ISSN 1492-8132
Issue 71, © 2003
No reprints without permission

Always purchase your breeding stock in the fall or early winter, if at all possible. Buying younger, first-year birds from a good breeding line, is preferable to buying older, so-called 'proven' breeding stock, especially in the case of hens. This may seem illogical at first, but in the long run will generally prove to be the better option, especially if you are new to breeding.

One common problem with acquiring older birds is a lack of the adaptability, energy and vitality of a younger bird. Older birds, quite simply, just take longer to get used to any changes.

Too, older stock may have been over-bred; such birds will generally have a rather dismal following season, while younger birds from a flock known to be good breeders will not only have all the instincts they need, but the extra adaptability and vitality of youth to help see them through.

This makes even more sense if you already have some birds that you have established as good breeders; this will enable you to consider pairing first-year hens with older, more experienced males, and first year males with older, more experienced hens.

While it is often true that at least some first-year youngsters will turn out to be a different gender than first thought, in the end the greater energy and adaptability of the younger birds will tend to balance everything out and will generally prove, in most cases, to provide the best value for your money.

Looking for a great source for those hard-to-find small-bird supplies? Look no further than Red Bird, whose website lists many of those wonderful but so-often difficult-to-locate supplies that can prove to be so helpful whether you own a single pet or are interested in breeding multiple pairs. You won't find many bird sites online with as many useful products and resources as this website boasts - particularly if you keep small birds, you will want to put visiting Red Bird on your 'must see' list!

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's customers find her answers to be detailed and reliable, caring and supportive. Robirda can help you learn to understand your birds better! Learn more here.

Welcome to Robirda's Companion Birds eZine

For breeder or pet bird owners who care.

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

For all those who've helped out in so many ways, thank you for your ongoing support - we wouldn't be here without you. We hope you enjoy the feature story in this issue! Our next issue is due May 25th - until then, be well and stay happy!

Robirda
May 11, 2003

Feature Story

Our serialized fictional tale of a lost little bird is based on real-life incidents. When we last saw our small feathered hero, he'd escaped a pet shop and found a park in the heart of a big city, where he learned that freedom can carry a high price. After narrowly avoiding becoming lunch for a hungry hawk, he is now searching for a lunch of his own, and maybe even a chance to find...

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

Flitting from tree to tree, I found and followed one of the trails that meandered through the park, looking for somebody like the woman with the popcorn who had fed me earlier, then stopped. There was a human just ahead, seated on a bench eating a sandwich, and it looked very much like Julie!

I winged closer, and looked again. It was hard to be sure since humans tended to look alike so much of the time, but it certainly looked like her! Could she really have come here looking for me? How would she have been able to find me?

Either way, a bit of the bread from her sandwich would go down very well just now, and if it was Julie, there was a good chance she would share. I decided to try the tactic that had worked so well with the woman who'd had the popcorn, and swooped down to land on the far edge of the back of the bench's seat.

"Tr-r-r-r-r-r-r-ra-lalaaaa!" I announced, and she glanced up, startled. It was Julie, as I had thought, and as she looked at me, I saw recognition and surprise spread across her face. So she hadn't known I was here!

"Why Flicker!" she blurted, startled, "Is that really you? You would find the only park for miles around - I should have guessed you would be here somewhere! You must be quite hungry by now - would you like a little piece of bread?"

I cheeped emphatically in agreement, and added a short trill while she laughed at me. "Well, you certainly have learned how to sing for your supper, haven't you my lad?" she said, and tore a piece of bread from the end of her sandwich, laying it down on the bench seat, well away from her.

"You might as well share it anyways, since it's thanks to you that I will have to find another job now," and I paused before jumping down to grab the breadcrumb, looking at her.

"Oh, it's okay," she laughed, "I won't hold it against you! I was getting rather tired of Lucien and his high-and-mighty ways, anyhow. I'm just sorry I won't be there to take care of all those critters of his - I hope for their sake that he will be able to find some other poor sap who is willing to do all that work for love instead of money... not too easy the way he pays!"

I cheeped and bobbed my head at her, then began to munch on my bread while she laughed at me, then bit into her sandwich. We ate companionably for awhile, then she brushed a few crumbs from her lap and gazed at me.

"Well, my lad, what on earth am I going to do about you?" she mused, while I gazed at her, curious. "This must seem like a paradise to you, I know - but it can be a very dangerous life for a little bird, trying to survive in a place like this! I saw a hawk a little while ago, and there are cats who prowl at night, hoping to catch some unwary little bird asleep... do you even know what a cat is, I wonder?"

My parents had told me about cats, and I shivered at the thought. Little did she know that I had already had a close brush with a swift, sharp-beaked bird who had almost snatched me off my perch - perhaps that was the hawk she had mentioned? I found myself wondering where she lived, and if any other birds shared her life; she seemed to understand me very well, as if she had some experience living with birds.

But since I could tell her none of this, I settled for an interogatory cheep, rising in pitch, and lifted my head feathers at the same time.

"You know, I almost think you understand me!" she exclaimed, tilting her head in surprise. "I wonder if it would be possible to lure you home? It's only a little place, but its been kind of lonely since Fuzzybutt died..."

