Purple Potatoes and Other Fun Things!

Today I plucked a small purple potato from the bag of assorted "new potatoes" that I picked up at Sam's Club the other day.  I cooked it and mashed it and added a little macadamia nut oil and a tiny bit of butter.  Would my birds eat "purple?"

At first Lucy (CAG) was reluctant even to taste this purple stuff.  She stuck her tongue on it and withdrew immediately to "think" about it.  Her eyes pinned and she took another taste.  Hum?  She tried two or three tentative bites and then began to eat enthusiastically!  <:  How much fun was that!!!  You could actually see her brain working and deciding if this purple stuff was "good!" or something to be thrown away.  Gracie (TAG) doesn't like "sticky" anything and wouldn't even taste the mixture.  Coco, who LOVES LOVES LOVES mashed potatoes, refused to get closer than half a food from that unrecognized offering!  :D  I tried, several times, to coax him into at least trying it... but to no avail.  If you know cockatoos, you understand that "no," mean "NO!" and you leave well enough alone.  Bobby?  (TAG) He's a foodie!  He grabbed the unrecognized mush that I'd rolled into a ball (so he could hold it) and he ate it as fast as he could and begged for more.

So?  Purple?  They say some special trace nutrients come in vibrantly colored fruits and vegetables.  Birds don't get much purple in their lives unless it comes in the form of blueberries.  My birds are not impressed with blueberries.  I'm thinking that the color purple was unfamiliar and, if they associated it with anything, they associated it with "cool berries" and not warm, yummy, mashed potatoes.

It occurs to me that I need to expand the world in which my pets live from day to day.  Take a chance that they don't like something and might be a little hungry when they refuse to try new things.  I've always been afraid to let them choose to "ignore and be hungry" and therefore make sure they have plenty of everything they like... and have full crops.  (...maybe not a great idea!)

In the real world, birds have to forage and generally, the good stuff, comes only seasonally and even then they have to compete for "the good stuff."

How good would it be to win the lottery if you won it every single day?  BORING!

It is important to remember that both Coco and Gracie were "2nd hand birds" to our household.  I have had to learn their preferences and it is a little harder to get them to try new things... because I wasn't there when they were impressionable little chicks.

BTW, Lucy doesn't want to do her tricks routine unless she gets a cashew.  She's even been refusing pistachios now and then.  If she does something and gets a sunflower seed (I never show her the reward first unless she is learning a *new* trick.), often she throws it to the floor and waits for the cashew.  When I train the birds at night, I go from one bird to the next... ask for a trick and if they do the trick, they get a reward.  If they refuse, I move to the next bird.  About 2 times of me "Moving On" is enough to make Lucy decide to eat lowly sunflower seeds!  Competition!  :D  I am evil, right!

So... today was "purple potato" day.  It just took a few minutes and we all enjoyed the fun.

Busy!!!  I've been busy working in the yard... so much landscaping to do amongst all the other chores and projects.  Sometimes I do not feel like taking time to train and stimulate the birds after a long day.  I still have to clean cages, change water, and replenish dry food dishes and even though I'm exhausted lately, I still love taking care of the birds.  I clean, vacuum, wash down, and replace... all with one bird or another grabbing my glasses or riding my shoulder to the sink and back.  Sometimes, as I walk through the house during the day, I do a one-round training... asking for a trick and giving a treat and at the end of the day, do very little training.  Switching it up has been good for all of us.

My birds seem happier, never knowing what to expect and their eyes open wide when I (2 times a week maybe...) fill their foraging boxes and skip training... letting them puzzle out the goodies for themselves.  Gotta run!  Rocks to stack and dirt to move.  <:

Coco in his cage...

March 20, 2012


I opened the door and let Lucy (Congo African Grey) and Gracie (Timneh African Grey) smell and hear the rain through the screen door.  The feathers raised on Lucy's neck and her eyes pinned as she took in the sights and smells of the rainy morning.  With one girl on my right shoulder and another on my left, we stood and listened and watched the heavy rain.   Rain. Thunder. Wind.  I love to watch their natural spirits kindled by something as simple as the cool wind blowing on their faces.

