We have decided to discontinue manufacturing our Feathered Chef Birdie Bread product. We are concentrating our efforts towards the aviary (breeding) side of the business as that is where our true passion lies. We have found some great alternative products which you can check out at http://www.almostangelsaviary.com/breadaa.htm. We especially like the Momma's Birdie Bread products. So many different flavors and made with wholesome ingredients. Give them a try!
We have two turquoise green cheek conures available for sale. They are about 4 weeks old now. Will be ready to go home in about another four weeks. Green cheek conures are such nice birds. They are little clowns that love to play! They make great family pets as they will interact with everyone. The turquoise (blue) mutation is really gorgeous and different. I hope to get some great pictures when they feather out so everyone can see how pretty they are!
Things have slowed down a little which is a nice breather for me, but I have more babies on the way. I have one lineolated parakeet pair on eggs, one parrotlet pair on eggs and my caiques have been mating. So I expect them to be on eggs soon. I post all baby updates on my site, so check the site frequently and feel free to email me if you have any questions.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
Unsung Hero
I want to take time to thank one of the unsung heroes in my life - my husband Pete. He is not really into the birds (a mild understatement LOL), but graciously builds nestboxes, makes repairs, helps socialize babies and is a darn good handfeeder in a pinch! He also does about a million other things around here, but that is for another blog.
Sometimes, our household reminds me of a soap opera. Pete's favorite bird is Tutti, our female yellow naped amazon. Tutti is totally in love with him and will sit with him for hours just preening his hair, doing her little amazon cluck and staring at him like a lovestruck schoolgirl. Tutti definitely thinks of Pete as "her" mate. I am fortunate in that Tutti still remains sweet to me, and the "other" girl in my husband's life is a parrot! LOL!
My husband's household nemesis is my hahns macaw, Green Hornet (Hornet for short). Hornet has a strong bond with me and is very jealous of Pete. They both look at each other with mild disdain but manage to remain civil for my sake. Hornet still tries to get in a good nip when he can though! Pete says when I am not around, Hornet is actually pretty nice to him, but when I return it is back to the status quo!
As bird lovers, we understand that the mess, noise and occasional hormonal behavior is all a part of living with birds. The amazing bond we share with them is worth the extra care they require. But let's not forget our spouses who may not be that into birds, but graciously tolerate our bird crazy lifestyle because they love us and want us to be happy. So go give your spouse a big kiss and a hug. Let him know you appreciate him and remind him that the delicious smelling cornbread cooling on the counter top is for the birds!
Sometimes, our household reminds me of a soap opera. Pete's favorite bird is Tutti, our female yellow naped amazon. Tutti is totally in love with him and will sit with him for hours just preening his hair, doing her little amazon cluck and staring at him like a lovestruck schoolgirl. Tutti definitely thinks of Pete as "her" mate. I am fortunate in that Tutti still remains sweet to me, and the "other" girl in my husband's life is a parrot! LOL!
My husband's household nemesis is my hahns macaw, Green Hornet (Hornet for short). Hornet has a strong bond with me and is very jealous of Pete. They both look at each other with mild disdain but manage to remain civil for my sake. Hornet still tries to get in a good nip when he can though! Pete says when I am not around, Hornet is actually pretty nice to him, but when I return it is back to the status quo!
As bird lovers, we understand that the mess, noise and occasional hormonal behavior is all a part of living with birds. The amazing bond we share with them is worth the extra care they require. But let's not forget our spouses who may not be that into birds, but graciously tolerate our bird crazy lifestyle because they love us and want us to be happy. So go give your spouse a big kiss and a hug. Let him know you appreciate him and remind him that the delicious smelling cornbread cooling on the counter top is for the birds!
Thursday, July 16, 2009
New article on website
Well as promised, I have completed my article about the two mourning doves I raised. You can check it out at: http://www.almostangelsaviary.com/Article3.htm
They are doing wonderfully. So big and healthy! I have not raised doves before and this was a really cool experience. Read all about them in the article and see their pictures!
We have been very busy here! Feeding babies and more on the way! We have had two turquoise green cheeks just hatched and expect more on the way. Most of the babies we are currently handfeeding are reserved, but we still have one blue quaker baby available and a gorgeous cobalt male linnie. Let me know if you are interested in these birds. You may email me at parrots4us@sbcglobal.net .
They are doing wonderfully. So big and healthy! I have not raised doves before and this was a really cool experience. Read all about them in the article and see their pictures!
We have been very busy here! Feeding babies and more on the way! We have had two turquoise green cheeks just hatched and expect more on the way. Most of the babies we are currently handfeeding are reserved, but we still have one blue quaker baby available and a gorgeous cobalt male linnie. Let me know if you are interested in these birds. You may email me at parrots4us@sbcglobal.net .
Friday, July 3, 2009
Time Flies!!
