Always examine toys you buy for your small pet bird very carefully. Never use anything with a lead weight in it for a bird toy, and do make sure that any attached bells are made like a small cow-bell, and that the clapper is firmly attached. Mirrors must be safely attached so that the leaded back is not accessible, and the housing must be not be tempting for little beaks to chew.

Remember, too, that many finches and canaries should not be given mirrors at all - they find them too fascinating.

Often small-bird toys will include the small round 'jingle' bells - these can actually be quite dangerous, and must be removed or replaced with small cow-bells if you want to keep your pet safe - jingle bells have been known to trap and slice many a little toe, often before you can say 'Yikes!'

So do plan to keep your small pet bird happy - but be sure to supply only safe toys, just as you would with children.

Paradise Parrot Fact
The last known sighting of the rare and beautiful 'Paradise Parrot' of Australia was in 1927; yet it is still believed to exist by some, even though occasional expeditions mounted to find traces of this beautiful bird are most likely to return having spotted not even a nesting hole in a termite mound...

Others believe it has long been extinct, while yet others have tried to produce a 'modern day Paradise Parrot' by producing hybrids between the Hooded and the Golden Shouldered Parrots; some of these hybrids resemble the colouration of the Paradise Parrot to a rather remarkable degree.

It is therefore theorized in some circles that the rare Paradise Parrot was actually a product of an occasional mating between birds of the two species and not really a separate species at all - this is considered unlikely by others, though, since the original known ranges of the three species did not even come close to overlapping.

All three parrots are closely related, and belong to the family of 'Long-Tailed Parrots', or 'Psephotus'.

The 'Dimorphic', or 'Mosaic' canary is the one breed of canary in which it is possible to differentiate the gender of the canary you are looking at, by the appearance of its plumage.

The Dimorphic Canary displays a recessive mutation of the feather - the result is a mostly white-looking bird, with bright colour points, which can vary depending on the ground (lipochrome) colour of the bird.

Male dimorphic canaries display a bright mask about the eyes, which the hens lack - so as long as you know your dimorphic canaries, one glance will tell you which gender you are looking at!

Welcome to the Companion Birds eZine

For bird people who care.

Hello! Welcome to the 5th issue of Flock Talk - I hope you like what you see! If you have comments, criticisms, or stories to share, please send them to Robirda.

Bird Site Report
The Canary List

Although not for the faint-of-heart, the Canary email list is a good way to learn more about canaries. Boasting members from all over the world, who range from pet owners to internationally famous breeders, this list is tbe one to join if you would like to talk about, or learn more about, canaries.

You will soon find that some of the most generous-natured people on the web frequent the Canary List, so it is rare for even the simplest of questions to not get a concise response fairly quickly - and discussions over some of the more complex questions can span days, and range into hundreds of posts.

So don't be surprised if you get a lot of emails after you've signed up to join - it's just the Canary List mail!

Feature Article

Of all the people I have ever met who keep birds, most if not all were first introduced to birdkeeping by sombody more familiar with the pleasures these small beauties can bring into a human's life. They took the time and effort to see that our first introduction was a fulfilling one, and they made themselves available for the inevitable spate of questions and learning which follows.

Many of us feel that it is up to us to, in our turn, pass on the legacy we were so freely given - it can be done in any number of ways, but the goal remains the same; to share with others that love of birdkeeping which was first so generously shared with us.

This week you will be sharing one canary breeder's point of view about, and experiences with...

by Nina Fournier
copyright © Oct, 2000

I have been involved in the breeding of canaries since 1994 when my sister in law Joyce, a longtime canary breeder, decided that I needed a canary in my life.

I steadfastly refused ownership previously to that because I felt I had never been successful with birds, although I admired them and their beautiful song. During a visit to her Chicago home, she led me into her bird room and I instantly fell in love with the beauty, the song and the gorgeous colors of her canaries.

I knew I was 'hooked' because even the smell of the bird seed was intoxicating to me! I could stay in her bird room for hours at a time.

I left Chicago accompanied by my new canary, 'Pavoratti', and brought him home to Missouri. On a subsequent trip, Joyce decided for me that I needed to be a canary breeder since I loved my bird so much. I returned from that trip with three hens.

Over the years I have several times increased or decreased the size of my fock - but I am currently 'owned' by about a hundred and fourty-five canaries.

I called my mentor (Joyce) countless times with question after question as the years passed, and she never failed to share her full knowledge of the birds with me.

In turn, I put questions that neither of us could answer to other breeders, usually through the various canary e-mail groups I belonged to. We both learned a lot from those answers.

The long and short of it all is that I became a canary breeder because Joyce loved her birds so much that she wanted to share them with others who would love them and nurture them as much as she did. In my turn, I found myself wanting to also became somebody's mentor - I needed to share my love of the canary, learned from her, with someone else.

Since she had shared her knowledge and love of canaries with me, I felt that I owed it to someone else to repay the kindness and possibly bring another quality breeder into the Canary Fancy at some time in the future.

