A pair of Double Yellow Headed Chicks waiting to be fed by hand.


Two blue-fronted chicks, 4 & 6 weeks.

Note: The youngest is covered with feather quills ( the porcupine phase!)


5 week old Double yellow head chicks and a baby umbrella Cockatoo. (I do not currently breed cockatoos)



Above:8 week old parvipes & Double yellow head chicks ready to learn to fly!

Before ordering a parrot, please ask yourself if YOU should own a parrot?

The decision to own a pet parrot is not one that should be undertaken lightly. Parrots live an extremely long time, they require daily attention and they can be noisy, messy, and destructive. It's a major commitment!

Many species of parrots (such as the large macaws) do not make good pets in climates where they have to be kept inside. I have purposely tried to avoid breeding parrots such as these.

In some parts of the country there are parrot rescue centers where you may be able to adopt a bird and give it a good new home. However, be aware that these birds may have problems that take someone with experience to handle.

On the positive side, parrots can be endlessly amusing companions whose radiating intelligence can be inspirational!

Diet:
If your bird is un-weaned and at least a month old, it should be fed formula at 101F-105F up to four times daily until weaned. If not yet fully feathered, it should be kept from getting chilled.

If your bird is weaned, it knows how to feed itself. However, it may still beg with a repetitive call for feeding for some time to come. During the first few weeks after weaning, make sure the bird goes to sleep each night with a full crop of food. You should be able to feel food at the top of its chest. If it is empty, take the bird out of its cage and offer it food from your hands. Warming the food slightly (not above 105F) sometimes helps.

As a base diet, pellets are preferred over seeds. They are less fatty and more balanced in nutrition. If you feel you must feed your parrot some seeds, please do so only as a treat. I do not recommend more than about 20 sunflower seeds per day.

Parrot pellets can be purchased through pet stores. They should generally be available to the bird 24 hours a day unless the bird is not eating any of the fresh food that is offered. In that case, restrict pellets until the bird’s diet broadens.

Fresh fruit and vegetables should be provided daily. If the bird is just weaned, soft food is easier for them to eat. Frozen mixed vegetables (stay away from heavily salted brands), mixed with some pellets, usually works well.

When the bird is eating well, you can shift the diet over to fresh produce if it is more convenient. Either way make sure to include plenty of orange and green vegetables and not too much fruit.

Parrots waste less if the food is chopped up. An Amazon or Grey should be given about 4 heaped tablespoons per day.

Avoid giving so much food that the bird can get away with eating only its favorite fruit or vegetable. Do not feed birds “junk” food.

Amazons need a lot of vitamin A in their diet so make sure they get carrots, cantaloupe, winter squash, or sweet potatoes.

Greys need high calcium, so be sure to offer cuttlebone. If your Grey ever has seizures, it should be taken to an avian vet and given an injection of calcium as soon as possible.

Water can be given in bowls or a guinea pig bottle. (Bottles must be cleaned regularly).

Fresh food goes off on the summer heat, so do not leave it in the cage overnight.

Environment:
Purchase or make as big a cage as you can, but realize that the cage should not be taller than you are and that birds use horizontal space far more than vertical.

If you make a cage you can use 1x2 galvanized mesh and cage clips but let it get rained on a few times to reduce zinc on the mesh.

Do not use chicken wire.

Also do not put so many toys in the cage that the bird prefers its cage to coming out and being social.

The hooked bill of a parrot is designed for chewing. If it is denied opportunities to chew in its cage, it will be much more likely to damage your furniture, clothing or worse still, start to pluck or chew itself.

I like to offer my birds a few clean twigs daily. Make sure to avoid cherry, but apple, ash, beech, maple and others are fine. They actually give the bird nutrition if they are fresh.

If you can not do it daily, try to put a piece of branch in the cage once a week. It is also far better to offer a bird a perch it can chew than a hard dowel or Manzanita branch. 2x4’s (untreated) work well at least as one perch or chewing block.

Be careful that any toys are not likely to trap the bird in any way. In the unfortunate circumstance that your bird does start to pluck itself, immediately offer more easy-to chew wood, and food that keeps the bird busy (i.e. a few almonds in the shell daily).

Once a bird really acquires a plucking habit it is almost impossible to stop.

Parrots can easily stand temperatures in the fifties or lower if they acclimatize gradually, but babies in particular should be kept warmer (above 60). Avoid drafty spots and offer some shade from intense sun. If a bird is panting it is hot and can be cooled off with a misting of water.

Most parrots love to be bathed with a mister although it may take a few tries before they are certain and spread their wings open. Make sure the room temperature is around 70F before spraying. Spraying once a week will keep plumage in excellent shape.


Behavior:
Although it is tempting to have your new parrot out all day long in the first weeks, it is far better to figure out a realistic routine that you will be able to stick to over the years. Parrots are extremely intelligent and will not do at all well if they get used to constant attention the first few months and then get forgotten when your interest dwindles or schedules change.

Let the bird get used to it’s new cage and don’t overwhelm it with lots of people the first few days. However, unlike a wild-caught bird, being held may comfort your baby.

Most parrots will learn to imitate human speech, some individuals more than others. Greys in particular do not usually talk much before one year of age.

Just like puppies, young parrots are likely to go through a nippy phase when a few months old. This can usually be worked through quickly and easily with the following steps:

1. As tempting as it is, do not let your new bird ride around on your shoulder. When given this height ‘advantage’ the bird starts to feel dominant to you and may try to show it!

2. Keep your fingers out of your bird’s beak whenever possible! Don’t let the bird chew on your fingers playfully.

3. If the bird does bite you, do not hit back! Instead, if it bites when it is on your hand, lower your arm rapidly. Not so quick as to throw the bird to the floor but just enough to unsettle it. The bird rapidly learns that nipping makes its perch drop, which it does not like!

4. Never reward biting or screaming by giving the bird what it wants. If it is screaming to be let out of its cage, for instance, wait until it is quiet before going to it or attending to it.

Toenails and wings:
Parrots nails need regular trimming if handling them is not going to be like an acupuncture session. Usually babies are tame enough that you can just nip the extreme end of the nail off with human fingernail trimmers without having to restrain the bird. Make sure to have styptic powder such as ‘Qwik-stop’ on hand in case you cut off too much and the nail starts to bleed.

Wing feathers are simple to trim although that is not necessary more than once or twice a year. Make sure one wing is clipped before summer when doors or windows are more likely to be open or you might want to take your bird outside.

Before cutting any feathers, check that they are not blood feathers (feathers just growing in with soft blood-filled quills). These will bleed if cut. If by mistake this happens or the bird breaks a blood feather accidentally, the base of the quill should firmly but gently be pulled out of the bird and styptic powder applied. A new feather will start to grow in a few weeks.

The closed leg band on your bird is proof it was bred in captivity and I do not recommend removing it.

Warning Signs and Dangers:
If your bird is fluffed up and not acting itself, keep it warm (80F) and consult an avian vet. Regular vets often know little or nothing about birds.

Overheating Teflon (non-stick) pans will produce fumes that will kill your parrot in minutes!!

Avoid exposing your bird to any toxic fumes such as strong cleaners, paints, car exhaust etc.