You would be surprised how many people especially children end up with a companion parrot on an impulse purchase. These unfortunate parrots are usually the ones that are neglected or discarded as the novelty wares off, or when the new owners find out that the parrot does not fit into their own life style or neighbourhood.

A Healthy Diet.

Companion parrot owners often confuse variety with abundance and in an effort to offer a greater variety of foods, ultimately provide too much food.

Slightly reduce the amount of each food offered. If your bird is leaving food in his bowl continue this reduction until the bird is eating all the food provided. At this stage slightly increase the portion of healthy food until the bird starts to leave some in the bowl. You can now cut back the food just a little but you must monitor his eating habits

Every species has different dietary requirements. It is your responsibility to learn the dietary requirements of your own companion and to provide the diet that will satisfy these requirements.

Dumping a hand full of seed into a feeding bowl may be the easy way, but it will not provide for the birds' nutritional needs

Many books are written on the care, health and needs of companion parrots and also books on individual species. The wealth of information contained within these books make it easier to provide the right needs for you parrot, but first you must read them to obtain this information.

Birds should never be offered chocolate, coffee, alcohol or avocados, or mushrooms.

Your Parrots Cage

Cages are the most overlooked accessories when purchasing a parrot. The cage should be as large as possible allowing the parrot to be able to spread his wings in all directions and to have a real good flap for exercise and enjoyment. Many companion parrot owners have saved hard to purchase their chosen companion but then forget or ignore the needs of the parrot.

Good quality cages are expensive, and new parrot owners often find that they can only afford the parrot but not the quality cage that their parrot should be housed in.

They will then purchase the smaller, cheaper imported lightweight cage, and justify their decision by telling them selves that the parrot will only be in it for short periods of time each day.

No matter what reason they use to justify providing this smaller inferior cage for their parrot, no one can predict the future, and under what unforeseen circumstance their parrot may be forced to spend many long cramped stressful hours caged up.

Round cages have no place in the psychological life of a parrot. Parrots need the defined boundary that a conventional cages offers

(measurements are length by depth by height)

Budgies: 355 X 355 X 355 mm (14x14x14 inches.)

Finches, Canaries (flight cages) 915 X 460 X 460 mm (36x18x18 inches.)

Cockatiels, small Parakeets, small Conures, Lovebirds: 460 X 460 X 610 mm (18x18x24 inches.)

Large Conures, large Parakeets, medium-sized Parrots: 510 X 510 X 610 mm (20x20x24 inches.)

Small Cockatoos, Eclectus African Grays, Amazons: 610 X 510 X 610 mm (24x20x24 inches.)

Large Cockatoos, Amazons and Macaws: 915 X 915 X 1524 mm (3x3x5 feet.)

 

T-Stands

The T-Stands is a great piece of equipment to have for your parrot. How you utilize the T-stand is up to the individual parrot owner. Saying that, the T-Stand was originally designed and used for training purposes, and in some countries this is still its primary usage.

Parrots being an inquisitive creature by nature will become restless and bored, without adequate supervision they will eventually decide to dismount the T-stand and venture into trouble

My own Sulphur Crested Cockatoo Buddy, spends many hours with me in the workshop perched upon his T-stand. Buddy is provided with water, seeds and usually a small branch to chew and play with, even under these controlled circumstances he still decides on occasions that life is better some where else, and has to be replaced on the T-stand or back in his own cage. Supervision is a must.

Play Stands

These are where parrots are placed to have fun and enjoy life outside the cage. Play stands can be simple or elaborate.

You will need to provide toys to activate their playful nature and to stimulate them. Water and seed may need to be provided depending on the length of time they are to spend on the play stand.

Place the play stand in an area where the parrot has full view of it human flock and for supervision and socialization.

Companion parrots make great friends. Garry Lee 

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