A Birdseye Vision

Did you know:

Birds see in color. I've known that for a long time, because our choosy Cherry-head Conure, Mr. Spock, eats his food in color order. Yes, just like a human might choose to eat jelly beans or M&Ms (click here to read about it). In fact, birds can see colors better than humans. It has to do with lenses and cones (not ice cream cones, but the cones that make up the eye), which allow them to see a greater range of the ultraviolet wavelengths than humans. That may be another reason why our pretty parrot can be found entranced with his image in anything reflective. If there is a mirror or a metallic object near by (even a spoon), he can be found snuggled up to it staring at his bright red crown and gorgeous green body. Oooh La La !!

Unspoiling our Bird - Part Two - Going Mobile

In Part 1 of this series, we described the large and luxurious new home base cage we set up for Mr. Spock to begin the unspoiling process.

The next step toward unspoiling Mr. Spock, our 25 year-old controlling cherry-head conure, was to purchase a new "playpen" for him so that he can have familiar comfortable surroundings wherever he goes in our home. He already has a "play area" in our office, but the new "mobile" addition gives him more options. It has a ladder, swinging toys, a high perch, low perch, food and water dishes, etc.

So, right about now you may be asking "exactly how is this unspoiling our precious parrot." I'm kind of questioning it myself. (Just kidding.) Actually, it's working. This is all part of our master plan to be able to have Spock close by whenever he starts feeling restless. Even though his cage is wide open when we are home, he does get restless from time to time. That's when the spoiled brat-bird in him starts to rear it's un-pretty head. The screeching begins. Sometimes he is letting us know he doesn't want to be alone while we are in another room. Other times, he may want some of what we are cooking or eating, or might want a light out or a light on, etc.

So, now that we have a mobile playpen for him. This has served to quiet the pesky parrot every time. It has cut out on a lot of screaming matches between us and him. And...since screaming is our bird's specialty, he is usually the winner of any Call of the Wild match. So now our little talks with Mr. Spock are more conducive to harmony in our home.

So, we highly recommend mobile playpens.

Poem to a Parrot, by Dee in Colorado

This poem was written by a dear friend (and Mr. Spock's Aunt) when she heard that Spock, our cherry-head conure, is in the bird hospital.

Just in case you haven’t heard
Mr. Spock is quite a bird!
Once a Rocky Mountain creature
Now a retired Boynton Beacher

I remember well when he was young
you wanted him to hold his tongue
But every little squeak and squawk
had wisdom in that Vulcan talk

I often marveled his colorful hues
of dazzling reds and brilliant blues
And even though he pecked my feet
Mr. Spock is very sweet

Get well Mr. Spock!
-Dee

CONGRATULATIONS MITCH & KAREN!

"It Must Be Love"

I would like to say Happy 15th Anniversary to Mitch and Karen. These two humans are like more like Love Birds! We speak the same language. They celebrated with the annual renewal of their wedding vows. Send them your good wishes by posting a comment here. Just click comments below.

With Great Affection,

Mr. Spock
Senior Consultant http://www.talkingwithbirds.blogspot.com/

Parrots, Conures and House Guests

"Welcome To My Home"

Jekyll and Hyde could be one way to describe how Mr. Spock, our cherry-head conure, behaves when we have guests staying over. Our lovable bird usually starts out on his best behavior for about 1 - 2 days. He's calm, quiet, and spends most of his time keeping a low profile. The reality is that Spock is hiding out from the "strangers" and under the impression that no one can see him. This makes our courageous conure feel safe and gives him time to observe the new people. He forgoes the usual 'crack-of-dawn' crowing, he abandons clanging his toys in to the side of the cage to get our attention, and he skips the siren-like screeching that we usually hear as soon as we enter the house.

Once Mr. Spock has sized up the new humans and realizes they are not a threat to this proud parrot, he sends out that exact message via shock waves, usually early in the morning, with his 'rise and shine' ear-drum piercing cocka-doodle-doos. Then we know...that he knows...that we know...that Spock is back in charge of the household. Watch out now!

What have we learned? Parrots / conures are good on stake outs.

Bird Food: A Mediterranean Experience

What does Mr. Spock eat when he is not crunching on his Pretty Bird brand fruity bits? Well, tonight was falafel night. He had freshly made falafel with whole wheat pita bread, and topped with lettuce, corn, tomatoes, shredded carrots, couscous, and tahini sauce. We know he loved it, because his little red head was buried deep in his dish, chomping away until he had his fill (he eats like a bird you know).

P.S. These aren’t the tomatoes he ate. They are actually from Mom’s garden and just looked too good to not post.

What have we learned? Falafel is actually bird food that humans like to eat too. (Makes me wonder how the fruity scented Pretty Bird pellets taste.)