the damage to the trust they had with their bird after forcing things like harnesses on them. I had two such cases of failed harness use come into the clinic just this weekend gone. (God knows what I’d be seeing with widespread use of the `Beak Bubble’. Then again, apparently God does know what I’d be seeing – He was the one who put the idea in the head of the person who invented it).When you actually stop to think about the mechanics of it all, It’s just such an invasive expectation to have on a parrot and their threshold of tolerating the poor application of such devices diminishes so much faster than the impatient owner is ever prepared to recognise. Therein lies the problem.

They’re birds folks – not dogs. Give ‘em space, flight, opportunities to forage for fresh food, a chance to engage with you as their carer in a trusting and non-invasive manner, fun interactions, trick training, whatever – but just not a lifestyle that sets them up with expectations we have of highly domesticated animals that these guys simply are not.

Training the Trainers at Alma Park Zoo

2010-09-20T02:55:00.000-07:00

I have been doing some consultative work with the team at Alma Park Zoo in Brisbane. They have recently acquired some birds that they are keen to display and develop some interactivity with. It’s been really refreshing working with a Zoo team that is super responsive and open to learning from an outside consultant – something that’s not always a hallmark of Zoo operations. For me it reinforces a really important element to `learning’ – it doesn’t occur within a vacuum. Sometimes you just have to open up and allow new ideas and outside expertise and experience to filter in and challenge your existing approaches, establish new levels of understanding or guide you in developing new ways of thinking. One key aspect of working with this particular goal set was developing `structure’ in the approach to implementing the management and training of the birds. If I could summarise using an acronym around that word `S-T-R-U-C-T-U-R-E’ what I was really keen to see the keepers working with those birds achieve it would be as follows…

Set the keepers and the birds up for success through understanding the nature of the animal and the laws of behaviour before establishing your expectations.

Teamwork generates collegiality amongst staff and creates supportive dialogue between keepers that improves training and husbandry results.

Respect for the body language and observable state of the animal you are working is vital in informing decision-making and setting training expectations.

Using positive reinforcement as your foundation for building a trust account with your animals and creating desirable lifelong learning experiences establishes the foundation for lifelong relationships

Criteria for success for both the animals and keepers need to be achievable, and are best located along a continuum that generates behavioural momentum through timely delivery of positive reinforcement.

Training is simply learning – it happens every time we engage with the animals in our care and with the peer staff we are working with.

Understanding the natural anatomy and biology of the animal you are working and setting the environment up to make shifting an animal from A to B as natural a physical movement for that animal as possible.

Reflecting on training and being prepared to recognise areas for improvement not as criticisms but as opportunities to reach your goals.

Ending on a good note – always seeking to keep those training criteria achievable and knowing when to stop a session to set your next encounter up on a winner.

If you haven’t stopped in to Alma Park Zoo lately then it’s worth a visit. Best option is to take a picnic lunch and take advantage of the free barbecues onsite and great outdoor garden eating areas. Snags and Spider Monkeys – Who could ask for more? More info at www.almaparkzoo.com.au

I snapped a shot of this peacock displaying next to my car on my way out after my last consult at Alma Park Zoo - magnificent birds!!!

Cool Nest Boxes for Breeding Season

2010-09-20T02:48:00.000-07:00

A big shout out to Phil Brauer who builds what I consider to be the best nest boxes going around for Australian Aviculturists. I dropped in to Phil’s place on the weekend to pick up a pair of boxes for some of my birds and he just pays such great attention to detail in his work. I love people who are passionate about their skill set and aim to achieve really high quality in what they do. Phil’s boxes are superb so if you live in Australia (particularly in SE Qld or on the eastern coast) and need some well-made boxes this coming breeding season then send me an e-mail and I’ll pass Phil’s contact details on to you. I believe he’ll have his wares at the Bundaberg Sale in a few weeks time if you’re in the Wide Bay area.

Darcy inspecting for eggs - blissfully unaware they haven't even had birds in them yet.

New DVD From Good Bird Inc

2010-09-04T20:25:00.000-07:00

Barbara Heidenreich has just released a new addition to her standard setting DVD series - `The Basics of Parrot Training: A Live Workshop’. I haven’t received a copy yet but plan on putting an order in asap and checking this out. Having coordinated workshops presented by Barbara, including teaming up with her in 2009 for the `Step Up’ practical workshop in Brisbane, I know this is going to be an outstanding resource for every parrot owner to add to their library. There is over 4 hours of footage in this DVD set – unbelievable!!! To purchase the DVD go to http://www.goodbirdinc.com/parrot-store-dvds.html

World Record - 20 Parrot Tricks in 2 Minutes...

2010-09-04T20:21:00.000-07:00

With over a million views I’m sure you’ve no doubt seen this. What I love about it is the clear use of positive reinforcement and a great example of use of a clicker as a bridging stimulus. Training for novel tricks like this is something I don’t have enough time to do these days with my birds but it’s such an excellent enrichment option for companion parrot owners. Enjoy!

Latest ABK Magazine - Designing An Enrichment Aviary

2010-09-04T20:19:00.000-07:00

As mentioned in a couple of previous posts, I have written a two-part article on outdoor enrichment aviary design for companion parrots as part of my regular `Pet Parrot Pointers’ column for ABK. The article series primarily shares insights into the design and construction of a new bank of aviaries I completed earlier this year. It answers a lot of `frequently asked questions' I often receive about how to go about putting together an outdoor enclosure for a companion parrot. The first part of the article is in the latest (Aug/Sep) issue that is available in newsagents now. Be sure to grab a copy!!!

Twins...

2010-09-04T20:16:00.000-07:00

My Blog has been inactive for a few weeks – largely due to some recent additions to our `flock’. My wife recently gave birth to our twin boys – Archie and Will. They were 7 weeks premature and after a rollercoaster ride of a first week they are both doing really well. They need to stay in special care in hospital for another month and we are looking forward to bringing them home sometime around late September or early October. In the meantime it’s daily visits to the hospital for us and probably not a lot of time left over for parrot blogging so I might take advantage of a small window of opportunity now and see if I can get a few posts up!

Latest Issue of ABK – Barbara Heidenrich steps up for Pet Parrot Pointers

2010-07-11T03:45:00.001-07:00

If you haven’t picked up the latest issue of Australian Birdkeeper Magazine from your newsagent then you should grab it while it’s there! Barbara Heidenreich has filled in for the Pet Parrot Pointers section of the magazine with an absolute cracker of an article on `Ten Common Training Mistakes’. It’s just such a beautifully put together summary of the things well all tend to do at times and what we need to be mindful of to ensure our training failures don’t become mistakes that break down the relationships we have built with our birds.

I’m hoping that every second or third issue of ABK will feature a guest Pet Parrot Pointers writer so that we can learn from a variety of passionate parrot keepers and trainers. I’m looking forward to this opportunity for sharing and learning with Australia parrot enthusiasts.

Parrots 2010 Convention – The Culmination of a 10-Year Vision

2010-07-11T03:37:00.000-07:00

Sometime in 1999 I sat in an office with a group of Parrot Society of Australia committee members and together we put together a plan for the very first `Parrots’ convention. That event was held in 2000 and featured 1 international speaker (Rick Jordan) and a single day program of breeder focused lectures. It was a terrific success and reinforced for those of us who were involved that this was an educational opportunity that we simply had to deliver to parrot enthusiasts in Australia. In 2002 we increased our scope with 2 international speakers (William Horsfield and Lyrae Perry) but stayed conservative with our single day program scheduling. 2004 saw a big leap of faith with a 1.5 day program and it was the first time that we integrated some `breakout’ workshops with a focus on parrot behaviour and raising pet birds. The key speaker for that event was EB Cravens and since then he has maintained a profile here in Australia via his Hookbill Hobbyist column in Australian Birdkeeper Magazine. In 2006 the window of opportunity was finally opened for me to get some serious parrot behaviour and training content added to the program and I was able to bring Barbara Heidenreich to Australia for the first time. The two-day program was a success and the program scope and sequence was a first for an avicultural convention in Australia. Barabara’s lectures were so enthusiastically received that we invited her back for the Parrots 2008 Convention and expanded on the behaviour, training and enrichment scope of the event whilst maintaining international standard breeding lectures. The 2008 Convention also saw the integration of dedicated lectures on the conservation biology of parrots in the wild with Dr. Don Brightsmith presenting both during the day program and also as keynote speaker at the Conservation Dinner.

That brings us to 2010 and an event that truly was the culmination of a vision I had back in 1999 for what I wanted to see delivered to Australian parrot enthusiasts. A full two day program with the best and most progressive information on breeding, conservation biology, behaviour, training and enrichment all delivered by some of the most experienced presenters in their respective fields. From Steve Martin to Dr. Susan Friedman, Dr. Rob Heinsohn to Dr. Jamie Gilardi, Roger Sweeney to Dr. Susan Clubb, Nic Bishop to Dr. David Waugh - absolutely the finest lineup you'll find anywhere. If you missed it then tough – sorry, only way I can put it. These opportunities for learning are rare folks – really rare. When they come up – grab them, embrace them, engage in them. You owe it to the parrots you keep. For those of you who were there – thankyou, thankyou sincerely for making such an investment in your own knowledge and in ensuring that you are providing the best standards of care and behaviour management for your birds.

The Parrots 2010 Guest Speaker Lineup - A diversity of lecture presentations and scope for a two day program that was the best of its kind for an avicultural convention - anywhere in the world

Enrichment Aviary Project – Final Update

2010-07-11T03:34:00.000-07:00

Well – I made it. Just. For those of you (there might be one out there – hmmm?) who have followed the enrichment aviary project updates, the goal was to have this completed before the Parrots 2010 Convention. As it turned out, I managed to pull it off with the last of the fittings completed and the birds relocated just 5 days before I left for the Convention.

The lecture on enrichment aviary design and construction at Parrots 2010 was really well received and I was stoked with the positive feedback from the delegates. I have just submitted the first part of a two-part article on the process that will feature in the next two issues of Australian Birdkeeper Magazine. Look for the first instalment in the Aug/Sep issue – out mid August. Now onto new projects!

The Enrichment Aviary Complex - Home to my Amazon Parrots.

Enrichment Aviary Project – Update 3

2010-06-13T03:13:00.000-07:00

Things are getting very tight time wise with just over three weeks to go to the Parrots 2010 and the focus of one of my presentations – designing and constructing an outdoor enrichment aviary, yet to be completed! This is seriously going to come down to the wire and I’m getting nervous. Here are some pics and a few updates to let you know where we are up to. A long way still to go before these are inhabitable…

Aviary Footings

Traditional footings for aviaries are usually designed to provide a concrete platform around the full perimeter of the enclosure. This provides both a uniformly flat base and a solid anchor point. Normally, a trench will be dug around the perimeter to facilitate the construction of a concrete footing 200mm in depth and 150mm wide for a small complex. I have done this in the past with some of my aviaries and it’s both labour intensive and costly. For the enrichment aviary complex I decided to do things a little differently and just anchor the primary corners of the complex to a concrete base, rather than run the concrete around the full perimeter. We welded base plates to each corner of the frame and drilled a hole to facilitate dropping a 10 gauge bolt into the base plate. The bolt was positioned upside down with an oversized washer at the bolt head and a washer and nut at the screw head. The concrete was then poured into a pre-dug hole at each corner, encasing the length of the bolt below the base plate. Once the concrete was dried, the bolt was tightened to further secure the frame to the ground. I’ll discuss why we can get away with this level of footing security in my presentation at Parrots 2010.

Landscaping and Planting

The past two days have been huge with plenty of digging and planting going on in and around the aviaries. I’m not finished yet but here’s a snapshot of some of the landscaping work in progress.

Time

I gotta say, when this is all done – the one thing I am looking forward to more than anything else is being able to spend more time with two of my favourite animals – my daughter Darcy and my Rotty Rosie!

Small Parrots – Love ‘em!

