Nuffin But Muffin

07/05/2023

The always delightful Chicken thoughts is running a series on Bird Law. Many people are surprised to learn that their parrots all take offense to pretty much the same stuff, LOL!

Fellow birds! Humans need to know our laws. Bird congress is in session, and we need you to propose a bill. If it is signed by the Chicken in Chief, you'll be depicted in the book of Bird Law. https://forms.gle/iH3tTkpCAFcAoPkD9

06/14/2023

Chirp and Will continue to be besties. They sleep together on the same swing and it just melts my heart!

You may be wondering why Will is so large. He has had a large growth on his abdomen for the last few years. However, he's enjoying his best budgie life possible despite this.

06/13/2023

I miss Muffin dearly, but I don't miss springtime chaos, such as this moment from 2015. After screaming at the budgies, he flew onto my hands and bit me. Sound on!

06/02/2023

Hi Muffin friends! You may remember Jack, who is the new occupant of Muffin's cage. Jack got a major upgrade and after about a month of wariness, now loves his new digs six months later!

We recently visited Jack and it was so heartwarming to see how much he loved the cage.

He gets a better view of his world and happily swings out and climbs up just like Muffin did :)

Remember, even little birds need big cages! A good rule of thumb is to buy the biggest cage you can afford and always check the bar spacing to ensure it is correct for your bird's species.

05/22/2023

Sometimes I think Muffin loved crackers more than me :D

05/17/2023

Forest fire season in Alberta has started early and fires from way up North are affecting us way down South.

Do you know what to do for your birds when smoky skies are present?

The Calgary Avian & Exotic Pet Clinic shared some helpful tips below. It's been an anxious day as the smoke irritates my eyes and throat while keeping an eye out for signs of distress with the budgies.

The forest fires in Northern Alberta have been devastating for people and pets alike. With changes to the air quality, please monitor your pets, especially birds, for signs of distress such as open mouth breathing or exaggerated respiratory movements.
Birds are sensitive to smoke and ash in the air. Use these precautionary steps to protect your birds from smoke and toxins in the air if there are wildfires in your area.
- Shut all of your doors and windows
- Put fans throughout your house to keep air flowing
- Turn on your air conditioner
- Run a Hepa filter in your bird's room
- Reduce flying opportunities or any activity that increases a bird’s breathing rate. Keep your birds quietly occupied.
- Drape a damp blanket or towel over your bird’s cage to help keep out the particles from the ash in the air (not too wet a towel)

Please contact us if you have any questions or concerns at 403-240-3577. Stay safe ❤️

05/05/2023

TBT! Six years ago I adopted a bunch of four budgies and this is the exact moment Muffin realized the spare bedroom was full of budgies 😂

I'm unsure how he wasn't aware of them--they made a racket!

04/27/2023

Hey friends! It's been a while! I have been busy preparing my booth at local comic expo. While I draw pet portraits, I also love commissioning other artists to paint my pets! You may recall I had a portrait done of Muffin by Canadian artist Linda Shantz.

Linda offered another round of pet portraits recently :)

Here is Mr. Jill, my silly over the rainbow budgie. If you want a little excitement in your life, choose blue! There's always something extra about blue budgies ;D

Thank you for the lovely portrait Linda Shantz, Artist & Author!

04/08/2023

Time for the spring feather explosion!

Trust me, whether you have one bird or a few, buy the best vacuum you can afford :D

04/02/2023

Hi Muffin friends! It's been a while, but we have had a new friend join our household.

It's hard to believe Chirp has been a here a whole month! After quarantine and introductions, I'm happy to say Will and Chirp are mostly Velcroed together :D Every day so far is nothing but lovey dovey and lots of cheeching!

Chirp is the same age as Will and was surrendered to the humane society. He's found his forever home 💜💜💜

03/14/2023

Hi Muffin friends, here is my half of an art trade with my cockatiel friend! You may remember her picture of Muffin from a couple of years ago--it just took me a bit longer to finish my half :D

Peaches is made from layers of cut paper :)

03/01/2023

Muffin was management material! Facebook popped up this memory:

"It occurred to me that Muffin is everything a manager wants to be. He has clear goals (toast! pasta! you!) in mind and is flexible in his ways of achieving that goal (screaming, cutesie eyes, flattery or sheer bravado). Either way, he gets results from his employees!"

02/25/2023

Every spring meant finding new ways of keeping Muffin occupied and sometimes a simple paper bag did the trick!

02/20/2023

Hey Muffin friends! While picking up budgie treats yesterday I heard the most beautiful doodling rising above budgie chatter and found it was a pied female cockatiel making all the noise.

Although I wish pet stores would stop selling birds, it was heartening to see that small birds don't have cheap prices which doesn't make them an impulse buy. A pet store cockatiel cost about $249 when we adopted Muffin.

