ISSN 1492-8132
Issue 72, © 2003
No reprints without permission

Don't miss the great cage sale currently taking place, offering visitors from Robirda.com up to $151 dollars off selected cages! This sale is on until June 15th, so don't miss out on these great savings offered especially to you!

As for us - well, we're at it again. We thought to be in our temporary quarters for for some time yet, but Lady Luck found us wonderful new quarters with plenty of room and light for the canaries and us.

But it means that once again the move is likely to play hob with our communications, at least for a day or two. Please keep this in mind, and try to be patient with any delays you might encounter - we are working as fast as we can!

If you are interested in Gloster canaries, then you will want to visit this website run by a breeder who consistently wins top awards at shows for his outstanding Glosters. There are dozens of top-quality pictures posted on this site, and to anybody who would like to pursue an interest in breeding and showing Gloster canaries, these pictures will be, not only fascinating, but inspiring as well! This is a great site, straightforward, simple and direct, an approach many of us would do well to copy!

This url belongs to one of the oldest and most well-established sources of top-quality cast-iron cookware - quite likely they made your Grandmother's skillets, as well as yours! Their latest introduction has been to begin to sell seasoned as well as unseasoned cookware, so if you have been avoiding using cast iron cookware because you just don't have the time and patience to properly cure them, well, now you don't have to! So what are you waiting for? Drop by and check out these pots and pans today!

Do you have or sell a great bird product? Send us a sample, and have it reviewed for Flock Talk readers! We will be reviewing foods, cages and cage accessories, toys, and other bird items we have direct experience with in upcoming issues. Send your inquiry and a brief description of your product(s) here, to Robirda

When you need help with housing, feeding, care or behavioral questions, you can get a personal answer from Robirda. Even avian vets sometimes consult with Robirda on small-bird behaviour and other such issues.

A recent consultee said, "I must tell you that this service is worth much more than we pay. You certainly provide a valuable and informative service! Your information will make the difference..."

Robirda can help you learn to understand your birds better! Learn more here.

We rely on you to help keep this publication and its associated websites alive. If you find help you need in this ezine, please consider joining our sponsors. Sponsor us for $75 or more and you'll also get a free lifetime Nest membership!

If you're looking for something different, don't forget to check our home page for links to all our great products!

We hope you enjoy the feature article in this issue! Our next issue is due June 8th - until then, be well and stay happy!

Robirda
May 25, 2003

Welcome to Robirda's Companion Birds eZine

For breeder or pet bird owners who care.

Our CD of Robirda's canaries singing is proving to be a popular choice. In the months since we first offered this CD for sale, dozens of customers have sent in glowing praise. Here's just a few of the comments we've received:

"Quick delivery, Awesome CD, even better than I expected! Super transaction!"

"The cd is so lovely, cute, uplifting... I could go on and on! Just listening to your little critters makes me smile... one little guy makes a squeak... then another a gurgle, then one by one they start warbling until it's a symphony of sweet, varied songs."

"Just received the Songs from the Birdroom CD - the birds are enjoying it tremendously - our cockatiel is telling them to 'be quiet'!"

"Wonderful!! Professional, shipped with lightning speed. GREAT CD... RECCOMMEND!"

Learn more about Songs From The Birdroom.

Feature Article

There's more than one long-running controversy in the world of bird-keeping, and you will never have to look far to find one. But of them all, few manage to run the gamut of reactions from mockery to fright in quite the same way as does...

by R C McDonald
www.robirda.com
Copyright © 2003

Non-stick linings can be found all over a great number of homes, these days, and in a wide variety of forms. They've proliferated in an enormous range of household goods, from curlers and curling irons to cookware, ironing-board covers and irons to oven mitts and drip pans, and much more. It's even used on the bulbs in some heat lamps!

There are several manufacturers who produce various analogs of this material, and although the danger of their use near birds is well documented, very few manufacturers have any warning whatsoever on their labelling. This has led to the accidental death of many a pet bird over the years, along with a plethora of reactions from bird owners, clubs, and other organizations.

