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Care of Birds
Cage birds have been valued for thousands of years. In the past three or four centuries, birds have been bred extensively in captivity. Keeping a pet bird is very different than keeping a pet mammal. They are not just a feathered kitten or puppy. Avian companions require special care and this is the category to find out all about that.
2,523 Questions
Why would a female parakeet kill a male?
It is rare for this to happen, but it may be because of terrotorial dispute. Or the male may have refused to help take care of the babies and the mother may be fed up.
You can leave the eggs in the nest for a while. If she is in the mood to lay and sit on eggs, she should be satisfied with the ones she has. Throw them out and she will probably lay more. Letting her keep these for a while gives her a rest.
You can if you want. But, you should know the risks.
I don't like to help chicks hatch. However, I still do help chicks out of their shell if they just can't make it, but I still don't like it. I believe that you have to trust in Mother Nature to know what she is doing, and I don't like to second guess her.
Having said that - I DO help chicks hatch. Most of the time, I am successful and the chick is fine. Sometimes as the chick grows, I see weaknesses that are like Mother Nature saying, "See, I told you!" But sometimes a healthy normal chick just has a little problem and can benefit from a helping hand.
Sometimes, despite your best efforts, the chick will die. But sometimes they will live and grow healthy and beautiful.
In fact, I helped a chick out of it's shell before and they very chick turned out to be a beautiful rooster with strong lungs. He has won the crowing contest at my fair two years in a row, and he will surely be entered in the contest next year.
Where is a roosters penis located on its body?
All male birds testes are located inside the body along the spine, females have ovaries near the spine as well in the same place.
How you tell chickens apart by color?
That question really makes no sense. If you have a black chicken and a white chicken, I think it's very easy to tell them apart. If you mean telling chickens apart that are the SAME color then 1. mark them with something such as a sharpie or paint or 2. wait until they grow older. Most likely they will appear and act much differently from each other because chickens have different personalities like we do, depending on how they are cared for as chicks.
Do bird eggs have to be incubated?
No. In the old days, before incubators, setting hens sat upon the eggs to keep them warm. I have a hen that sits on her eggs, even though they are not fertile. I have to lift her up to collect them.
Today some people still let hens sit on the eggs, but incubators have a higher success rate. They are more reliable.
How do you know if an African Grey Parrot is male or female?
The only really accurate way to tell the sex of a bird is DNA testing, but it doesn't make any difference in how you care for the bird, unless you plan to breed it. In some birds though, the the males colors are much brighter, so that the females will notice them.
Females lay eggs, normally in January when in good breeding condition even when there is no male present.
Never let your parrot have any chocolate, avocado, fresh fruit seeds, iceburg lettuce (that hard white-ish stuff, use the green leafy lettuce like romaine, butter or leaf), raw meat, raw eggs, caffiene, dairy, or alcohol. Other than that, if they enjoy it they can have a bite.
Limit the amount of sugar, fat or salt they get in people foods. One little nibble from a potato chip is one thing, a whole potato chip is, however, not good for a bird.
Pet parrots love a little bird of egg, some of your plain cereal, all fruits except avocado (don't leave seed in), rice, vegetables (both cooked and raw) with raw corn on the cob being a favorite of many, a very small amount of meat but some of the larger parrot love crunching a good chicken bone or even a steak bone and eating the marrow. It will not hurt them as long as you remove the bone within a few hours to ensure that it does not spoil.
In fact, any fresh foods that might spoil quickly, such as meat, milk, cheese, egg, should be removed after a few hours to prevent spoilage.
Remember, a serving for a bird of these people foods is small. One green pea is enough for a parakeet. A few is enough for a medium sized parrot and a small teaspoon full is enough for a macaw or cockatoo.
Mix together a variety of veggies and fruits to create a bird salad for your FID (feathered kid) and include some green leafy lettuce.
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My bird loves Cream of Wheat, oatmeal, grits, spaghetti, squash, lima beans, brocolli, unsalted pistacchios, pine nuts, boiled egg whites. Just keep in mind the no-no's (like avocado, definitely limit the dairy) that Bird Lady mentioned, and you'd be amazed how much a bird can share of the healthy food you fix for yourself.
Also avoid garlic, mushrooms and any obvious molds on cheese (even the injected kind in Blue Cheese). Caffeine and fizzy, carbonated drinks can cause problems as parrots can regurgitate but not burp food and the gas can get trapped and cause great discomfort. Some parrots enjoy scattering their food on a surface and rummaging through it as a chicken would do: Looking for that special taster's choice of a seed or nut. But please be careful and note the condition of the scattered food and clean the area regularly: back to the mold issue. Dried foods can and do get mold due to differing conditions in your house and environment. dried nuts can have mold or be rotten inside. Usually Macaws are smart and drop anything that doesn't meet their high standards: but as good parents, we have to watch out as well. JP recommends freezing all seed and foods for 48 hours prior to giving them out and keeping the bulk products in air tight bags until needed. avoid plain white bread as well: nutition is low: Whole Foods and other stores make a number of high seed/grain content breads. You can always ask your local baker to make loaves that have extra seeds/grains and other things you provide baked into the breads. Be friendly; be a known consumer and patron of the store and ask really nice: they have to use their stuff; but if you ask to add more of their stuff: Don't try to negotiate a cheap deal: the cost is the enjoyment of your child and besides: you (we...) like the stuff, and my bird eats everything I do...If he sees me! M&M Peatnuts are consumed under the bed at midnight when i am out of town and can brush my teeth at least ten times: Otherwise he 'knows' I've had something he didn't!