Wow! I can't believe it's been two and half weeks since my last post! Well we have been really busy around here. The mourning doves I mentioned in my last two posts are doing wonderful. They are flying now and are just beautiful! They are out for about four hours a day now. They fly around the yard and barn area and have started to interact with the wild dove flock. Around 3:00, they come to the back door for their afternoon hand feeding and then it's back in the cage so they can practice eating "regular" food and be safely caged for the night. I will be posting an article about the doves on my site very shortly, complete with pictures. I will let you know when it is up.
Babies!! Like I said, we have been busy. Here is what we have now: three normal green cheek conures (two are reserved, one still available). Turquoise green cheek conures on eggs, three blue quaker babies in the box which I will pull in a few more days, three lineolated parakeets (one cobalt male, two green females) and last but not least, two parrotlet babies in the nestbox!! I am keeping my fingers crossed as this is the first time this pair has actually hatched and fed babies. So far so good! Check my website for more information on the birds above at http://www.almostangelsaviary.com/ or you can email me at parrots4us@sbcglobal.net
Care Tip: I use wicker baskets for portable playstands! The birds love them! I buy them on sale at Michael's at 40-50% off. I wrap the handle in sissel rope hang a toy and it is ready to go! Babies love to hide down in them, older birds love to climb all over them and chew them up. When the basket gets worn out, just throw it away and make a new one! Only purchase natural wicker baskets (no paint, varnish, etc.). Put two or three baskets of various sizes together for a great play area! Having a portable perch enables you to bring your bird to spend time with you while you are doing other things such as working on the computer, getting ready for work, etc. My pet quaker, Baby Blue has graciously volunteered to model for this picture!
Recipe: I got a great idea from a canary/finch breeder for an egg food type recipe that will keep in the cage! Take some very small pellets (I used roudybush breeder nibbles size), and add very finely chopped raw carrots and any other veggie you would like. (I used carrots and broccoli slaw, the kind you buy in a package). Mix thoroughly, put in a tupperware container and stick in the fridge overnight. The next morning, you will have a crumbly mixture that is soft but not mushy. My birds went crazy for this, especially my quakers who are feeding babies right now. This recipe works best with RAW veggies. Always put some carrots in there as they are very nutritious. Some other veggies which would be good are yellow squash, broccoli, zuccini, chopped greens, etc. Remember, all the veggies need to be chopped VERY fine. I used a mini chopper food processor. After several hours on the counter top, I noticed the mix got dry, but did not smell rancid. However, when I put in cooked foods such as hard boiled egg, rice & bean mixes, etc. the mix went rancid fairly quickly. So stay away from adding cooked foods and just use the raw veggies unless you will be taking the food out of the cage within 2 hours.
Babies!! Like I said, we have been busy. Here is what we have now: three normal green cheek conures (two are reserved, one still available). Turquoise green cheek conures on eggs, three blue quaker babies in the box which I will pull in a few more days, three lineolated parakeets (one cobalt male, two green females) and last but not least, two parrotlet babies in the nestbox!! I am keeping my fingers crossed as this is the first time this pair has actually hatched and fed babies. So far so good! Check my website for more information on the birds above at http://www.almostangelsaviary.com/ or you can email me at parrots4us@sbcglobal.net
Care Tip: I use wicker baskets for portable playstands! The birds love them! I buy them on sale at Michael's at 40-50% off. I wrap the handle in sissel rope hang a toy and it is ready to go! Babies love to hide down in them, older birds love to climb all over them and chew them up. When the basket gets worn out, just throw it away and make a new one! Only purchase natural wicker baskets (no paint, varnish, etc.). Put two or three baskets of various sizes together for a great play area! Having a portable perch enables you to bring your bird to spend time with you while you are doing other things such as working on the computer, getting ready for work, etc. My pet quaker, Baby Blue has graciously volunteered to model for this picture!Recipe: I got a great idea from a canary/finch breeder for an egg food type recipe that will keep in the cage! Take some very small pellets (I used roudybush breeder nibbles size), and add very finely chopped raw carrots and any other veggie you would like. (I used carrots and broccoli slaw, the kind you buy in a package). Mix thoroughly, put in a tupperware container and stick in the fridge overnight. The next morning, you will have a crumbly mixture that is soft but not mushy. My birds went crazy for this, especially my quakers who are feeding babies right now. This recipe works best with RAW veggies. Always put some carrots in there as they are very nutritious. Some other veggies which would be good are yellow squash, broccoli, zuccini, chopped greens, etc. Remember, all the veggies need to be chopped VERY fine. I used a mini chopper food processor. After several hours on the counter top, I noticed the mix got dry, but did not smell rancid. However, when I put in cooked foods such as hard boiled egg, rice & bean mixes, etc. the mix went rancid fairly quickly. So stay away from adding cooked foods and just use the raw veggies unless you will be taking the food out of the cage within 2 hours.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Pigeons, uhhh I mean doves
The oldest chick has feathers coming in and after some additional research, it looks like I have a pair of doves, not pigeons. Well, that's a little better! We enjoy the wild doves here and put food in the feeder for them. Not sure what kind these are yet, (I think they are mourning doves) they will have to get some more feathers before I can be sure. I will surely let everyone know! They are doing great, growing fast and eating a ton! I will post some pictures soon.