When it comes to the health of my birds and myself, I prefer to err on the side of caution - better safe than sorry, as my grand-mother always used to say! But when so much of the available information is hearsay and conjecture, what's a caring bird owner to think?

Well - one issue that's become clear to me, is that there is no question that there IS some danger to our birds in the use of products coated with these materials. Research has shown that, especially at the higher temperatures (and sometimes even at lower ones!) the materials used for non-stick linings can produce gases that are deadly for birds.

Too often I've heard people lament, too late, that they knew that there was possible danger, but they thought their birds would be okay in another room of the house, well away from the fumes.

Often this is true, but if you live in a house whose heating vents tends to distribute the household air throughout the entire home, seeing that your bird is in another room may not be enough to protect him. In order for such an approach to work, there needs to be little to no air exchange between the area where the utensils coated with the non-stick lining are in use, and the area where the bird(s) are.

There are other, lesser-known issues involved in the use of these materials, as well. Preliminary studies recently undertaken by the EPA have indicated that there is potential nationwide human exposure to low levels of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and its salts, predominantly ammonium perfluorooctanoate (APFO). Based on certain animal studies, there could be a potential risk of developmental and other adverse effects associated with exposure in humans.

But since the same assessment also indicates substantial uncertainty about the interpretation of the risk, the EPA has identified areas where additional information could be helpful in allowing them to develop a more accurate assessment of the potential risks posed by PFOA and other similar compounds, and to identify what voluntary or regulatory mitigation or other actions, if any, would be appropriate.

Because of this, the EPA is making this preliminary assessment public in order to identify the Agency's concerns, to indicate areas where additional information or investigation would be useful, and to request the submission of data addressing these issues.

PFOA and its salts are fully fluorinated organic compounds that can be produced synthetically and formed through the degradation or metabolism of certain other manmade fluorochemical products. PFOA is a synthetic chemical and is not naturally occurring. Consequently, all PFOA in the environment is attributable to human activity.

PFOA is used primarily to produce its salts, which are used as essential processing aids in the production of fluoropolymers and fluoroelastomers. Although they are made using PFOA, finished fluoropolymer and fluoroelastomer products are not expected to contain PFOA.

The major fluoropolymers manufactured using PFOA salts are polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and polyvinylidine fluoride (PVDF). PTFE has hundreds of uses in many industrial and consumer products, including soil, stain, grease, and water resistant coatings on textiles and carpet; uses in the automotive, mechanical, aerospace, chemical, electrical, medical, and building/construction industries; personal care products; and non-stick coatings on cookware.

PVDF is used primarily in three major industrial sectors: Electrical/electronics, building/construction, and chemical processing. Releases from manufacturing processes are one source of PFOA in the environment.

The EPA is also soliciting the identification of parties who would be interested in monitoring or participating in negotiations for the development of one or more enforceable consent agreements (ECAs) on PFOA and on fluorinated telomers ('telomers') which may metabolize or degrade to PFOA.

The intent of the ECAs would be to develop additional information, particularly environmental fate and transport information, to enhance understanding of the sources of PFOA in the environment and the pathways by which human exposure to PFOA is occurring.

The EPA's investigation began in 1999, when data was received which indicated that perfluorooctyl sulfonate (PFOS) was persistent, unexpectedly toxic, and bioaccumulative. The data showed that PFOS had been found in very low concentrations in the blood of the general population and in wildlife around the world.

In June 2000, EPA indicated that it was expanding its investigation of PFOS to encompass other fluorochemicals, including PFOA, in order to determine whether these other fluorochemicals might present concerns similar to those found with PFOS. EPA was concerned in part because the studies had also found PFOA in human blood during the studies on PFOS.

In September 2002, the Director of OPPT initiated a priority review on PFOA because of the developmental toxicity data, the carcinogenicity data, and the blood monitoring data presented in an interim revised hazard assessment.

