5th parrot gathering

[Erithacus]

It wasn't a good day this afternoon. The rain didn't dampen the spirit of the parrot enthusiasts. Some of the hardcore ones turned up despite the non stop drizzle.
We all gathered under the hut at the park. One lady asked me to do a demo. She wanted to see Cocoa fly. I went to an open area. There were trees sheltering us from the rain. I placed Cocoa on the ground and walked about 10ft away. She flew to me on command. I thought she would fly directly to me but instead of landing directly on my arm she flew past me and made a circle and back to me. Cocoa received a roaring applause from the crowds. I felt daaamn proud. Too bad no video.

[Natacha]

Are some of you guys using metal chains tied around a food to keep the parrots grounded to their perches?

I guess this is where you see the different mentality in parrot husbandry; it's no longer usual practice to do so in North America and, frankly, I'm happy about it.

Full body harness are actually much safer. The leg chains can be very dangerous; risk of tangle is higher and if the parrot decides to take off suddenly, there is a high chance of injury. I know these are still more commonly used with birds of prey, but I believe those type of birds have a much stronger leg structure than parrots and can handle it better.

However, I am aware that the "general rules" of parrot husbandry varies with country, continent, culture, etc. But would you ever consider trying to use a full body harness such as the Aviator over a leg chain?

To come back to the pictures at hand though, it's nice to see such a gathering around parrots.

[Rue]

How do you deal with potential disease transmission?

[Giantmoa]

Full body harness are actually much safer. The leg chains can be very dangerous; risk of tangle is higher and if the parrot decides to take off suddenly, there is a high chance of injury. I know these are still more commonly used with birds of prey, but I believe those type of birds have a much stronger leg structure than parrots and can handle it better.

just with the bird of prey thing, the zoo I work at does not use chains but tethers with well-fitting anklets (made of leather, preferably from kangaroos I believe) that has some give so that the hawks and owls do not not injure their legs when they fly off the perch. (I can't imagine ever putting an aviator harness on one of the raptors! ) I don't know if they use chains in other countries/places though...

cocoa sounds very well trained! nice recall and those are some gorgeous birds

[Erithacus]

Are some of you guys using metal chains tied around a food to keep the parrots grounded to their perches?

I guess this is where you see the different mentality in parrot husbandry; it's no longer usual practice to do so in North America and, frankly, I'm happy about it.

Full body harness are actually much safer. The leg chains can be very dangerous; risk of tangle is higher and if the parrot decides to take off suddenly, there is a high chance of injury. I know these are still more commonly used with birds of prey, but I believe those type of birds have a much stronger leg structure than parrots and can handle it better.

However, I am aware that the "general rules" of parrot husbandry varies with country, continent, culture, etc. But would you ever consider trying to use a full body harness such as the Aviator over a leg chain?

To come back to the pictures at hand though, it's nice to see such a gathering around parrots.

I have to admit that the mentality of the people here are still very third world. They believe in chaining their parrots as the safest option. I don't chain my Grey and she was never chained.

I think I could be the 1st one in my country to use an Aviator harness. I have posted my Grey's outdoor adventures on a local bird forum and from here there are more people using the harness but the numbers are still very small. It is not easy to change their mindset.

[TheNzJessie]

i can agree with you, new Zealand is a developed country but average bird knowledge and care of the average person is at least 20 years behind america i was talking to a lady in america who got chemotherapy for her cockatoo i told this to my vet and she basically laughed in my face, not to mention cage designs are limited and also toy designs. you really have to go to the proper bird store to get anything that looks like it could stand a chance in a bird cage. and shredder toys and proper forgagings toys i have only seen in stores for about 6 months. i think with the internet and people buying from overseas and selling them on trademe stores are becoming more aware of how bird toys/cages are developing (like technology) and are starting to import toys from america


both toys you see in the video i posted a while back the shredder toy and the tikl hut i brought form the bird barn and were both imported toys from america. $41 it cost me...

[hunt85]

Very beautiful bird! bad that they are sitting on a chain!