Hypothetical – a 21st-century genie sits down next to you on a park bench. He looks pretty normal and explains that the whole genie thing has evolved along with modern society.
The dapper young lad named Gene (really?) goes on to say;
Editor’s note: we all like variety. They just opened a supermarket not far from us called Pete’s – it is 55,000 ft.² with not only groceries but prepared foods and salads.
This is what we demand as humans which is why we offer so many brands and varieties of bird food.
Small birds can live 15 to 20 years – larger ones 40 to 60 years, some even longer. Don’t you think it’s important that your birds should enjoy variety in their diets for the decades they are going to be around?
File under “Our vets are injecting this sh#t into our birds – really”?
The reason I bring this up is an article that came across my desktop recently having to do with a drug called “Lupron”. Popcorn our cockatiel received two injections (at $80 per shot) over her 12 visits with our vet.
I read about it a lot on Facebook – Lupron is used to reduce egg laying and calm hormonal changes in birds. Its use is widespread in avian medicine. It is also available for cats and dogs.
Nutrition of Psittacines (Parrot Family) Client Information Series™
This information is designed as a means of communication between veterinarians and clients who are concerned about their pet bird’s nutritional needs. Diet, nutrient requirements, and feeding are discussed. If you have any questions, be sure to ask your veterinarian to answer them for you.
Birds are divided into 27 orders, varying from high-flying Falconiformes, such as the bald eagle, to the Struthioniformes, such as the ostrich, that does not fly at all. Most pet birds are found among the Psittaciformes (psittacines: parrotsfamily), Passeriformes (perching birds), Columbiformes (pigeon family), and Galliformes (chicken-like birds).
I talk a lot about avian digestive systems and respiratory systems but it’s been a while since we talked about feathers. Generally, the birds that we keep as pets have anywhere from 5000 to 7000 feathers. Waterfowl like certain species of ducks can have more than 11,000. Yes, scientists have actually counted them.
From Wikipedia we learn:
Feathers are among the most complex integumentary system appendages found in vertebrates and are formed in tiny follicles in the epidermis, or outer skin layer, that produces keratin proteins.
The β-keratins in feathers, beaks, and the claws, scales, and shells of reptiles — are composed of protein strands hydrogen-bonded into β-pleated sheets, which are then further twisted and crosslinked by disulfide bridges into structures even tougher than the α-keratins of mammalian hair, horns, and hoof.
β-keratin or beta-keratin is a protein in the keratin family. β-keratin is rich in stacked β pleated sheets. Keratin is one of a family of fibrous structural proteins. Keratin is the protein that protects epithelial cells from damage or stress.
December 10th of last year I sprained my ankle. I finally got my boot on that foot for the first time last week on 1/24/17. In less than a month Medicare will be paying all my medical expenses (in conjunction with a supplemental plan F policy). I can relate to getting old. I look old. I have a long gray beard. Look at me and you know that I’m old.
Not so much with birds
For those of you that have stuck with your birds through the screaming biting and destruction – kudos! You’ll learn how much life bird’s can bring into a home.
(no one else wanted the gig)
If you follow digital trends as I do, it’s impossible to not recognize “the next big thing in marketing” called influencer marketing
All the “experts” in the many LinkedIn groups I follow and blogs I read coming across my crowded inbox have very precise instructions on how to achieve influencer marketing.
Search for influencers, connect with influencers, reach out to influencers, tell the influencers what great stuff you have, offer cash and gold bullion with the goal of a said influencer with 3 million followers on Instagram happily talking to their fans and followers about what remarkable stuff you have to say. It’s nice you have an instruction document.
A woman replying in a Facebook thread about her self-mutilating parrot “My vet said that it’s become a habit that’s it very hard to break”.
My response was “Ask your vet why these habits don’t develop in the wild”?
Another woman had spent $4000 between veterinarian bills and behaviorists. Her bird was still plucking. In the thread that evolved it turns out that her cages were filled primarily with eucalyptus perches.
Although eucalyptus can be safe it also has a great many toxins that can be lethal to a bird. She also related that her bird got about one hour of daylight – none of this came up in the conversation with her veterinarian or behaviorist.
One of last week’s posts was entitled Comparative Human and Bird Digestive & Respiratory Systems – it was a bit heady and I think the point was lost on many readers. The message was that avian and human digestive and respiratory systems are very different.
Comparative Physiology: Human and Bird
The human body uses food and liquids for energy, growth, maintenance and repair. Before it can use food and liquids for these purposes, it must go through a process called digestion, which is carried out by the digestive system. The digestive system consists of the following organs: Mouth, salivary glands, oesophagus, liver, gall bladder, pancreas, stomach, large and small intestines, duodenum, rectum and the anus.
