Macaws:
Red Shouldered (Hahn's) Macaw
Severe Macaw
Blue And Gold Macaw
Blue Throated Macaw
Military Macaw
Red Fronted Macaw
Scarlet Macaw
Green Winged Macaw
Hyacinth Macaw
While I still believe that trick training is both the best mental exercise and relationship building for parrot and owner, good foraging toys are a must for when the owner is away. Just an hour or two of trick training and interaction per day simply isn't enough to meet a parrot's intellectual needs. I would argue that a good training session (especially involving flight and complex behaviors) can make up for hours of down time, but still not a complete substitute. This is why stimulating toys are a must.
Parrot toys come in three categories: chewing, playing, and foraging. Ideally a parrot should have at least one of each category in its cage at all times. Chewing toys are usually comprised of a lot of wooden parts that are appropriate for the parrot's size and beak strength. These are the toys that you come home to see bare not long after hanging them. These are important to keep your parrot busy and beak trimmed. Better that they be chewing on that then your furniture when they are out. The play toys are often made of tougher materials and involve the parrot interacting with them in non-destructive ways such as pushing, pulling, swinging, ringing, etc.
Finally, foraging toys are the third category of parrot toys. In a way these are the ultimate toy because they involve both play and destruction. Foraging toys can best be described as toys with goodies inside. In the simplest sense they are toys with food treats inside but I'd like to talk about going beyond just treats. Since I do a lot of formal parrot training, I don't approve of food oriented toys because then the parrot won't be hungry when I get home and want to do training. So instead, I try to focus on non food based foraging toys.
Truman can spend hours trying to get a hold of the toys inside this coconut foraging toy
For a parrot that doesn't know how to play with toys but is treat oriented, hiding food in toys is a great way to get them started. However, for a naturally inquisitive/playful bird like Truman, just having more toys inside is enough. When toy shopping for my parrots, I especially look out for sophisticated toys like this.
Another thing I like to do is to hang toys near swinging perches rather than solid ones. If the parrot is perched on a solid perch, it is all too easy to shred a toy to smithereens in no time. However, if the parrot is standing on an already swinging perch and the toy moves, it really provides a challenge. Not only is it mentally challenging to move the swing and toy to reach, it is also great exercise. The parrot has to use all of its muscles to balance, hold, and play. In the video below you can see how Truman is holding onto his swinging atom with one foot and the coconut foraging toy with the other. It's both an exercise and a challenge to keep him busy while I am away.
During a recent trip to Chicago, I visited the Field Museum. This natural history museum boasts an outstanding collection of bird specimens even finer than the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
I was astonished to be looking at a real life (dead actually) Carolina Parakeet well knowing that they had been extinct for a century. The Conuropsis carolinensis was a mid-sized parakeet with the approximate dimensions of a Sun Parakeet, green body, and colorful head. The last confirmed wild specimen was caught in 1904 and they went extinct in captivity by 1918. Besides capture for the pet industry, deforestation and hunting were the main causes of their extinction. Farmers were cutting down trees and shooting the Carolina Parakeets because they were considered an agricultural pest. One unusual trait of the Carolina Parakeet certainly contributed to its demise: they appeared to show a remorse for their dead and visit the location as a flock. Farmers took advantage of this by shooting some and waiting for the rest to come.
Carolina Parakeet at the Field Museum in Chicago
The label reads, "Carolina Paroquet. Conuropsis c. carolinensis Linnacus. This species and its close relative, the extinct Louisiana Paroquet, were the only parrots native to the United States. The demand for caged birds was an important cause of their decline. The last birds of which there is record were captured in southern Florida for that purpose. Southeastern United States. Last authentic record: 1904."
Carolina Parakeet, extinct as of 1904
The Carolina Parakeet was not the only rare parrot I got to see at the museum. Also were featured a Hyacinth Macaw, Palm Cockatoo, Galah, Grey Parrot, Kea, Budgerigar, and some others. Most interesting, however, were the Night Parrot and Kakapo! The Night Parrot is a critically endangered Australian ground parrot once believed to be extinct. The Kakapo is a nearly extinct flightless parrot of New Zealand and the largest of the parrot family. Surprisingly the Kakapo did not appear to be so large though I recognized it immediately. In fact most of the birds I saw in the collection appeared surprisingly small or disproportioned to what I would expect. I think shrinkage of the preserved specimens could play a part but also it seems that they are not scaled to the population. In other words they would display what they had rather than the largest or most average sized birds of the species. A fascinating part of the exhibit was that erect skeletons of species were placed alongside some of the feathered specimens to give you a view both inside and out.
