Boredom Busters for Birds E-Book

Nikki Moustaki

• Herausgeber: CompanionHouse Books
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 36

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2012

Beschreibung

New to the Boredom Busters series, Boredom Busters for Birds explores how to enrich your fine feathered friend's life through socialization, interactive toys and much more! Author Nikki Moustaki covers different ways of interacting with your bird to help develop good habits and enhance his intelligence and health. Nikki also includes advice and tips on which toys to use, how to play with your pet, and activities for your bird to do while you're away, plus how to socialize your bird with other pets in the house.

Leseprobe

Vice President, Chief Content Officer: June Kikuchi

Vice President, Kennel Club Books: Andrew DePrisco

Production Supervisor: Jessica Jaensch

Production Coordinator: Tracy Vogtman

Art Director: Cindy Kassebaum

I-5 Press: Jennifer Calvert, Amy Deputato,

Lindsay Hanks, Karen Julian, Roger Sipe, Jarelle S. Stein

Copyright © 2010 by I-5 Press™

Photographs © 2010 Gina Cioli/I-5 Publishing, LLC™

Additional photographs courtesy of/reproduced with permission of: Bonnie Jay—13, 14, 36, 41, 43, 44, 53, 62; Carolyn A. McKeone—39, 47, 48, 50, 59; Shutterstock® Images—51, 52, 60; Christopher Appoldt—58

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of I-5 Press™, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in an acknowledged review.

The author would like to thank BirdTalk® Editor Laura Doering.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Moustaki, Nikki, 1970–

Boredom busters for birds : 40 fun and feather-friendly toys and activities / by Nikki Moustaki.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 978-1-935484-19-6eISBN 978-1-620080-59-7

1. Birds--Behavior. 2. Birds--Training. I. Title.

SF461.6.M678 2010

636.6’8--dc22

2010000138

I-5 Press™

A Division of I-5 Publishing, LLC™

3 Burroughs

Irvine, California 92618

Printed and bound in China

14 13 12 11     3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Table of Contents

Enriching Your Bird’s Life

Enrichment Types and Defining Factors

Solo Enrichment

Social Enrichment

Environmental Enrichment

Variance Enrichment

Enriched Bird, Happy Bird

About the Author

Resources

Enriching Your Bird’s Life

One week your bird is as happy as a hound at an all-you-can-eat buffet, and the next he’s biting, screaming, or pulling out his feathers. What happened? The change was so sudden, so unexpected, so unlike him. Has he lost his feathered mind? Maybe he’s just bored.

Birds who are physically and mentally unchallenged begin to exhibit unpleasant characteristics and behaviors. They can become depressed, anxious, self-destructive, outwardly aggressive, unpredictable, loud (or conversely, brooding and quiet), and even ill. A bored, lonely bird may change from a lively and contented pal into something resembling an unruly teenager you wouldn’t trust with your car keys. It’s time for an enrichment intervention to turn Birdzilla back into a happy, friendly companion.

Lack of enrichment can cause boredom, stress, and anxiety, leading to behavioral problems such as constant screeching, aggression, or feather destruction (plucking, picking, or chewing). Adding enriching toys and activities to a bird’s life can solve many such issues and can help prevent a bird from becoming overweight or antisocial.

Enrichment for birds is anything that keeps birds active and engaged in their environment and that stimulates their natural behaviors and instincts. This book explores some simple ways to provide your bird with stimulating types of enrichment to keep him happy, healthy, and out of trouble.

Enrichment Types and Defining Factors

There are many ways that you can enrich your bird’s life and make his daily routine more varied and interesting. Those ways fall into four categories, or types, of enrichment: solo, social, environmental, and variance. Which enrichment endeavors your bird will respond to depends on a variety of factors, including his species, his age, and his upbringing and general lifestyle. Finding the toys and activities that will capture your bird’s attention will also be a matter of trial and error, as no two birds are alike, even those of the same species; what one conure may respond to, for example, another may not.

The Four Types

Bird enrichment will be most effective if you choose activities from each of the four categories: solo, social, environmental, and variance. Each type of enrichment offers your bird something unique.

Solo