Of course, Muffin was the best thing I ever got for free, so you may just find yourself reminding others to

02/05/2023

Every parront has a photo like this at some point 😂😂😂

It was a very long day--I was stuck downtown for two hours, my husband was also delayed and all I was trying to do was have some water :D

02/02/2023

Do you have a chubby birb? Muffin was once Chubby Bird of the Day!

CHUBBY BIRB OF THE DAY SUBMISSION CALL!!

Submit a photo of your bird here and any interesting stories you’d like to share about them. We will try to get to as many chubby birds as possible. Photos of birds interacting with cats and dogs are not allowed. 🐦🐔🦆🦅🦉🦃🦚🦢🦩🦜🐧🕊

01/15/2023

If you need a bopping beat to close out the weekend, check out Yum Yum the cockatiel's duet with AtilaKw

https://www.instagram.com/reel/ClCaCyLDSBg/

AtilaKw shared a post on Instagram: "Mais um PetRemix 😂😂. Dessa vez com nos vocais. 🦜♥️🎹🎧 E vc? Tem um pet com dotes musicais? Comenta aí embaixo! ...

01/12/2023

Hi Muffin friends, I'm on Twitter (of course) and I've met a lot of other cool birbs and their people there!

You can check out my Birb Twitter list, although you may need a Twitter account to see it.

We’ve detected that JavaScript is disabled in this browser. Please enable JavaScript or switch to a supported browser to continue using twitter.com. You can see a list of supported browsers in our Help Center.

01/06/2023

It's National Bird Day! Cooper has some tips to help you support pet and wild birds!

National Bird Day 🐦
According to the U.S. North American Bird Conservation Initiative's 2022 State of the Birds report published in October,
More than half of bird species in the U.S. are in decline, with plummeting populations across nearly all habitats.
How can you help? Here is Cooper with some actions you can take to help out our feathered friends.

01/05/2023

Muffin lived with us for so long and saw us through many life changes. I totally forgot about this old laptop that he liked to sit on!

01/01/2023

Hi Muffin friends! If it's not 2023 yet where you are, may I suggest letting Buddy the Bird to help usher in your new year? Buddy reminds me so much of Muffin and his Instagram is a delight!

Buddy shared a post on Instagram: "Buddy’s New Year Concert with Countdown! ...

12/08/2022

We have a new birb friend! For some reason PetSmart is selling these cute Christmas cockatiels as dog toys for $5. Take my money!

I'm preaching to my animal loving choir here, but remind folks that pets are a terrible gift any time of year. Make sure your home is ready for a pet before choosing one, which includes learning about them.

The best pet at Christmas is a cuddly plush one 💜💜💜

11/24/2022

Muffin was very, very habituated to human food and trying to steal a bit thrilled him to no end!

These days we crush crackers into our soup with wild abandon and remember how much we miss Muffin's antics.

Human food poses a health risk to pet birds, especially anything too salty, or anything containing chocolate or avocado. Be sure to review lists of bird safe foods before offering.

Also, keep your food wrapped or in bird-proof containers. Even a small bird like Muffin could rip through a plastic bag in seconds!

11/17/2022

This shy little pinny guy is Jack, a Quaker parrot. He's the new owner of Muffin's aviary cage and it's a big upgrade!

I wasn't sure what do do with the big cage after Muffin passed. I'm in my 40s and I have to think carefully about my next bird because there's a good chance they could outlive us.

Quakers, for example, can live up to 30 years. A parrot's lifespan is a big consideration when choosing one. Will it outlive you? Can you make a 20+ year commitment?

11/06/2022

Today I'd like to introduce you to the ridiculously majestic Sunny! He's an exceptionally handsome cockatiel, but he probably knows that already :)

https://instagram.com/thekingcockatiel

11/04/2022

I had a dream this morning that I was cleaning up the kitchen and saw Muffin sitting on the corner of the fridge, grinding his beak.

In the dream I said "Muffin!" and asked my husband if he could see Muffin and my husband said no

Aw! I like thinking Muffin is watching us from the beyond. 💜💜💜

10/31/2022

Have you discovered Cooper's Corner? It's the delightful journey of Cooper and her fellow blue budgie friends--but also her big friend Sido!

Many people think budgies and other small parrots are "beginner parrots". Size has nothing to do with it! All birds are intelligent, precious little souls who need love, good nutrition, a big cage, and vet care too.

Follow Cooper's Corner for more fun pictures like these! Happy Halloween!

10/26/2022

Any guesses on what my husband did to deserve such an attack seven years ago? 🤣🤣🤣

10/24/2022

The Fluff 'N Blubber crew have your Monday vibes covered!

cockatiels are people too 🐣 shared a post on Instagram: "Some days are fluffed and cannot be unfluffed. Happy Monday! 🐤💛 💛 🔸️🔸️🔸️🔸️🔸️🔸️🔸️🔸️🔸️🔸️🔸️🔸️ ". Follow their account to see 1468 posts.

