Latest Blog Posts
New bird training articles are added regularly below! Scroll down to view the latest ones or use the search function, or list of categories to find articles relevant to what you're looking for.
Mel also writes blogs regularly for Bird Vet Melbourne. If you would like to access those articles click on the button below to go to Mel's articles on the Bird Vet Melbourne site.
Bathing is more than just a splashy pastime for pet birds – it’s an essential part of their health and wellbeing. Whether you care for a tiny budgie or a chunky macaw (no body shaming here!) it’s important you cater for their basic hygiene needs. Bathing can improve feather condition, respiratory health and even mood.…
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AI is everywhere at the moment. It’s no longer a subtle presence starting to show up in the background of our everyday lives. It’s in your face whenever you glance at social media and it’s becoming more significant in our workplaces. It’s now even rudely accusing us of stealing chocolate bars at a supermarket checkout.…
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Giving After Hours Emergency Advice For Birds There is one mistake that people with critically ill birds commonly make. They can’t tell the difference between stabilised and fixed. It happens, in part because they desperately want their bird to be ok. They will grasp at any sign that their bird is going to be ok…
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Feather Plucking | Feather Destructive Behaviour | FDB Feather Destructive Behaviour occurs when a bird is intentionally damaging or removing feathers (usually but not always their own). There are multiple different types of feather destructive behaviours and it helps to identify exactly what type of destructive behaviour your bird is actually doing. Feather Destructive Behaviour…
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Birds bite. Understanding why birds bite, is the first step to stop biting. A close encounter with a bird’s beak at some point, is the one thing I can usually guarantee a bird’s owner. That and a close encounter with bird poop. They are the two things a bird owner should expect. That’s the bad…
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Which Way Is The Wind Blowing? It’s not the first thing that jumps into your head, but it needs to be. A scared, frightened, exhausted bird (particularly if they’re inexperienced in flight), is going to take the easiest, fastest, way out of danger. Flying into the wind uses a lot more energy, than flying with…
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Sometimes working in a vet clinic can break you. It doesn’t surprise me that the veterinary industry has a higher suicide rate than any other industry. There is a general attitude that vets are only in it for the money. That vets over-service and over-charge. The abuse veterinary staff receive continues to amaze me. The…
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Bird Hormones get blamed for a lot of undesirable behaviours in our pet birds. From biting, to regurgitating – it’s easy to shrug off unwanted aggression as simply being due to the time of the year. The reality though? Hormones are a complex behavioural topic and there’s a lot of misinformation about them out there.…
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“If you touch a bird anywhere other than its head, you can trigger hormones.” We’ve all been told that at some point. Vets say it. Behaviourists say it. Everyone in bird forums say it. There’s even a kind of joking meme that gets shared about which body parts you’re allowed to touch. You’re allowed to…
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Do pets grieve? Animals will grieve the loss of a family member (human or animal). Studies show that most animals will show at least one (if not multiple) behavioural changes after the death or loss of a mate, a companion or other family member. It can be extremely difficult to help your pet through that.…
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