When a young neighbor moved in next door and visited my bird room, I saw a light in her eyes and a tenderness in her heart for the birds and realized that at some point in time, she would make an impact in the bird world. We became good friends, and I found that I had a student-in-birds!

She now comes over every Saturday morning for two hours to assist in canary related chores. One year her birthday gift from me was a male canary she had fallen in love with,who she called "Blackie". He sings and cheeps and provides a lot of fun for their family - and I know he has a wonderful home. Isn't that what we all want for our carefully nurtured youngsters?

Each week I have a list of chores which needs to be done for the canaries. Each week the list is different.

Melissa and I check over the list of chores and then we pick what needs to be done. We have both learned a lot together, and we talk over the more unusual jobs so we can both learn more.

She has taught me as much as I have taught her. She is capable of taking over in my bird room at any given moment because she has chosen to learn and also because I have chosen to share.

I truly enjoy our time spent together. We have discussed pasty vents and fixed what we could, we have dispensed cous-cous and watch the results on the birds, we have bathed birds, changed papers and done thousands of seed cups together.

I don't know how many toe nails this girl has shorn in her time with me, but I can assure you that she is good. She knows the why's, the where-for's and the what-ever's of any chore done for or to the canaries. The dexterity of her youth allows her to catch a bird quicker than I can. I think it is wonderful, since the bird is uually less traumatized than when my clumsy hands attempt to grab it.

There is a particular joy for me in sharing what I know with a younger person. I hope that someday she will be very involved in the world of animals in whatever capacity she chooses. Yet I know that whatever her choice, she will do it in a kindly and knowledgable way. I hope to be one of those people who she remembers took some time with her so she can become all she is capable of.

Someday I truly believe that she and I will be in competition on a canary judge's bench. It would make me proud to know that she was talented enough to produce good birds and be a competitor, but also to know that she did well and had championship canaries to introduce to the bird world.

If you have or know of a young person who shows an interest in your birds, of whatever kind, please take the time to share your knowledge with them. The Canary Fancy will only continue to grow if we share ourselves with upcoming generations.

I have listened to countless stories from seniors who talk of their parents or grandparents who raised canaries to provide an extra income for their families. They loved the song, they loved the beauty of the bird, but somehow it got lost of the years of changes in the family structure.

I hope that we can begin to reintroduce these beauties back into our cultures and traditions, where they fit so well.

Whenever we have a question about our birds, we refer back to our books, check the questions and answers in our e-mail lists about canaries, or dicker back and forth, trying out various possibilities and ideas. We experiment for the betterment of our birds and as we learn, we learn to be successful most of the time.

We learn and grow from each new situation - and isn't that what life and bird-keeping is supposed to be all about?

Canaryingly Yours,
Nina Fournier
© October 2000, all rights reserved
http://members.tripod.com/~ajf16/bird.html

Robirda
October 29, 2000
Vancouver, BC, Canada

ISSN #1492-8132
Issue Number 5
copyright 2000
all rights reserved
no reprints without permission

"Well I am back to the using the towel to get my 'tiel, Beau, out of the cage. I suspect there is a lot of side-issues contributing to his problem in this area, as it is late in the day during the week when I can spend time with him, often not til 7:30 or 8:00 pm, and I also think he is moulting as I am seeing some pin feathers and a few of the feathers that were clipped on his wings have grown back in, so I am guessing this is making him a bit cranky.

"What concerns me more than having to use the towel, is that when I took Beau away from his cage into another room last night - I could seem him trembling. He was not holding his wings tight up against his body and I could see them shaking. Am I pushing him too much do you think?

"He continues to be a gentleman when eating a treat from my hand - no more of the hissing and swiping at my fingers which is a step in the right direction. He also will climb over to the side of the cage where I am sitting when he is in his cage - most likely looking for a treat.

"Help please - I want to be sure I am doing the right thing here."

My answer;

Hello! Actually, that particular kind of 'shaking' isn't fear - far from it in fact! It is actually more of a form of birdie snit-fit!

"He probably is feeling a little grouchy from his moult - but when they hold their wing's 'elbows' out and shake them, they are peeved about something. They don't open the wing, they just hold the closed wing out a little from the body, and shake them.

"Sometimes they will use this action to scold each other - or us, when we haven't done something the way they think is 'right' - rather like us shaking a finger under somebody else's nose! In this case, I am pretty sure what you are seeing could be expressed something like 'Doggone it, you were s'posed to let me get away with it, rats!'

"Beau has been properly put in his place, in other words - and he is figuring out that he will NOT be able to get away with ruling the roost!

"Once he gets used to the idea, he will relax tremendously, you will probably be quite surprised by how much - he will no longer feel like he has the burden of running the household on his shoulders, so to speak - they really do feel a responsibility to control 'the flock' when they think they are the boss. Keep up the good work!"