Collection of Parrots including Hyacinth Macaw, Kea, Palm Cockatoo, Grey Parrot, and Galah
Critically endangered Night Parrot
Kakapo, the largest parrot
No Poicephalus parrots were represented. I had to settle for just a Grey Parrot and a Lovebird for the African Parrots. On a side note, I have never seen a Poicephalus parrot in a zoo or museum. Once in a while a Grey parrot but never any Poicephalus or Vasa. I wonder if it's because they are too common is pets, unrepresentative, or just uninteresting to the public.
The Field Museum is well known for its dinosaur exhibit and the largest mounted skeleton of a T. rex welcomes visitors in the main hall. Named after Sue Hendrickson who had found the colossal fossil, Sue is mounted according to the more modern theory about tyrannosaurus posture. Although the skull on the mount is a cast, the original is on display on the second floor above. This $8 million dollar display is considered the pride and major highlight of the museum.
Sue the largest found Tyrannosaurus rex
It is quite possible that Sue descended from the same common ancestor to modern birds and even lived beneath their flying ancestors. Speaking of dinosaurs and ancestors, the museum featured a cast of the Archaeopteryx fossil but more interestingly a 3d model of what the dino-bird may have looked like. Archaeopteryx is believed to be the missing fossil link between birds and their dinosaurial ancestry. Archaeopteryx is much like a bird but manages to maintain some dinosaur features such as teeth, claws on wings, and bony tail. Feather impressions in the fossils prove that Archaeopteryx was capable of flight like modern birds.
Archaeopteryx model based on cast of fossil
So overall it was a valuable visit to the Field Museum with a good focus on avian and paleontological exhibits. So next time you're in Chicago I highly recommend you stop by to say hello to Sue and the rest of the collection.
Sometimes I buy baby (human) toys and supplies for my parrots to play with. Often these can be cheaper than the ones made for parrots as they are mass produced. If you look for baby toys on clearance or at bargain stores, you may be surprised how much stuff you can get for your parrots to play with for the same money you spend on parrot specific toys. Human grade baby toys go through higher standards and will generally be safe for parrots. However, it is the owner's responsibility to make sure that the toy is safe. Our parrots can find ways to destroy these toys in ways never conceived by the original designers.
For about $5, I got a whole bag full of baby toys for Kili and Truman at a dollar store. Truman really took to the plastic fork and proceeded to chew it up. Kili took up a greater fascination with the rubber duckies which came in a pack of three for a dollar. I wouldn't leave these toys in the birds' cages but they make for some great foot toys to keep them busy when they are out. This way they can have something different to play with than the usual wood and plastic bird toys and it doesn't cost me too much.
The movie Rio was finally released in theaters today after many months of anticipation. This is perhaps the largest and most prominent feature film centered around parrots ever. From a parrot owner's perspective, this is my impression of the movie as well as the realism of parrot ownership that it conveys.
The story opens in the forest outside off Rio De Janeiro where birds do morning song and dance ritual. While the singing/dancing is of course personified, it certainly alludes to the natural morning song that birds sing.
We get our first glimpse of Blu, the movie's hero, as a baby in a nest cavity. Parrots nest in cavities rather than building nests on branches so this was an accurate depiction. Blu is captured by poachers and smuggled to Minnesota. Like in half the pet featured movies out there, the crate carrying the hero character falls out of a truck and is discovered by the future owner. Not only does this make the owner appear benevolent for saving a lost animal, but it also absolves the owner from responsibility for buying into the illegal pet trade. However, there is actually some truth to the matter.
Rio is actually partly based on a true story and a real species of Macaw. The movie simply refers to Blu as a Blue Macaw, however, at a later point in the movie Cyanopsitta Spixii species is mentioned. The Spix Macaw is one of four Blue Macaw species and was endemic to Brazil. However, due to poaching and deforestation of their natural habitat, Spix Macaws went extinct in the wild in the year 2000. Nonetheless, over 60 Spix macaws have been known to remain in captivity after their wild counterparts went extinct. Two years after the last Spix was observed in the wild, a veterinarian in the the United States was shocked to be consulted by an owner of one in Denver.