A while back, I had Coco (Lesser Sulfur Crested Cockatoo) in a cage by a big window.  The rain came down that afternoon in a tropical torrent.  It was warm rain and the air temperature must have been about 80 degrees.  I watched, fascinated as he danced on his perch inside his cage, imitating a rain dance a wild bird would do... given the chance... when a welcome summer rain came down in the forest.  I took Coco (who is always well-trimmed so that he cannot fly away) out of his cage and to the deck.  We stood in the pouring rain.  Coco did his rain dance with wings spread open wide and tail feathers wagging with joy as I watched in utter joy.  He's never wanted to repeat the experience.  I've tried.  But, he knows what it feels like to be a bird, dancing in the summer rain.

I keep all my birds' flight feathers trimmed.  I've heard too many heartbreaking stories about pet birds that flew away, never to be brought home safely again.  They usually cannot survive on their own.  But, it's my experience also that "trimmed birds" can still do stupid stuff outside and get themselves into trouble.  Bobby panics and once landed in the pool... where I scooped him out quickly....  It could have been worse.  The grey girls are more nervous outdoors than the boys, so they are more prone to panic... and therefore, more prone to accidents.

When the weather turns warm again later this week, I'm going to take Bobby (timneh African Grey) and Coco outside while I work in the yard.  I have two small aluminum carriers that are safe and I put them on the picnic table, under an umbrella.  I am always in sight of them.  My phobic Bobby watches and enjoys outdoor time and when he comes into the house he is, for once, relaxed.  Coco can chew his way through 10 pounds of cardboard box in a day if I'd let him.  Outdoor time seems to excite him while he's there and calm him when he comes back inside.

Training:  Ongoing.  Nothing new.  We're maintaining and reinforcing what we've learned these past months.  I've learned that I need to vary the routine so the birds don't know what to expect.  Coco has been obstinate and unwilling to come out of his cage.  Bobby has chewed off all but one tail feather.  Hormones are bugging birdie boys.  Lucy and Gracie LOVE LOVE LOVE their foraging wheels and they get those about every 4th day.  When Lucy can't get the nut out, she says "hello," to it in hopes that it will "reward her" with the nut like Mama does!  I could cry it makes me so happy.  Her "person" is growing and she is evolving.

Gracie goes through EVERY single things she knows to get her treats.  What she lacks in efficiency, she makes up for in enthusiasm.  When I got her she would only let you touch her head through the cage bars.  Now, I can lay her in my arms and kiss her head, neck, and back and she is pretty darn relaxed.  She is starting to whistle some of Lucy's songs!!!  Gracie is evolving.

I can still get Bobby to stay on my finger for the 10-count WHEN he isn't being totally phobic.  I count progress with him in "pools of calm moments."  I know he's happy when he overcomes his fears.  I sing to him.  He likes it even if I'm off key. {:

My neighbor had a 36 year old cockatiel that we bird-sat when they went out of town.  Statler died this past week.  She was able to be with him when he passed.  What a long and beautiful life for that little bird.   Here's a video I did last year.  It's not very good, but he was a little scare of the camera.  He always knew my whistle when I came to visit.  RIP little buddy.

Gracie has been her 2 whole years!

Gracie Lou is 12 years old and she's been living with us for 2 of those years.  I took this picture on her first day with us!  She is such a character and, believe it or not, has trained more easily than the other parrots here... who are half her age.

Gracie (TAG) likes food!  She doesn't like "sticky" though, and therefore doesn't like peanuts, mashed stuff, or even noodles.  She likes to be hand fed like a baby, as do all the other greys.  Coco won't do the baby food thing.  His comfort food is "primate biscuit" soaked in warm water.

Training has been ongoing, but more sporadic.  It's not that I've been "lazy," but rather the birds have been hormonal and we have had a LOT of BIG house projects going on since January. 

Lucy and Gracie answer to "Are you a birdie?"  And, of course, Lucy nods "yes," and Gracie shakes, "no."  Adorable and "down pat" nowadays.  Bobby is still doing stuff (TAG), but he's been a nervous wreck, so we have gone easy on him.  Coco is happy to train for treats, but I haven't had time to focus on new tricks.

The foraging toys are a big hit.  They don't get them all the time, but about 3 times a week.  Those days they don't train well because they're full of nuts and stuff from the foragers.  Lucy has taken apart her foragers in as many ways as they could possibly come apart.  She (CAG) is tenacious and strong.  We lost 1 part, but, oh well...  <:

Right now the "kids" are watching their little TV with the Birdie Show playing.  It's been months since I've put it on for them.  Coco (LSC cockatoo) was thrilled to see a 'too eating and the greys are captivated by all the birds and noise.  (:

Time to think of new tricks to teach the birds and launch the new ideas!