Our Flock: Our Goffin's Cockatoo Kid Kadra

Our male Goffin's Cockatoo Kid Kadra craves attention. If he can't get it from the humans, he solicits attention from the other parrots, usually with unsatisfactory results:

Kid Kadra could easily be mistaken for one of the Three Stooges, we're guessing Larry. Here's an earlier video of Kid Kadra trying to turn a very small water dish into a tub:

Disposable Parrots

The Truth About Parrots: Best Friends Animal Society

Parrot breeders are a strange lot! If you visit just about any online parrot forum, say Patricia Sund's Parrot Nation, you'll run into parrot breeders in total state of denial (and we're not talking about a river in Egypt). Trying to argue with a parrot breeder about the companion parrot overpopulation problem quickly leads to the conclusion that parrot breeders live in a parallel universe where facts and reality do not apply. In this parallel universe, there is no companion parrot overpopulation problem. In this parallel universe the commercial companion parrot trade does not engender wild parrot smuggling across the Mexican border. In this parallel universe, parrot rescues and sanctuaries are full to the brim with unwanted parrots because the rescues and sanctuaries choose to be. In this parallel universe, discarded and abandoned parrots don't get shuffled around to seven or more homes in their lifetimes. In this parallel universe any parrot needing a new home can find one, if you simply work hard enough!

Parrot breeders are full of . . . (I'll be polite) Parrot Poop.

A thirtysomething female Cockatoo parrot named Simba back when she still had some feathers, currently living at Mollywood Avian Sanctuary. Simba is virtually naked now. A previous owner threw her against a wall and broke her keel bone. In spite of her history of abuse and neglect, all Simba wants to do is cuddle in your arms!

We recently had the opportunity to visit Mollywood Avian Sanctuary outside of Bellingham, Washington, north of Seattle. The number of abandoned and discarded Cockatoo parrots residing at Mollywood is truly heartbreaking. These parrots can never be rehomed. Yet parrot breeders keep breeding Cockatoo parrots because breeders and pet store chains have convinced pet owners of the desirability of hand-fed baby parrots.


We were pondering the question of why there are so many abused, neglected, and abandoned Cockatoos and other parrots when we came across a fascinating article on the Bear in Mind blog just published on PsychologyToday.com, Why the Caged Bird Does Not Sing: Captivity and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Parrots and People, by Gay Bradshaw. Traumatologists have discovered that caged parrots exhibited symptoms identical to humans suffering from chronic victimization:


Severely traumatized cockatoos who are rescued and receiving treatment at the innovative sanctuary, Midwest Avian Adoption & Rescue Services, Inc (MAARS) commonly exhibit "rapid pacing in cage, distress calls, screams, self-mutilation, aggression in response to [human and other bird] physical contact, nightmares, insomnia, and self-mutilation." Parrots are considered to be some of the most highly social species who bond for life and live in complex, closely knit flocks. However many rescued or abandoned parrots who come to sanctuary are so severely traumatized that they will not form relationships with humans or birds.


Parrot trauma is commonly misinterpreted by parrot owners, trainers, and behaviorists. When a parrot beak dives or bites its owner or handler, the action is not seen as a symptom of an unnatural environment, but as bad or problem behavior in need of punishment or training.


When examined through the lens of Complex PTSD, the symptoms of many caged parrots are almost indistinguishable from those of human POWs and concentration camp survivors. These include alterations in emotional regulation, consciousness, and relationship.

Continuing to breed parrots simply introduces wild animals into an unnatural environment, for parrots still are essentially wild animals, unlike dogs and cats that have been domesticated for thousands of years. Parrot training and behavior modification will only ameliorate and not eliminate symptoms of parrot trauma. Parrots will continue to act irrationally to humans, but perfectly rationally in light of this new interpretation regarding parrots and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.