What do mallard ducks look like?
the male in general is more famous and beuitiful than the female!
otherwise the mallard duck ( male ) it has a green head and almost half of it neck,then fallows a white ring, then brown colour till the begging of it wings
the body is white-beige color littile brown on its wings and in the tail a black area with few white feathers.
the female is a mottled light brown, like most female dabbling ducks, and has buff cheeks, eyebrow, throat and neck with a darker crown and eye-stripe.
What kind of bird stores fish in its mouth?
There are several but the commonest one I can think of is the Pelican.
Why do Mallard hens lay infertile eggs?
Chicken eggs are only fertile if they have been fertilized. The kind that people generally buy in supermarkets or grocery stores, in order to eat them, are infertile and contain no embryo. Eggs can only be fertile if the hens that lay them are around roosters, and nearly all eggs sold in stores are produced in factory farms where the hens are restricted and never see a rooster. Any that potentially would have a rooster in the flock will be specifically labeled. Even eggs labeled "free-range" are not going to be fertile if there are no roosters in the flock.
How is fresh chicken better than frozen chicken?
Fresh chicken is fresher because frozen chicken is nasty and it is very bad for your body.
Do you need a rooster to make a egg?
You do not need a rooster for a hen to lay eggs. A well feed, happy hen of appropriate age will lay about one egg a day. If a rooster is around the eggs will be fertilized and you get more chickens, if not you get yummy eggs to eat.
How do you tell if the chicken is a male or female?
Roosters have spurs, hens do not. ..prinsesrau's answer....it depends on if there chicks or chickens. chicks the poop is different and roosters have long legs u can also tell when u spread there wings apart.chickens, roosters again are taller and grow claws on the side other there legs. hens lay eggs of course. and roosters tend to put up i fight and can be very hoststyle
Where in the world did chickens originate from?
Domestic chickens are said to originate from the Red Jungle fowl and possibly the Gray Jungle Fowl. Jungle fowl are relatives of the pheasant family. They are found in Northeast India, China and Malaysia.
No. They would choke on it because it is too small and hard.
Actually, yes, they can eat some baby foods and cereals. My daughter has hand raised multiple orphaned birds (mocking birds, thrashers, starlings, ect...) and has fed all of them baby food, usually chicken or turkey (yes, like cannibalism), some vegetable types, by sucking the food up into a plastic 1cc syringe (the kind without a needle, like vets give you to give animals liquid oral medicines), and when the bird is hungry, squeeze the food into the back of his mouth. She also fed them chopped earthworms, pieces of crickets, soft bodied insects and caterpillars.
Most birds have incredibly fast metabolisms and need to be fed every 20 minutes to every hour, they will use the bathroom immediately after being fed, so cover your hand with paper towels or feed them on an old towel, but at least they sleep through the night.
How can you feed my parakeets fruits and vegetables?
well my budgie is kinda picky so i cut the carrot up into TINY little pieces. Im talking smaller than diced. just tiny tiny little pieces that he can just pop into his mouth like a seed haha. hes plenty capable of ripping the carrot up himself he just wont.
Birds molt to replace their old plumage. Feathers wear out and break. They are also able to freshen up for mating season. People renew their skin all the time, but the structure of feathers means they have to drop out and regrow.
How long does it take for chicks to grow feathers?
Incubation time will differ depending on the particular type of poultry.
For chickens the incubation time (time it takes for a chick grow to hatch) is 21 days. For turkeys, ducks and most of the other birds, incubation is 28 days.
This number is not set in stone as you can expect the eggs to "pip" (see the first cracks in the shell) at 21 or 28 days, and it may be earlier or later depending on environmental conditions.
Hatching time -- from pipping until you see a wet bit of fluff -- depends on the strength of the chick, the hen's contribution and the environmental conditions. It can be as quick as 2 hours and as long as a full day.
How big a chicken does it take to lay a jumbo size egg?
We have 5 month old chickens that lay brown eggs, there not big chickens, but one layed a 3.5" long by 6.8" round egg. Very impessive! I think.
When a chick has come out of its shell can you leave it in the incubator for 3 weeks?
Nope you can't leave it in the incubator for 3 weeks! maximum is 48 hours
you can make your own brooder all you need is
1 Large Card Board or Plastic Box
1 Red Heat Lamp
1 Lamp
and either kitchen towel or newspaper for the base
Oh and don't forget chick crumb and chick grit
Yes.
One peacock egg is about 3 times as large as a chicken egg. A peacock egg supposedly makes a perfect omelet.
Yes-I've just lost the majority of my crop from one tree to hungry birds. At first I wasn't sure where they had disappearred to but the remaining olives had quite a few peck marks in them and I saw the birds in the tree.