We have sold all of our normal and turquoise green cheek babies! We have more normal green cheek eggs in the nest though. I've had a lot of interest in this new clutch, so let me know if you want me to hold a baby for you when it hatches. You can email me at parrots4us@sbcglobal.net
We also have a pair of blue quakers sitting on eggs!
Our lineolated parakeet babies are growing fast and I will be pulling them Monday or Tuesday. They are all dark eyes which means no lutinos or creaminos in this clutch. To find out more about these birds, see my lineoleated parakeet page on my website at http://www.almostangelsaviary.com/lineolated.htm
We have sold all of our normal and turquoise green cheek babies! We have more normal green cheek eggs in the nest though. I've had a lot of interest in this new clutch, so let me know if you want me to hold a baby for you when it hatches. You can email me at parrots4us@sbcglobal.net
We also have a pair of blue quakers sitting on eggs!
Our lineolated parakeet babies are growing fast and I will be pulling them Monday or Tuesday. They are all dark eyes which means no lutinos or creaminos in this clutch. To find out more about these birds, see my lineoleated parakeet page on my website at http://www.almostangelsaviary.com/lineolated.htm
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Funny Story
A lady called me from the feed store the other day. She said some landscapers cut down a tree and there was a nest with baby birds in it. She didn't know what they were and wanted to know if I would take them. I get a lot of these types of calls this time of year. Usually, I refer the person to the local wildlife rehab center and or tell them to call Texas Parks and Wildlife. This time, something peaked my interest. I asked what the birds looked like. She said she had no idea what they were, but they had yellow down feathers. Yellow down feathers? I couldn't think of any wild bird in this area fitting that description. I thought maybe they were something cool like wild quaker parrot babies or some unusual songbird. Curiosity got the better of me and I drove down to take a look:
Well, here is what she brought out! Do you know what these are?
Well, here is what she brought out! Do you know what these are?
I admit, it took me a few minutes too.....
PIGEONS!!!
Well, handfeeding a couple of pigeons was not exactly what I had in mind, but hey, it'll be a neat life experience anyway. My husband says I can add this skill to my resume LOL! Of course, they are not anywhere near my other birds (they are in the barn actually, in a seperate airspace). And quarantine protocol is being followed. They are pretty neat. They eat differently than the parrots do and are actually easier to feed. I'll keep everyone updated on their progress.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Small Talk from the Aviary
I received an email from the couple who got the cherry headed conure I wrote about in my last blog. He said "TJ" is doing great and spends about two hours per day riding on his shoulder and "helping" around the house. I love happy endings. Way to go!
Our normal green cheek conures are about ready to go. The two older ones are ready now, the two younger ones will need another 10 days or so to finish weaning. They are so much fun! They are all flying now and their favorite pass time is flying to me and riding around on my shoulder snuggled under my hair. They are total velcro birds! We are having so much fun raising the green cheek conures. They are so cute!
We have more normal green cheek conures in the nest. These will be available for wholesale purchase in about two weeks. See my website or email me for details.
Our turquoise green cheek conure babies are doing great! They are just as fat and healthy as can be! I can't wait until they feather out so I can take some pictures and post them on the site! If you are interested in purchasing one of our turquoise babies, please let me know.
I have a pair of linnies sitting on five eggs now. Not sure how many will hatch, but I am keeping my fingers crossed! The parents are both split to different colors so the babies could be almost any color! It's always fun when the babies start to feather out to see what they are.
Our normal green cheek conures are about ready to go. The two older ones are ready now, the two younger ones will need another 10 days or so to finish weaning. They are so much fun! They are all flying now and their favorite pass time is flying to me and riding around on my shoulder snuggled under my hair. They are total velcro birds! We are having so much fun raising the green cheek conures. They are so cute!
We have more normal green cheek conures in the nest. These will be available for wholesale purchase in about two weeks. See my website or email me for details.
Our turquoise green cheek conure babies are doing great! They are just as fat and healthy as can be! I can't wait until they feather out so I can take some pictures and post them on the site! If you are interested in purchasing one of our turquoise babies, please let me know.
I have a pair of linnies sitting on five eggs now. Not sure how many will hatch, but I am keeping my fingers crossed! The parents are both split to different colors so the babies could be almost any color! It's always fun when the babies start to feather out to see what they are.
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