2010-06-13T03:11:00.000-07:00

I recently had the opportunity to work with a Meyer’s Parrot (Poicephalus meyeri) that belongs to a friend of mine. I needed an extra bird for a hands-on parrot-training workshop I was teaching at the Pan-Pacific Veterinary Conference and the little Meyer’s ended up being perfect (that's her in the pic above). We had her at our place for the week leading up to the Conference and it was the first time in over a year that we’ve had a parrot indoors `living’ with us. It got me thinking about just how much more appropriate the small parrot species are as indoor companion animals as opposed to the medium and large parrots that increasingly seem to be grabbing the attention of companion parrot buyers in Australia.

What is a real shame is that species such as the Meyer’s, and indeed the whole Poicephalus group, are so rare in Australia that their value places them well and truly out or the reach of the pet bird owner. We have a unique situation here in Australia in regards to the availability of parrots. Our native species are plentiful, affordable, and as such, are commonly kept as pets. Many of the small non-native or `exotic’ parrots are rare, exceedingly expensive, and therefore not an option for the pet bird owner.

Unfortunately, many of the Australian native species, in my opinion, are much less suited to captive conditions, particularly the situations generally encountered in indoor pet environments. There are some good exceptions – the humble Budgerigar is as good as any, but it would be interesting to do a study on the behaviour spectrum and capacity of different species to maintain functional behaviours when kept as pets. I bet we would see some enlightening results that would shift people’s attentions more towards the little guys. Easier to cater for in terms of enclosure size, less mess, less destructive, quieter, flights aren’t much of an issue, and they’re just a heck of a lot easier to keep amused!

Good Bird Magazine - New Format!

2010-05-31T03:29:00.000-07:00

You have to hand it to Barbara Heidenreich. She just continues to come up with great initiatives and products for the companion parrot owner that just nail it in terms of quality of content and accessibility. Barbara has now taken her `Good Bird' magazine to the next level and future editions of the magazine will offer a fully electronic, multimedia experience for subscribers. You can check out a preview version of the new magazine at the link via her website. I've e-mailed Barbara to see if the new format will work on iPads - hopefully it will as I've been looking for an excuse to get one ;-) Check out the new stuff from Barbara and Good Bird Magazine at http://members.goodbirdinc.com/hp_joomla_15/

Enrichment Aviary Project - Update 2

2010-05-30T02:19:00.000-07:00

Big day at work here at El Rancho Jimbo with some good progress made on the Enrichment Aviary Project. This project is in preparation for a presentation that I will be delivering at the Parrots 2010 Convention in Brisbane on July 3-4. That means there's only 5 weeks left for me to get these darn enclosures finished - Agghh!!!

The positive news is that the painting is complete and today we were able to bolt together the three enclosure frames to the central walkway frame. The next set of `build' stages will involve securing the corner footings, putting on the roof sheeting, and hanging the doors. I'm confident that I can pull that off in a weekend and then it's on to the `good' stuff - landscaping, perching and fit out. With just 5 weeks to go I'm going to post about the progress weekly so you guys will see if I get it done in time! Otherwise... It'll be a short lecture at Parrots 2010 :-) Check out some updated images below.

Front two enclosures - each will be home to our Amazon Parrots. We have used solid colorbond 1.6mm sheets as wall partitions for the back wall and a 1/3 screen along the walkway.

A view looking into the walkway. The walkway is actually a separate frame that the three enclosures are bolted onto. It's part of a design method I came up with when we built the original three enclosures and gives a bit more flexibility down the track if we decide to change the layout of the complexes.

A view from the pathway leading to the complex. Landscaping will be completed around the outside of aviaries to provide natural screening for the birds.

Pan-Pac Veterinary Conference

2010-05-30T01:43:00.000-07:00

Last week I gave a series of lecture presentations, followed by a practical parrot training workshop, at the Pan Pacific Veterinary Conference that was held in Brisbane. Lecturing to veterinarians from a variety of interest groups within that profession can be a challenging task - particularly when it comes to discussing approaches and methodologies of behaviour consulting with parrots. I suspect that many of the traditional paradigms of thinking for the behaviour management of pet birds persist within the veterinary field. However, the group I lectured to really did seem to be wonderfully receptive to a more progressive approach that embraced Applied Behaviour Analysis and Functional Assessment of behaviour. I noticed quite a few `light bulb' moments occur throughout the day that served as great positive reinforcement for me.

Whilst I am certain that the vet group came away from the day with a lot of great, practical, information and advice - I certainly came away with a deeper appreciation for some of the time constraints that our veterinarians face in their clinic consultation work. What blew me away was that for many of the vets I spoke to informally during the day, a standard consult time allocation was just 15 minutes. Not a lot of ground you can cover in that amount of time if we're talking about the complexities of parrot behaviour! There was a strong sense that dealing with discussions on parrot behaviour with clients was too overwhelming and time consuming. It challenged me to come up with ways to support the vets in being able to deliver small, but potent, pieces of information on behaviour to their clients. For most of them, I think the criteria for what they might consider success in working with a client on parrot behaviour issues was too high. Just as we see when we raise the criteria for our birds too high, too soon, with our own expectations of ourselves we often see a loss of behavioural momentum and a diminishing of opportunities for learning if we fail to recognise the small approximations of achievement that we make before the end `goal' is reached. It truly was a great opportunity for me, particularly coming from outside of the veterinary community, to work with such a great group of professionals. My sincere thanks to Dr. Deborah Monks for organising the opportunity and to Dr. Melinda Cowan and Dr. Kim (Sorry Kim - I didn't get your surname!), for helping with all my `gear' and birds. A very special thanks, to Phil Ghamraoui who helped as a second trainer for the practical session. Finally - thanks to my `teachers' for the day - PJ my Black-headed Caique, Lola my Yellow-crowned Amazon, and a gorgeous little Meyer's Parrot that I will talk about in a future post.

`What is `Browse'???

2010-05-22T17:51:00.000-07:00

I remember a few years back at the Parrots 2006 Convention when an audience member asked one of the presenters `What is browse?' when the presenter was talking about the term in the context of enrichment for parrots. Basically, the term comes from the Zoo industry and was probably first used to describe the bunches of eucalypt leaf that are provided daily for Koalas. If you watch the behaviour of Koalas when they receive their gum branches they get straight into `browsing' through the fresh `tip' to find the juiciest, newest shoots to eat. Parrots do much the same with fresh, leafy, native branches - browse through it in search of something to chew on. Hence the term `browse' in reference to the provision of leafy branches for our birds. Leafy browse on its own though can sometimes have limited value for our parrots as the leaf isn't normally edible and what we usually observe is some interest in snipping off the leaves and chewing up the bark. That in itself is great behavioural redirection away from undesirable behaviours, such as overpreening. However, to increase the motivation value of browse in the aviary or enclosure then consider integrating some highly valued food items. Check the example below with the Black Lories accessing their watermelon chunk that has been skewered onto a branch of their browse. Here are a few other tips for increasing the value and interaction time associated with browse:

If you have a parrot that is a reluctant bather and you are concerned about a low humidity environment then soak the leafy browse in water before placing it in the enclosure or aviary. Many parrots will rub through the wet leaf to access the moisture and in an indoor environment the additional damp on the leaves can help to increase the surrounding humidity.
If your parrots naturally have a terrestrial feeding tendency then consider creating a `foraging pit' and use the laves, bits of branch, seeding cones etc at ground level. Sprinkle some budgie seed amongst it all with just a few sunflower seeds for an occasional jackpot reward for the foraging behaviour and you will keep them entertained for hours.

Fresh, leafy eucalypt branches can provide a valuable distraction for parrots during the day.

Increasing the motivation to forage and explore through browse can be achieved by integrating their feeding experience into the browse itself

Terrestrial feeders, such as these Galahs, benefit more from having their browse provided in the form of a ground foraging pit

Parrots with Gambling Problems...

2010-05-06T01:45:00.000-07:00

Undoubtedly the greatest frustration I encounter in working as a behaviour consultant with parrot owners is that when it comes to accessing support and advice, I’m most often seen as the `last resort’ rather than the `first resort’. It’s difficult to explain to people what the potential consequences are when the response pathway for working on problem behaviours follows a whole bunch of old school thinking, homespun remedies, or intervention programs that completely fail to appreciate exactly what behaviour and learning are all about. Let’s be honest though – we live in a society that demands `quick fix’ solutions. I often use the `drive-through, take-away’ approach as the analogy of choice as it encapsulates well how we tend to go through life looking for the most convenient, least hassle, quickest, and cheapest solution to our problems. Hence why the popularity of a range of well-marketed online behaviour and training products and `solutions’ can be so appealing. It’s also why there is a proliferation of chat boards, discussion groups, and online forums for parrot owners – all providing a quick, convenient, and most importantly `free’ access point for the struggling parrot owner to find answers to questions that can be super complex at times. The dilemma for someone like me is that by the time I see the client in the consult room or in their home, I’m trying to clean up a dropped meat pie – it’s just a darn mess! I have a tendency to use a little saying that I learnt from Avian Trainer, Steve Martin - `Set Up for Success’ - in my approach to working with birds and their owners. Problem is, I’m usually the one who is the least set up to succeed. What got me really thinking about this was an article in the latest issue of the IAATE magazine `The Flyer’. The article is titled `Behaviour Fundamentals: Filling the Behaviour Change Toolkit’. It’s an absolute gem, written by one of my great mentors – Susan Friedman PhD. Here’s the final paragraph to ruminate on…

`One mystery that often surrounds problem behaviour is its very persistence. People may have a litany of failed behaviour-change programs by the time they turn to behaviour analysis for help. As they wade through the personal recipes of one Internet charlatan after another, people don’t realise that, with each failed attempt at behaviour change, the window of opportunity closes a little bit more because the problem behaviour is intermittently reinforced. Intermittent schedules of reinforcement build persistent gamblers, willing to behave again and again, without reinforcement, for that one jackpot that inevitably occurs. There should be nothing casual about intervening on an animal’s functional `misbehaviour’. Each intervention should start with a careful functional assessment, and the intervention should be designed to meet the needs of the animal, using the most positive, least intrusive methods. The greater our knowledge of the scientific principles and procedures of learning and behaviour, the more effectively we will meet the needs of the animals in our care.’

Don’t feed your parrot’s gambling habit. When problems start to surface, get support, advice, and a behaviour change plan worked out that uses an approach based on the science of learning, and the art of building a lasting relationship with your bird. Quick fix solutions are for gamblers – effective behaviour change takes work, commitment, and consistency of reinforcement schedules. Most importantly of all - it requires partnerships, between you and your bird, and sometimes, a consultant willing to walk the journey with you - not just serve you at the drive through.

Maya's Training Diary - Step Up Critique

2010-04-26T04:47:00.000-07:00

I was fortunate enough to have my good friend and brilliant photographer Peter Odekerken stop by yesterday to take a few images. If you're unfamiliar with Peter's work then check out his website at http://www.parrotimages.com.au He will be lecturing on parrot photography at the Parrots 2010 Convention in Brisbane on the first weekend in July - be there good feathered people!

What was great about having Peter take some snapshots is that his camera is able to take up to 9 frames per second, allowing me to analyse the minutiae of what's going on when I'm working with a bird. As I discussed in my previous training diary entry about `Maya' our Green-winged Macaw, this is a bird that is highly averse to hands and is significantly lacking in trust towards humans. She was almost completely parent raised and had to endure an 8 week period of being force fed via gavage tube whilst being weaned due to her parent's deserting her nest. As you can imagine, daily restraints and force feeding episodes completely eroded this birds acceptance of hands. We've been rebuilding the trust account with her, slowly, and at her pace. It's been a remarkable learning experience and a very good opportunity for me to get back to being challenged in regards to the clarity of my antecedent arrangement, communication, reinforcement delivery, and most importantly - `patience' when training.

Here's a couple of cool things I picked up when looking back at the images Peter took...

Firstly - what's wrong with the picture below? Note the posture of Maya upon the presentation of the hand cue as I am getting ready to request a step up. A keen trainer will notice that she's leaning slightly away from the hand, is extremely upright, and her foot is held up more defensively rather than a desirably relaxed position. Her body weight is shifted away from the hand rather than towards it, thus taking any possible momentum towards a step up out of the equation. Acknowledging these subtleties in body language is what sensitive training is all about. What many owners are inclined to do is to continue with the cue, possibly coerce the bird into stepping up, and as a result, achieve the goal without their being a true `choice' and decision making process afforded to the bird. I backed out, allowed her to re-perch, relax, re-evaluate, and hopefully present some more confident body positioning upon the presentation of a new cue.

