The supplements section of a grocery store or health food store can be filled with over a thousand products, each with their own health claims. As a consumer, it can be hard to sort through it all, especially since there is little regulation in many countries.
This blog is about birds, though, which makes…
Many of the companies that make pellets have pictures such as these on their websites or as handouts that are given to vets. They purport to demonstrate what birds look like on seed diets and their radical transformation after being switched to pellets.
If a vet gives you a handout like this, now you know…
What are the top chronic diseases that parrots get?
Sound familiar? We can’t ignore the fact that parrots get the same chronic diseases we do. Yet we feed our parrots the same way we are told to feed ourselves. Eat a low fat diet,…
Most people agree that fresh foods need to be part of a healthy bird’s diet. In addition to leafy greens and fruit, an essential part of my birds’ daily diet is both fresh and dried herbs. I’m continually surprised how few people feed their birds herbs, despite the strong evidence for their healthy benefits.…
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I’ve long been frustrated that there are so many lists out there of safe and toxic plants, but nearly all of them don’t cite ANY references. It doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. On top of that, many of them disagree with each other and offer black-and-white answers when …
I’m defining a “dry diet” as either pellets, seeds, dried chop, and other dry ingredients—or a combination of them. Regardless of the dry diet, most people know the importance of giving your bird fresh vegetables and fruit every day.
This article is closely related to a number I’ve already…
I previously wrote an article about Avian Behavior International (ABI), where I attended two week-long bird training workshops a couple of years ago. I also mentioned that they offer an on-line version of their training for a monthly fee.
The purpose of this article is to illustrate the value I’ve gotten…
Feather plucking is something I’ve always been curious about. There isn’t much research into it and no magic bullets. But if you search the internet for it, you’ll find dozens of proposed remedies, none of which have any scientific backing.
With one exception. Here’s one study …
I suspect most people would say their parrots are happy and cite some evidence:
But sometimes we mistakenly think other human beings are happy when they really aren’t. So, can we really…