For the most part, The Houston Parrot Festival 2012 was a smaller, quieter and more subdued event than in past years. I think it’s primarily for two reasons:

1.) The economy blows.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, it’s getting better, but it still blows and people are spending their time trying to make house payments and getting their kids through school rather than picking up and flying off to Houston to attend this amazing event.

It’s a shame, but you can see it and feel it everywhere, so it is going to be palpable and obvious in Houston as well. It has hit this industry like a sledgehammer. Suffice it to say, it’s a bit difficult to keep your parrot when you’re living in a car.

 2.) We’re getting older.

This whole “keeping parrots” business is waning in popularity with the younger generations because it’s expensive and they simply don’t have the money. (see #1…) The younger generation has witnessed firsthand what many members of the baby boomers did to screw themselves financially. They have no intention of making the same mistakes and this begins with embarking on an expensive lifestyle choice.

With the way things are going, the “Party in Parrot-dise” should probably start at about four of five in the afternoon just when the “Early Bird Specials” hit their busy times in Palm Beach and should wind down about ten p.m.

As it is, I for one had to go upstairs for a quick “lie down” before gearing up for a party after wandering around and talking with people all day.

So trust me, I’m not exempt from this whining desire that the party start earlier. Now that that has been stated, we can move on…

As you can see, I had a blast:

 Despite the fact that I had a cold, I managed to uhhh, medicate myself with aspirin, nasal spray, naps and a bloody mary or two to keep the nasty symptoms at bay.  There were of course familiar faces and people I knew very well, but we also had new people. And among those new faces a at the Festival were a few good friends of mine who had never before attended. With a little incessant whining, I managed to convince Jacque Johnson of the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary Parrot Garden and Janet Holt Hilton to come to the Festival.

Jacque and Janet. Great jacket on Janet she picked up from the Antique Beak!

I also had a riot getting together with Jessica Pineda, my Editor at BIRD TALK Magazine.

I just love saying that: “…my editor…” It’s like having a net when you’re on a trapeze. You might not need it, but it sure as hell makes you feel better.

Anyway, hanging with Jessica and ripping ideas around is always fun. And of course I dragged my feather scarves along to see if they could raise a little cash for the cause:

And they did. My feather work raised 380.00 for the NPRPF. I wish it was more but it’s a respectable amount.

Here’s a shot of me with Concetta DellaRocco-Ferragamo and the third scarf fabricated from African Grey feathers:

And toys. Did I mention the vendors had toys all over the place? And food? And samples? And artwork? God the artwork was amazing this year! While the entire event was smaller and more intimate, it certainly didn’t lack in the quality of items being sold.

The speakers were excellent and Susan Friedman was on hand to give her presentation of “P-A-R-R-O-T Do Tell” Six principles of effective teaching strategies and behavior management.

Jacque Johnson on the left, Starbird Toys Owner, Bonnie Jay on the right and Susan and I in the middle.

I didn’t get much of a chance to talk with Susan. Susan turns nearly every encounter into a learning opportunity so she was extremely busy answering questions and discussing the power of positive reinforcement. Susan’s agenda is education and she takes every opportunity to help people understand Applied Behavior Analysis. Here is her Training and education Facebook Page: “Behavior Works” I can tell you this much; if you haven’t read her work, attended one of her conferences or training sessions or signed up for “LLP: Living and Learning with Parrots,”   you are missing out. She has some really cool ways of teaching. This for instance: Check out this rap song! Just click on the Banner and get ready to rock. It’s really clever and I just love the thing, but then, I love education with some entertainment thrown in:

The cool people at Chirping Central were there. Chirping Central endeavors to inform and raise awareness on a number of levels, but most of all they are about avian conservation. Well! You should some of the freakin’ artwork they had! Janet Hilton won the 400.00 shopping spree drawing sponsored by BIRD TALK  and she selected this wonderful huge print of a Lear’s Macaw by artist, Mark McDowell:

You really need to check out their website and see the prints they have available. I’m not to much into avian art, but what they have available is gorgeous! All in all it was a raucous and fun festival. Granted, it was smaller, but it was a ton of fun as usual. I really hope we can “reboot and reboost” the attendance on this event. It’s really so much fun and with the new products and educational forums available, I simply feel that the Festival is an event you shouldn’t miss. I hope to see you next year.

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As Johnson & Johnson titled their Corporate report for 1982 in the wake of the Tylenol tampering, 2011 was for me, “An Eventful Year.”

January was a chilly month here in Florida and an active one for me as January normally is. The Houston Parrot Festival occurs every year in January which is an incredibly fun event. I plan on going again this coming January.

Mancuso!

As the year progressed, I blogged away, yakking about this and that as thoughts occurred to me, and I managed to cobble together a couple of pretty funny and entertaining quizzes that were shared be many. The post, “Preparing Yourself For Getting a Bird” proved to be a popular way of testing your “Parrot Readiness.” I was in a squirrelly mood that day and wanted to include a humorous test for people about getting a bird. It worked.