Now have a look at the next image below. What's wrong here? The body positioning is better and the weight shift is more indicative of confident movement towards the hand but... that hand position is all wrong. The last thing I want Maya to do is to place her right foot at the end of my hand and leave no room for her left foot to follow. This is a bird that has zero tolerance for an unstable perching surface - particularly when that is a human hand. Time to remove the cue before the foot touches the hand, reinforce the confident movement towards the hand and rebuild the momentum by repositioning my hand to better set her up to succeed in achieving the goal of both feet on my arm.

The image following shows where I needed her right foot to be placed - on my wrist and thus allowing plenty of room for her left foot to follow and fall into position for a comfortable step up.

As you can see, she's building her confidence week by week. Parent raised Macaw folks. Very humbling.

Enrichment Aviary Project - Update

2010-04-26T04:18:00.001-07:00

It's been a while since I posted about the new aviary complex that I'm working on to house some of our parrots. I've been hard at it again this past weekend and with the wiring of the frames now completed and painting started I thought I would share a few insights into these two aspects of the construction.

First up, let's talk about attaching weldmesh to the aviary frame. For a novice or someone inexperienced this can end in a really poor looking aviary and an awful lot of frustration. A couple of pointers that might help when you are applying the weldmesh sheets are:

When placing the weldmesh sheet against the frame, make sure that the `bow' (created by the wire having come from a roll) is directed away from the aviary. Think of it as placing the weldmesh sheet so that it forms a convex arc away from the frame - rather than a concave curve towards the frame.
When drilling in the tech screws, make sure that each screw is placed tightly into the corner of each weldmesh square so that as you work your way out from the corner of the frame, the mesh is being pulled in opposing directions along the lengths of the frame. Drilling the screws in equidistant along the frame lengths will also assist in achieving a more uniform and `tighter' fit.

The ultimate goal is to achieve as tight and flat a weldmesh panel as you can. There's nothing daggier than a `bubbled' or floppy sheet of weldmesh on your aviary so take your tiome to get it right - you'll be looking at the results for years to come ;-) Achieving a `tight' fit is much easier when using 900mm wide sections than 1200mm wide sections, but a good tight and flat fit can be gained across both dimensions if done patiently and with care (two things that are usually lacking in my aviary building by about the third sheet :-() The image below shows the directional fixing of the tech screws - although, note that I have actually fixed the top row coming from the other end, not from the corner shown. If I had started from the corner shown the top row of screws would be working away from the corner - not towards it. Basically you just need to be working against the tension and pull of the opposing frame length.

One of the most common questions I am asked about my aviaries is `What do you paint them with?' It's a good question as most parrot owners are naturally averse to anything that might traditionally be considered `toxic' to their birds. In short, I use water based outdoor paint in low sheen/flat black. I only ever use either Dulux Weathershield or Wattyl Solagard. We've used both of these for 10 years now and it's completely harmless. For tidying up the hard to reach places that aren't easily covered with the paint roller, I use a water based spraypaint - once again in flat black. Water based acrylic spray paint can sometimes be hard to locate and is more expensive but it's the only option. We never use enamel based paints.

The next question about painting that I receive is `Why do you use black?'. The answer is that bare weldmesh sheet is highly reflective of light and hence visibility through the wire is very minimal. Aesthetically, bare wire will also start to show signs of corrosion and discolouration quite quickly due to environmental exposure. To give you an example of the visibility difference between unpainted and painted weldmesh check out the picture below that I took today of two adjacent panels - one painted, the other bare.

Make sure you make an effort to come along to the Parrots 2010 Convention in Brisbane on the first weekend of July. I will be delivering a full presentation there on outdoor enrichment aviary design and construction.

Sulphur-crested Sex Change...

2010-04-22T04:21:00.000-07:00

Hmmm. Bet the title of this post got you interested eh? I was at the BBEVS Surgery last Saturday to do my monthly consult clinics and I overheard one of the most amusing discussions I have yet to encounter about parrots. The two people engaged in the following banter weren't clients of mine - they were in to see the vets and `met' at the reception upon bill payment time. One was a dog owner and the other was the owner of a Sulphur-crested Cockatoo. The Sulphur was perched very proudly on the shoulders of the owner. It was attracting quite a deal of attention as it was sporting a rather regal looking elizabethan collar, no doubt to keep it from picking at whatever body part had just been treated as it otherwise looked pretty good! Here's a brief snapshot of the conversation...

Dog owner: `Oh - what a lovely Cockatoo!'

Cocky Owner: `Thankyou. Yes. He's a beautiful bird'

Dog Owner: `My old Aunt used to have a Cocky as a pet. Had it for years. I used to look after it every now and then'

Cocky Owner: `Really?'

Dog Owner: `Yeah. Didn't like men but - hated 'em. They can be like that you know'

Cocky Owner: `I've heard'

Dog Owner: `Yeah - and you know what else?'

Cocky Owner: `What?'

Dog Owner: `They can change their sex - like go from being a boy to a girl or whatever'

Cocky Owner: `Really?'

Dog Owner: `Yep. They need to do it in the wild. When we had to look after my Aunt's cocky I read up on 'em. Found out that if there's a shortage of one sex or the other in the wild they can just change so they can breed'

Cocky Owner: `Oh?'

Dog Owner: `Uh huh. You'd be amazed 'eh. Amazing birds. Always wanted one myself - too noisy but 'eh?'

Cocky Owner: `Mmmm - can be'

You probably think the above is a joke but I'm serious - that's almost verbatim what was said. As funny as it obviously is to think that anyone could believe or even think that a Cockatoo can just `change its sex' in the wild, it got me thinking about the level of misinformation that is out there about parrots and how so many of these old ways of thinking persist within the birdkeeping community. Most of it, to be honest, is pretty harmless. Sometimes however, clearly outdated yet very much perpetuated thinking about parrots can potentially be very damaging. I'll save a good example of that for a future blog post but for now, if you think you're probably holding on to a few old school lines of thinking about your birds well, as my teenage students like to tell me, `time to get updated' :-)

Wild Sulphur-crested Cockatoo foraging. Male or Female? Depends... apparently.

Melbourne Companion Parrot Workshop

2010-04-21T17:35:00.000-07:00

It's been a couple of weeks since we conducted our first Companion Parrot Workshop in Melbourne, Victoria and I still have a `buzz' from the very cool experience working with some fantastic parrot owners on that day. The participants gained a massive amount of information over the 8 hours (we just kept going after the `official' full-time!) and it was so pleasing to see the networking and story sharing going on throughout the day. One of the most rewarding aspects of conducting these days is seeing parrot owners make new and like-minded friends and build their support network - which can be so essential when we encounter challenges and difficulties with our birds.

A remarkable aspect of the demographic in attendance at the workshop was that around 75% of them were Eclectus Parrot owners! What is it about the Eclectus Parrot that often generates a set of real, and sometimes unique, challenges for their owners? In my experience, as both someone who has worked with them in my own collection over the years and also as a consultant called on to support owners managing their behaviour, enrichment, and training over the past 10 years, the Eclectus is very much a bird that we seriously need to spend more time learning about their long-term care needs in captive environments. For me, they are the classic example of how we often get it wrong when we apply the one approach fits all methodology to parrot keeping.

One element that really seems to be feeding (pardon the pun) into the behavioural equation with our Eclectus parrots is the manner in which their owners are managing their diet and daily food intake. Perhaps more so that any other groups of parrot owners I encounter, keepers of pet Eclectus parrots seem to really go overboard with just about every aspect of the feeding program for their bird. A lot of the Eclectus I am seeing (particularly those developing problematic behaviours) are fed excessive amounts of nutrient dense, often high carb, foods at excessive quantities 7 days a week, 365 days a year. The `All You Can Eat Smorgasbord' seems to be the common Eclectus owner's approach to diet management. If you ever get the chance, dial your ear in to a conversation between Eclectus owners. The rap almost always immediately directs itself towards `What do you feed your guy?' Eclectus owners are obsessed with the diet of their birds! Pasta diets, rice diets, large quantities of sprouted seed, as much corn and high sugar fruits as you can eat, human table foods (`awww - but he loves it when we have Pizza') and let's wash it down a few nuts - but hey, just as treats right? ;-) I gotta say - if there's such a thing as reincarnation - I wanna come back as a pampered Eclectus! Now, getting enthused about the diet of our parrots is a good thing - I'm just as passionate about the whole issue of feeding my birds as the next owner. Where we seem to be going wrong is losing sight of the reality of what these birds in their wild state have biologically evolved to feed on, the manner in which they access that food, the volume they would normally be able to obtain vs the energy expenditure required to source and access their daily food intake, and the seasonally fluctuating nature of the nutrient composition of their diets.

Compounding the complexity of getting an Eclectus diet `right' is the increasing anecdotal evidence of problems such as toe tapping and wing flipping being associated with processed foods and some pelleted diets. Those issues aren't the only problems - an increasing number of companion Eclectus parrots are presenting with severe feather picking, chronic masturbating, and concerning escalations in the frequency and intensity of territorially aggressive behaviour. Of course, as a behaviour analyst, evaluating the immediacy of what is occurring in the environment of these birds is the first stage in a pathway towards understanding the problem behaviour and developing behaviour change solutions. However, my approach towards developing some `bigger picture' solutions when working with clients of Eclectus parrots always includes a careful evaluation of the diet management of their bird. For my thinking, when we pump these birds full of nutrient dense foods in excessive quantities 365 days a year it must surely be providing an influence on the physiological state of the bird that has flow on effects in terms of the observable behaviours and responses to environmental stimuli that we then start to see.

It's not just diet issues either - we can now start to see (after nearly 10 years of Eclectus being available to the pet market in Australia and a good sample size to draw anecdotes from) that the social nature of the species, in particular the males, may also be influencing some of the failures to maintain these birds as behaviourally active, engaged, compatible with humans, and healthy, in captive conditions. And the females???... I'll leave that for a future Blog ☺

To all the participants at the Melbourne Workshop (too many to name - you know who you are you bird nerds!), thankyou so much for helping to make that day such a positively reinforcing experience for me - I hope you enjoyed the learning and sharing as much as I did!!!

Two young male Eclectus parrots - growing up and developing life skills in an aviary environment that facilitates the level of activity, exploration, and exposure to environmental stimuli that these birds thrive in.

Heavy Metal Toxicosis

2010-03-14T04:36:00.000-07:00

In the June/July issue of ABK Magazine later this year I will be writing about our recent experience with heavy metal toxicosis in our Nanday Conure - `Nandy' (yep - dumb name but the best I could come up with at the time and it stuck). We've been lucky to have avoided this health issue and Nandy was our first case. We still haven't determined the source, which is a concern. The good news is that, thanks to some outstanding veterinary care from Dr. Stacey Gelis, she has recovered well (folks - you just can't beat a qualified avian vet, they're tops and worth every darn cent). The pic above is me working with her today on some basic recall to and from her cage. She flies like a butterfly - it sounds ridiculous but she's as light as a feather and just seems to `flit' rather than `flap'. Gorgeous! Still makes the most hideous call of any parrot I have ever owned though - hands down. Sorry Nandy, but it's true mate.

For some info on Heavy Metal Toxicosis check out the following link...

http://www.bbevs.com.au/download/Parrot%20Care%20Sheet%20-%20Heavy%20Metal%20.pdf

Maya's Training Diary

2010-03-14T03:22:00.000-07:00

In the next issue of ABK Magazine I will be introducing readers to a few additions we have made over the past 18 months to our training team - a group of parrots that I use for my consultation work. One very unexpected addition was `Maya' (pronounced `my-a', not `may-a') the Green-winged Macaw. She's not going to be a permanent resident here as I don't actually `own' her but instead she is on loan for a while given her special circumstances. It was an opportunity for me to work with an almost completely parent-raised Macaw that, due to having to be support fed via crop syringe after being abandoned by her parents at fledging age, is very averse to hands and completely unlike a hand raised and imprinted Macaw. I was keen to see what sort of outcomes could be achieved with such a bird. So far it has been a challenge. Besides having almost no real trust in human hands, we are also working on minimising and hopefully eliminating some early onset feather picking behaviour on her legs that she started whilst being weaned offsite. The long-term goal is to get her partnered with at least one other Green-winged Macaw as these birds absolutely thrive in the company of their own kind and flying `solo' is not (in my opinion) the ideal lifetime scenario for a Macaw.