"You would have liked her, I think... she was a cat, but the kindest cat you ever met - always adopting stray babies and bringing them home... she even brought me an injured baby crow once, would you believe it? We used to joke that maybe she thought she was a retriever, and not a cat at all! Except she did catch mice - you never met a better mouser in your life..."

I cheeped in amusement at the thought of a cat adopting a crow, while she laughed then added, "I knew I'd kept that big old bird cage for some reason or another - now if I can just get you to follow me home... what a great home it would make for you, and it would be so nice to have you around... would you like to come home with me, Flicker?"

I quickly hopped away a little, eyeing her warily - I remembered being caught before all too clearly, and had no intention of allowing any repeats.

As if she understood my every thought, Julie quickly said, "Don't worry, I know better than to try to catch you again, I can see you don't like the idea at all... would you follow a trail of breadcrumbs, I wonder? It's just across the park, so it's not like we have far to go - and I especially don't want to lug that big old cage anywhere if I don't have to!"

She stood up as she was speaking, and began to slowly move away, while fumbling in her bag. Her hand came out with another sandwich in it, and she removed a tiny piece of bread and put it on the ground at her feet, then moved away.

"Come on, Flicker, you can do it!" she told me, then began backing away again. I really wasn't very hungry anymore, but to be polite I swooped down and took a bite, then left it to fly up to a tree branch ahead of her, and waited to see what she would do.

"Well, it looks like you are way ahead of me!" she exclaimed, and put her sandwich back into its bag. "Come on then, this way!"

She glanced up at me, then strolled on underneath my branch, while I watched. Before she was halfway to the next tree, I flitted ahead of her again, and sang a few trills while waiting.

"You are such a delightful little fellow!" she mused, looking up at me, "I wonder how on earth you ever got lost in the first place? Somebody must have raised you with a lot of love, for you to be this tame, and this smart... I sure wish I knew where you came from!"

She continued strolling while talking to me, and as I again flitted ahead of her, I sadly remembered old Joe, wishing I could tell her about him - how I had lost him and then my siblings, and about Sally, who'd rescued my parents and myself from the thin edge of death, before I had accidentally escaped.

Torn from my perch on a windowsill by a stronger wind than I had ever known existed, at first I had hoped to keep track of where I was going so as to try to make my way back, but that same wind soon saw that I lost any chance of returning home by flinging me out across open water.

That long, long flight across stormy waters had seemed to last just short of forever, propelled as I was by my stern, windy taskmaster, and I had come close to despair, wondering if I would ever see land again. Unused to flying so far or so much, my wings ached, and I was on the verge of simply folding them in midair, resigned to my fate, when the fickle wind once more blew me over land.

Exhausted and despairing, I had somehow managed to land in a tree, but shortly afterwards I had been caught and put into a tiny cage in a small room practically stuffed full of miserable, over-crowded birds, and from there had been taken to the pet shop I had recently escaped from.

It was there that I had met Julie, and I had not forgotten that even though she had not intended it, it had been her kindness to me that had given me the chance to escape in the first place.

It seemed to have been ages since I'd last seen my family, but in reality it was only a very few days. But those days had been so filled with adventures, dangers, and life-altering changes, that it seemed an eon ago. I had been a different bird, then, uneducated in the ways of the world, but certain that I could make my way, full of confidence and brass.

I was wiser now, and sadder, but still hopeful that somehow things would work out in my favour. Perhaps I could make a new life with Julie? Looking back, I saw that she was almost at the tree I was in. I turned and looked the way she was going, looking for the next tree to flit to, and realized that we had come to the end of the park.

Ahead of me, a wide concrete sidewalk met the grass verge, and beyond it was a wide road, busy with cars. I looked at Julie uncertainly, and she looked back at me with warmth and concern in her eyes.

"This is the tough part, Flicker," she said. "I live just a couple of blocks down that street over there," and she pointed to a small tree-lined road that came out from between two tall buildings to meet the road that barred our route from the park. "Do you think you can follow me that far? Once we're across this boulevard and around the corner, there won't be anywhere near so much traffic... come on, the light's about to change, let's go!"

Matching action to words, as she spoke Julie was striding quickly out across the road in front of the cars that had all stopped for the light. It seemed a very wide and bleak sort of road, and I wondered if I had any idea what I was getting into, as I looked across its wide expanse to the other side, which had so little life compared to where I was now.

But maybe as Julie had said, things would be nicer once across the road and away, and thinking of hawks and cats, I steeled my nerves and pushed off, propelling myself across the street in the wake of my small, rotund human benefactor.

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

*** Watch for the continuing adventures of our little feathered hero, coming soon!

From Spacious Pet Cages To Breeder's Flight Cages

Keeping birds is wonderful, but proper cages can be very expensive, and quality is almost always an issue - too often cheap cages have been found to be damaging to the health of a bird who lives in them, something no caring bird owner wants!

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!

To see our reviews of cages carried by Bird and Cage Co, that Robirda recommends you consider if you are thinking of getting one or more new bird cages, click here.

For a full selection that includes some great wrought-iron parrot cages, visit www.birdandcage.com