Does your parrot misbehave and bite? Just dispose of it and buy another hand-fed baby parrot. Maybe you can train the next one to behave properly. Don't worry about discarding the first parrot. You won't be contributing to the companion parrot overpopulation problem because parrot breeders don't recognize a companion parrot overpopulation problem! To breeders, parrots are simply commodities. No more. No less. They'll keep breeding. If parrot sanctuaries need to build ever more facilities, well, that's their choice.


Here's a modest proposal: Can we at least stop breeding Cockatoo parrots? Cockatoos are simply not suitable to be pets!


Ah, fuck! No point in sugar coating it. Parrot breeders are full of shit! 

Our Carnivorous Parrot

Readers of this blog know that we live with a flock of parrots, currently numbering nine, including five macaws, two African greys, a Goffin's cockatoo, and a Budgie parrot. Well, we also have an additional parrot, that we haven't much noted. This parrot lives out back. This parrot is carnivorous! This parrot also lives with a flock of its own, so to speak.

We're speaking of the Parrot Pitcher plant, Sarracenia psittacina.

Not our Parrot Pitcher, but an interesting video of the Parrot Pitcher.

Why is a Parrot Pitcher plant called a Parrot Pitcher? Because the head of the stalk vaguely resembles a parrot's beak.

In late summer, the Parrot Pitcher (as does other pitcher plants) shoots up a striking flower on a tall stalk. Typically the flowers tower above the plant. The idea is to get bees to pollinate the plant, not get eaten by the plant!

Our carnivorous flock: The Yellow Trumpet to the left (Sarracenia flava), Purple Pitcher center (Sarracenia purpurea),  and Parrot Pitcher.

The young shoots of the Yellow Trumpet tower over the Parrot Pitcher.

Gorgeous Yellow Trumpet flower just left of center.

The towering stalks of the Yellow Trumpet remind us of parrot chicks with their mouths open, waiting to be fed!

Close-up view of the Yellow Trumpet flower.

Wondering how well these guys eat? Each stalk is stuffed to the brim with flies and wasps!

Why the insects don't just back out of the stalk once they go in.

Nice to have at least one parrot that can feed itself!

The Wild Parrots of Seattle: Update

A parrot friend of ours who gardens at the Ballard P-Patch just off NW 85th Street and 25th Avenue NW in North Seattle, was tending his garden Friday, September 16th, as were several other people in the garden, when a pair of Mitred Conure parrots flew up to feed for a short time in the garden, then flew over to some nearby apple trees to feed, before taking off again. Our friend and every one else in the P-Patch got a really good look at them. The Conures announced themselves with their incessant squawking. These would be the Golden Gardens Conures that people have been telling us about for years. In our eleven years here in Ballard we have not yet been lucky enough to see them. Apparently they roost at the top of Golden Gardens Park somewhere near NW 85th Street and 32nd Avenue NW.

A pair of Mitred Conure parrots photographed in Golden Gardens Park, January10 2010,

published by the local Ballard News-Tribune.

Better known are the Mitred Conure parrots of Seward Park. A member of the Northwest Exotic Bird Society, Karyn Jensen, reported:

If you go out to Seward Park to see the Mitreds, they usually hang out at the Point-- you cannot drive to this spot. You have to walk around the loop path to spot them. I live about a mile from Seward Park and occasionally see them (actually, I HEAR them in advance of seeing them) when I'm in my backyard..There are at least thirteen individuals, if not more. When they fly over, my Conures make a racket--that's what alerts me most of the time! They usually start migrating to the Maple Leaf neighborhood just about this time of the year (when it starts getting cold at night) and then back to Seward Park when it warms up in the Spring. I have also seen a couple of other parrot species at Seward Park as well (other types of Conure parrots and an Amazon)!

To see our original blog post about the Wild Parrots of Seattle, click here. For a story and several photos about the Seward Park Conure parrots in the Columbia Citizens neighborhood blog, click here.

Three Mitred Conure parrots photographed feeding on a Hawthorne tree in Shoreline, September 15, 2008.

To see a photo of one of the Seward Park Mitred Conures taken May 19, 2009, click here.

Anyone with further information and photos of the Wild Parrots of Seattle, please contact us.