In the short-term however, we're going to work through the process of seeing what sort of relationship we can establish with her and take it from there. She has only been with us for three weeks and although each day is a new page in the relationship building story, I really only started some focus sessions with her 5 days ago. What I have been doing are just short, 15 minute, positive reinforcement sessions each afternoon, gradually building up her tolerance and acceptance of my proximity to her. I plan to detail these sessions in a future Pet Parrot Pointers column in ABK magazine but in the meantime, below are just a few images of the approximation pathway that we were able to achieve in Session 5 with Maya that ended with her actually placing both feet on my arm (not shown) - a huge trust moment for her! To work with birds like this is very special indeed, and humbling as a trainer as it really does challenge you to think fast, problem solve quickly, and above all, tune in to the slightest body language indicators on offer from the bird to know when to raise your criteria and shape the next stage of the behaviour. The images don't give the full reveal as they don't show just how apprehensive this bird is, but they do hopefully give some indication of just how slow good training with a parrot like this needs to be. The end result in the second last image was achieved after five 15 minute sessions over five consecutive days. No magic - no voodoo - no `bird tricks' - just patience, perseverance, keen observation, timely reinforcement delivery and above all - respect.

Image 1: Starting off where we finished the previous session with Maya taking food treats from the hand and maintaining close proximity to me without moving away to eat.

Image 2: An important approximation to consider is the nature in which the treat is taken from the hand - it provides a strong indication of the level of comfort the parrot has in the presence of the hands and trainer. A gentle taking of the treat as opposed to an aggressive `grab' informs you whether or not the parrot is starting to have confidence in its choice, trust in the trainer, and some control over its environment.

Image 3: Looks like something not worth noting but it's a critical indication of where the focus of the parrot is - firmly on the hand delivering the treat and with the confidence to look away from the trainer and towards where the reinforcement is being delivered. Time for a raising of criteria.

Image 4: Gradual desensitisation of a hand grasping her perch. Note that her proximity to me has shifted back spatially on the perch - a result of the introduction of the aversive of the arm to her environment. She is being positively reinforced for gradually moving closer to the arm.

Image 5: The level of desensitisation to the arm has enabled her to have the confidence to lean over the arm to receive a treat.

Image 6: The criteria was raised to her having to place a foot on the arm for reinforcement delivery. This was a slow process and one that had many small approximations before Maya would actually place and hold one foot on the arm. I also had some challenges getting my own body positioning right and dealing with the problem of the Macaw tail, which can be a pain in the butt when training these guys as they react aversively to their tails brushing up against things while they are apprehensive. If you're wondering why the arm is positioned on the perch and not in front of it in a more `classic' step up position, try dumping a carton of milk into your outstretched palm and see what happens. With a bird that weighs close to a kilogram and is very apprehensive towards unstable surfaces, I was relying on using her perch to support my own arm and hence her weight to give her the confidence in using my arm as an extension of her perch.

Image 7: At this stage I am shifting the target of my treat delivery hand to shape her body positioning to better facilitate her getting both feet onto my arm. This was achieved by the end of the session. So much goes into getting to a point like this in terms of considering your reinforcement delivery, setting the bird up to succeed with your own arrangement of the environment, and obviously the detail in shaping the behaviour. The next set of approximations will be working towards being able to lift Maya from the perch she is being trained on here to the one above it. That will actually be a huge leap for this ruby gem.

Image 8: Finishing on a good note with a nice cashew as a jackpot :-)

Dragon Fruit - Does it `Glow'???

2010-03-14T01:58:00.000-08:00

I recently picked up some Dragon Fruit at the local supermarket. It's one of those exotic asian fruits that the young register person always has to ask `What is this?' at the checkout. The next question is usually `What does it taste like?' - to which I admittedly have to reply, `I've got no idea - I feed it to my birds'. I then get the look - you know - the one that kinda suggests you must be nuts if you spend that sort of money on a piece of fruit that you don't even eat and instead, feed it to your birds! It does seem crazy but doesn't it feel great to add some new taste sensations into the food bowl of your birds? I'm not sure who gets the most out of it - them or me. If you really want to know though - it tastes awful (I actually tried it this time). One of those fruits that you might suggest - `Oh, it goes great with ice-cream', in other words, it tastes like dirt on its own and needs a good smothering of neopolitan before its edible :-)

Anyway, here's a question that I'd love to know the answer for... `Does dragon fruit glow?' That's probably not the right wording for that question but it's as close as I can get to what I'm thinking. You see, when I placed a chunk of it in the food bowl of my Amazon parrots they both reeled away in obvious horror. If you look at the flesh of dragon fruit it is a brilliant iridescent white (see pic above), the same sort of white you see on iridescent fungi and other things that `glow' in the dark. Given that our parrots can see colours in the ultraviolet spectrum that we can't, it got me thinking - what does dragon fruit look like to them? It obviously had some sort of `stay away' quality to it - they reacted the same way both days in a row that I tried to feed it to them. After a while, their appetites got the better of them but watching them slowly desensitise to their food bowl and finally take the plunge to grab a piece of less offensive food and make a run for it was an interesting study in behaviour - and perhaps the strength of the predatory defence of the humble dragon fruit!

If anyone knows what the ultraviolet or `hidden' colour spectrum of dragon fruit flesh is - please e-mail me! It also served as a good reminder to be observant of our birds responses to new food items in their bowls. Sometimes a change like that can result in an aversion to accessing their food for the day. No point in persisting with expensive fruit if all it achieves is a stressed and hungry parrot! I'll keep it for the Ice-cream ;-)

Bird Retailers & Wing Clipping

2010-03-04T20:17:00.000-08:00

OK – here’s a contentious one, but no point in fence sitting from my perspective. I recently stopped in at a major bird retailer in Brisbane to pick up a bunch of bird supplies while I was on my way to my monthly consult sessions. Usually I don’t have much time to stop and look at the birds in retail outlets but this time I did, as it is the time of the year when there are a lot of young baby parrots available and it is always interesting to see what is entering the companion parrot community. Whilst I know that there are many highly responsible bird retailers and very good outlets for acquiring a pet parrot, what I saw in this particular store really bugged me. Every single handraised parrot waiting for sale to a pet home was clipped – not one exception. None of those birds had been offered the opportunity to develop their flight skills, coordination, confidence and independence. All were recently weaned and obviously had more than likely never actually `flown’. Whilst I obviously don’t condone the clipping of a parrot’s wings, I have to accept that there is no law to prevent it or legislative authority to monitor it or set guidelines for it, therefore I have to live with it as a reality of what we see in the bird world. But geez folks – can’t we at least give the new owners of these young birds that are sold in pet stores the option??? How hard is it to keep the young birds fully feathered, provide some informed and responsible point of sale pros and cons on wing clipping, offer advice on training and accessing training resources on managing a flighted bird, encourage the buyer to visit a qualified veterinarian to have any clipping done if it has to be done, and most of all, give the parrot a chance to be a parrot.

I then had the unfortunate experience of standing beside one of the sales assistants as a father and son team came in to buy a budgerigar as a pet. Having no handraised or tame budgies to choose from, a young bird was selected from the flock and promptly clipped. Not a progressive clip method used there either – the good old full primary and secondary chop. The sales assistant justified the procedure as nothing more than a `haircut’ – obviously using the analogy to explain that the clipped wings will be replaced over time by new ones. I just can’t seem to remember not being able to walk out of the salon the last time I had a trim. Mind you – my hairdresser is licensed to sell alcohol so a visit there is perhaps not without the potential for a major modification of my physical capabilities. Hmmm.

I think it’s about time that some guidelines and best practice recommendations for the physical modification of parrots within retail outlets was implemented. Parrots presenting with behaviour management issues that also have clipped wings account for the highest proportion of birds in the demographic of my clients. It’s more of a precursor to behavioural abnormalities arising in companion parrots than having them flighted and presents a significantly more complex set of circumstances to develop successful management strategies for – particular birds that are over-dependent or have established feather picking behaviour.

What we need to be clear on is this – keeping a parrot flighted can be successfully managed. Yes, it’s more work, yes, there may be some challenges to overcome, but let’s at least give these birds a start in life where being clipped is not a fait accompli and they are given the opportunity to learn to adapt to a captive life whilst retaining their full complement of physical capabilities.

One final frustration with this particular retailers approach to the selling of handraised parrots as pets was the lack of suitability of some of the species for sale. It seemed as though their only criteria for having a bird available for sale as a pet was that it was handraised - didn't seem to matter what species it was. The most glaring example of this were Pale-headed Rosellas for sale as pets. Honestly, as much as I dearly love the Platycercus for all of their gaudy beauty, I couldn't think of a species more unsuited to life within the confines of a small indoor cage for most of the day. Not only is their lack of adaptability to close confinement a major concern, they don't tolerate tactile handling in the form of head scratches and mature birds have a strong behavioural tendency towards intense territorial aggression that I have yet to see not hold true. I'm also yet to find a pet parrot owner that doesn't consider head scratches and that sort of close tactile interaction with their birds a very desirable reason for them keeping a companion parrot. It's a little like selling a dog that doesn't tolerate being patted. Now before anyone suggests that `there's a right home for every bird' - do you honestly think the retailer is going to screen buyers that walk in wanting a pet parrot and make the mistake of picking the Rosella because blue and yellow are their favourite colours??? Therein lies the problem folks. Betcha we'll see a couple of Pale-headed Rosellas up for grabs in the Weekend Shopper some time later this year - advertisement might run something like this... (additional info in brackets not supplied in ad)

`Pale-headed Rosella. Handraised and wIll make great pet (didn't for us - but might for you!) Owner moving interstate (to get as far away from nightmare parrot as possible). Comes with cage and bag of seed (hates the cage but loves the seed). Whistles (on..and on...and on.... until you let it out of aforementioned cage that it hates) Make an offer (folks, we're desperate, if you're here by 9am we'll just give it to ya)'. Hmmm.

A young and recently weaned Blue-fronted Amazon. Fully flighted, engaging, challenging - and manageable just as he is!

Snakes & Birds… Don’t mix

2010-03-04T20:10:00.000-08:00

As much as I love living where I am surrounded by natural, sub-tropical wet forest that includes remnant patches of Piccabeen Palm groves and a meandering creek, the downside is that it’s also prime habitat for those legless things that have a tendency towards adding birds to their daily cuisine menu. I’ve encountered five different species here since we built our house – not bad. Over the past 6 years we have averaged two to three snake removals per year from on, in or around our bird aviaries. I recently remarked to someone that this year had been a good year – no snakes! As the words left my mouth I looked around for that proverbial bit of `wood’ to touch as I knew the season had a ways to go – particularly given that February to April are the wettest months here, and that’s the perfect time for close encounters of the slithery kind. You see, Carpet Pythons in particular are a little like us – complete sooks when it comes to getting drenched. Inclement weather sets in, and they start looking around for somewhere cosy, warm, and dry! Problem is, if you’re a birdkeeper – such criteria for a welcome escape from the elements is often perfectly filled by our backyard aviaries. In the past week, with the deluges hovering around South-east Queensland, I had to perform three python removals in a single week. Whilst that in itself isn’t exactly `blog worthy’ here's what is…

The first snake was relocated on Thursday morning after being extracted from the aviary roof the previous evening (he spent the night happily chilling inside a pillow case – my wife doesn’t know yet). On Friday morning, my usual feed rounds were interrupted by yet again, another carpet python peering back at me, at eye level mind you, about 30cm away from my face and in exactly the same spot where the first one was removed from only 24 hours prior. I had read about carpet pythons moving in on the territory of others that had been relocated but within the same day?!? So, we moved him to a completely different side of Noosa and hoped that the serpentine adventures were over. Twas’ not to be! That same night we were alerted to something not quite right in the `zoo’ by the sound of a very agitated (and bald) African Grey – Cheeky. Poor old Cheek was letting out the most god-awful wail whilst trying valiantly to fight off yet another carpet python trying to get into his enclosure (and thankfully failing). Upon capture, it was obvious to me that this was the original snake that had been relocated less than 36 hours before and had managed to travel over 10 kms in that time to be found perched (or coiled as it was) in exactly the same spot that I obviously had the audacity to remove him from originally. Not bad for something that doesn’t even have legs. I had heard about snakes traveling distances of 2 to 3 kms to return to a spot they had been removed from but 10 k’s??? It’s not like it’s a direct corridor from where he was placed either – it’s heavily fragmented, mixed suburban and semi-rural habitat that includes a train line splitting the area we dropped him off in and our home area. Dang!

