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Parrot Life Newsletter September 2021
ENRICHMENT INSPO - Stuffed Capsicums!!
If you don't mind a little bit of waste and mess occasionally, stuffed capsicums are a super fun way to present some of your parrot's daily meals to them! Not only do they get to engage in normal species-specific behaviour like tearing and shredding, but they are getting great nutrition while they are doing it! If you have a bird that is a bit hesitant about eating their fresh food, this can also be a great way to encourage them to try new things! Check out the video below to see how to make your own!
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PARROT LIFE® SHOP NEWS!
Things have been busy over in the Parrot Life Shop!
Our extremely popular, new product the JMK Parrot Harness + Leash set are available once again for custom pre-orders! Get yours here: https://www.parrotlife.com.au/product-page/custom-pre-order-jmk-parrot-harness
We are also looking for 'Stockists' for the JMK Harness + Leashes! If you run a parrot or pet-related store in Australia or New Zealand and are interested in stocking the harness please email contact@parrotlife.com.au for more information!
Our Avian Scales are currently on their way to Australia and due to arrive mid next week! They are available for pre-order here: https://www.parrotlife.com.au/product-page/i5000-avian-scales-plus-perch-attachment
And we recently released our brand new 'Feeding + Diet for Companion Parrots' E-Book! For just $19.95! You can find that here: https://www.parrotlife.com.au/product-page/diet-feeding-for-companion-parrots-e-book
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Upcoming LIVE 'Avian First Aid + Health' - with Dr Toni Smith of Perth Pet Vet!
We are excited to announce that the wonderful Dr Toni Smith (nee Cockburn) has agreed to join Lee for a much-requested Facebook Live on 'Avian First Aid + Health'!
In 2012, Dr Toni successfully completed exams and was granted membership to the Australian and New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists in Avian Health. In January 2019 Toni opened Perth Pet Vet, a purpose-built, modern and fully equipped Veterinary Hospital.
Keep an eye out on our Facebook page as we will be announcing the time and date of our Live with Dr Toni very soon!
We will have more exciting FACEBOOK LIVE events coming up shortly! Join our group to see when our next events are planned!
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The influence of environment on behaviour
We love when we get the chance to catch on video examples of topics that we talk about with clients regularly. Recently Lee captured this excellent example of how much the environment can influence the behaviour of our parrots!
In the first half of this video, you can see a 4yo Male Greenwing Macaw who had been housed with a familiar 3yo female Greenwing for several days. The behaviour he is exhibiting (raised wings, fluffed feathers, pining eyes) are 'distance increasing' behaviours, designed to make a perceived threat move away. In this case, the perceived threat was Lee entering the aviary and being within the vicinity of his potential 'mate'.
In the second video, you see the same male Greenwing Macaw a short time later once he was moved back into his own aviary. As you can see his posture is significantly more relaxed and he is no longer exhibiting distance increasing behaviour.
Same bird, same day. Very different behaviour.
This is what we mean when we say that behaviour is in the environment not in the bird. Nothing about the bird changed, only the environment in which he was housed.
When thinking in terms of changing behaviour we should not think about how we can change the animal, but rather how to change the environment that accompanies and influences the behaviour.
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FUN FACTS - BIRD EDITION!
Did you know that the New Zealand, Kakapo (Strigops habroptilus), is the world's heaviest species of parrot? They can weigh up to 4kgs! The Kakapo is also nocturnal, flightless and solitary! Making them one of the most unique of the approximately 400 parrot species! They are part of the parrot 'super-family' Strigopoidea, which also includes the other New Zealand parrots, the Kea and Kaka. They are critically endangered, with only around 200 living individuals currently. You can find out more about the Kakapo and it's plight, here: https://www.facebook.com/KakapoRecovery/ Photo: Maddy Whittaker
