Happy Feathers Paradise

11/12/2022

Started to work with Rita to be able to step up for other people as well. She is slowly developing trust.

11/12/2022

“Go Home” Challenge Day 3-5
Rita - Blue and Gold Macaw ~20 yrs old

Day 3 was a bit off and we had some set backs. There was more luring.

Day 4 was back on track and we have been able to get in more sessions.

Day 5 was great and Rita is starting to say the command and go into her cage when she wants a treat. She is such a smart cookie. 🥰

11/10/2022

“Go Home” Challenge Day
Rita - Blue and Gold Macaw ~20 yrs old

Yesterday was a bit hectic and off. Rita and I were only able to get two sessions in and there was some regression. I had to lure Rita in a lot more.

Treats: pistachios.

Didn’t get to take a video, but below is a picture of Rita upstairs. With Rita being able to step up more consistently, we can now take her with us to different parts of the house.

11/09/2022

Step-up update. Not all perfectly planned sessions go well 🙃. Rita is doing amazing though 🥰🦜
Notice how she already knows that she will be stepping up by raising her foot.

11/09/2022

“Go Home” Challenge Day 2
Rita - Blue and Gold Macaw ~20 yrs old

Today my goal was to make sure Rita understands what is being asked of her, reinforce, and provide less cues.

Sessions/Time: I was able to get in 4 sessions today. Video is of the last session of the day before dinner time. .

Treats: pistachios.

Results: See for yourself in the video. She did great. Good job Rita🥰🦜💕

11/08/2022

Progress on Rita’s step up 🥰🦜

11/08/2022

“Go Home” Challenge Day 1
Rita - Blue and Gold Macaw ~20 yrs old

Setting up for success: Rita was picked up from a small tiel size cage with one down perch. She hates being inside the cage period. So, we set her up in the aviary as her ‘home’ and that what she has been using for the past week or so.
She had her breakfast of Roudybush pellets and took the bowl out after couple of hrs.

Sessions/Time: For this type of behavior I thought it would be better to have several sessions throughout the day vs length of each session. Today I was able to have 3 - morning before work, lunch time, and before dinner. About 2-3 min per session.

Treats: pine nuts, pistachios, pumpkin seeds.

Results: See for yourself in the video. She did great. Took her longest the first time as she was trying to figure out what is being asked of her. Video is of the last session. Good job Rita🥰🦜💕

11/06/2022

Happy Feathers Paradise accepted this challenge.

Will you join us?

https://fb.watch/gDJlg5NhEY/

11/06/2022

Happy Sunday to all our followers, customers and friends! ☀️

Wanted to give you a quick update on our business.

Yes, the website is down. 😔.
Thank you so much for checking. We do sincerely appreciate your support. We plan to re-launch it, but are not quite ready yet. Still figuring it out. Mourning is a long journey.

I have been tinkering with the freeze-driers and, of course after having them off for so long, it seems like so many things have to be replaced. Stay tuned.

We will also be running an inventory clearance event for the holidays. All proceeds will be going towards our fostering needs. (vet bills, food, toys, cages)

Again big Thank You to all All 🥰🦜

11/06/2022

Update on Rita - BG Macaw our foster from Rocky Mountain Parrot.
Diet: Rita is doing very well and transitioning nicely to chop, mash, and pellets. She loves pine nuts and almonds as a treat. We are not sure if she had nuts in her diet before because we had to teach her to crack them. I was pre-cracking almonds and hazelnuts for her first couple of weeks, but she is getting a hang of it now.
Enrichment and Playtime: Unfortunately I haven’t seen her play with toys much and have been working with her on playing with the toys by having her watch me hide some treats in or by them. She also has a benefit of observing other flock members having a good time with toys.
Health: Rita is doing quite well and her bumble foot is improving with a variety of natural perches and ropes in her cage. She also have been enjoying misting and her feathers look gorgeous.
Interaction: Rita is a sweet girl with a wonderful happy personality. She has not shown any aggression and gets very excited around humans and other parrot company. She prefers to be outside of the cage and not aggressive to wards other birds. In fact our Bourkes and Kakarikis have been foraging in her bowls. She give us plenty of warning with her body language and unhappy noises if she is uncomfortable, fearful or not quite ready with what we are asking her to do. She takes her treats from our hands very gently. She gives kisses (I know!). She is playful and loves to dance. She talks in Macaw gibberish a lot. When she got super excited she did grace us with cat whistles. So far, we are able to make out Bubble Butt, Be quiet, Watch out, Step up, Whatever and Shut up. She does get loud on occasion but only when she is scared like a person or a squirrel outside the window. Rita has not allowed us to give her head scratches, nor did she stepped up. I do think that that she must know how to step up since “Step up” phrase is in her vocabulary.
We will keep working with her on trust, targeting, enrichment and training.

11/06/2022

Rita - Blue and Gold Macaw about 18-20 yrs old. Foster from Rocky Mountain Parrot.

11/06/2022

Today’s fresh chop @ Happy Feathers Paradise

11/05/2022

Mr Pickles, Caique, enjoying a car ride.
Happy Saturday from our flock to yours. 🥰🥰💕

11/05/2022

Tonight’s fresh chop: sprouted seeds and beans, acorn squash (lightly cooked), yellow beats, broccoli, cauliflower, corn, bell peppers, jalapeños, chilli peppers, parsley, pumpkin seeds, pine nuts, sesame seeds, pomegranate.