10/12/2022

Hello Muffin friends! Today I want to introduce you to a very talented cockatiel named Mr. Birt Waddleson. He enjoys singing and performing duets with his talented human! Follow them on Instagram :)

https://instagram.com/mr.birt_waddleson

09/30/2022

A little Flashback Friday to a 2009 when we brought Muffin home! I don't know if he realized we would be his forever home at the time.

As you can see, his wings were clipped, but he could fly--trust me! I was surprised when he took off for the hallway mirror on his third or so day and made it.

Wing clipping is often a heated topic in bird communities. We did clip Muffin's wings once, but never again. He was so bold and reckless that he simply launched himself off the top of the cage and falling became more of a hazard than crashing into windows :S

09/25/2022

Hi Muffin friends, I was in heaven yesterday! I had an art table at the local annual Parrot Palooza where I met local celebirdy Max the Moluccan. Here's a Max-eye view of the event. There were so many birdies to meet and greet including cockatiels :-)

Join the flock! Make sure you beak subscribe so you don’t miss out! I want to tell you all about the great adventure of living with my pet hooman.Etsy Stor...

09/14/2022

Muffin always inspired! I thought he would make a good rocker in his younger years. The noise! The destruction! The attitude--Muffin had it all except for a leather jacket ;-D

In fact, I even wrote a corny little song:

They keep me in a cage
I'm always full of rage
They call me a pet
They're gonna regret
That they got me for freeeeeee
When I scream AWHEEEEEEE!

Punk rock, punk rock, punk rock cockatiel (repeat)

09/09/2022

A little Fri-yay for you! You may have seen these comics around online, but there's only one official source for Potatopato comics :-D

09/07/2022

When I said Muffin left marks on our hearts as well as cupboards, I wasn't kidding!

All pet birds are destructive to some degree--whether it's flinging fruit on your walls, pooping on the curtains or gnawing on the cupboards.

The mantra I learned growing up is that a busy beak is a happy beak and most parrots find destruction fun!

Despite plenty of bird toys, Muffin preferred our stuff instead, which leads to another point. Everything you own becomes the parrot's. There is just no arguing with this fact (or with your parrot).

Just something to think about when deciding if a pet bird is right for you!

09/04/2022

Out of billions of people on this planet, there's only one person out there who whistled The Muppet Show theme song on YouTube :D

I played hours of cockatiel whistling videos for Muffin, hoping he would pick up on one, but none of them stuck besides his trademark "Peeper peeper peeper!"

One day, just for fun, I searched "Muppet Show whistle" and this came up.

This video meant the world to Muffin. Usually I played it a few times a day or whistled it myself. Muffin never mastered the whole song, but some parts of it would come through.

If you have a cockatiel, see if they love it too!

I kind of improvised on the weird-random-noise-at-the-end.

08/25/2022

Today's topic: rope, string and fabric bird accessories.

This is Muffin's "angry toy" and he went through a few of them. He loved beating them up, always finishing with a victorious brip of satisfaction.

Toys and accessories containing string or fabric always need to be checked for wear and tear. Chewed up rope perches are easy to snag a toenail on, for example, and it's better to replace them than risk an accident.

You need to ensure as well that your bird isn't eating the fibres from toys and accessories such as fuzzy huts. The first time I saw a blockage removed from a bird's crop, it was hard to believe!

Our homes have loads of hazards for pet birds, but keeping an eye out for them means you and your feathered friends can live and play safely 💜

08/23/2022

As I clean up around the house, I'm marvelling at all the ways Muffin impacted our lives.

Parrots, even small ones, need exercise and enrichment to keep them happy and healthy. Muffin never used the play gym much, but he did enjoy sitting high up there and looking down at us!

Most of the house was his personal kingdom, which meant a significant amount of bird proofing to keep him safe. Keep that in mind as well when thinking about a feathered friend!

08/21/2022

Dear Muffin friends, I'm sorry to report Muffin passed away late Wednesday night or Thursday morning. Muffin was 20 or 21, as he was 7or 8 when we adopted him. I still have plenty of photos and videos to share--as one does over 13 years of friendship. We were Muffin's third and longest home. Rest assured he had everything a cockatiel could want in life.

As I vacuum and clean up, I wonder if Muffin appreciated how our lives revolved around him--from the decoy speakers to lots of landing places and cardboard to chew on. Suffice to say, he left a big mark on our hearts and our cupboards ;-D

August is Clear the Shelters Month--if you have room in your heart, your home and you have done your research, please consider adopting a pet. Whether it's furry, feathery or even finny, there's no shortage of animals that need YOU and you can make a world of difference to one creature in this world ❤️❤️❤️

08/14/2022

Muffin is a happy beeb! He had to go a week without his favourite cheap seed because I bought a mix labelled "premium cockatiel" seed. Apparently it was too good for him :D