Anyway, lessons to be learned here – when you relocate snakes, make sure you really relocate them – ie. As damn far away as you can drive and preferably with a major water barrier between their new home and yours. Below are two pics of two different snakes we caught last season (I didn’t bother to photograph the recent pair – I was too pissed off to bother). One of the pythons below had a very interesting `coffee’ colour, unusual for coastal carpet pythons who are normally coloured like the first snake shown.

New Education & Training Initiative at BBEVS

2010-02-11T03:55:00.000-08:00

We are now offering special `Hands-on' sessions at the Brisbane Bird & Exotics Veterinary Service Parrot Behaviour Consult Clinics. These sessions will offer an opportunity for people interested in owning a parrot, but who have not yet made the leap, to develop an introductory understanding of the essentials of new parrot ownership. The consult will cover a discussion of enclosure, diet, and enrichment needs of companion parrots, an overview of the essential resources required by the new parrot owner, and an opportunity to develop some basic `hands-on' handling and training skills with one of our parrots. Clients will also be able to fire away with questions on selection, acquisition and suitability of parrots as pets. This will absolutely be the best point of access to information that will hopefully set the prospective parrot owner up to succeed. Most of you reading this will already be parrot owners so... I am hoping that if you are communicating with anyone interested in taking on the challenge of a parrot as a companion animal (and if they live in SE Qld obviously!), then please refer them to this service - it can really make the difference for people making an informed decision. If you are a breeder, then why not value add one of these consult sessions in as a pre-purchase service. If anyone is interested in finding out more about this service and/or would like to make a booking for one of these `pre-purchase' clinic consultations then please e-mail me directly via jim@pbec.com.au to discuss your goals so that I can tailor our session as directly as possible to your needs and situation. The sessions are available only on the third Saturday of each month at Brisbane Bird & Exotics Veterinary Service - Macgregor, Brisbane. To add to the incentive - You can also select from one of the parrots below to use as your `trainer' bird!!! (There may be times when one of these guys isn't available but just get in touch and we'll see what we can organise ☺).

Our `Trainer' birds...

`Lola' - Yellow-crowned Amazon

`PJ' - Black-headed Caique

`Wobbles' - WA Galah

`Nandy' - Nanday Conure

`Maya' - Green-winged Macaw

`Alphonso' - Yellow-naped Amazon

Feeding Our Parrots Well - New DVD

2010-02-11T03:15:00.000-08:00

Last week I received a copy of a new DVD that has been produced by Kris Porter and Pamela Clark, titled `Feeding Our Parrots Well'. I finally had the chance to sit down today and have a full viewing of the DVD. There's not a lot out there these days that gets me thinking differently about my own approach to my parrots but this DVD really did get me excited and challenged to come up with new variations on not only what I am feeding my parrots, but also the way I go about preparing their food. The DVD runs in the same format as a classic `cooking show' - with Pamela and Kris presenting their `recipes' at the kitchen counter, complete with the `I prepared this earlier' timesavers :-) The feeding recipes are wonderfully explained, clear, simple, and not only that - each DVD has an accompanying recipe book so you can recreate everything using the good old fashioned cookbook approach!

Don't expect to see parrots on this DVD - it's all about you, and motivating you to get thinking creatively about preparing fresh, super nutritious, and healthy ways of feeding your companion birds. I was super impressed by Pamela's explanation of converting parrots from seed based diets to a healthy one. She really presents an honest and realistic approach to this in the context of her own experiences with her Moluccan Cockatoo. I personally loved the DVD and will be recommending it via my website and workshop education. For more information on Kris Porter's work on enrichment education make sure you take some time to check out her website at http://www.parrotenrichment.com - Great Stuff! For further information on Pamela Clark check out http://www.parrothouse.com/pamelaclark/

All Red African Grey

2010-02-02T01:19:00.000-08:00

Well - here's something you don't see every day! I'm not usually interested in mutations in aviculture but this one is just too bizarre to pass up sharing around. What impresses me is that this mutation has come about through a nine year process of selective breeding and is a pure genetic mutation of the species - prevalent in its partial form in the wild. You can check out some video of it at http://www.redafricangrey.com/

Designing & Building Enrichment Aviaries - Part 2

2010-02-02T01:06:00.001-08:00

Well, thanks largely to the weather here in SE Qld, I've only managed to make some small progress on the new outdoor enrichment aviaries that will house our Lories. Last week I was able to get the three roofs wired up. This was a good hurdle to get over as doing the roofs is my least favourite part of wiring conventional aviary frames. I managed to do an OK job on two of them but completely botched the last one. All I can hope is that anyone who sees them will be too busy looking at the birds to take any notice of my dodgy roof wiring. I'll have some more `tech' info on the tools and materials I'm using in the next update - and some closeups of the technique used to get the wire nice and tight. The process of building these will hopefully feature in one of my presentations at Parrots 2010. Ya gotta be there people! In the meantime - if you have any questions about building an aviary for your pet bird then get in touch with me via jim@pbec.com.au. Perhaps I'll write up the response as a post here so that everyone can share in the learning.

Parrots 2010 Convention - Program is complete!!!

2010-02-02T00:52:00.000-08:00

As some of you may already be aware - the Parrots 2010 Convention program has recently been released to everyone who registered for early bird interest in the event. Registration forms have also been distributed to these people and registrations have already started flowing in! As the guest speaker coordinator for this event, and the person responsible for putting most of the program together, I have to say that I'm pretty darn proud of what we've put together and the opportunities it will provide for delegates to really deepen their knowledge and understanding of parrots in the wild, in aviculture, and in behaviour and training. The 3-day program features an Aviary Tour, Meet & Greet sessions with the speakers, 22 lectures and presentations from 16 different speakers over the weekend and a special Conservation Dinner. There has never been a parrot convention of this scope and kind held in Australia before.

The event is scheduled for Friday July 2nd to Sunday July 4th 2010 and will be hosted at the Bardon Convention Centre, just 6km from the Brisbane CBD. If you would like to receive a full colour PDF copy of the program then please e-mail me via jim@pbec.com.au and I will be happy to answer any questions of enquiries.

Looking forward to seeing many of you at this event - Don't miss it!!!

Internet Chat Groups - Good for ruffling feathers but what else???

2010-02-01T03:31:00.000-08:00

I was prompted recently to think about just how helpful the whole Internet chat group scene is for parrot enthusiasts when a friend of mine was explaining to me that she was booted off one. Her experience intrigued me as it often seems to be that many Internet discussion forums within the companion parrot community inevitably head down the path of conflict - much like the cartoon above if you're wondering why it's there ;-) I actually used to have a full discussion forum board linked to my original website and community initiative - `The Companion Parrot Support Network'. The `CPSN' (as we abbreviated it to at the time) website featured a free library full of articles, video clips of parrots in the wild, a page dedicated to working through behaviour management issues - the full deal. We even used to have `gatherings' - just casual opportunities for parrot owners to get together, network, share experiences etc. It was pretty neat for its time (it went online about 8 years ago and finished up in around 2006 or early 2007 maybe - I can't remember now). Anyway, we had a great discussion forum integrated into the site and I still have the odd person (we're all odd if we keep parrots BTW) tell me how much they liked the site and the way the forum operated. I can only remember a single incident where someone posted something on that discussion board that really should have been thought about a little harder (ie - not said at all) in all the years it was running. It was a good bunch of people who were involved in it that's for sure - many of who are still friends to this day. These days, I simply don't have the time to get involved in community forums as my life is beyond full already. It's been quite a few years since I have had anything to do with that side of the companion parrot community so I thought I would go take a look around and see what companion parrot folks talk about these days, what's topical, what's contentious, what's interesting, but most importantly - I was hoping to see that there had been an evolution in the approaches people were taking towards discussing the behaviour of their companion birds.

I realise that there are many discussion forums online that are incredibly supportive and important avenues for the sharing of information and experiences in keeping parrots. I certainly have browsed through a couple that seemed to have a very cool, positive, and family like vibe. Unfortunately, there were a few that, well... kinda sucked (I teach teenagers folks so occasionally I do slip into that mode of describing things). Where most of these forums seem to come unstuck is in the way they approach the discussion of `behaviour'. They can be wonderful little access points for people to share about random experiences, diets, where to go to get the best deal on the latest enrichment toys etc but man, that whole `evolution' hope I had towards the way people are addressing parrot behaviour, on some discussion forums (not all!), just seems to have stalled somewhere in the Cro-Magnon stage of the developmental timeline. Here's what I kinda think on the whole parrot discussion forum concept when it comes to the way these forums approach dealing with both experience sharing and advice giving on behaviour, and perhaps where I would dare venture to suggest areas for improvement...

The most common pathway that some companion parrot discussion forums seem to go down is to create a never ending stream of threads based on `He said...’, `She said...’, second-hand, third-hand, no-hand, advice and suggestions on parrot behaviour that almost always lack a common and definable reference point. These never seem to get anywhere and rarely solve a situation for the person asking the questions, whilst inevitably generating differences of opinion and conflict between those keen to get in on the advice giving race. I'm pretty confident that we have reached a point in our knowledge and understanding about behaviour where we can start to address such questions on forums from a common framework of understanding about how behaviour works, and use a common language to describe behaviour we observe. I think the approach that such forums need to take is to dispense with the traditional, communal paradigm of `let’s all put our 2 cents worth in here and hope that something makes sense’. To me – that’s no different to the John Edward technique of throwing out carefully crafted non-specific scenarios until eventually one sticks and people think he can speak to the dead! When people are desperate for help, the gullibility element is unfortunately always high. Most of the time, that approach is just embarrassingly off the mark and usually just serves to perpetuate myths, give credence to poorly considered generalisations, and continue the lifespan of outdated home spun remedies or supposed `reasons' for why a parrot just behaved the way it did.

In my view, a good, progressive forum will simply address all behaviour issues raised using the same, simple, and logical framework for working through the problem. As an example, let’s say someone asks a question about their parrot, who just bit them a few minutes ago and they've rushed to the keyboard to get an answer from the cyber experts about why and sympathy from those who are always keen to offer it. Instead of going down that `2 cents worth' path, a good forum will start by challenging that person to access the freely available online literature written by the likes of Dr. Susan Friedman, Steve Martin, Barbara Heidenreich (or... me, check my site - I have some freebies too :-), or one of a number of excellent authors who have made their works freely available online. This literature follows the same guiding principles of using an Applied Behaviour Analysis approach to evaluating behaviour and sets a common, scientific ground for everyone to work from. After that, the discussion group will then ask them if they have accessed printed material in the form of Barbara Heidenreich’s `Parrot Problem Solver’ or `Good Bird’. It will then ask them to reconsider their experience with their parrot in the context of the information given to them in those resources. Advice and strategies can still be given, but once again, these should be drawn from the literature we have available so that everyone is working from the same page, and only after the person has identified some possible strategies to work through the issue themselves. When we stick to referring to information that is `in print’ then it becomes less open to the dilution, re-interpretation, or complete misrepresentation that so often happens when we refer to word of mouth advice we hear. I’ve lost count of the number of times people have completely misquoted, taken out of context, or misrepresented what I have said in workshops or privately while trying to regurgitate that information to others. They always mean well but... The example I even set myself is simply `go to the source’, it’s all there in black and white and there’s no confusion in that. Hence why my own website encourages people to read all the `free’ stuff by a range of sources that I have put there for them - before they come see me, 'cause I charge :-). It works best - and there's nothing more satisfying for me than to work with a client who is committed to `self-help' first. They're inevitably the ones who have success.