The “Animal Superheroes Contest” turned out to be one of the more popular posts of the year. There were so many entries that were incredible! But “Bart Man” and his Crew reigned supreme:

My essay, “I Don’t Believe in Starter Birds” rocked a few forums and became a subject of debate and discussion. It was occasionally referred to when someone on a forum asked what kind of “beginner “bird” they should get. You already know my opinion on that subject.  What began as a post about Irene Pepperberg coming to South Florida to speak and appear at a fundraiser dinner turned into a little fundraiser of its own.

From the post, “Dinner With Irene,” sprang “The Latte Factor Campaign.” I suggested here and at Facebook and Twitter, that everyone forgo one cup of their favorite designer cup of coffee, and send the money to The Alex Foundation.  It worked.

Right after this little adventure, The Midwest Bird Expo rocked the Chicago suburbs, as did the “Choppettes,” who ground, chopped and bumped their way into producing an enormous heap of Chop for the Bird Lovers Only Rescue.

Of course, it was during this little adventure that I woke up to Cookie the Penguin going solidly viral at Youtube. CBS Miami did a story about it, my life went nuts at that point and doesn’t appear to be getting any saner.

All along the way, my “Chop Concept” was gaining ground and due to the blog, high interest in a low-cost, low effort, efficient way of feeding good stuff to your birds, people were clicking on the blog videos of how to make Chop.

At the end of June, I lost my dog Mattie. Naturally, I was devastated and still miss her and think of her every day. She remains one of the most wonderful things that ever walked into my life. I wrote about it here: “Moving Through the Pain.”

Around August, the feathers hit the fan with this post, “An Urgent Situation.” This was the breaking news of the Troy, Ohio parrot hoarding incident and I was told about it two days before the rescues went in to attempt to get the birds out. Initially, I didn’t want to report it as I normally don’t post that kind of thing, but I relented and it became the tipping point to a wake-up call.

This, was the wake-up call: My post “An Avian Auschwitz” turned the tide in revealing hideous details of the situation and remains one of the most read and most shared posts here at PN. I wrote only two posts about the matter simply because I wrote only what I knew about it. I wasn’t there, I didn’t witness it and I’m not comfortable with speculation. But these posts did get around and people truly began realizing how much things need to change.

 I thought about this and other matters during a vacation in Charleston and cooked up this post with my idea for a “Summit.”  This began a dialogue that went well into Autumn. But what really got people talking was the video Best Friend Animal Society released on their Channel at Youtube. “The Truth About Parrots” was and still remains controversial and stirred up a dust storm that 20 molting cockatoos pale in comparison.

There were, of course other posts that were fun, well-received and entertaining to write. I’m still writing for BIRD TALK and The Bird Channel which I love. But this pretty much covers most of the highlights of 2011.

Was it an eventful year? Very much so. Not all of it was good. But so many good things did happen and it made the year a good one for Aviculture. While there were many negative events, birds got adopted or rescued, more people are learning how to better feed and care for their birds, and the awareness of the fact that something needs to be done about situations like the Troy, Ohio incident got people to think. To take stock of their own flock’s care and perhaps what they can do to pay it forward in some way.

 And to me, that makes it all worth it. Thank you all so much for stopping by this year, and I hope you check out next year’s adventures. I don’t know what’s going to happen in 2012. But I sure hope it’s interesting.

Thanks, Everyone!

I have feathers floating through the air of my home, my living room looks like the day after Black Friday at Filene’s Basement and my neck has a cramp in it.

This is how some of your feathers typically arrive. I have to sort this out by color and species.

The Houston Parrot Festival is coming up and I’ve begun making the pillows and scarves destined for auction to raise money for the NPRPF, which, if you don’t know, is an acronym for National Parrot Rescue and Preservation Foundation. That’s a mouthful! But they do great work in Houston.

A little “Skinny Scarf” composed of African Grey and Eclectus feathers.

Every year they throw a Festival. Every year, I say I don’t have the time or the money to attend.  Every year, I go.  I like it. For the most part, I enjoy it. And this year, I have some very cool people joining me for the first time, so it’s going to be a lot of fun.  But I like to contribute something to the auction and ever since the first year I attended wearing a quickly made costume-quality feather scarf for the parrot-attire themed “Party in Parrot-Dise,” I’ve been making items for the auction which is a big part of their fund raising. I’ve also sent scarves and pillows to Phoenix Landing. All in all, it’s been worth it; that dumb little costume scarf I made six or so years ago, has led to thousands of dollars being raised for parrot rescue and adoption:

The Scarf that launched a tiny fund-raising industry.

It’s not easy. If it was easy, you’d see these things all over the place. I thought that after the first year, when everyone saw that first scarf, that there would be feather items all over the place. No so. And I was very surprised. But then I thought about it: It took me a while to get the hang of it. And I’m still learning what looks good, what works and what is simply dreadful. It’s also very labor intensive. If you don’t have the patience, you are going to wish you never started the project. It’s frustrating, messy and you have to make it up as you go along because no two feathers are alike. It’s like fitting together a puzzle and you have no photograph to go by.

The other reason I think people don’t do stuff like this is because they can’t quite figure out how I do it, even after I’ve explained it.