Presley was estimated to be 25 years old and DNA confirmed to be a male Spix Macaw. In the movie, Blu was unable to fly although he was fully feathered. Presley on the other hand became accustomed to a life down low from being clipped. Presley, like Blu, also ended up in his caretakers possession by chance rather than being bought.
Blu is flown out to Rio De Janeiro to be mated with the last known female of his kind. Unlike Blu, Presley was not actually the last Spix Macaw. However, he was one of a few and breeders of the Brazilian rehabilitation program for Spix Macaws required his DNA to help diversify the excessively inbred offspring they were producing. Unlike Blu, Presley was actually given a one way ticket to Brazil, never to return to his owner. The population of Spix Macaws is so fragile that rehabilitators do not want to take any chances. Interestingly, the biggest population of Spix Macaws in captivity is not actually in Brazil but rather in Qatar. 56 out of 73 known captive Spix Macaws are in Qatar and only 7 in Brazil.
The movie places a much greater significance on Blu as the last of his kind to simplify the story line and make his adventures more thrilling. A funny scene that reminds me of real parrot ownership is when Linda, Blu's caretaker, wakes up at 7:15AM to the sound of an alarm clock. She fumbles to turn it off and even unplugs it but the blasting noise does not stop. It was actually her parrot that was making all the noise. Any parrot owner can tell you that as soon as the sun appears, parrots cannot help but make as much noise as they are capable of and wake everyone up.
Rio depicts parrots very well both visually and metaphorically. Sure they don't dance and sing, but vocalizing and flying really is a part of who they are. While the eyes are made to look human and a tuft of feathers on the head like hair, the placement of the feathers appears quite accurate. The feathers would shift from being slick to fluffy much like the feathers on a real parrot express its mood. The birds move their beaks and wings as they talk but more unrealistic is the depiction of the eyes. Prey bird eyes tend to look outward to the sides and be less mobile. Yet the movie generally had the parrots looking straight in front of them and frequently showed them rolling their eyes in relevant directions.
While I am not holding a children's cartoon to the highest expectations of realism, I am greatly disappointed that it showed Linda giving a cup of hot chocolate and plate of chocolate chip cookies to Blu. Chocolate is one of several household foods most toxic to parrots. It would be wildly irresponsible for an owner to feed that to a parrot. But most of all I worry that some children seeing the scene in the movie could acquire the idea of feeding chocolate to their family parrot.
The movie was presented in 3D which was very suitable. Some 3D movies lack enough depth to justify being 3d, but in Rio it definitely improved the movie. There were scenes where the birds would practically fly out of the screen and many other scenes where depth was depicted realistically. Also, the animation style has greatly improved since the earlier Ice Age films. The realism of both humans and animals has come a long way in digital animation. The detail in the feathers and gestures of the birds is spectacular and life like.
Of course, like the previous Ice Age movies, the plot is focused around the animals and the animals carry many human like qualities. However, I think Rio has demonstrated a greater ability to create human like characters without losing their animal qualities. Yet, the movie never once showed the parrots eat or poop. Considering how birds do their business roughly every 15 minutes, the absence of it paints a rosier picture of owning one. Rio presents many of the positive aspects of parrot ownership but none of the bad ones. The fact is that parrots are very messy, noisy, and aggressive. The movie depicted that the relationship between Blu and Linda came naturally, but the reality is that it takes many years of careful taming and training to make a good pet out of an otherwise wild species of parrot. Cleaning cages, preparing food, and general care occupy much of a parrot owner's time.
A scene familiar to most parrot owners is when Linda has to feed vitamins to Blu and he refuses. Anyone who has ever had to feed medication or something important to a parrot will be able to relate to the lack of cooperation on that end. Also, the movie depicts the way parrots stand on people's arms quite well. You can visualize the weight of the parrot when it steps up. The animation of flying parrots looks as realistic as you can get.
The movie seems to make a good depiction of the city of Rio. Although I have not been to Rio specifically, I have traveled to Brazil twice. The movie blends the plot and different scenes of city life as well. Many species of parrots were represented in the movie including green wing macaws, amazons, military macaws, and golden parakeets.
