Our "Mayor of the Avenue" award is presented to a member who exhibits the qualities that distinguish them to be an upstanding credit to the Avenue, a loving, informed, conscientious and caring bird parront and an all around good neighbor.
I am please to announce Belinda (~birdybea~) as December's Mayor of the Avenue
I enjoyed reading your interview and getting to know you a little better
1. What kind of birds do you have (age, species and names)?
Lots of birds in the family here! I have budgies (Blinkie - 8yrs, Boo - 3yrs, and Whitey - 3yrs), cockatiels (Cookie - 6.5yrs, Bailee - 6yrs, Persnikety - 4.5yrs, and Elsie - 4yrs), green cheeked conures (Zoe - 4.5yrs, and Savvy - 3yrs), and princess parrots (Goblin and Gremlin - siblings, almost 3yrs). I'm lucky to also share my life with Stevo's two birds, Danny (6yr YNA) and Elmo (2yr GW macaw).
2. What got you interested in birds?
When I was young it was very common in Australia to have classroom pets, and in preschool and kindergarten we had budgies. I convinced my parents to get me one of my own when I was 9, and the interest in them grew from there. I've kept both pet and aviary birds, and have done quite a lot of breeding (I particularly enjoyed breeding different mutations of budgies for a number of years). Many of my current birds are bred by myself.
3. What have your birds brought to your life?
Lots of laughs, but also lots of frustration. A large flock can be a handful!
4. What have you learned from sharing your life with your birds?
A respect for animal intelligence, and the importance of a strong bond based on trust and clear communication. I try to carry this lesson over to other areas of my life, like dealing with people and animals at work (as a vet nurse).
5. What's one birdie memory that will stay with you forever?
Hand rearing 8 baby budgies at one of my birthday dinners, I had some of my close friends around and they barely hesitated when I asked them all to take a budgie and a spoon before we cut the birthday cake! That's how you can tell your true friends!
6. Where is your birds main living area?
For all my littles they spend most of their time in a spare bedroom which we've turned into a birdroom. It is fitted out with hanging gyms, their cages, lots of perches, air conditioning, air purifier, and tv for their entertainment. The big birds rule the rest of the house, which is similarly fitted out with gyms and toys. They have their cages in another spare room, but are mainly in there if both Steve and I are at work, or for meals and sleeping.
7. Did you change things in your home to accommodate your birds and if so what kinds of things did you change?
The bird rooms and some hooks in the ceiling are some changes I guess. Steve also has his awesome netted enclosure in the backyard which is a big modification, but wonderful to have...I can't imagine how full of beans Elmo would be without all the flying space.
8. Are you involved in any kind of bird related group or activities?
Not on a regular basis, though I try to attend any interesting bird seminars that are held in Australia (and met Steve at one of them ). If there are any online opportunities for continuing education i try to do those too, recently I've done LLP through Welcome to BehaviorWorks.org and i'm currently completing FOA1. On my future to-do list are LLA and a workshop with Steve Martin at Natural Encounters in the US.
9. What is the one luxury item you would love to have for your bird(s)?
A completely bird proof room so my birds could stay cage free.
10. Is there any bird that you dream of owning and if so why?
A golden conure is the only serious "dream bird" on my list, and i would love to have the opportunity to own one some day. I'm attracted to their looks, but i also adore the personality of conures. The larger conures are particularly amazing!
11. Describe a typical day with you at home with your birds.
Wake up at whatever time i please (the birds are so considerate as to accommodate our sleep schedule, whether it's up at 6am or 10am - no screaming), do the feeding rounds, laugh at Bailee whistling to Cookie (usually while she's trying to eat brekky), then depending on work schedule/activities for the day leave them to their own activities or get them out for some play time, they're usually out for at least a few hours each day. The big boys are out whenever we're home. With both small and large birds a lot of our interaction is just general company (i.e. in the same room) with one-on-one given when an individual bird comes looking for it. We try to fit in some training/reinforcement each day too! Salad for dinner, and bed time by 9:30pm ish. Cleaning of cages/floors/gyms/etc usually done in the afternoon while hanging out with the birds.
12. What have you learned about owning birds that you would like to share?
That they're not an easy or low maintenance pet, which i know is the primary reason my parents allowed me to get a budgie all those years ago. The more i learn about providing proper care for my birds, the more time it seems to take!
13. If you knew then what you know now about birds, what would you do differently?
I would have far fewer birds, and i would have researched the species differently to get traits i enjoy rather than working my way up from small to "large" - i went from budgies to tiels, because it was a "natural" progression, then to green cheeks because they were still small and cheap, but more "parrot-like". In the past few years I've learned a lot more about owning parrots, and behaviour and training. I would like to have fewer birds so i could devote more time to one-on-one training because i find it enriching for both the birds and myself.
14. What other hobbies do you have?
My other hobbies are photography, horse riding (which i don't get to do often now), drawing, and doing outdoor activities when i can find the time (i love hiking).
15. Anything else you would like to share?
I love all my birds, and love life with birds! I do hope that i can encourage others to think through their new additions by sharing my experiences though. In the long term i hope to pursue a career in animal training, to help share the great things I've learned, to enrich the lives of the birds (and other pets) in their care.
