Let me preface my comments by stating that I really do like the new WPT web site. There is a wealth of information here. However, it’s virtually impossible for someone like me with a limited amount of time to navigate all the threads. Please correct me if I’m wrong, and hopefully I’ve overlooked it, but what seems to be missing from this new structure is a simple chat line for WPT members to carry on a conversation, such as was the case with the old WPT email list. There are simply too many discussion threads that, by the look of the posting dates, turn out to be dead-ends!
What I propose is that we pick a thread--and I offer this one--where WPT members can simply chat about their doings, comings, and goings, as we did with the old WPT email list. And I’ll offer to start out. My New Year’s resolution for 2008 is to establish a parrot sanctuary in the Puget Sound region near Seattle, where I live, in Washington State. I operate a defacto parrot rescue out of my house, where 7 parrots currently reside, two of them foster parrots. Seems to me, that when people find out you have birds, they start giving you more birds. Birds even show up unannounced on your doorstep! Currently there’s a loose confederation of parrot rescues such as mine in the Seattle Area, but nothing on the scale of Mollywood, the cockatoo sanctuary, up north in Bellingham, or the Macaw Landing Foundation down south in Portland. Well, that’s my goal, anyway. I love parrots, and I want to spend my life working with parrots.
Hi glad to see you here You know you can set it up to have right your mailbox notify you if there is a thread you have signed onto that you found that was of interest to you that way you don’t have to keep going to open up and navigate all over till you get there!
Yes, that is very true. and I am certainly doing that. Still, you have to check all the threads occasionally to see what new threads have been created, a time consuming task.
Appreciate the comments and suggestions. We are still working on a solution but are restricted by the technology that provides the forum and the rest of the site. Will let you know when we find a solution.
Hi. I have 18 parrots, all but two are adopted birds from a rescue organization. I’ve had them now for five years and they all seem to be happy in a modified flock environment. It seems to me that, as long as a parrot can see his family (whether it’s human or avian), he’s happy. I have somebirdie climbing around on me almost all the time. They are my reason for being.
Cheers in Pensacola, Florida, from BoBo, KiKo, Luther, Tacha, Dinky & Jerry, Sox & Tuxie, Scooter, Big Sammy, Little Sammy, Sammibird, Paulie, Celeste, and Eenie, Meenie, Minka & Moe!
Hello Cindi: 18 parrots! I’m curious how you deal with the noise? With just our 7 parrots the noise can be unbearable sometimes. I can’t imagine 18 parrots!
Well, what used to be our screened-in patio was turned into a glassed-in room with heat/AC/etc. I have most of my loudest birds out there. My loudest birds are the patagonian conures and there are three of them. Next to that, my Blue-Fronted Amazon can be very loud but she stays in the house with 4 other birds. She needs a lot of attention from me right now because she’s the newest adoptee and has issues we are working on. The other 4 inside are fairly quiet. I have some tiels but no cockatoos (which to me, are the loudest of all). I feel I cannot give a ‘too enough attention since I’m spread so thin, anyway, with respect to giving each bird the TLC it deserves. Plus, the dander is bad enough with just one Timneh African Grey inside! The tiels used to be inside; I love to listen to them, but their dander was way too much for me to keep them inside. I am always cleaning, it seems, but having the tiels inside seemed to double my workload.
I don’t mind the occasional noise ‘binges’ I must live with, but I hardly ever watch TV anymore. Between all the interruptions and not being able to hear it, I just figure it’s better to leave it off. When I do watch it, I use the captioning so I don’t miss what I can’t hear. As for my hubby, well, he lives in our RV full-time. He likes traveling & constantly goes, whereas I hardly ever leave the house. We both do our own thing & it works out well.
I have tried moving the inside birds into a guest bedroom, but didn’t like having them away from the center of activity. I did that when I had family visiting for a week. But as soon as they left I put everybirdie back into the living/kitchen area where I can interact with them more. Plus, cleaning, feeding, etc., is so much easier when they’re all in the same area. The outside room (I call the ‘birdroom’) is just on the other side of the windows in the living room so it doesn’t take too many steps to service everybirdie in the whole house. They can all see one another & still feel as though they’re in a flock environment.
Should the hubby ever decide to come home, I guess we’ll be buying a second house! The birds stay!! Cheers, Cindi.
We have let our television in the bird room, which seems to be a pretty good bird sitter when we’re not around. Even when we are the birds seem to like watching the television. The hyacinth seemed to be intently watching the Super Bowl game yesterday! BTW, I checked out your photo album. Terrific pics. If you click on my link and go to the Files tab, you can see photos of our flock.
Anyone who hasn’t already heard of the new book by Seattle writer Bruce Barcott, titled The Last Flight of the Scarlet Macaw, should check out this book review from The Seattle Times:
This book chronicles the story of Sharon Matola, the Zoo Lady of Belize, who waged a one woman fight to save the last scarlet macaws of that Central American country.
It’s not enough that parrots can see in the ultraviolet spectrum, but here’s a link to a fascinating story on National Public Radio here in the States speculating that birds are able to see magnetic fields, allowing them to navigate the tremendous distances around the globe that they are capable of:
My apologies if the WPT already reported on this and I simply missed it, but here is a link to some good news in today’s Seattle Times newspaper about the apparent successful scarlet macaw breeding program in Costa Rica:
Attached is a link to an article in yesterday’s (June 28, 2008) Seattle Times newspaper regarding a study by Chicago’s Field Museum showing an unexpected genetic link between parrots and falcons:
