Happy Pets

It does seem that the younger the bird, the easier he is to tame; however, all birds, of all ages, will eventually respond to kindness. The major problem is getting his confidence in you. His fear of new surroundings, lack of companions and strangeness of a new cage are all contributing factors to his wild behavior when you bring him to your home. He will undoubtedly bite when handled, cower in the corner and hiss and strike at your extended hand. Patience is the key word here along with slow, cautious movements. Speak softly each time you approach the cage, and keep the cage near you while you do your chores. (more…)

Both the male and female Cockatiel learn to talk quite proficiently, and although their voices are somewhat shrill, the words they learn are quite distinguishable. The male does much more whistling and can be taught to repeat complete bars of certain tunes. The female is not so adept at this, but she can wolf whistle, and is as quick at learning as the male. (more…)

On the 18th or 19th day after the egg has been laid, a tiny hole appears in the side of the egg. At this time the chick can be heard chipping at the shell and making his very first “chirps.” Just a matter of hours later, the chick emerges from the shell. The parents clean the baby, for there is a kind of afterbirth encrusted on his body. Shortly thereafter they will feed the little one by regurgitating food into its mouth. It is best to leave the chicks with the parents for a few days. They do seem to get a better start by doing this. (more…)

The Nest Box

The nest box should be wooden and have a partition in the middle to keep the eggs from rolling too much. It should be large; this is stressed for two reasons :

1. Both birds incubate the eggs and spend hours together in the box. They need room to move freely and turn the eggs.
2. The nest box will act as “nursery” for the chicks until they are old enough to leave it.

The box should have a 32 inch hole in the center and a perch outside to make access easier. In fact, everything should be done to make the nest box convenient and easily accessible. The female is especially cautious at this time. (more…)

Breeding Cockatiels in an aviary, where there is plenty of dirt, sunshine, fresh air and flight room is relatively simple. With a good diet, large nest boxes, and conditions as near to their natural habitat as possible, they settle down with their mates and nature does the rest.

However, when the birds are confined to a small cage, provided only with commercial seed, subject only to room temperatures, the situation is radically changed. In fact, it may be more than difficult to get a pair on the nest. (more…)

When the babies are first hatched, they are far from a beautiful sight, except perhaps to the owner who has waited long and patiently for their arrival. The head and neck are the largest part of their bodies, and their eyes, not open, almost cover each side of the head. The amount of feathers on the body varies. Some of them have a few straggly olive colored quills, while others are covered with a brilliant yellow down. They are very active and appear to be walking around on four legs, since they use their wings for support. They are born hungry and crying for food. (more…)

One would have to have a complete medical background to go into the history, nature and causes of all bird diseases. However, our purpose here is to advise you, the pet owner, of certain signs of illness and home remedies that may be used in their event.

Cleanliness is, of course, the prime requisite of a healthy bird. A good mite spray when needed, frequent baths and fresh, clean seed are of the utmost importance. (more…)

Evolution having fine-tuned every fibre, nerve and cell of the feline body many millennia ago, the domestic cat of the twenty-first century closely resembles its wildcat ancestors in both build and mentality. Like every other species — Homo sapiens included — the cat’s ultimate raison d’être is the constant search for, and acquisition of, food, a mission for which nature has equipped it superbly. (more…)

The Wrasses are found in temperate and tropical seas. Like the Angelfishes, they display a wide difference in colour patterns between juvenile and adult fishes. Some Wrasses perform a cleaning service by removing skin parasites from other fishes. In nature, fishes often visit the Cleaner Wrasses‘ reef deliberately to avail themselves of this service. Wrasses often lie on the aquarium floor to rest at night, or bury themselves in the sand; others spin a mucous sleeping bag which is discarded each morning. (more…)

Wheezing

Wheezing is noisy breathing (respiration) and may be accompanied by increased effort during breathing, noticeable by exaggerated movements of the abdomen or chest, and perhaps more rapid breathing than normal. True wheezing is often caused by allergic conditions, especially the quite common condition of feline ASTHMA, but most owners would be unable to differentiate this from similar breathing noises caused by other conditions such as PNEUMONIA. (more…)