Support Your Local Invasive Species!

It's a Bird. It's a Plane. No, It's Super Parrot!

The Adventures of Princess Tara, Super Parrot

It's a Bird. It's a Plane.
No, it's Princess Tara, Super Parrot!

Fighting for truth and justice for parrots everywhere. Join our new action adventure series as Princess Tara fights evil parrot smugglers and battles parrot hoarders to free captive and abused parrots! Princess Tara is ably assisted by her sidekick Roxanne, Diva parrot by day, seductress by night!

Will parrot poachers be slain? Will captive parrots be freed? Will truth and justice prevail? Will dinner ever get served?

Stay tuned. Same time, same station.

Parrot Tattoo Boogaloo

The Famous Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill

Parrots Rock! We have a bunch of them. We don't mind parrot beaks. We're used to them. But we've never in our life had a tattoo. Fear of needles and other sharp implements. But to celebrate our sixtieth birthday in September, we've decided to get tattooed. With parrots. Of course. But not just a single parrot. A whole pandemonium of parrots!


We've been searching far and wide for the tattoo we like enough to actually sit and let a total stranger apply sharp implements to our skin. And where else but San Francisco's renowned North Beach tattoo emporium, the Tattoo Boogaloo! One of their artists, Deanna Wardin, created a tattoo inspired by the Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill, the Cherry-headed or Mitred Conures of San Francisco:

Artist: Deanna Wardin

We just love this tattoo! And fittingly, the same species of feral parrot, the Mitred Conures, can be found here in Seattle, in at least two different locations.

Mitred Conures Photographed in Seattle's Golden Gardens Park

Support your local invasive species!

We Wish We Could Blog More About Parrots. We Really Do!

We wish we could blog more, and more frequently, about parrots (as well as politics and coffee). We really do! Thing is, we have eight (count them: 8) actual parrots that we have to care for that demand our time and attention. As well as operating the parrot rescue Northwest Parrots Fund, and an online coffee shop The Parrot Cafe. That and the fact that we have to work for a living to support our parrots and parrot activities!

Mr. Cracker

A Ruby macaw (Greenwing/Scarlet mix) believed to be about forty years old, and a presumed male, Mr Cracker has been with us a year now. We rescued him when his owner of twenty-five years suddenly took terminally ill. After six months Mr. Cracker finally let me touch him. Now he begs for head scratches. He won't yet step up with me though. Mr. Cracker has taken to calling me Mark, his previous owner's name.

Tillie

Tillie is a confirmed female Timneh African grey parrot who is by far our smallest parrot and one of the sweetest parrots anyone will ever encounter. She came to us when her owner could no longer care for her. She loves flying laps around her bird room when she's not sitting on the window sill watching the wild birds out back. If I set her down anywhere, she automatically flies to my shoulder. Whenever I walk into her room, Tillie automatically reminds me: Hi Sweetie! It's Me! Just in case I get her confused with any other Timneh African grey parrot that might be around!

Kid Kadra

Kid Kadra is a confirmed male Goffin's cockatoo parrot who served as a service parrot for a fellow with serious medical issues. We rescued Kid Kadra when that person suddenly died. His death was not discovered for several days. When Kid Kadra came to us he was comatose for two weeks. As is the character of Goffin's cockatoos, Kid Kadra is a typical teenage juvenile delinquent. Except that he loves to bathe. He would take a shower every day if given the opportuniity.

Arua

Arua is a confirmed female Congo African grey parrot whose owner also suddenly and unexpectedly died. His death was not discovered for three days, until a worried girlfriend (who lived across the state) alerted family members to his disappearance. Arua is a big girl by African grey standards and one of the friendliest African greys anyone will ever find. She insists on being part of any conversation in the house, and is the resident linguist. Arua came to us speaking Polish as well as English. She speaks dog as well as cat, and any number of avian dialects.

