Birds make wonderful pets. They are cheerful and friendly and the wide variety of shapes, colours and sizes means that you are sure to find one that will comfortably perch in your life.
If you have only a small area for your bird or live in a townhouse or a apartment, keep in mind the smaller breeds such as Budgies, Finches, Canaries and Lovebirds which do not require large aviaries. Smaller birds can also be easier to handle and are normally quieter.
Birds such as Cockatoos and Parrots, while excellent talkers, are also well known for their noisy squawking and are only suitable for people who do not have close neighbours. Many councils, in fact, prohibit the keeping of larger Parrots due to their noise.
If you are looking for a bird that can talk, male Budgies and Cockatiels are a good choice. While male Canaries cost almost double that of female Canaries, they will reward you with their pretty song.
When considering what bird to choose you also need to think about their lifespan. Budgies may only live for five to 15 years but other birds such as Parrots may live to 50 years and Cockatoos up to 100!
All birds love space so buy the largest cage you can afford, making sure that they can fully extend their wings.
Birds are also social so it’s important that they have company, either human or bird. A lonely bird will often develop behavioural problems like feather picking or never-ending screeching which will distress both you and your neighbours.
Some birds such as the native Lorikeet require specialised diets which can be expensive and time consuming to prepare. Other birds are happy with commercial seed mixes and fruit/vegetable treats which are easy to prepare.
When purchasing a bird from a breeder or store, make sure that the cages are clean and the birds have tight, clean and glossy feathers. Some pet stores hand-rear birds that grow into tame, easy to handle pets that are happy to come out of their cages. Make sure that that any bird is fully weaned before taking it home.
Newly purchased birds should be kept away from other birds for several weeks until you are sure they aren’t carrying a disease.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
PET HINT - Choosing a bird
Thursday, December 18, 2008
A Right Relationship - PART I
The Association of Pet Dog Trainers is dedicated to enhancing the human-dog relationship through the education of both dogs and owners. Training your dog will be so much easier if you develop a ‘right relationship’ explains Karin Bridge, President of A.P.D.T.
If you really want your dog to co-operate with you and do as you ask you need to teach it not only what you want but also provide a reason why?
You might think of training as simply teaching your dog what words or signals mean - connecting a behaviour such as ‘sitting’ with a signal to sit. This should provide understanding to the dog of what we want.
However dogs are not robots, they will not necessarily do as you ask just because they understand what it means. You must also provide motivation for performing the behaviour – the why?
A classic example was my dog Jack who competed in the highest levels of obedience competitions, yet if my son’s friends asked him to ‘sit’ – he’d just stand and stare as if to say “your nobody special... why should I do it for you ?” This is a large part of ‘who dogs are’. Food, toys and praise are tools you can use to help provide motivation and encourage your dog to repeat the behaviours you want such as ‘sit’ and ‘come’. Ultimately however it is establishing a ‘right relationship’ with your dog that will ensure he will reliably comply with your requests.
Developing a ‘right’ relationship with your dog.
The first step is to earn your dog’s trust and confidence. This is done by providing him with all the things he needs to have a good life, not only the basics such as food, water, shelter and health care but also:
- Companionship
- Opportunities to meet and greet people
- Opportunities to meet and play with other dogs
- Regular exercise
- A safe environment both in and out of the home. Many dogs feel frightened in new environments. It’s your job to make sure your dog is enjoying play at the dog park or a hug from a young child. Supervise and intervene if necessary so your dog does not have to
- An education. Dogs need to learn human etiquette in a positive and nurturing way. Humans expect dogs not to pee in the house, not to pull on a lead, not to jump on visitors, not to dig holes even when bored, not to chase the neighbour’s cat, not to bark at invited guests but to bark at strangers at the door – and lots of other confusing stuff! Your dog isn’t born with this knowledge – he needs YOU to teach it to him
The second step is to teach your dog that all good things come from YOU! You may already be providing good things to your dog but does he know that? Rewards need to be provided as soon as your dog does what you want - ‘this’ for ‘that’. To help you remember, make a list of all the things your dog wants and a list of all the things you want. For example:
| DOG DESIRES – ‘THIS’ | YOU DESIRE – ‘THAT’ |
| Food x 100 (mostly a proportion of the dog’s dinner NOT lots of special ‘treats’) | Sit x 100 (the doggy equivalent of saying ‘please’) |
| Go for walk (lead on) | Attention |
| Your attention | Come |
| Play tug | Settle |
| Run free (lead off) | Down |
| Chase ball | Fetch |
| Come inside | Quiet |
| Walk toward park | Walk nicely |
| Cuddle on couch | Shake hands |
Now, it’s a simple matter of continually swapping something your dogs wants - ‘this’ for something you want - ‘that’. Assuming your dog understands what you want - distributing rewards ‘this’ for ‘that’ should ensure he also learns why he should do it for you.
Thanks to Karin Bridge, President A.P.D.T. for contributing this article.
Please come back for PART II of this article - coming soon....
Monday, December 1, 2008
Looks can be deceiving!
In my work as an animal behaviour consultant I see many cases where people make inappropriate decisions when choosing their pet, basing their decision on looks alone. While most people find puppies and kittens simply irresistible, many do not stop to think; how well will this animal fit in with my lifestyle when it’s fully grown? Choosing the right breed or breed type is more important than most people think and can minimise the chances that the pet will end up in a shelter later in life.
Consideration must be given for characteristics such as size at maturity, coat length, exercise and nutritional requirements. In addition, owners need to take into account how much time they will have available to provide companionship, training (if they want a dog), grooming and exercise. Adults are often easier to care for than puppies or kittens because they are already toilet trained and have passed the destructive juvenile stage. An added bonus is that many dogs already know some basic obedience. For people looking for a pet that is less fuss from the onset, a shelter cat or dog may be the most appropriate choice.
Research (and lots of it) is the key to deciding on the most appropriate pet to suit your lifestyle, budget and living situation.
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