My Littlest Budgie has a Liver Infection

A little more than two weeks ago, little Beau lost 2 grams of weight; he’s really tiny (originally weighing in at 28 grams) to begin with, so any drop was concerning.

We weren’t sure what was going on, but ultimately decided not to take a chance and brought him into the vet.

He’s been fighting for his life ever since.

Broken Blood Feathers: What To Do

If your parrot is bleeding, that’s a bit of an emergency. Yes, even if it’s just from a tiny little feather. Think about how tiny a parakeet is; now think about how much blood a single droplet is in relation to how big that bird is, and how much that would equal if it were…

“OMG, I want a parrot!”

Do you? Do you really? They are unpredictable; they bite often, and bite hard. They are far, far from kid-friendly. So let’s face it; most birds, were they dogs, would be put down. Louie’s grandfather (or at least great-grandfather) likely flew the canopies of the Solomon Islands. And Ozone’s father is probably still terrorizing some…

A Parrot: The Forever Two-Year-Old

When you think about adopting a baby bird, consider this: You are raising a child monster with permanently-affixed pliers, and that child is gonna be a two-year-old for fifty to one hundred years, depending on the species. Every mistake you make in his or her formative years, every bad habit you instill, will be with you…

Flock of ROCK!

I’m on the writing committee for a local charity, and this is one of the songs we might be using/rewriting for our musical. Tippy clearly likes it as much as I do. XD Click here to watch him rock out and ‘stick it to the man’!

Training Rescued Parrots: Setting Goals

Well, we’ve had Vi for a little over three and a half weeks now–things are going well. Slow, but well. Man oh man, unless your rehomed parrot is super well-socialized (which many aren’t–probably why she’s a rehome), this task is not for the impatient. I’m following my mantra of “every experience a positive one” and it seems…

Budgie or Cockatiel? Our Limited Experience

The video below essentially highlights the key differences in personalities between cockatiels and English budgies (the carefully-bred, more-expensive-than-their-svelte-American-cousins behemoths of the budgie world): View this post on Instagram This essentially highlights the difference in personality between #cockatiels and #englishbudgies …Also, Qtip is a #maestro #parrot #budgie #parrotsofinstagram #petsofinstagram #pets A post shared by Snowpack Deactivated (@the.snow.pack) on…

Foraging Toy – The Stuffed Pepper

Today was a snow day, which meant I had time to make my birds a foraging toy! Hurray! Behold the fury that is Louie: View this post on Instagram Louie is a ferocious, vegetarian #dinosaur, a vicious destroyer of bell peppers. #ekkiesofinstagram #ekkie #parrot #parrottoy #parrotsofinstagram #pets #foragingtoy #rawr A post shared by Snowpack Deactivated…

Rehomes – The Way to Go

Many people often ask the question: Should we go with a baby bird, or look for an older bird who needs a new home? Hubby and I have done both; each experience was fulfilling in its own way. The biggest benefit to a baby bird is that it allows you to learn to handle your parrot without…

Day Four: Free-Falling, but Forward!

Today, hubby came a little too fast down the stairs and startled the daylights out of Miss Vi–or, “Viola Valkyrie Waddlesworth”, as we’re now calling her. Pretty sure her being dubbed with three names means we’re keeping her… But I digress. Miss Vi went FLYING across the room (note to self: get wings clipped PRONTO),…