Aboo

Aboo is our cowboy Blue and Gold macaw. Named for Aladdin's sidekick, the name fits. Unlike the other parrots, he would much rather not take a bath. A confirmed male, Aboo was literally dumped on our doorstep, considered to be unmanageable and unhandleable! Now I can literally hold him in the palm of my hand. Aboo has become a good friend to our Ruby macaw Mr. Cracker.

Princess Tara

Princess Tara is a confirmed female Hyacinth macaw, and as far as I can tell, probably the largest parrot in Seattle. She really is a princess! Her parents are a Duke and a Duchess. Princess Tara is one big girl! And she is a cuddle bunny and goofball, the classic ugly duckling who doesn't realize just how spectacularly beautiful she is. Princess Tara had been passed around to at least three different homes before she came to us, primarily because she knows she is big, and doesn't mind throwing her weight around. That, and the fact that when she starts her Hyacinth honking, she can blow your eardrums out!

Miss Bubba Boy

Miss Bubba Boy is a confirmed female Blue and Gold macaw that we rescued from a breeder who needed a male macaw for his breeding facility. Bubba's original owner was so sure that Bubba was a boy he never bothered to have her sexed. We did. We paid fifty bucks for a DNA test, but we kept her name anyway. She calls herself Bubba Boy! We could have saved the money! Within a month, Bubba laid her first clutch of eggs. She has laid two clutches of eggs since she's been with us. Bubba immediately bonded to my partner, and tried to attack me every opportunity she got for about two years. Eventually we reached a detente. Now Bubba even hucks for me. Plus she knows that no one appreciates looking at her wings as much as I do!

Roxanne

Our Diva parrot and Greenwing macaw Roxanne was named for The Police song. She even knows the lyrics! Roxanne also knows the lyrics to the Gene Autry song You Are My Sunshine. We recorded a duet with Roxanne and Gene Autry. The Gene Autry Museum in Los Angeles was so impressed, they sent us a nice note.


We acquired Roxanne when we answered an ad in the Sunday classifieds. Roxanne's owner got divorced. Got remarried. Was moving out of state. The new wife gave him an ultimatum: Her or the parrot. We don't think he made the right choice. The first time we met Roxanne, she immediately stepped up with both of us. Roxanne's owner was astounded. She had refused to step up with any of the other people that had answered his ad. He dropped her asking price in half, and we came home with our first parrot.


We only ever intended to get the one! The rest, as they say, is history.

The Captive Bird Campaign

Parrots are not like dogs and cats, with 10,000 years of domestication behind them. Simply put: Parrots are wild animals! Wild animals should stay in the wild. Like raptors, parrots are not animals that are suitable to be pets. People can not simply walk into PetSmart and buy a hawk or a falcon. Ownership of raptors requires specialized training, education, and licensing. Why should parrots be treated any differently?


Regarding companion parrots, we have a simple credo:

Parrots: Don't Breed! Don't Buy! Adopt!

We understand that tens of millions of companion parrots will never be returned to the wild. But there is absolutely no reason to keep breeding and selling hand-raised companion parrots. We firmly believe that the commercial breeding and sale of companion parrots needs to be halted, at least for any parrots that are listed as Threatened or Endangered by CITES. Therefore, we heartily endorse The Captive Bird Campaign:

The Captive Bird Campaign is launched by the California-based animal rights organization In Defense of Animals (IDAUSA). The goal of the Captive Bird Campaign is simple:

Our goal is to help create a better world for parrots by stopping the exploitation and sale of parrots in chain stores such as PetCo, PetSmart, and Petland. Helping the public understand that parrots are wild creatures who do not belong in captivity will reduce the sale of parrots. This will ultimately decrease the number of unwanted and homeless parrots and prevent unnecessary suffering.

Parrots rank only behind dogs and cats in popularity as pets. Considering the potential lifespan of parrots, companion parrots will be with us for some time to come. We only ask: If you are considering acquiring a companion parrot, please:

Don't Breed! Don't Buy! Adopt!

Requiem for a Shop Vac

Parrot people can appreciate this. Sometimes it seems we spend half our days on our knees cleaning parrot poop off the floor. With eight parrots, including five macaws, this can seem to be an unending and thankless task!