And so I keep on with your generous donations of your feathers. Whether they arrive in an envelope, a baggie, a box, tin or shopping bag, it simply doesn’t matter. I generally use about 95 % of what is sent to me in one way or another. Unless the feather is completely mangled, it gets used. So keep saving those feathers because I can turn them into something that will raise money for something we can all believe in: Parrot Adoption.

I’m always up for a good party. I’m always up for learning something new. And if you know me I’m always up for seeing friends. The Houston Parrot Festival pretty much provides all of these.

If you haven’t hit the Houston Parrot Festival yet, I highly suggest you save up for next year. Starting now. I mean it. And you need to do this for quite a few reasons.

First of all, it’ll do you good to get out of the house. I know, I know, you hate to leave your birds, but you have an entire year to get someone trained to look after them while you’re gone. And you should have someone else trained to do it anyway. You know that.

You’re also going to learn something whether you like it or not. If you come to the Houston Parrot Festival, you can’t help but learn something about birds, conservation, foraging, etc.

They have vendors and products here at really amazing prices. You like Kaytee food for your birds? Well, come meet the product reps! Talk to them. Tell them what you’d like to see in their line. They don’t bite, I assure you. And I know they would love to meet you as well.

How about meeting Barbara Heidenreich? If you haven’t met her, she’s usually here and can expand on or explain anything you didn’t quite understand in one of her videos.

Robin Shewokis is usually here with her line of “Leather Elves” toys. They are fabulous toys and she is expert at explaining foraging and enrichment techniques. Yes, foraging and enrichment is the “New Black” in the Parrot World, just as positive reinforcement training was a few years back. She’s also very funny, with a wit that is as dry as the Sahara.

Robin Gets Set Up

The Festival also gives you the opportunity to bid in a live auction, a silent auction and they have raffles that give you the chance to win really great stuff. Tickets are a dollar each.

Some of the speakers are absolutely incredible. Dr. Susan Clubb was here this weekend. So was Dr. Natalie Antinoff. Just as an aside, Natalie was the recipient of the African Grey / Blue & Gold / Indian Ringneck feather scarf I made. Someone else won the scarf at the live auction and gave it to Natalie. Natalie is very tiny so it looked more like a shawl on her, but from her reaction, I could tell she was pretty happy about it.

Rick Jordan spoke on Sunday and let me tell you something; it was one of the most dynamic and powerful speeches about aviculture that I’ve ever heard. He essentially began by saying, “Somebody has to say this, so I might as well do it.”  His presentation title was “Is There a Future For Aviculture?” Suffice it to say, he thinks the future is a little bleak if we don’t change a few things. I’m glad he said what he said, because the subject matter is a little touchy and involves every aspect of the industry. But if anyone could have pulled it off, it’s Rick.

Now I’ve heard many of these people speak before. And I’ve come to know a lot of people who are Festival “Regulars.”  It’s always good to see them. I’m familiar with most of the toys, the products, the literature, the DVDs and information. However, I learned of a new product that absolutely knocked my socks off. It’s this:

It’s called Living World Clay-Cal. It’s made by Hagen and it’s HARI tested and HARI approved and believe me, that says a lot!

Let me explain what this stuff is: In a word, it’s clay. But it’s more than that. Clay-Cal contains a type of clay called montmorillonite clay, which is a type of bentonite clay. No, I had no idea what that was, so I took a trip to the dictionary and looked it up in order to save you the trip. Bentonite clay is a type of volcanic clay that has highly absorbent properties. It can even suck up microscopic crud. So what Living World did was mill this stuff for parrots and passerines and combine it with charcoal and calcium.

Now you might ask, “Well gee, thanks for the chemistry lesson, but what in the hell does it do for my birds?”

Here’s what it does: When you feed it to your birds by sprinkling it on your bird’s food a couple of times a week, it passes through their digestive system and absorbs toxic secondary compounds and impurities. Not everything we absorb and are exposed to is good for us. It’s the same with our birds. I don’t care how well you scrub the vegetables you feed your birds, you’re not going to get all of the fungus and bacteria off of them. If your birds chew on wood toys, branches or perches, they are going to pick up fungi, more bacteria, tannins in the wood and mostly likely a few other undesirables along the way. It’s called “Life” and that’s just the way it is. But Clay-Cal has the ability to pass through your bird, pick up and hold all of these impurities and crud and safely carry it out in their waste. This is not grit and will not impact in the crop.

Now you might notice I mentioned that it had charcoal and calcium in it. Yes it does. The calcium additive is a no-brainer, but the charcoal is interesting. Charcoal is given to people who have ingested a poison or an impurity in the emergency room. It also has the ability to absorb stuff, rendering it inert.

If you think about it, you can get a facial that includes a clay mask that “pulls impurities out of your skin.” Activated charcoal is also used in emergency rooms for counteracting the effects of ingested poisons. It absorbs irritants in the stomach and intestines and is useful for other conditions, as well, such as diarrhea, indigestion and intestinal gas. It just makes sense that this would be effective as a detox agent and routine maintenance item for our parrots.

