Birds · Behaviour
A hissing cockatiel is telling you to back off, not threatening to attack. Here is what the sound actually means, why a new or startled bird does it more, and how to respond so the hissing fades instead of turning into a bite.
Birds · Food
Yes, capsicum (bell pepper) seeds are safe for budgies, and so are chilli seeds, because birds do not have the capsaicin sensitivity mammals do. Here is how to serve the flesh and seeds together, and how much is sensible.
Birds · Behaviour
Quaking, a full-body shiver, is a normal excitement display quaker parrots are named for, not a sign of illness. Here is how to tell it apart from a seizure and the signs that mean a vet visit instead.
Birds · Food
A bowl of fresh veg sitting untouched is one of the most common frustrations in bird keeping. Here is why it happens and the changes that actually get a bird eating them.
Birds · Breeds
Quaker parrots are among the best talkers in the parrot world, in a manageable medium size. They also come with a check most other pet birds don't need, since they are restricted or banned in some places. Here is what to know before and after bringing one home.
Birds · Behaviour
A bird launching food out of the bowl looks wasteful, but it is almost always the same foraging instinct wild parrots use to dig through a seed head. Here is the difference between normal mess and the picky feeding worth fixing.
Birds · Health
A few loose feathers at the bottom of the cage is usually nothing. Bald patches, thinning that never stops, or feather loss outside a molt is a different picture, and here is how to tell which one you are looking at.
Birds · Behaviour
A puffed-up bird can mean a cosy, half-asleep comfort or a genuine warning sign, and the two look almost identical from across the room. Here is how to tell which one you are seeing.
Birds · Health
A bird bringing up food can be a love letter or an emergency, and the two look more alike than owners expect. Here is how to tell courtship regurgitation apart from the kind that needs an avian vet.
Birds · Breeds
A canary is a genuinely different kind of pet bird to a budgie or parrot, solitary rather than social, admired by sound and sight rather than handled. Here is what one actually needs to thrive.
Birds · Behaviour
A bird thrashing wildly in a pitch-black cage in the middle of the night is having a night fright, and it can cause real injury in seconds. Here is what sets it off, why total darkness can make it worse, and what actually helps.
Birds · Health
A bird's droppings are one of the best early warning signs you have, precisely because birds hide illness so well everywhere else. Here is how to read them.
Birds · Breeds
Conures are playful, comical, and genuinely affectionate, and also capable of a scream that surprises almost every new owner. Here is what a conure actually needs, and an honest look at the noise before you bring one home.
Birds · Breeds
African greys are extraordinarily intelligent and can live 50 years or more, and that combination makes them one of the most rewarding and most demanding birds anyone can keep. Here is what one actually needs, and an honest look at who it suits.
Birds · Toys
The things that actually belong in a budgie cage, the ones that quietly cause harm, and why the cage a pet shop sells as a budgie cage is usually the wrong shape.
Birds · Training
Plenty of people buy a budgie or cockatiel hoping for a chatty companion and end up with a bird that only whistles. Here is how talking actually happens, which birds are realistic candidates, and the patient method that works.
Birds · Behaviour
Head bobbing covers a lot of ground, from a perfectly normal courtship display to a chick begging for food to a sign of serious illness. Here is how to tell the harmless versions apart from the one that needs a same-day vet visit.
Birds · Toys
A cage full of toys your bird ignores or screams at is common, and it is rarely that your bird cannot play. It is fear of something new, the wrong kind of toy, or where it is hung.
Birds · Health
Tail bobbing with every breath, clicking or wheezing sounds, and a change in the voice are the classic signs, and a draughty cage or all-seed diet is usually behind it. Here is what to look for and when it stops being a wait-and-see situation.
Birds · Food
A fat pad you can feel over the breastbone, a waddle instead of a hop, laboured breathing after flying. Bird obesity creeps up quietly and it shortens lives. Here is how to spot it and turn it around.
Birds · Training
Birds cannot be litter trained the way a cat can, but most can learn to go on cue and hold it until they reach a spot you chose. Here is how the method actually works.
Birds · Breeds
Lovebirds are tiny, feisty, and often devoted to their favourite person or partner. Here is what they actually need to thrive, from company and diet to their surprisingly sharp beak.
Birds · Health
Egg binding can kill a pet bird within a day if it is missed. Here is what causes it, the signs that separate it from ordinary nesting behaviour, and what to do the moment you suspect it.
Birds · Behaviour
A bite rarely comes out of nowhere. Here is how to read the warning signs your bird already gave you, the different reasons behind a bite, and how to rebuild trust without punishing a scared or hormonal bird.
Birds · Health
A bird going off its food can be nothing, or it can be an emergency, because birds hide illness and cannot go long without eating. Here is how to tell the difference.
Birds · Breeds
Budgies are small, affordable, and full of character, and they are far more than the neglected cage-bird of tradition. Here is what they actually need to thrive.
Birds · Breeds
Cockatiels are gentle, affectionate, and characterful, one of the best pet birds for many homes. Here is what they need to thrive, from company and diet to their famous whistling.
Birds · Behaviour
Feather plucking is one of the most distressing and stubborn problems in pet birds. Here is what drives it, why a vet must come first, and how to help a bird that has started.
Birds · Food
Fresh food is a big part of a good bird diet, but a few common items are dangerous and one is deadly. Here is what you can safely share with your bird, and what to never let it near.
Birds · Health
A bird's body is exquisitely sensitive, and ordinary homes are full of things that can kill one fast. Here are the hidden hazards, from non-stick fumes to open windows, and how to make a home bird-safe.
Birds · Behaviour
Some noise is normal and healthy. Relentless screaming is a bird trying to tell you something. Here is what is behind it, and how to turn the volume down without making it worse.
Birds · Breeds
From a budgie to a macaw, pet birds vary enormously in noise, mess, cost, and how long they live. Here is an honest guide to choosing one you can actually live with for its whole life.
Birds · Food
A bowl of seed is what most birds are sold with, and it is quietly one of the biggest causes of illness in pet birds. Here is what to feed instead, and how to make the switch.
Birds · Toys
A parrot has the mind of a toddler and a beak built to destroy. Without enough to do, that intelligence turns on itself. Here is how to keep a bright bird genuinely occupied.
Birds · Training
You cannot rush a bird into liking you. Here is how to build real trust with a nervous or new parrot, at its pace, and teach the step-up that everything else is built on.