We discovered Shop Vacs about a century ago (they were actually first created about 1970) and we can't imagine life without one. Tragically, our Shop Vac croaked this weekend.

Since we have to work during the week to support our parrots and our parrot nonprofit Northwest Parrots Fund, we accomplish most of our serious cage and floor cleaning on weekends. With our Shop Vac down and out, we faced our cleaning chores this weekend armed only with our trusty little Dirt Devil:

Sadly, this little Dirt Devil just doesn't have the power or capacity of our old Shop Vac! We are in a real bind until we can acquire another Shop Vac.


If anyone in the Seattle area has a spare Shop Vac to donate to a good cause, please message us. Anyone with funds to donate towards the purchase of a new Shop Vac, please click on the Support Our Blog button on the sidebar on the left side of this blog.


We and our parrots thank you very much!

Do Parrots Dream?

We were jolted awake this morning at about 5:30 am with the sound of a humongous thump, followed by the furious flapping of wings. Just getting light enough to see, we scrambled out of bed to check all the parrot cages to see which parrot fell off its perch. We found our female Blue and Gold macaw Miss Bubba Boy clinging to the side of her cage, quite agitated and somewhat disoriented. We suspect that a bad dream caused her to fall off of her perch.

Our female Blue and Gold macaw Miss Bubba Boy enjoying apple cider at the

Ballard Farmers Market.

Which got us thinking while we were trying to fall back to sleep (just who wants to get up at 5:30 am on a Sunday, really!). Do parrots dream?


It is pretty well established that parrots are capable of cognitive reasoning. Parrots can carry out actions purposefully, and they are capable of quite sophisticated problem solving. So it would not be any surprise to us that parrots dream and even suffer nightmares.


Although the episode this morning was a first for our female Blue and Gold macaw, this was not the only time we've been jolted out of bed in the dead of night by one of the parrots falling off its perch. Of our eight parrots, three have experienced falling off their perches during the night. Other than Miss Bubba Boy, our Greenwing macaw and Diva parrot Roxanne,

Our Greenwing macaw and Diva parrot Roxanne, named for the song.

as well as our female Congo African grey parrot Arua, have fallen off their perches during the night on multiple occasions.

Our female Congo African grey parrot Arua, just hanging out!

We wonder if birds with greater brain power such as African greys are more prone to dreaming than other birds? We have thought that possibly the parrots were startled during the night by some sound coming from outside the house which may have caused them to fall of their perches. But in at least two cases we can recall, we were wide awake in the night when the falling episode occurred, so we can rule out external causes.

Other times we'll be lying awake in the dark of night and hear one of the parrots start to vocalize. Our male Blue and Gold macaw Aboo will softly start speaking to himself, in a voice barely audible.

Our male Blue and Gold macaw Aboo playing with our Hyacinth macaw Princess Tara.

Is he talking in his sleep. We'll hear our foster Ruby macaw Mr. Cracker laughing out loud in the middle of the night. Is he reliving a prior event in his dreams. Old enough to be a possibly wild-caught macaw, we wonder if he's dreaming of his life before? Mr. Cracker will also on occasion start up a conversation with himself.

Our foster Ruby macaw Mr. Cracker is old enough to be a wild-caught macaw.

And then there was the night we were awakened by our female Blue and Gold macaw Miss Bubba Boy laughing maniacally in the dead of night as if she were an ax murderer ready to commit a crime. Needless to say, we didn't get out of bed!

So, what do you think? Do parrots dream? We think so. And unfortunately experience nightmares as well. If you have any experiences with your parrots dreaming, please share them with us.

We're Having a Contest. Our First Ever!

Here's your chance to win fame and fortune! Well, at least fame anyway. And some nifty prizes. We're looking to update our logo for the Parrot Wranglers trade association: the International Parrot Wranglers Association. Oh, and the winner will receive an honorary lifetime membership in the International Parrot Wranglers Association. Not a parrot wrangler? Not to worry. We'll make you an honorary Parrot Wrangler. We just need your graphic arts expertise.