If we all realise that the laws of behaviour are universal, clearly defined, and easily understood, and when we all work from the same consistent reference point, then we tend to have `real’ success in managing the behaviour of our birds and giving support to others. If we continue to reinforce apathy towards reading the brilliant work that is already out there, and continue to reinforce a lame reluctance to part with 30 bucks or so to buy a book like Barbara’s two volumes, then we will forever continue to have discussion forums where someone is always the `expert’ and there’s a sucker born everyday who will eat up their advice regardless of how valid it is - simply because it’s free, convenient, and in keeping with our cultural divergence towards the quick-fix, `drive-through’ solutions to all of our problems that society is so hell bent on providing. If I can suggest one thing after working with parrots and their behaviour for more than 15 years it's that rarely are there those nice little `quick-fix' moments. I wish it were so.

If you want to be a part of a good internet discussion forum for parrot owners then encourage people seeking support for problem behaviours in their parrots to develop self-help strategies, and don't allow them to develop dependencies on waiting for someone out there in the internet community to just tell them what they want to hear. Internet forums can unfortunately be the best places in the world for reinforcing lazy approaches to education and failing to promote the development of a progressive understanding about how to approach the behaviour of companion parrots. For those of us who know better, we need to make sure that we aren’t inadvertently reinforcing that through our own participation in the whole convoluted process of vague approaches to dealing with behavioural issues. We can do better.

If you are a member of a really good discussion forum that you think manages the handling of giving people advice on the way their parrot behaves using a similar framework to the one above then let me know. Send me a link to thread that is representative of that approach, I'll check it out, and if it rocks then I'll link it here on the blog!

Hobart Companion Parrot Workshop

2010-01-17T14:42:00.001-08:00

WOW!!! - What a small but super bird nerd crew we had down there in Hobart, Tasmania this past weekend for a full day of learning about the behaviour, enrichment and training of parrots! I'd like to wholeheartedly thank Lisa Kearney for organising this event - her commitment to providing these opportunities for delivering education on the keeping of parrots to the community is stellar! Thanks also to Lisa's partner Jim (good name that ☺) who was our dedicated `chauffeur' for the weekend and made sure that I got to where I needed to be to teach and have some fun with Hobart's most dedicated parrot keepers - Lisa, Cheryl-Lee, Mark, Michelle, Jill, Joseph, Katherine, Brett & Theresa. Thanks for being such a fantastic and enthusiastic group of students and hanging in there for 7 hours of learning, chatting, networking and fun ☺

Cheryl-Lee and Mark were able to bring 3 of their flock to the workshop for me to do some demonstration work with. `T-Bird' the Blue & Gold Macaw, `Tonka' the Alexandrine, and their newest addition - a gorgeous little Green-cheeked Conure (whose name escapes me - sorry guys!). Some pics of these birds can be seen below this post.

Folks - if you want to experience this day and take your understanding of parrots as companion animals to the next level then please join us at our next workshop event - this time in Melbourne, Victoria! To access details and to register (be quick because we do cap numbers), just get in touch with Lisa Kearney via owner@friendlybirdinn.com.au or drop me an e-mail at jim@pbec.com.au and we'll hopefully see you there. The date set is Saturday April 10th - 9:30am to ~4:00pm. This is the most thorough and comprehensive workshop experience of its kind anywhere in Australia and perhaps the only real `professional development' experience available for parrot owners to enhance their level of knowledge about parrot enrichment and behaviour management.

The very cool `T-Bird' owned by Cheryl-Lee and Mark...

Working with T-Bird on stepping up and down without him using his `beak'...

A very chilled out bird indeed - Tonka the Alexandrine...

Our dedicated workshop participants - hopefully they're all awake in this photo ☺

Designing & Building Enrichment Aviaries

2010-01-04T16:06:00.001-08:00

At the forthcoming Parrots 2010 Convention in Brisbane (July 2nd to 4th) I will be giving a presentation on designing and building enrichment enclosures for parrots. The key focus will be on creating safe and enriching outdoor flight enclosures for pet birds. Over the next couple of months I thought I would share some snippets of what will be featured in that presentation via my Blog. What I will be aiming to do is to post progress photos to show the construction of a set of three flights that I am currently building. The first couple of images below show two different angles looking at the front of the complex. The complex will be composed of three flights, each measuring 3.6m long x 1.8m wide x 2.1m high. They will be configured with a central walkway to service all three flights. The birds that will be housed in these enclosures will be various Lory species but the design could accommodate any small to medium parrot, up to the size of an Amazon. I would love for this next set of Blog entries to be interactive so if you have any questions about aviary design or construction then please contact my via e-mail at jim@pbec.com.au I won't be able to personally reply via e-mail but what I will hopefully be able to do is to share your question and suggest an answer via these Blog posts.

So far we have welded the frames for the three enclosures and the additional walkway. To do this we used 25mm square RHS box galvanised tubing. Always use galvanised tubing for aviary frames to minimise rust corrosion and always use spray gal on the welded corners after smoothing out the welding with an angle grinder. Leaving bare tubing exposed to the elements without some form of galvanising protection will result in rust forming within weeks.

Now that the welding stage is complete, we have started to wire up the frames. We were lucky in being able to buy enough Waratah WeldMesh to complete this project before BHP/BlueScope Steel stopped production. This is the safest and absolutely the best weldmesh for aviary use and I'm very concerned about the future of obtaining decent quality wire now that Waratah Mesh will be unavailable. I have heard that a few aviculturists around Australia stockpiled it before it ran out. Wish I did the same to be honest. We now have to try and source good quality, safe wire from China. I've heard that some decent quality stuff is coming out but nothing that compares to Waratah. A huge BOOOOO!!! to BHP for leaving aviculturists in the lurch by no longer providing us with the best wire in the world for parrot enclosures.

Our preference for wire is 12.5mm square mesh size We used to use 25mm x 12.5mm square mesh but given that we live in a fairly high snake density area and have had problems with snakes in the past we don't use it anymore. You would be amazed at the size of carpet python that will squeeze through inch by half inch mesh!!! Touch wood, we're yet to have a snake make it through the 12.5mm square wire and we know they try because I've relocated 4 off the aviary roofs in the last two years. Better on the roof than under it me thinks :-). We use ~1.3mm gauge thickness as it is easier to manage and in my experience, we never have problems with birds `working' it and damaging it. You do have to be careful with perching and use some common sense when securing perches to 1.3mm gauge wire as it can tear if too much strain is placed on it. In the next post I will talk about securing wire to the frame and give some tips on that.

Endangered Parrots to Possibly be Destroyed in Victoria

2009-12-20T01:47:00.000-08:00

OK - I usually stay well away from the political side of birdkeeping here in Australia but this one is just too big an issue to ignore. Please be aware that any views or opinions expressed on this post are mine and should not be considered the views or opinions held by any other person.

Here's the lowdown...

A recent court ruling on the seizure of a substantial collection of exotic parrots in Victoria has resulted in the option of some, if not all, of the birds in question being destroyed. These are not eggs, nor to my knowledge young birds recently smuggled into Australia, but older birds under the suspicion of having been originally smuggled, or the progeny of illegally held birds, or birds whose origin cannot be verified.

At present, there is an appeals timeframe that must pass before action is taken as per the court ruling. There are a range of options that may be taken and, as per the Government's current guidelines for managing such situations the following information has been released in regards to this matter...

Why do forfeited birds have to be euthanased?

· Our department has a policy in place relating to the handling of live animals that have been seized. It outlines three alternatives, firstly to house the animals within approved Australian institutions, secondly to export them to appropriate facilities outside of Australia and thirdly the euthanasia of the specimen.

· Rehousing is done in line with this handling policy which has strict requirements for the types of facilities that can take on the birds.

· There are limited quarantine facilities and these have limited capacity to hold forfeited specimens which on occasions makes euthanasing them only viable option.

· The re-exporting of specimens overseas has limited conservation values and most illegally obtained specimens have unknown genetic and disease background and are therefore unlikely to be accepted into conservation breeding programs.

· It’s not a pleasant decision to have to make but it’s an unfortunate consequence of the criminal trade.

Why can't you send them back to the country they came from?

· If a specimens are seized at the border by Australia Customs and Border Protection agency and they’re CITES Appendix 1 listed, in some circumstances these have been successfully exported back to the country of origin.

· If a specimen has been come into Australia illegal, its origin often can not be traced, and other countries are unwilling to take these species.

Why can't other birdkeepers or aviaries take the birds?

· By allowing individuals or facilities that don’t meet departmental requirements to take on the illegal birds, there’s a risk that we’re supporting wildlife trade crime – basically, we’re allowing laundering to take place.

· There are also difficulties in ensuring quarantine and disease concerns are addressed. One of the reasons the trade of these birds is illegal is the risk of disease spreading to our native wildlife.

· Some approved facilities are not always willing to take illegal birds because of the disease risk they pose to the existing collection.

· Approved facilities are those that meet the requirements of the department’s handling policy.

· If they go into a department approved facility, they undergo a thorough quarantine screening process.

What are the diseases and what risk are they to native wildlife?

· Some of the diseases birds can carry are avian influenza, Pacheco’s disease, Amazon tracheitis, poxvirus, internal papillomatous disease and psittacine proventricular dilation syndrome.

Is there really a disease risk?

Yes, In light of incomplete knowledge on certain diseases of psittacine birds, and with a lack of definitive methods for testing imported birds for the presence of these diseases, the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) suspended the importation of live psittacine birds in 1995. The decision was generally supported by veterinary respondents and the Bureau of Rural Sciences.

Regards,

Anastasia Stomo | Public Affairs Officer

Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts | GPO Box 787 CANBERRA, ACT 2601

p) 02 6275 9243 | f) 02 6274 1094 e) anastasia.stomo@environment.gov.au

So - what's my viewpoint here???

Firstly, I am hopeful that a proper and thorough assessment, evaluation, and testing procedure is carried out by avian veterinarians with extensive experience in parrot health so that the determination of disease risk potential of these birds is conducted using the testing technologies we have available today, not when the above guidelines were formulated. I also do not want to see any of the above birds unfairly euthanized if they are assessed with minor, treatable illness.

Secondly, I want to be confident that a thorough effort is made by the DEWHA to provide all registered Zoo and Aquarium Association institutions throughout Australia with the opportunity to apply for the rehousing of healthy birds and that there is transparency in this process.

There are many, many sides of the debate that this issue will raise - above is essentially the policy that the authorities will be guided by. At this stage however, just consider the following list of birds facing euthanasia. The number in brackets represents the number of each species that are under seizure and will be evaluated - 173 in total.

Blue headed macaw (5)
Blue headed pionus (1)
Bronze wing pionus (3)
Buffons macaw (5)
Crimson bellied conure (16)
Cuban amazon (18)
Illegers macaw (8)
Hawk headed parrot (5)
Hyacinth macaw (6)
Moluccan cockatoo (8)
Patagonian parrot (6)
Red browed amazon (3)
Red fronted macaw (16)
Rose crown conure (33)
Severe macaw (4)
Tucumans amazon (6)
Umbrella cockatoo (8)
White fronted amazon (17)
Yellow naped amazon (5)

Perhaps you can voice your opinion directly to the DEWHA Public Affairs Officer above to ensure that they are aware that the Australian birdkeeping community does not want to see these birds destroyed if they are assessed as clear of exotic disease and pose no risk to bird collections in Australia.

Next ABK Issue – it’s on `target’ for a great read ☺

2009-11-08T02:45:00.000-08:00

I hope that some of you bought the latest ABK Magazine and had a chance to read about my experiences with Lola, my Yellow-crowned Amazon parrot. I think it’s a good little story and one that shares the simple fact that it doesn’t matter how experienced you are, or how much you think you’re prepared, life with parrots is always full of new challenges and reminders that you’ve still got a whole darn lot more to learn. If you didn’t get the mag, and therefore didn’t read my article, well, ah, may your parrot poop on your best shirt tomorrow! Anyway – I’ve just sent off the Pet Parrot Pointers column for the Dec/Jan issue, which will be out in the second week of December. I thought about doing some kind of daggy `What to buy your parrot for Christmas’ thing but I just couldn’t. Read `Bird Talk’ for that – guaranteed to have a parrot somewhere in an issue at that time of year wearing a Santa hat or some other barf inducing prop (God I hope they Photoshop those images). Nope – I thought I’d give the gift that keeps on giving and write up an article on Target Training J Hey, maybe that’s what you can buy your parrot for Christmas – a Target Training stick! One of those super-dooper telescopic ones that extend out like a TV antenna (for those of you who are pre-plasma generation and actually know what an antenna is). Actually those target sticks are pretty neat – I have one and love it. You can pick them up from http://www.myparrotshop.com if you’re in Australia. Either that or just nick a chop-stick next time you’re out feasting on a Sweet ‘n Sour dish at your local greasy spoon.