I’ve always said that I love products and ideas that make sense. This is one of them.  So you see, you can always learn something new at the Festival. It’s finding out about stuff like this that makes going to the Festival worth your time.

Good God. First, I decide I’m not going to the Houston Parrot Festival. I can’t take the time off of work. I need to save money for a new computer and the second generation iPad that everyone said is going to be so sleek and sexy. So I need to fly more and stay home and not go to the Festival.

I find out the maintenance on my condo has gone up. So I can’t go, because I have to shell out money for that. I need to work more. So I can’t go.

I need to start cranking out the quizzes and the “Memos” for BIRD TALK so I shouldn’t take the time out and go to the Festival. So I can’t go.

Irene Pepperberg is coming to Florida for a fundraiser for The Alex Foundation and that’s pretty important to me and that’s going to cost some money, so I can’t go to the Festival.

This time of year is always rough on me because my condo insurance, my car insurance are all due in December which is when Christmas comes. So I can’t go.

I have to prepare for the “Chop” Demo I’m giving in April at the Midwest Bird Expo and coordinating that is going to be a nightmare. So I can’t go.

And I made a bunch of feather items that I could just send so they can be auctioned off. I could simply pop them in a box and send then to Cheryl Rose, one of the Festival Coordinators. I’m sure they’d be glad to arrange to put them in the auction for me…

Screw it. I’m going.

Link: Houston Parrot Festival

I waited 20 years to make an impulse purchase. I got a parrot. I bring the little guy home. I almost passed out on the way home thinking that what I did was the biggest mistake of my life. But I managed to drive the rest of the way home without either losing my lunch or hurting anyone in the process.

Yes, I was upset.

But once I got home, I was okay. I had done what I had done, and chose to live with my decision. I spent the better part of a couple of hours trying to come up with a name for this little dude, or dudette. I had no idea which. Once comfortable with my decision, I said to my new little bird, “Parker, I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I have a feeling my life is about to change. But no matter what, I promise I’ll try and take care of you the best I can, okay?” Parker looked up at me and replied, “Coooh?” It was one of the best decisions I ever made in my life and I haven’t regretted one minute of it.

I have just returned home from the Companion Parrot Training class presented by Natural Encounters. I am now armed with a set of “training tools” given to me by Dr. Susan Friedman and Steve Martin. I know how to train a parrot now. Retrieving Parker from his stand, I set up a peg and ring prop. Within five minutes, I have Parker slamming rings on to the peg like he was Larry Byrd shooting hoops in a championship basketball game. I had tried for months to train him to do it with no success. and now, he is looking at me as if to say, “This? You wanted me to do this? Well, why didn’t you just say so!? Gawwwwd!” I am gleeful and proud and it is a gorgeous moment.

I’ve gotten it. I finally understand! The frustration, the confusion, the hell I went through to finally understand the concept of negative reinforcement. I walk around my condo tidying up and humming “I Think She’s Got It,” from the musical, My Fair Lady. Once I am through tidying up, I go to my computer, start it up  and write a long email to Susan Friedman explaining my light bulb moment. I was explaining to her the mental backflips I went through to comprehend it. When it finally sunk in, I saw it with such clarity, it was blinding. Along the way in the email, I meandered off-topic and began writing a bit about life on an airplane and finished the email with profound thanks for her patience with me while I was taking her class, “LLP: Living and learning With Parrots.” She emails back five minutes later and says something to the effect of, “If you don’t begin writing it’ll be a waste. I don’t care what you write about in the field of birds, you just have to write.” It was Susan’s kick in my keester that got me rolling in the field of writing. That moment in time gave me the confidence to step out of myself for the first time and realize that my “wishing days” were over and it was about time to put my rear on the line and do something about something I had a hunch I could do pretty well all of my life.

I have adopted a neglected plucked-out African Grey. She is older and I had worries whether or not I could get her straightened out enough to be handled. It took me two days to convince Pepper to come out of her cage. I offer her my hand. She steps up gingerly and whistles. She does not bite and accepts the almond I have offered her, delicately nibbling away. Two weeks later she is snuggling at my neck on the couch. It was a moment made of magic.

It’s September and I’m in a very cold enclosure, walls painted with icy mountains and frozen fields. Slippery, wet, uneven rocks under my feet challenge my balance and I steady myself in hopes that I will not fall into the central pool. I’ve been told that no one has ever fallen into the pool, although with the way my luck runs, I’ll be jazzing up that record in no time.

Surrounding me is a flock of penguins, carefully waddling up to me to greet, meet and hopefully con me out of a fish or two. Camera in hand, I am shooting their gorgeous faces and hoping for a clear, well framed photograph that might, just might express the breathtaking beauty I actually see. I am overwhelmed with the privilege and the honor of working with these penguins at the Cincinnati Zoo. Not many people get this opportunity and the palpable feeling of a “once in a lifetime moment” takes over. I know this is special. I smell of fish. I am dead tired and sore, but nothing, and I mean nothing will ever yank this memory away. Penguins are honking and jostling for a better position so they might get a neck scratch.  Bubba, an Ibis swoops down and joins the crowd of Rockhoppers at my feet nagging me for a fish. I don’t think I had every been happier before this moment. Ever.

