By Barbara H. Peterson
My Blue and Gold Macaw name Rita, short for Margarita, and I fell in love at first sight in 1995, when she was just a whipper snapper, fresh out of the egg. I had extra money then, so home she came. To make sure that I had a good start on her upbringing, I read several books on feeding, training, and raising your bird to be a contributing member of the family. Since Macaws live to be around 80 years of age, having one that is an agreeable member of the family is a must.
We learned to bath together in the shower, play, and talk to each other. With constant interaction, we developed a very close relationship that includes her telling me when she is thirsty or hungry, when she has to go poopers (yes, she says it), and when she wants to go to sleep. She does not live in a cage, although I have one for her, and sleeps on a stand next to my bed. She is my alarm clock. When I wake up, she looks at me, says “gimme four,” raises her foot and gives the high-four (Macaws only have 4 toes).
Rita is a very healthy bird, as you can see by the picture. I believe that her diet is one of the main reasons for this, and it doesn’t cost me a dime more than what I ordinarily spend on people food! Why? Because if you eat healthy, then your bird can eat what you eat. Here is a picture of some scraps that I have drying under the ceiling fan for her. This includes some leftover oatmeal, Rita biscuits, peppers, carrots, raisins, onions, yams, and oranges:
Every time I cut fruit and veggies up, I take the end pieces, cores, and peelings, and place them under the fan to dry for Rita. I also add some dried pinto beans, raisins, and nuts to the ration if I have extra. If I get too many carrot peelings, I take a bit of leftover flour, eggs from the chickens, and bake some Rita biscuits for her. Remember, Macaws cannot have avocados, chocolate, caffeine and alcohol, as these things can kill them. Also, no moldy food, or anything that you could not eat yourself, and the coating on an overheated teflon pan will emit fumes that will kill your bird, so be very careful in the kitchen.
So, the next time you are tempted to grab that bag of processed bird food that is extremely boring and highly expensive, or bird seeds that contain about as much nutrition as a diet coke, resist! You don’t need to spend extra money on food that is inadequate for your lifelong companion. With a little effort, you can have a healthy, happy Macaw on a beer budget by simply not letting your scraps go to waste.
(C) 2011 Barbara H. Peterson
April 22, 2011 at 2:20 pm
Amazing! I have a conure, and he likes fresh food also,, even yogurt!
April 22, 2011 at 5:06 pm
That’s an exquisite bird!
April 22, 2011 at 6:41 pm
Thanks, Sandy. She’s my lifelong buddy. When she was a baby, I used to fall asleep on the couch with her on my chest. I’d wake up with her just sitting there, looking at me.
April 22, 2011 at 8:42 pm
What is the drying for?
April 22, 2011 at 8:47 pm
She can only eat so much in a day, so I dry food to store for her. That way she has a good supply of food available at all times. It’s her food storage bank :)
April 25, 2011 at 1:21 pm
Because there’s so much misinformation out there about the Teflon® brand, I’m not surprised that you are concerned. I’m a representative of DuPont though, and hope you’ll let me share some information with you and your readers, so that everyone can make truly informed decisions.
Because birds have extremely sensitive respiratory systems, bird owners must take precautions to protect them. Cooking fumes, smoke and odors that have little or no effect on people can seriously sicken and even kill birds, often quite quickly. Cooking fumes from any type of unattended or overheated cookware, not just non-stick, can damage a bird’s lungs with alarming speed. This is why bird owners should take steps to protect their pets, such as keeping their birds out of the kitchen, never leaving cookware unattended, never allowing pots and pans to overheat, and making sure that their kitchen is properly ventilated at all times.
In terms of Polymer Fume Fever… Over the past 40 years, there have been only a few reported accounts of polymer fume fever as a result of severely overheating non-stick cookware. It should be noted that butter, fats, and cooking oils will begin to smoke at approximately 400°F (204°C), producing fumes that can irritate eyes, nose, and throat and possibly cause respiratory distress. DuPont non-stick coatings will not begin to deteriorate in appearance or performance until the temperature of the cookware reaches about 500°F
Regulatory agencies, consumer groups and health associations all have taken a close look at the Teflon® brand. This article highlights what they found — the bottom line is that you can use Teflon® non-stick without worry.
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/home-garden/kitchen/cookware-bakeware-cutlery/nonstick-pans-6-07/overview/0607_pans_ov_1.htm
April 25, 2011 at 6:45 pm
Sara,
It amazes me that DuPont would actually have a representative address a simple comment regarding the dangers of letting a bird come in contact with fumes from an overheated teflon pan. Here is some info from an article I found:
Nonstick Cookware Can Kill Birds
Pans, as well as other products treated with the non-stick coating polytetrafluorethylene, which are referred to by a number of names including Teflon®, Innovex 75T nonstick coating, and Thermo-SpotT as well as others, can cause the death of birds if overheated. Dupont, which manufactures Teflon® has a bird safety page online that admits, if you read to the very bottom of the page, that fumes from overheated PTFE products such as Teflon® can harm your bird. Your own veterinarian can confirm that fumes from overheated PTFE products, including but not limited to Teflon®, can and does kill birds very quickly.
This information needs to be on the product label so that customers, if they have pet birds, will be aware of the problem before they make the purchase.
http://www.starlingtalk.com/warning.htm