I found the topic of flight particularly touching. Blu's inability to fly much reminded me of my parrot, Kili, when her flight feathers grew back after her original clip. Despite the fact that she had the feathers required for flight she did not know what to do with them. However, having the heart and motivation to fly alone wasn't enough. I had to train her for months to get her flight skills and muscles up to speed. Blu takes to the skies all too quickly when he finally decides to fly. 15 years of muscle atrophy is not solved simply with a bit of will power. I think a montage of the owner training the bird to fly would have been more inspiring.
I was relieved that the movie did not aim to force a political agenda upon the audience. I don't mind a subtle message even if it's one I disagree with, but I never enjoy a movie that is foremost concerned with lobbying viewers toward the makers' viewpoint. I was worried that the movie would end up being political and opposed to private parrot ownership but instead it gave a positive and unbiased view both of ownership and conservation without putting them in opposition to one another. When Jewel called Blu a pet, he replied that actually he's a companion. The movie did a great job showing the human-bird relationship that parrot owners develop with their birds. Ignorant movies often make it look like cages birds desire nothing more but liberty but in fact companion parrots become so accustomed to household life that they enjoy it. Blu said at one point in the movie, "how I wish I was back in my cage with my mirror and my little bell." I can imagine that my own parrots would feel much the same way if they got lost. Household life is what they are used to so it is the way they want to live.
Rio is a story of love, escape, companionship and adventure. I highly recommend seeing it both to parrot owners and non-owners alike. It is a very well made movie with an enjoyable plot and good depiction of some of the aspects of parrot ownership. It is just important to realize that there is a lot more difficulty to parrot ownership than the movie depicts. So if the movie inspires you to get a parrot, consider buying some of the Rio toys or games instead. Then take your time and read the articleson this blog and consult owners on The Parrot Forum to help you decide if parrot ownership is really right for you.
There is plenty more to the plot than my review or the trailers will show you, so it is well worth it to go see the movie in 3D before it hits the DVD shelf. Feel free to post your thoughts about the movie in the comments as well as any accuracies/inaccuracies that you have encountered.
In order to bring Kili and Truman to the high school for flight training sessions and to be able to take them places during the winter in general, I had to come up with a warm winter carrier solution. I decided to use an electric blanket but it would require a heavy car battery to power. Thus I needed to have a cart to be able to haul the weight of the heavy system. Furthermore, two carriers would be impractical and the blanket not large enough to cover both. So I set out to make a single carrier to transport both parrots.
I bought a larger version of Truman's carrier. I liked the top door feature which cannot be found on most carriers. Of course there is no way I could keep the parrots in the same chamber, so I modified the carrier to separate the two birds. I cut a piece of plexiglass to fit the contours of the carrier and divide the two parrots. I gave Truman the larger part of the carrier and just a small space for Kili. Truman doesn't do well in a confined space but Kili doesn't seem to mind it. I installed a perch for each parrot (similar to the first carrier I made for Truman but perpendicular to the side door instead).
So now I load Kili in first through the top door and then Truman through the side door. Then I wrap the carrier in the electric blanket, place the battery on top, and then tie the entire assembly down to my cart. I have found that the electric blanket helps sustain heat but does not create much on its own. So I learned to put the carrier on top of a radiator for 30 minutes prior to loading the birds inside to make it nice and toasty. Then the electric blanket helps the carrier retain that heat longer while I have to move it outside and to the car. This is by no means the most convenient solution and turns out to be quite heavy, however, on frigid winter days, this is the only way to transport the parrots.
I will continue to use the double carrier year round for very short outings/trips with my parrots but will opt for two separate carriers for longer travels. Here is a video that shows some of the features of my double parrot travel carrier.
Trained Parrot is a blog about how to train tricks to all parrots and parakeets. Read about how I teach tricks to Truman the Brown Necked Cape Parrot including flight recall, shake, wave, nod, turn around, fetch, wings, and play dead. Learn how you can train tricks to your Parrot, Parrotlet, Parakeet, Lovebird, Cockatiel, Conure, African Grey, Amazon, Cockatoo or Macaw. This blog is better than books or DVDs because the information is real, live, and completely free of charge. If you want to know how to teach your parrot tricks then you will enjoy this free parrot training tutorial.
Trained Parrot site content Copyright 2010-2020 Michael Sazhin. Reproduction of text, images, or videos without prior permission prohibited. All rights reserved.
Truman can spend hours trying to get a hold of the toys inside this coconut foraging toy
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