I’m a little nervous. I’m following Steve Malowski into the Andean Condor enclosure with a plate of food for them containing a couple of whole rats, a mouse behind or two, some fish, a few pinkie mice and other rather unappetizing items you would retch at if you saw it, but is the main staple for these enormous birds.

Steve has a broom which he brings into the enclosure for my peace of mind, but mainly he simply uses it to lean on while he surveys the enclosure and his two enormous condors. I shake a little bit. With a twelve foot wing-span, these relatively huge dudes sit not too far away and seem to observe us with amusement, and curiosity. Getting taloned in the back by one of these guys wouldn’t be fun and would leave one hell of a mark. Despite my nervousness, it’s a great place to be. I am seeing one of the most magnificent birds in the world close up. I am getting beautiful video. I am present and alive in this moment of clarity. These birds are monstrously big and they are looking me in the eye. It simply takes my breath away.

I am at my mailbox. Among the bills, the junk mail advertising low insurance rates and 60 % off at Michael’s Crafts on picture framing, is a manilla envelope.  It is February of of 2009 and I have no idea who sent this to me. I open it and two magazines slip out. They are advanced copies of the 2009, March issue of BIRD TALK Magazine. I turn to page 38 and see the first column of “Memo to Parker and Pepper.” I let go with a little squeal, do a a “happy dance” right then and there and reread the words I know all too well. To me, there is nothing better in the world. Nothing.

I have flown up to Chicago having been asked to cover the Midwest Bird Expo. I enter the Kane County Fairgrounds building where it is being held and make my way through what seems like miles of aisles of bird toys, food, cages, t-shirts and swings. I finally meet Irena Schulz. It was like we knew each other all our lives. She introduces me to Sy Montgomery, who just released her amazing book, Birdology. I feel like I have known her forever. I’ve just made two friends. It was a great day and my post about the Expo pleased so many people. The experience went off without a hitch and I had a wonderful time. I leave wishing it would have lasted just one more day.

I am on a plane yet again, headed to Houston. I’m excited because I will be seeing old friends, meeting new ones and having a very good time. I’m off to the Houston Parrot Festival for the fourth time and I have brought four feather scarves to donate to the live auction. It makes me feel good to be able to donate something that I have created that will raise some money for the National Parrot Rescue and Preservation Foundation, otherwise known as the N.P.R.P.F. I procure my scarf models. We work those scarves. We raise about six hundred dollars for them. It makes me happy.

After a quick drive in the dark at 5:30 in the morning, I arrive at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary with Piggy Paradise employee Patti Platia. I have had three and a half hours of sleep. We drop off our bags in the office and set to work setting up the day for the Best Friends volunteer arrivals. I wash some pig plates and clean the bathroom. Patti calls me over and takes me outside. The sun is coming up and is making its way up the side of the sharp cliffs just on the other side of a horse pasture. The scenery is phenomenal. I have never seen such gorgeous rusts and pinks and copper colors. It is an amazing moment and it makes me want to cry. I can’t wait to write about it.

These are but a few moments in my life where I saw with perfect clarity, what life is all about for me. It’s about writing, birds, writing, traveling, writing and experiencing what other people do. When I work these experiences, my life takes a back burner and the work is about the work of other people, other organizations, other projects, other lives. I can step out of myself and learn what other people do so well, although I usually don’t do it with the speed or precision they do, I can certainly write about their expertise with accuracy. Irena Schulz once referred to me as “The Indiana Jones” of the Bird World. I could probably be more accurately described as the “Lucy in the Candy Factory” of the bird world. Nevertheless, I keep plugging away, working to seek out new adventures, great people and yet another post about this life with birds.

I don’t know what 2011 will bring, but it will probably involve luggage. However, as I said on the last day of High School during the last lunch period with my classmates when we were all exchanging thoughts about what we thought we’d all end up doing: “I don’t know what I’ll end up doing, but I hope it’s interesting.” So far it has, and I hope it continues.

My wish for the New year for you is that you learn new things, make new friends, and raise the bar of parrot care, not only for your birds, but for the lives of others.

Have a Happy (and interesting) New Year!

Patricia

35000 Feet: Somewhere between Guayaquil, Ecuador and Miami



My friend Sandra’s Niece with Parker

I have many wishes, yet very few of them are for me. I like to think of wishes as hopes and dreams for the future.

Many of these wishes I have are for my friends who have animals, or work for and with animals. I have worked with quite a few species of animals and dearly loved every minute of it; even when I was getting crapped on, slimed, or otherwise dirtied up.

A very Young Parker

I’m not quite sure what it is, but like many of my friends, I have an empathy for animals, a feeling or compassion, and sometimes sadness.

I have very little power of my own to make things right in the world of rescuing and rehabilitating homeless animals. I can’t change the world with the blink of an eye. I would like to, but it’s not within my power.

The only time I ever heard of a complete sellout of dogs in rescues and humane societies was the weekend after Oprah aired a show on puppy mills. I saw the show which aired on a Friday I believe. Apparently, that weekend, there was a run on these rescue centers and dogs were flying out the door. Now that’s some power.