One of the applications of stationing a parrot to touch a target that I’ve been applying is with Lola – the aforementioned Amazon Parrot. She’s never been keen on tactile handling, always been a little on the averse side to hands, and not been one for a good old ruffle of the nape feathers. With a little use of the target and pairing some approximations of reduced proximity of my fingers towards her head, then a touch, then increasing touch duration, she’s come around and is now a bit of a glutton for a good old preen and cranial massage J Nice work Jimbo – and thanks for the patience Lola! The other pic is PJ, my Caique. He used to go into pet packs no problemo, but I’ve been slack in keeping this up. A good reminder about training some of these behaviours – use it or lose it! Anyway, I’m back to working with him and getting him re-acquainted with the scary plastic box again. The target helps and hopefully this time we’ll keep it up. Read more in the ABK Dec/Jan issue. Available at newsstands absolutely everywhere on Earth from mid-December J

Top 5 Reasons Why I Do What I Do... Number 1

2009-11-08T02:40:00.000-08:00

So here we are – `Numero Uno’ reason for being a parrot behaviour and enrichment consultant eh? Hmmm. You know, any of the previous reasons I shared in earlier posts is enough to keep me motivated to do what I do. But there is one reason that really out-does the others. I want you to take a good look at the image above. It’s a nice little head study of an African Grey parrot. Neat looking bird huh? The thing about African Greys is that when you look into their eyes, I mean really look, you can’t help but be a little overawed with the realisation that there is some serious neuron firing going on inside that head of theirs. Any of you who have been up close and personal with a Grey will know what I mean. It’s different. I mean, these guys really do look back at you as if to say - `Yeah - I breathe, I think, I make decisions, I’m a complex, sensitive creature – what are you gonna do to keep me occupied today?’ Obviously I have no real idea what that Grey, or any other parrot for that matter, is `really’ thinking – but that doesn’t stop me from making a double take every time I look at one of these guys and just wonder – just wonder.

Anyway, thinking that Greys are pretty darn neat isn’t what I’m on about here for my `Number 1’. The thing about that headshot above is that it’s actually a close-up of the bird below. My bird. Not someone asking for my help for his or her feather plucked parrot, my bird. You see, the number one reason why I do what I do is because I’ve actually lived through the problems, the traumas, the heartaches, the frustrations, the sense of despair, and the self-evaluation as a parrot owner that often leaves you asking... `Why?’

When I’m supporting a client, it’s not just with a few snippets of advice I gleaned from an Internet chat board, or read in a magazine, or heard about from Barry the breeder down the road, or just made up because I have no `real’ reference point to work from but it sounds good in theory. More often than not, I’ve lived it. I’ve walked in your shoes. I understand the sadness, the relationship strains, and the confusion that often envelops your life when things go bad with a parrot that you brought into your home. The flipside is that I also know what it takes to get to the other side – to get that parrot trusting me again, to get its feathers back, to communicate with me in a way other than screaming its lungs out. That’s because I haven’t just lived through the problems, I’ve taken the weeks, months, and sometimes years, to live through the solutions.

That African Grey in the picture? His name is Cheeky. He came to us 5 years ago at the age of 25, in the same state he is in today. He’s probably plucked himself like that for a good 27 or 28 of those 30 years and unfortunately, it’s unlikely he’ll ever experience the sensation of lift beneath his wings. He has some of the most intensely stereotypical picking behaviour I’ve seen in a parrot. It doesn’t make me feel any better knowing that he’s always been that bad though. When I go around to my birds each day, I stop and have a chat with Cheek, look at him in the eye, and get reminded of a simple goal – Don’t give up, keep doing what you do, keep trying to make a difference. So, when Cheeky looks at me as if to say, `What are you gonna do for me today?’ – the answer is try – just keep on trying. In the process, the knowledge I gain will inevitably help someone else, and the ripple effect flows on from there. That little bald guy is the most important parrot in my aviaries, my inspiration, and my reminder that I owe it to them to do what I do – bigtime. Number one reason why I do what I do as a matter of fact J

Top 5 Reasons Why I Do What I Do... Number 2

2009-11-08T02:27:00.000-08:00

One of the most satisfying experiences working as a parrot behaviour and enrichment consultant is when your clients achieve success with a behaviour management issue that you have been working with them on. It’s particularly pleasing when the result is the repairing of a relationship with the bird when the owner had taken a few too many hits, or `bites’ to probably be more accurate ☺ It’s not just the trust rebuilding that brings the reward for all concerned, but the richness of the learning journey when you and your client investment in the time, commitment to the goal, and show the perseverance you sometimes need to stay on the pathway to success. It can be really challenging when you take a few backward steps when managing parrot behaviour, or working towards a training goal. But it’s exactly those moments that really bring out some of the most enriching and special learning experiences for me as a consultant, and hopefully likewise for the client.

Sometimes just getting a pet parrot to step back up onto the hand of an owner it has lost trust in is a monumental achievement and worthy of celebration. What most parrot owners consider the `simplest’ of behaviours that their parrot will present for them is also, in my opinion, one of the most important foundations of their relationship, and undoubtedly the best example of how good learning and relationship building is achieved through small, positively reinforced approximations.

Success in supporting a client to achieve a goal with their parrots, whether it be behavioural or environmental, is absolutely one of the top 5 reasons why I do what do ☺

Check out the neat little sequence below as an example of the approximations that were reinforced to achieve the final goal of this Quaker stepping onto the hand of a client I was working with – without the bite!

Fun with Animoto

2009-10-20T18:18:00.000-07:00

I'm teaching my students how to use a very cool web application called `Animoto' to create visual slideshows. I thought that I would do up an example for them and take the opportunity to do some promotion for the World Parrot Trust at the same time. Hope you like it...

Top 5 Reasons Why I Do What I Do... No.3

2009-09-21T21:19:00.001-07:00

I mean, I’m all for recycling right? Good for the environment, keepin’ it `green’ and all. I guess for some it’s logical to think – `Hmmm... spare sheet of tin, few old car tyres lyin’ around, bit of round tube and some old chicken wire – make a run to the Tip with it?’ Hell no! Why not make an aviary and stick a Galah in it! Classic, genius, Aussie improvisation. And hey, if the little pink and grey guy gets bored, just throw a few chickens in there to keep him company – eggs for breakfast and a built-in floor cleaning system for picking up all those darned sunflower husks. Imagine sitting back and reflecting on such a masterpiece after it’s completed and considering all of the avian possibilities that could be manifest within this backyard abode. Why stop at the chooks – surely there’s scope for a flock of budgies escorted by a dozen or so Zebra finches making themselves right at home in there. OK – now I’m getting ridiculous, but if I hadn’t actually seen things like that I wouldn’t be inclined to sink into sarcasm. Hopefully, you’re actually just as confused as I was as to exactly how people get the idea that this is what a parrot aviary is all about.

So, here we have No.3 in my little series here of what inspires me to keep `doing what I do’ as a parrot behaviour and enrichment consultant. Sure, it’s along the same lines as No. 5 but let’s consider just how wrong they got this whole concept. The picture unfortunately doesn’t reveal the full story – that being of a Galah that spent most of the time I was watching it pacing up and down his log, spinning his head around and around as he waddled, and then doing it all again – over, and over, and over... You get the picture. You can see from the close-up that he’s started to pluck the feathers on his chest – a sad indictment on how the environments we establish for parrots often fall way short of maintaining functional behaviour in their inhabitants. The thing is, we can achieve engaging, enriching, stimulating and socially happening outdoors enclosures for our pet parrots – but this isn’t how.

Designing outdoor aviary environments for pet parrots is absolutely one of the most pleasurable aspects of what I do. Seeing the end results of those designs is the sealer! Outdoor enclosure design for interactive pet birds is something I would dearly love to spend more of my time doing and at the Parrots 2010 Convention next year I will be giving a presentation on exactly this topic. The picture below is a good representation of where we can go with taking the `next step’ in creating an environment and daily experience set for our birds that extends beyond the limitations of the indoor cage. It’s a backyard enclosure that I designed for a client and one that is now home to their `flock’ of parrots. We designed it to actually wrap around that magnificent Melaleuca tree and, unlike how a lot of aviaries tend to be, it’s actually a really nice compliment to their garden aesthetic when you see it in the flesh. Hopefully, we’ll start to see spacious outdoor enrichment enclosures become a natural part of pet parrot keeping in the future. Don’t give up on recycling though! Just give it some more thought if it involves housing your parrot ;-)

Top 5 Reason Why I Do What I Do... No.4

2009-09-21T20:27:00.000-07:00

Over the past 5 years I have developed a workshop format for companion parrot owners that I honestly feel offers the most comprehensive and supportive set of learning experiences available here in Australia. My yearly gig at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary has now educated over 100 parrot owners on progressive approaches towards the care, enrichment, housing and training of their birds – something I am immensely proud of. I have had the opportunity to expand the scope and audience of my own workshop this year with a special presentation day at Taronga Zoo in Sydney, and also by teaming up with some of my colleagues for the `Step Up’ workshop in Brisbane. We are also looking towards holding workshops in Hobart, Melbourne, and hopefully Adelaide in 2010 (Perth – I would love to get there but you have to make it happen ;-).

These events, the culmination of years of hands-on learning and experience, really are what keep me motivated and engaged as an educator and trainer. The opportunity to meet other parrot owners, to feed off their enthusiasm and commitment, to share my experience and insight, and to work with some of the best and most gifted bird trainers in the field is something I never take for granted and always appreciate. There is a huge sense of satisfaction in keeping the ripple effect of lifelong education flowing and knowing that in some small way, I may have made a positive and meaningful contribution to the knowledge and understanding of parrot owners. In achieving this, the ultimate goal is to improve the lives of parrots kept as companion animals – as good a reason as any to continue doing what I do J

Top 5 Reasons Why I Do What I Do...

2009-08-29T20:15:00.000-07:00

Ya know – you can do some crazy stuff with Photoshop, like, even make it appear as though there’s actually a Sun Conure and Green-cheeked Conure living in these cages. Imagine that huh? I mean, wouldn’t it be nuts to put a bird in... Hmmm - hang on a second here, that’s not Photoshopped is it? There actually is a `real’ Sun and Green-cheeked Conure chilling in those Victorian era `Domes of Doom’. Oh dear...

I was sent this photo recently and, well, knock me down with a feather (pardon the pun) but I could have sworn this was 2009 and I was living in a well-developed nation that offers plenty of education on bird care and the environmental enrichment needs of parrots as pets. It prompted me to come up with an idea for a series of Blog posts - `Top 5 Reasons Why I Do What I Do’. Each fortnight over the next 10 weeks I’ll post the next in line for the Top 5. So, in no real order of significance, here we have `Number 5’ to kick things off.

Having seen what Conures get up to in the wilds of Central America first hand, I shudder to think about the level of boredom, frustration and stress that such active little extroverts face during the hours upon hours a day these guys are caged as they are. And we still scratch our heads when they pull their own feathers out. I mean, really... wouldn’t you?

If you guys ever wonder why someone like me spends most of their spare time educating parrot owners, working with people to improve the standard of understanding out there on what a parrot needs to be a functional, engaging and behaviourally well adapted critter in captivity – the image above is as good a reason as any. It sure ain’t for the money, so for those of you out there who think parrot behaviour consultancy is a `good little earner’ – I hate to burst your ambitious bubble. At best, even for those of us getting significant client numbers and running workshops, it might cover part of your feed and enrichment bill over the course of the year. It’s pretty much a pathway that constantly challenges you and, at times, whilst you do unfortunately get to see the worst, you also meet some of the most dedicated and incredibly caring parrot owners who have birds that are thriving! This Top 5 won’t be just about the negative side – hopefully it will be balanced by some real positives. Maybe it should have been a `Top 6’ then? Anyway, as long as parrot owners are sticking their birds in ornamental domes and think that’s just fine and dandy, I’ve obviously still got some work to do ;-)

Cover Photograph by...

2009-08-29T19:08:00.000-07:00

I gotta tell ya, I’ve been proud of a lot of things over the years, number one being the birth of my daughter, but this is pretty neat for a parrot obsessive like me. I finally made a cover photo! The August 2009 edition of the World Parrot Trust Magazine features a cover image that I took whilst birding in Costa Rica in 2007. Folks, I can tell you exactly where the shot was taken, put you exactly in the same spot, and guarantee exactly the same experience – you just have to pay for me to accompany you to Costa and I’ll reveal everything when we get there J

WPT – do your bit for supporting conservation of parrot species and joining today. Check their website out at www.parrots.org

Birding with Simon & Nicky

2009-08-29T18:54:00.000-07:00

Outside of bird training, surfing and playing the guitar – birdwatching is quickly becoming my most consuming passion. Whilst down at the AVES Convention last week I met Simon Brusland-Jensen, curator of the famous Walsrode Bird Park in Germany. Simon ventured north to the Sunshine Coast with his girlfriend Nicky after AVES and stayed at El Rancho Jimbo for a few days to take in some of the great birding opportunities on offer here on the Sunshine Coast.

Birdwatching can be pretty hit and miss, and it’s always a little daunting when you take people out from overseas who are keen birders and kinda relying on you to get them to the `spot’ where they will be able to add some new species to their lists. I always find really hardcore birders a little intimidating and I had a disastrous day last year taking Don Brightsmith out birding and having him, an American on his first trip to Australia, identify more native birds than me that day – soooo embarrassing! This was a little different and Simon and Nicky seemed as happy to get a look at the ubiquitous Lewin’s Honeyeater as they were seeing a White-bellied Sea Eagle fishing on the wing over Lake MacDonald. It was certainly the first time I had ever seen anyone actually stop to take a photo of a Noisy Miner nest but hey, I guess you don’t have Noisy Miners in every suburban backyard in Germany? :-)

As it turned out we had the most unbelievable day of Silvereye spotting, Osprey observing, Honeyeater hunting, Wren wrangling, Pardolote purving, Wagtail watching, Galah gazing... (alright, I know – enough alliteration already). All up we counted 73 species on our list later that night, including three newbies for my personal Noosa list. As much as I’d like to take credit and big note my `Bird Guide’ abilities, I’m about as amateur as you get and it was just a darn lucky day in the field (but you gotta agree, getting 15 Glossy Black Cockatoos drinking at the end of the day right where I said they would be should justify a little quiet satisfaction in one’s skills – there’s a pair in the pic above). That night we rested the binoculars and field guides and soaked up some good Aussie amber ale – still debating if it was an Oriental Pratincole we saw darting over the Lake, but damn happy with the experience. Always keen to impress, I thought we might add some nocturnal birds to our list before the stroke of midnight so I took Simon out for some spotlighting. Didn’t see a damn thing, despite my assurances of a resident Tawny Frogmouth and regular Boobook Owl visitations on our block. Should have quit with the `Bird Guide’ thing while I was ahead!

Simon and Nicky – if you read this, thanks for an awesome day! Hopefully we’ll meet again on your side of the equator ;-)

A Weekend at AVES

2009-08-29T18:06:00.000-07:00

I ventured down to Grafton last week for the biennial AVES Parrot Convention. This is an event hosted by the Northern Rivers Avicultural Society in NSW and features 3 days of presentations from International and Australian aviculturists. The 2009 programme featured some really fine talks and I was most impressed with the two lectures from Ricardo Valentin on the Puerto Rican Amazon Conservation Project. Ricardo is a fantastic aviculturist, a dedicated observer of the behaviour of his birds, and a keen breeding problem solver – skills that have made a huge contribution to the increase in numbers of Puerto Rican Amazons over the past 10 years. Ricardo’s presentations exemplified the critical partnership roles that can be established between aviculture and conservation. Inspiring stuff!

The AVES weekend finishes off with a traditional BBQ at Casuarina Parrot Gardens. Whilst wandering around the aviaries I took the photo above of an Umbrella Cockatoo and a Galah in synchronous preening. They were quite a pair and a wonderful example of the benefits of social housing of compatible parrots in captive environments.

If you missed out on AVES then make sure you’re planning a trip to Brisbane in July 2010 to be a part of the Parrots 2010 Convention. This will be held over three days from July 2^nd to 4^th and will feature an innovative programme of breakout lectures covering two streams – Avian Husbandry, Breeding & Handrearing and Avian Behaviour, Training & Enrichment. You can register your interest via the Parrots 2010 website at www.parrotsociety.org.au/Parrots2010/index.html. I will have plenty more to `blog’ about on Parrots 2010 as the event draws nearer!

Lola's Legbreak

2009-08-04T01:32:00.000-07:00

In the March/April 2009 edition of Australian Birdkeeper Magazine I wrote about the process of making a decision to acquire another parrot as part of my educational workshop, training and vet clinic consultancy `crew’. If you didn’t get the chance to read the article you can grab a copy of the back issue via the new ABK website at http://www.birdkeeper.com.au. I will be updating readers on how things have turned out since acquiring `Lola’ our Yellow-crowned Amazon as the learning journey has certainly continued. Unfortunately, that journey hasn’t exactly taken the road I thought we prepared and planned so well for. Whilst parrots with behavioural issues seem to gravitate my way like a dung beetle to a cow pat, I’ve been extremely fortunate to have had to rarely deal with any serious injuries or major health complications in my birds over the past 15 years. I’ll save the elaborations, dramas and hard lessons learned for the ABK follow-up article (should appear in the Oct/Nov edition), but just wanted to share a quick insight here. As you can see – with the wonders of modern technology, advancements in avian veterinary care, and an absolutely awesome team of professionals at Brisbane Bird & Exotics Veterinary Service, when your Amazon busts its leg it gets a pretty darn neat looking pin, cast and best of all you get to take home the x-ray images on CD! Lola is back flying around in her aviary just fine and despite some major withdrawals from her `trust account' during the rehabilitation period is impressing me with her resilience and increasing confidence. Hopefully it’s a good story for everyone to learn from when it’s published later this year.

`Lifelong Education’ – The essential obligation of the companion parrot owner...

2009-07-22T05:20:00.000-07:00

Think about those two words - `Lifelong Education’. It’s a common phrase in the teaching world and one that I desperately would love to see more and more companion parrot owners adopt as somewhat of a mantra. Potentially, they are two of the most important words for anyone who cares for a parrot in captivity to be consciously aware of. It’s a mindset that, regardless of our perceived level of experience or expertise, sets one up with an openness to view each day, each engagement with a parrot, each meeting with another parrot owner, each magazine article, workshop experience or bird watching encounter as an opportunity to further the understanding we have about parrot behaviour, enrichment, and how to better achieve our goals and fulfil our responsibilities as a parrot owner. I know from personal experience how important it has been to keep the continuum of learning flowing over the past 15 years and to constantly challenge myself to re-evaluate whether my knowledge base is progressing or stagnating. I know what you’re probably thinking - `Yeah Jim, you’re trying to guilt us all into going to your workshop right?’. Well, maybe – can’t say it’s a bad idea actually :-) But you know, the real point here is to try and motivate anyone who reads this to make a commitment that some time in the next few days, week or month you will follow through on at least one experience that you know will keep your learning continuum moving forward as a parrot owner. How? Here’s just a few options that I think will get you moving, motivated and hopefully reinvigorated to learn more about that feathered zygodactyl living in your home or backyard...

*Subscribe to a parrot magazine or journal – I never fail to find something that piques my interest or kick starts a new enrichment idea whilst I’m flicking through the latest issue of a good old bird magazine. Check out...

*Read a Blog other than Jim’s! – There are some really neat Blogs out there that that can be educational, inspiring and just plain good for a laff! Whenever I start taking myself too seriously I like to make a good `cup of joe’ and prepare myself to lose the next hour or so checking out some of these gems...

*Attend a Parrot Workshop – I can’t be unbiased here so really, there is probably no better education experience than actually immersing yourself in a veritable `psittafest’ of fun learning about parrots than what you will experience via a workshop presented by experienced and qualified parrot trainers and educators. Check out...

*Can’t get to a workshop? – Let the workshop be delivered to your inbox! Just a few times a year, the genius of Dr. Susan Friedman and her talented team of teachers open up a `Living & Learning with Parrots’ class. This is absolutely the most significant learning opportunity available out there if you want to really understand behaviour. It should probably be considered a prerequisite to actually owning a bird in captivity. The waiting list is long but I can guarantee that if you commit to the course it will be a life changer for many of you. Register at http://www.behaviorworks.org/

*Join a Bird Club or Society. It’s mighty daunting to turn up to a Bird Club or Parrot Society meeting on your own and not knowing anyone – I know, I did it myself one night as a geeky 21 year old owner of a single pet Conure. I swear I was the youngest there by about 30 years but you know, I’ve met people through being a member of an organization like the Parrot Society of Australia that will probably forget more in their lifetime about breeding and keeping birds than I’ll probably learn. It’s worth the effort and can open up the door to some great new friendships and networking opportunities. If you’re feeling like your local Club isn’t heading in the `right’ direction – get in there, get involved, be respectful, stay out of the politics, and most importantly be the change you want to see happen. The Internet has replaced the traditional `Club’ as the key meeting point for parrot enthusiasts these days and whilst the `Net’ is home to some great communities and can be an invaluable reference source, in many ways it’s a shame seeing the decline in Club or Society patronage. Perhaps it’s time to bust out of the `alias’ laden cyber world. Sure, `Featherduster69’ kinda seems to know just about everything there is to know about parrots after having bought `Polly' last week and caught that Nat Geo special on Budgerigar survival in the outback, but I would love to see us get back to really meeting like-minded people, face to face, and building `human’ relationships that keep us inspired to further our `parrot’ relationships.

*Last (but certainly not least) – Go Parrot Watching!!! Get off the internet, grab a set of binoculars, don your best khaki, multi-pocketed clothing, put on a funny looking saggy brimmed towelling hat and get out there amongst it all to see what these guys really do with their lives in the wild. Actually spending time in the field, watching and listening to parrots is probably the best myth busting, generalisation killer and downright enlightening experience you can get. There has been no greater teacher for me than my time observing parrots in the wild. Don’t live in a country with parrots? Time to start planning an eco-tour and make it your goal to give back in one of the most effective ways that we can all contribute to parrot conservation.

Go on... do it!

Welcome to the PBEC Blog...

2009-07-22T05:14:00.000-07:00

Time... Don’t we all wish we had a heck of a lot more of it? The fact that I’m only just now writing a `first Blog’ for the PBEC website, more than 6 months after the site went live, is a pretty good indication of just how time poor I am these days. This was actually supposed to be a kind of `take it easy’ year for me – you know how those New Year’s resolutions go, a few drinks and you’re waxing all nostalgic about the days when you took the time to surf more, go birdwatching more, walk the dogs more, hang with the parrots more, sit around and do absolutely nothing more! I had planned from that moment to make a commitment that 2009 would be a year to focus solely on teaching, parenthood, delivering just the one parrot workshop, and finally putting a serious dent in a book project that I am desperate to complete. As the year has unravelled though, it’s turned out to be busier, more demanding, and at times more challenging, than my pathetic little effort at `commitment’ to the simpler life could possibly allow. Through it all though, the first six months of 2009 have offered some of the richest and most positively reinforcing times for what I do as a parrot educator. Right now I’m super inspired to keep the behavioural momentum flowing and share some insights from more than 15 years working with parrots via the words found here. Hopefully from time to time that sharing will be of benefit and interest to you, the reader or casual observer of what’s going on in the parrot world. At times it might also be challenging but hey, if you don’t appreciate a good challenge then you probably wouldn’t own a parrot right? Even though I’m still getting my head around exactly what a Blog is all about, I plan to use my energies in this forum to cover a fairly diverse range of issues, food for thought, and personal comment related to life working with parrots, bird owners, and doing my best to be an exponent of positive reinforcement principles. Better late than never? I hope so ;-)