I am please to announce Belinda (~birdybea~) as December's Mayor of the Avenue
I enjoyed reading your interview and getting to know you a little better
1. What kind of birds do you have (age, species and names)?
Lots of birds in the family here! I have budgies (Blinkie - 8yrs, Boo - 3yrs, and Whitey - 3yrs), cockatiels (Cookie - 6.5yrs, Bailee - 6yrs, Persnikety - 4.5yrs, and Elsie - 4yrs), green cheeked conures (Zoe - 4.5yrs, and Savvy - 3yrs), and princess parrots (Goblin and Gremlin - siblings, almost 3yrs). I'm lucky to also share my life with Stevo's two birds, Danny (6yr YNA) and Elmo (2yr GW macaw).
2. What got you interested in birds?
When I was young it was very common in Australia to have classroom pets, and in preschool and kindergarten we had budgies. I convinced my parents to get me one of my own when I was 9, and the interest in them grew from there. I've kept both pet and aviary birds, and have done quite a lot of breeding (I particularly enjoyed breeding different mutations of budgies for a number of years). Many of my current birds are bred by myself.
3. What have your birds brought to your life?
Lots of laughs, but also lots of frustration. A large flock can be a handful!
4. What have you learned from sharing your life with your birds?
A respect for animal intelligence, and the importance of a strong bond based on trust and clear communication. I try to carry this lesson over to other areas of my life, like dealing with people and animals at work (as a vet nurse).
5. What's one birdie memory that will stay with you forever?
Hand rearing 8 baby budgies at one of my birthday dinners, I had some of my close friends around and they barely hesitated when I asked them all to take a budgie and a spoon before we cut the birthday cake! That's how you can tell your true friends!
6. Where is your birds main living area?
For all my littles they spend most of their time in a spare bedroom which we've turned into a birdroom. It is fitted out with hanging gyms, their cages, lots of perches, air conditioning, air purifier, and tv for their entertainment. The big birds rule the rest of the house, which is similarly fitted out with gyms and toys. They have their cages in another spare room, but are mainly in there if both Steve and I are at work, or for meals and sleeping.
7. Did you change things in your home to accommodate your birds and if so what kinds of things did you change?
The bird rooms and some hooks in the ceiling are some changes I guess. Steve also has his awesome netted enclosure in the backyard which is a big modification, but wonderful to have...I can't imagine how full of beans Elmo would be without all the flying space.
8. Are you involved in any kind of bird related group or activities?
Not on a regular basis, though I try to attend any interesting bird seminars that are held in Australia (and met Steve at one of them ). If there are any online opportunities for continuing education i try to do those too, recently I've done LLP through Welcome to BehaviorWorks.org and i'm currently completing FOA1. On my future to-do list are LLA and a workshop with Steve Martin at Natural Encounters in the US.
9. What is the one luxury item you would love to have for your bird(s)?
A completely bird proof room so my birds could stay cage free.
10. Is there any bird that you dream of owning and if so why?
A golden conure is the only serious "dream bird" on my list, and i would love to have the opportunity to own one some day. I'm attracted to their looks, but i also adore the personality of conures. The larger conures are particularly amazing!
11. Describe a typical day with you at home with your birds.
Wake up at whatever time i please (the birds are so considerate as to accommodate our sleep schedule, whether it's up at 6am or 10am - no screaming), do the feeding rounds, laugh at Bailee whistling to Cookie (usually while she's trying to eat brekky), then depending on work schedule/activities for the day leave them to their own activities or get them out for some play time, they're usually out for at least a few hours each day. The big boys are out whenever we're home. With both small and large birds a lot of our interaction is just general company (i.e. in the same room) with one-on-one given when an individual bird comes looking for it. We try to fit in some training/reinforcement each day too! Salad for dinner, and bed time by 9:30pm ish. Cleaning of cages/floors/gyms/etc usually done in the afternoon while hanging out with the birds.
12. What have you learned about owning birds that you would like to share?
That they're not an easy or low maintenance pet, which i know is the primary reason my parents allowed me to get a budgie all those years ago. The more i learn about providing proper care for my birds, the more time it seems to take!
13. If you knew then what you know now about birds, what would you do differently?
I would have far fewer birds, and i would have researched the species differently to get traits i enjoy rather than working my way up from small to "large" - i went from budgies to tiels, because it was a "natural" progression, then to green cheeks because they were still small and cheap, but more "parrot-like". In the past few years I've learned a lot more about owning parrots, and behaviour and training. I would like to have fewer birds so i could devote more time to one-on-one training because i find it enriching for both the birds and myself.
14. What other hobbies do you have?
My other hobbies are photography, horse riding (which i don't get to do often now), drawing, and doing outdoor activities when i can find the time (i love hiking).
15. Anything else you would like to share?
I love all my birds, and love life with birds! I do hope that i can encourage others to think through their new additions by sharing my experiences though. In the long term i hope to pursue a career in animal training, to help share the great things I've learned, to enrich the lives of the birds (and other pets) in their care.