Mattie the “Wonder Dog.” I rescued her from the parking lot. She was a mess.

I would love to see some changes in the world, and I think slowly, it’s starting to happen.

People are feeding their birds better. The world has gotten out about what a decent diet is for birds and things have changed for the better in that area. Since the recent recalls of pet food, families are waking up and realizing that perhaps a raw diet is the way to go in feeding their dogs and cats. Or perhaps they haven’t gone that far, but they are at least feeding a decent, albeit more expensive dog food to their dogs and reaping the rewards through less Vet visits and happier, healthier pets living longer lives.

My friend Beverly’s dog Bodhi. She was found running the streets of Miami.

I’m pleased to see that the show “Dogtown” put Best Friends Animal Society on the map. The place is thriving and more and more animals are getting homes. I’m not familiar with their work entirely, but I simply love “Old Dog Haven.” I asked the people at Best Friends how the old dogs do in getting adopted. I was told they have incredible luck placing older dogs and I love this. This didn’t used to be so in most places.

A sweet old dog I played with at “Best Friends.”

I’m pleased to see the individual initiative people take to help others. Julie Ellison got a Facebook campaign out and asked people to send broken toys, toy parts, anything at all  that could be made into a toy. And man, did she get some boxes of stuff! She took that stuff and turned them into toys, enough for every bird at Gilcrease Sanctuary to have a toy. Julie did this on her own. She saw a need and made it happen.

Julie Ellison

Susan Friedman turned the Bird World on its collective ass a few years ago when she began the LLP (Living and Learning with Parrots) online training program. Thousands must have taken it by now and she has a steady, 18-month waiting list to take this incredible course.

Dr. Susan Friedman

Blogs have been started, bird boards and forums are all over the place and communication is rampant. Kris Porter’s book about parrot enrichment is now considered a reference book and people are actively searching for more and better information. I’ve seen the old, archaic information slowly fade away and people no longer believe that parsley is bad for their birds, that African Greys are one-person birds, (Well, if they did, they wouldn’t think that if they met Parker.) and an all-seed diet is going the way of the dial telephone.

But I’m an optimist. I want more. I want a home for every bird. I want optimum care and nutrition for our little guys. I want respect and love and training and some humor dammit!

Barbara Heidenreich is still making incredible videos and training her head off.

Robin Shewokis continues speaking and teaching people about foraging and enrichment.

Robin Shewokis

Rebecca O’Connor continues to write and continues to work at Ducks Unlimited. And of course we have a little adventure planned next Autumn.

Rebecca and Anakin

The Houston Parrot Festival is still going strong and I’ve figured out a schedule where I can actually attend again this year. I didn’t think I was going to be able to do it, but I can and this will be my fifth year.

I know! But we had fun!

Irene Pepperberg is making some noise and continues her work with Griffin and Arthur. She’ll be on an upcoming special on television.

Irena Schulz’s work at Bird Lovers Only continues and Snowball’s popularity hasn’t flagged a bit. There’s new stuff in the works for Snowball, and hopefully I’ll get up to Indiana this time after the Midwest Bird Festival to visit Irena and have a dance with Snowball.

The two “I’s” Irena Schulz and Irene Pepperberg.

I don’t know what my next “Big Adventure” is going to be, but as I continue writing and blogging, my world gets larger and my list of experiences gets longer.

I’d like to get back to the Cincinnati Zoo. I need a penguin fix! And they could always use some help.

Keeper Ricky Kinley with Henry

I need to get up to North Carolina to visit Ann Brooks at Phoenix Landing. So near and yet so far Ann is, but this is the year to do it. I’m hoping for all of these things and more. (I’m also hoping I can swing all of this work and still keep my day job, is what I’m hoping.)

I’m hoping that the Oasis Sanctuary does well with their “Pennies for Parrots” fundraiser. I know I donated.

I hope the MARS Rescue in Melbourne really takes off. We don’t have many good rescues in Florida, so I wish them well and hope their work keeps them thriving and growing.

Chris Burgr of MARS getting a smacker!

So you see, most of my wishes are for others. I can only help by educating, informing and writing about their work. I’m fairly fluent in the world of birds, but I think my work has become writing about them, the experts, the people who run the rescues and work with the animals and birds. If my shedding some light on what they do helps the public get a better understanding of how they function, then perhaps they too will build an empathy, an understanding which will provide a better future for all of our animal friends.

Merry Christmas!

Patricia

London

December 25th 2010

You might be aware of some of my travels in the animal world. The Houston Parrot Festival, The Cincinnati Zoo, the Midwest Bird Expo, Natural Encounters, the BEST Parrot Conference, The Avian Encounters Trilogy Video Premiere and most recently, Best Friends Animal Society are just a few of the places I’ve visited and some of the experiences I’ve had. I do it for several reasons. The main reason is that I am working on a manuscript that will hopefully be a book.

Also, I don’t do “lying around vacations” very well. And these are all things I’ve always wanted to do and places I’ve wanted to see.