11/02/2022

Good morning from Happy Feathers Paradise. Caught this little guy stealing food from parrotlets. Little stinker. 🤦‍♀️

11/02/2022

@ Happy Feathers Paradise 😋

10/31/2022

Foster 🦜🐤🐦🐥with Rocky Mountain Parrot 🙏
www.rockymountainparrot.org

Join a wonderful, compassionate , knowledgeable, and dynamic group of people who are passionate about providing a safe environment for parrots in need. Rocky Mountain parrot works closely with other reputable avian rescues and sanctuaries in Colorado forming a coalition to serve local avian community.

10/31/2022

This article is so close to home for me. My daughter asks me sometimes: Why do our parrots have such sad stories?

Yes, why do so so many of the parrots have sad stories! What is really best for them? Why do we keep breeding them? Why are so many in rescues and sanctuaries? There is no easy answer and solution. I personally truly believe that it is best for parrots to be in the wild.

I do solemnly believe in this statement from the article!
“Parrots were never meant to be captive. Yet we continue to put them in cages. And they continue to suffer. Even the happiest, healthiest parrots in human homes will never find the same environment they would find on a daily basis in the wild.”

https://www.oneearthconservation.org/post/stories-of-captivity-the-journey-of-six-parrots-to-their-forever-flock?fbclid=IwAR3lEAtewrCSwpKtGvyry1vgyROpAX4wKUUYINP9fYnrGoaT9_Na1oHR3tk

I’ve always been an animal-lover. As a child, I wanted to be a vet. As a young adult, my life was too itinerant for pets, so I made pocket money by petsitting. But it wasn’t until my partner had the kooky idea (at the time!) of becoming a bird guardian in 2016 that I discovered a whole new level...

10/29/2022

Happy Saturday from our flock @ Happy Feathers Paradise.

10/28/2022

Update on Kiwi - 29 yr old Red Lored Amazon foster.

Kiwi is doing amazing. She has been observing and soaking in her new environment. Kiwi started to whistle and say her name. Kiiiiiii-Wiiii. She can whistle a tune “Bridge on the river Kwai”.
She can wave her foot on cue for my daughter for a yummy treat.
This morning she let me scratch her head for a few seconds. Then she remembered that she is not supposed to like me yet and warned me off. 🙂

She enjoys interactions with us, but not quite ready to step up yet. So we have been working on targeting with her.

Have a great day everyone. Thank you all for you support. 🥰

10/28/2022

Sharing

$25 — Bird cage with birds near the Little Parker neighborhood in Parker, CO. Find items in Finds on Nextdoor - all listings are local.

10/28/2022

Sharing.

$65 — Parakeets/Parakeet/Budgie/Budgies near the Stonegate neighborhood in Parker, CO. Find items in Finds on Nextdoor - all listings are local.

10/26/2022

Have been working on an aviary this evening. Had a lot of helpers. ☺️

10/24/2022

🍎 anyone? Yummy 😋

10/24/2022

So so so true!!! We have enjoyed every rescue and they make wonderful companions! They appreciate the love, care, respect, and patience! Consider a rescue! 🥰

Despite our best efforts, the stigma remains for birds in rescues. How do we know? By the questions, comments, input received via every communication possible, social media channels, as well as how many people buy their birds vs adopting.

There is a general perception that most of the birds that are in rescues are there by their own mis-behaviors. It is perceived that birds have been traumatized and won't make a good companion the "second" time around.

Actual: People buy birds as below, either not knowing about rescues, or thinking that they will do a better job with a baby bird. 85% of the time they are rehomed within the first 2 years. Maybe not to a rescue but surrendered or sold to someone else. Nearly 100% by the time they are in their early 20s

Actual: Many of the "mis-behaviors" experienced by people with their birds are installed and reinforced by people themselves. A "screaming" bird stays screaming if she is getting what she needs. A biting bird is left alone if feeling fearful, insecure, unsafe, etc.

People also believe that baby birds will be better for them so they "start" out together, or they will be guaranteed a companion, or that the bird from the breeder will come with no "baggage".

Actual: Baby birds grow very quickly into adulthood. Many of them do come with "baggage" of being clipped too early, weaned improperly or too early. Meanwhile, you are not receiving after adoption support, or training in how to parent a baby to adulthood in record time complete with hormones. Once they become adults, just because they grew up with you, doesn't mean they will have bonded with you. It will become apparent rather quickly if they have not bonded. Hopefully, you have received some training on how to avoid a mate-bond as that complicates matters.

Actual: Adult birds make better companions as they have a self awareness and confirmed personality that you can become friends with. It is important to choose a bird as you would a friend. That takes time, investment, and respect.

Be mindful of the stigma and remember that not all birds are traumatized or have behavior issues. Many will make perfect lifelong companions.

10/23/2022

How is your Sunday Morning? Ours is a bit busy. Drove to Evans, Colorado to pick up this gorgeous girl who was left by the tenants. Her name is Rita and she is a Blue and Gold Macaw.
We need your help to get this girl some vet care, a proper cage, toys and a good diet. Please kindly donate to support our rescue efforts. Thank you for the kindness!🥰🦜💕

10/20/2022

The Gabriel Foundation.
It was so nice to drop by today at TGF and visit with some of the residents. We dropped off some birdie bread. Hope they enjoy it for their dinner tonight. 🥰🦜💕

10/19/2022

Tonight’s chop at Happy Feathers Paradise.

10/16/2022

Happy Sunday Everyone from Happy Feathers Paradise