Wait, there's more! The winner will also receive a couple of embroidered shirts from Seattle's Parrot Cafe, as well as one of our new TheParrotCafe.com caps:

A Parrot Cafe tee-shirt from Seattle's original Parrot Cafe

(size Large only, various colors)

One of our new TheParrotCafe.com tee-shirts

(size Large only, color Stone)

And last, but not least,

One of our new TheParrot Cafe.com caps

(one size fits all, color Khaki)

So here's the contest details: We need you to start with this photo of the International Parrot Wranglers Association mascot, our male Blue and Gold macaw Aboo. Aboo is a cowboy in every sense of the word, and a perfect parrot to serve as spokesparrot for the International Parrot Wranglers Association and model for our new logo.

Just right-click on the image to download a copy of the photo, or message us and we'll email you a jpeg format copy.

The new logo for the International Parrot Wranglers Association needs three elements added:

A Cowboy Hat!

A Lariat!

And Every Modern Cowboy Needs a Pair of Sunglasses!

Of course, these are just examples. We know that you can come up with better artwork, and the winning entry will be the one that utilizes the three elements on our spokesparrot in the most creative fashion.


The completed entry must be submitted in a jpeg format file. Of course, all entries become the property of the International Parrot Wranglers Association and The Zen Parrot. We don't know when the winner will be declared, but we'll know the winning entry when we see it. And then we'll declare a winner.

Good Luck! And Happy Trails!

Bathing Your Parrots

Our female Congo African grey parrot Arua loves to bathe in her water dish. Taking a shower? Not so much.

Some parrots love to bathe. Some parrots would rather not. Bathing is an essential part of feather care and maintenance. Most parrots and other birds naturally take to the water to bathe. Just try keeping your outside bird bath full during those hot summer days! Some parrots are highly particularly about how they bathe. Other parrots are not. Be thankful if you have a parrot that belongs to the latter category. If the former category, just keep plenty of towels and wipes handy. It's another problem entirely if you have a parrot that refuses to bathe. Then you'll need to experiment with different solutions to try to encourage the parrot to dip its toes in the water.

Of our eight parrots, four of our five macaws love to take showers with us, perched on our hands and arms in the bathtub. Our foster Ruby macaw Mr. Cracker probably would as well, if we could get him to step up. Instead, he prefers to bathe in his water dish. Somewhat modest, he doesn't like people watching him bathe, so if we're in the room when he wants to take a bath, he'll politely pipe up with a Bye, Bye, until we get the message, and leave the room.


Our male Goffin's cockatoo Kid Kadra loves to bathe and would probably take a bath daily if we were up to it. His preference is a spray bottle on the shower rail in the bathroom. Barring that, he'll sit on the shower rail and bathe in the spray of the macaws taking showers.

As our male Goffin's cockatoo Kid Kadra demonstrates, sometimes a bath just needs the right soundtrack! If a shower is not in the offing, maybe a parrot just needs to settle for a soak in the nearest tub, or water dish, especially on those hot summer days:

Our female Timneh African grey parrot Tillie will tolerate a spray bottle on the shower rail. Usually she'd rather not. On those occasions that Tillie will take a bath, she can get quite animated:

On those rare occasions when Tillie really really wants to bathe, no parrot enjoys a bath as much as she does!

For sheer entertainment value, we can't beat our female Congo African grey parrot Arua. Arua loves to bathe. But in her water dish, not the shower. She's very large for an African grey. Our avian vet Tracy Bennett called her fat the very first time she met Arua, but that's another story entirely. Plus, her water dish is very small. A Number 1 Fenix crock. That's a lot of parrot in a confined space. Much water displacement:

We've tried putting out large water dishes and trays for her to bathe in. She ignores them. So now, when she jumps into her water dish, we just lay out the towels along the side of her cage.