When the priority review commenced, EPA anticipated completing the review within a few months. However, there remain substantial uncertainties associated with the preliminary risk assessment. The EPA believes these uncertainties may be reduced through acquisition of more information, and it is therefore continuing the priority review in order to acquire this information and better inform their decisionmaking.

This issue could potentially affect all of us, birdkeepers or not. For a full copy of the EPA's report, email Oppt.Homepage@epamail.epa.gov

The web address for the Commission is http://www.cpsc.gov

If you wish to send them an e-mail supporting the proposed regulations, email info@cpsc.gov

by R C McDonald
www.robirda.com
Copyright © 2003

For A Limited Time Only, A Special Deal For You!

The folks at Bird and Cage Co have made it their goal to provide birdkeepers with a great selection of quality cages for the best possible prices - and if you live in the continental US, there's an even nicer bonus - for now at least, shipping is free!

But the good news doesn't stop there! In response to the eager interest displayed in these cages by our readers and visitors to Robirda.com, Bird & Cage has decided to offer a special deal, only to those buying their cages from our site.

Until June 15th, you can save up to $151 dollars on selected flight cages from Bird & Cage - all you have to do is order your cage(s) from the review pages on Robirda.com, and when ordering, be sure to enter a note in the comments field that you first saw the cage here.

See Robirda's reviews of these and other cages.

Cast iron is often cited as being a wonderful and useful alternative to non-stick coated cookwear, but if you wish to use it at all effectively, it is necessary to know how to cure, maintain, and use it. It's not all that difficult, but if you don't know these few small tricks, using cast iron can seem nothing more than a huge pain.

Usually when you bring your new cast iron cookwear home, it needs to be cleaned thoroughly, and then 'cured'. Some cast iron ware can be bought already cured, but usually you will need to do this yourself. The curing process is necessary if you wish to have the greatest ease-of-use of your cookware.

Use soap, water, and a good, hard-bristled (non-metallic) scrub brush to remove the protective coating, then rinse well and put the pot on low heat to dry out thoroughly. Please note that after this one-time cleansing, you should never need to use soap on your cast-iron cookware ever again - hot water should be all you need, once your pan is properly cured.

Once the pan is thoroughly warm and bone dry, oil it well with a good heat-resistent oil or shortening. I prefer to use rendered lard, but any shortening will do nicely. (Vegetable oils tend to break down at fairly low heats, and will not work properly to cure iron) Coat the inner surface generously, then place it in an oven set to 250 degrees Farenheit or so, then go away and ignore it for awhile - the longer the better.

Every hour or so, remove the pot from the oven and use a paper towel to wipe the oil around the entire inside of the pot. Make sure to go over all the inner surfaces, especially any vertical surfaces, if necessary using more shortening to see that the metal stays well greased.

The aim is to get as much of the oil as possible to seep into the pores of your iron pot - it is this which will render your iron cookware so useful once it is thoroughly cured, making it easy to cook with, not liable to stick to foods, and easy to clean.

After several hours, you can remove the pot from the oven, wipe off any excess oil, and store it. Cook with it as you do your other cookware, but never use metal implements on it, and never wash it with soap and water. Instead, just use a little hot water to clean it. Many people are astounded to find that any stuck-on scraps of food usually prove to be very easy to remove!

But there's one more step to remember. Each time you finish cleaning your iron pot, place it on the stovetop on low heat until it is bone dry, then, while the pan is still warm, re-grease the entire inside of the pan, making sure to spread it everywhere. If you wish, you may repeat the 'oven-cure' method a few times, too, until your pan is as non-stick as you wish.

As long as you make certain to repeat this dry-and-then-regrease-before-storing care of your iron cookware, you will find that your iron pots will retain their usefulness for your entire lifetime and beyond, cooking a never-ending supply of healthy, tasty foods for you and your loved ones.