Every time I go somewhere that involves working with animals, there is this little haunting going on in my head: “You know, I could live here. I could do this. I think this might make me happy.” And then I come home; exhausted and beat up, but very pleased with the information I was able to share and the things that I had learned. Sanity returns and I’m back to my life. You know the one: Flying, writing and repeatedly washing the floor. Oh, I also have fun and get to hang out with friends; I mean it’s not that bad.

(Michael Popora. Cute, isn’t he?)

I went to the Cincinnati Zoo for two years in a row and immersed myself in all things “zoo.”  It was a crazy thing to do. I mean really, how many people get up at 4:45 in the morning day after day on their vacation to go get crapped on by a penguin, gassed by a sea lion and charged by a pissed-off sandhill crane? Well, me. But as my best friend, Lynne says, “You are just so, so…not right.”

But it wasn’t just the experience of the work. It was the people and their willingness to share a part of their lives, their expertise and take the time to teach me:

Ricky Kinley and Henry

I came home from Best Friends with incredible memories having made many friends and a belief that you can make a difference in the world by making a dream come true. As a matter of fact, every time I come home from somewhere, I think, “You know, this might be a nice place to live.”

And it just might be. I thought, “Working at the Cincinnati Zoo might be fun despite how hard it is. Maybe I should change direction and do that.”

And then I get home and realize that the life I have so isn’t bad after all. While I don’t have an ocean-front home in Florida, I sometimes have a “water-front home:

So it’s really about going out into the world and experiencing it. I come home having been touched by that part of the world, that place, those people. And then, I share what it was like to see those places, do those things and learn that stuff with the people who have the same interests.

When I was at Best Friends, the subject of people moving to Kanab to work there as a way of “healing” came up. Something not right with your life? Hey, move to Kanab, work with the animals and maybe, miraculously, all will be right with the world! Umm, it doesn’t happen that way. Because wherever you go, there you are. And going out to work at BF as a way of working through personal issues and making everything better in your life doesn’t work. I mean, it’s not Lourdes for cripes sake. And it’s still incedibly tough work. You must be equipped and willing to have something to offer Best Friends. If you have that and look to BF to offer you employment and the opportunity to do great work in a challenging field, then you’re good to go. But don’t look to BF to make everything in your life right with the world.

So as I move on, writing and shooting and describing what people, places, events and jobs are all about, I keep learning. Not just about where I’ve been, but where I am now, and where I intend to go. It’s the process of learning and using these opportunities to write about the knowledge I’ve gained from an amazing group of people. These people have so generously given of themselves to help me inform, educate, and edify those who are interested in taking a peek at what these incredible people do:

Steve Malowski and Kim Klosterman

Val

“The Major Dude” at the Cincinnati Zoo

Gary Denzler

Dr. Susan Friedman

Dr. Irene Pepperberg

Jason Crean

Irena Schulz and Sy Montgomery

Jacque and Wendy at Best Friends Parrot Garden

There are so many people that have made this an incredible learning experience. And I’m sorry to say that I haven’t even scratched the surface thanking all of the people who have helped me tell the tale. The people who opened their homes, their lives, their work, and their souls have made my world a better place and my job is to pay it forward by writing about the amazing work that they do. I hope I do it justice.

But the point is, I am a conduit that brings their expertise to you. I can tell a story. It’s my story about my experience with their work. And I hope it has made a difference to you and your animals. My travels, my fatigue, my sweat, work,  long days, airport food and jet lag is worth it.  I see the tide changing as a result. People have become aware of good animal care and nutrition as a result of my work. If I can get just one bird off of a diet of seed, then I will be happy.

As I write this, I keep thinking about Dorothy Gale in “The Wizard of Oz.” In the last scene, she realizes something she learned about home:

“If I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, I won’t look any further than my own backyard; because if it isn’t there, I never really lost it to begin with.”

I will always have my home to return to. But my “True North” is the people who show me what they do, how they do it, and take the time to teach me what they know.  I may have to leave home to accomplish this, but when I return, I have brought home their knowledge with me. And because of this, the journey is always worth it.

You’re supposed to wear “Parrot Gear” to the party and I didn’t have any. As a matter of fact, I look hideous in “parrot print” stuff. I completely disappear. I’m tall, thin and have a small head, so if I wear a parrot print shirt for instance, all you see is what appears to be a parrot-covered shirt walking around by itself. So that was out. But I love scarves. If you ever meet me, I will most likely either be dressed like a ten year-old boy, (See the post, “Houston? We Have a Problem” for an explanation of this…) or I’ll be wearing something black with a colorful scarf.  Of course, if I’m on an airplane I’ll be wearing my uniform but unless you frequently travel to Ecuador or Haiti, that’s unlikely. Anyway, I figured out how to make a scarf from Parker and Pepper’s molted feathers:

(Attention! All of the feathers I use in the making of these items are MOLTED feathers. These are the feathers that naturally fall off the bird seasonally. No birds are ever harmed, plucked or otherwise compromised for the fabrication of these items.)

The first one I made wasn’t very good because A.) I didn’t know what I was doing  and B.) I never had any intention of auctioning it off which is what I was asked to do and gladly did.  It was just a costume piece.