If you have a parrot resistant to taking a bathe, two things you can try. If you can take a cage outside on the porch or in the yard on a warm day, let a hose spray across part of the cage, but leave room for the parrot to retreat to if the bird doesn't want to get wet, or wants to get out of the water. If you're not able to take the parrot outside, get a parrot perch for your shower, and let the shower flow over part of the perch so the parrot can choose to take a dip or not. Just keep trying different methods until you find one that works for your parrot.


Of course, some of our parrots will tell you that the best part of any shower is the blow dry following the shower!

Our male Blue and Gold macaw Aboo is a cowboy when it comes to taking baths. He'd rather not, until he becomes so gamey even he can't stand it. But the blow dry? Just loves it!

Happy Bathing!

Animal Trafficking in Mexico, Around the World, Endangers Parrots and Other Animals

Here is something to consider the next time someone says that parrot and wildlife smuggling is a thing of the past:

The Defenders of Wildlife in Mexico said, “It is estimated that between 65,000 to 78,000 parrots are caught illegally every year and from them, 77 percent die before they arrive in to the hands of a buyer. The mistreatment these animals suffer explains the high mortality rate.”

Animal Trafficking in Mexico, Around the World, Endangers Animals - Hispanically Speaking News

Sadly, we will see the extinction of many wild parrot populations within our lifetimes!

Feeding Parrots: Organic Corn and Pasta

Parrots love corn. Domestic or wild, parrots love corn. In South American, macaw parrots will raid corn fields to feast on the ears of corn. Our parrots love pasta. We don't know how universal the parrot love of pasta is, but it's pretty universal with our flock. So our practice is to make a parrot casserole every weekend to feed the parrots for the following week.


We use organic or all natural ingredients as much as possible. The internal system of a parrot or bird is so much more sensitive to toxins than the human system. That's why canaries were used in coal mines! So rather than repeat organic this or organic that, whenever we list an ingredient, just assume the ingredient is organic or all natural.

One of our favorite dishes, which is a big hit with the parrots, is a Southwestern casserole, with corn, corn pasta, black beans, apple, and carrot. We're as lazy as the next person, and we'd rather not spend any more time cooking than we have to. So our dishes tend to require minimal preparation and cooking time. Even if it costs a little more, we tend to buy precooked products. With our dishes for example, cooking usually involves no more effort than boiling the pasta!

Our Timneh African grey parrot Tillie enjoying corn stuffed pasta!

Another corn and pasta dish popular with our flock is corn stuffed pasta shells. This takes a little bit more work stuffing the pasta shells, but the results are artistic as well as tasty!

The beauty of these dishes is their versatility. Whatever ingredients are handy can be added, or whatever ingredients your parrots favor. With the corn stuffed pasta shells we added Great Northern beans which we just happened to have on hand, as well as rainbow pasta for color, apple, and carrot. As Tillie shows above, the pasta shells are perfectly parrot size, and easy for the parrots to hold in their feet. Wondering if the parrots like this dish?

Here's the carnage from Tillie's dish. Note the skins of the Great Northern beans strewn over the counter. No skins for this parrot! And no need to worry about leftovers. These dishes are tasty enough for us humans to eat. Yummy!

Update on Our Foster Ruby Macaw Mr. Cracker

Our foster Ruby macaw (Greenwing/Scarlet mix) Mr. Cracker is still looking for a good Seattle area home. A presumed male, Mr. Cracker's age is unknown but he is thought to be in his thirties or forties. He has had six homes in his lifetime, his last for twenty-five years. Unfortunately his latest owner was rushed to the hospital for a medical emergency and can no longer care for the parrot. Mr. Cracker does not wear a band, so he may very well be a wild caught parrot. Mr. Cracker clearly favors men over women.

Mr. Cracker enjoying his corn bread:

For more information about Mr. Cracker, and other parrots needing good new homes, please visit Northwest Parrots Fund.

Parrot Feathers Are Endlessly Fascinating! Macaw Tail Feathers

We could never be a parrot. How'd you like to have these sticking out of your butt?

Our Male Blue and Gold Macaw Aboo

Ouch!