Well as the years went by, I kept making them and they kept getting auctioned off to benefit the NPRPF every year. Here are some shots of the scarves. Captions are under the photos:

This one I made in year two and Jill Bell snagged it. I embellished it with charms and pearls.

This is one of the two I made in 2009. I think we were dancing to Janice Joplin in this shot.

This is Jean Pattison wearing the African Grey scarf from this last January. this is one of four scarves I made for the auction.

Here is Myra wearing a snappy little cockatoo “Skinny Scarf.”

Nice shot of Dr. Irene Pepperberg, me and Paula Lynn Nowak with three of the four scarves from 2010.

Here are all of us including photographer Bonnie Jay wearing the four scarves that sold this last January.

Finally, here is a shot of Dr. Pepperberg wearing the scarf I sent to Phoenix Landing for auction.

I’ve started a new round of feathers scarves and items and this group will be auctioned off to benefit Phoenix Landing:

Here is my neighbor Nan modeling the Blue and Gold Macaw “Skinny Scarf.”

Nice little African Grey and Eclectus scarf.

And of course, a nice big fluffy cockatoo wrap.

And don’t forget the pillow up top! Anyway, Phoenix Landing will be the recipient of the funds generated from these items. I’m very excited about it and plan to make a few more things for them. So stay tuned for more details!

(Well, I thought it was a great shot…)

The Houston Parrot Festival: What an amazing Festival! A great speaker line up, combined with an incredible array of products from some cutting edge vendors offering the best products made this year’s festival a joy. And it was terrific, once I got there. And I’ll be posting about the Festival and giving you a review of sorts in pieces because there’s a lot to tell you about.

For me, getting there proved to be a real pain in the keester.  I had booked a flight that left Miami at 3:30 p.m. I had some things to take care of at the Flight Office at the airport  so I got to MIA at about 12:30; plenty of time to get my parking pass updated, update some stuff, check my luggage and straighten out some other stuff. Turns out it was more than ample time because my flight was cancelled and I was rolled over to the next one departing at 10:10 p.m. So I hung around and waited. And waited. And as you know, this waiting jazz in an airport really blows.

But time did pass, I made my flight and arrived in one piece in Houston at about 1:30 in the morning. I called my hotel and there seemed to be a problem: “No room at the Inn.” The Hilton went ahead, picked me and and put me up at a Hotel across the street. When I finally got to my first hotel room it was 2:30 in the morning. I mean, good God…

No worries however, because I was right across the street. I called the hotel after tidying up and repacking and they came to get me. But I still had to wait because the people who had decided not to check out and bounced me out of my room the night before still hadn’t checked out. So I stowed my stuff and went to check in at the Festival desk. Little problem: they lost my registration. I was now up to a fight cancellation, an eight hour delay, two hotel rooms, and no ID for the festival. Great.

Deane Cheney finally dug up my registration and gave me my ID. Little problem: no lanyard to hang it around my neck.  So we got that straightened out and I finally managed to get started with the running around and seeing everything. As I walked down the hall and was rounding the corner, I bumped into Dr. Irene Pepperberg coming out of the can.

Now, I realize most of the “PN” readers are “Parrot People” and are familiar with Irene Pepperberg and her shattering work with Alex. If you aren’t, I suggest you purchase this: Alex and Me.

And while you’re at it, you might as well watch this:

I’ve been flying for almost twenty-three years, so not a whole lot fazes me. I’ve done my time in first class and have served my share of celebrities: Shirley Temple, Alan Alda, Meryl Streep, Beverly Sills, Sade, Bill Murray, Rod Stewart, Jane Curtain, Ronald Reagan Jr., Andre the Giant, the President and First Lady of Bolivia and so on. And I once saw Stevie Wonder at LaGuardia Airport. (I don’t think he noticed me.) I never turned a hair and you kind of get used to it.

But here was Irene Pepperberg walking out of the Ladies Room and I had that “Oh my God” moment. I mean it. Really. This was my complete “Rock Star Moment Meltdown.”

Now the weird part of this is that I had met her before, but it had been about five years and not that she would remember me anyway.

So I did what I usually do; I just smiled and said “Hi Irene!” and she walked up to me and hugged me.

Well, once I managed to get my jaw off the floor, we started talking. And we sort of didn’t stop for three days. And we never really talked about her research or birds or training or anything like that. I mean it sounds kind of freakish, but those subjects just never came up because we were too busy yakking about airlines, travel, writing, our mothers, hotels, the Women’s Rights Movement and clothes. We also did a little bit of scheming and plotting for future joint projects which are already in the works…

I know what you’re thinking: Here was my chance to listen to a best-selling author and get some inside scoop on her work with Alex and we were comparing notes on how to get junk done when you’re living out of a suitcase. You know, really juicy stuff like, “Okay, so how do you wash a blouse in a hotel sink? Do you use the shampoo or the soap…” Or we were dissecting the best way to cope with certain issues that seem to crop up at shin-digs like the Parrot Festival.

I guess it was kind of an introduction to the beginning of a camaraderie that really has nothing to do with birds. But you never know, it might just involve a few birds in the future.