FAQ

Help! My bird is acting weird! Is he/she sick?

I frequently get DM's like this, and my first advice is to reach out to your vet immediately. I'm not qualified or inclined to give any medical advice (nor should any unqualified person on the interwebs!). Birds are geniuses at hiding their illnesses, so if your bird has gotten to a stage where you've noticed something is off, the illness is probably already in an advanced situation. Don't wait for tomorrow, or when your next paycheck comes in - call your vet ASAP. Inform the vet as much as you can with the bird's symptoms and make moves fast.

You always want to be safe than sorry!

Are your birds for sale?

No they are not.

Can you list the cages, play gyms, & portable perches you use?

Most of the prices are marked with a question mark at the end. A lot of the cages and perches have been acquired over a long period of time and some or most of the products' prices have changed since my purchase.

Chewie's Cage:

Make: A&E Cage Co.
Model: Powder coated wrought iron cage
Dims: Exterior Dimensions: 32"x21"x63" (Interior Height: 35", Bar Spacing: 0.5")
Color: Sandstone
Price: $200ish?
Store: Wayfair.com

Note: Very sturdy, there's one big door and no food doors in the front. Roomy for a single, flighted, medium-sized bird. The cage sits on its stand, so recommend using some cable ties to secure the cage. Or the cage can be placed on top of a solid surface (we had this cage on a table for a while).

Dante's Cage:

Make: Prevue Pet Products
Model: Wrought Iron Select Bird Cage Black Hammertone 3151BLK
Dims: 35 3/8" x 23.5" x 67" (Interior Height: 36.5", Bar Spacing: 0.75")
Color: Black
Price: $400-600ish?
Store: Amazon.com

Note: VERY roomy and deep cage. We don't use the tray and play gym on the roof of the cage to provide more light into the cage. Very suitable for long wing-spanned birds like Dante.

Baby's Cage:

Make: A&E Cage Co.
Model: A&E Cage Co. Elegant Flight Cage
Dims: 32" x 21" x 61" (Interior Height: 31", Bar Spacing: 0.5")
Color: Platinum
Price: $250ish?
Store: Overstock.com

Note: Cute and sturdy. Has two food bowl accessible doors in the front. The cute pagoda roof shape provides height, so the toys that hang from the top might need extensions for the bird to play with on a perch.

Play Gym:

Make: Prevue Pet Products
Model: Small Parrot Playstand
Dims: 17.5" x 16.5" x 59"
Color: Black
Price: $150
Store: Drsfosterandsmith.com, they've closed, so you can get it on Amazon

Note: Almost every bird's staple. I've seen so many birds with this play gym. The top wired part is a bit thin, but you can wrap it with ropes or just wait until the bird gets used to gripping it. We don't use the seed skirt, nor the little bridges that come with the play gym.

Portable / Travel Backpacks:

Make: Petsfit
Model: Bird Carrier (almost identical and cheaper model here)
Dims: 13" x 10" x 16"
Price: $99
Store: Amazon.com

Note: Best transportation method so far! We really recommend this! Love love love the removable grille and tray at the bottom (makes cleaning so easy). It makes it easier to take birds around. Not bulky at all.

Small Travel Cage:

Make: MidWest
Model: Poquito Avian Hotel
Dims: 14" x 18" x 14"
Color: Platinum
Price: $100-$150
Store: Amazon.com

Note: Heavy duty and bulky. We mainly use it as a temporary cage to move the birds around the house or to take them out on the deck to give them fresh air. The handle position and square shape of the cage is a bit awkward to carry.

Small Travel Cage #2, Chewie and Dante's nursery cage:

Make: Prevue Pet Products
Model: SP1804-4 Flight Cage
Dims: 26" x 14" x 20", Bar spacing 0.5"
Color: Green/Black
Price: $60-70
Store: Petco, Amazon.com

Note: Light and easy to assemble. We've used it as a temporary measure until the birds got their actual real cages. Good for quarantining new/baby birds. Not ideal as a permanent solution for flighted birds larger than budgies.

Small Travel Cage #3, Baby's nursery cage:

Make: YML
Model: 2424 Large breeding cage
Dims: 24"x 16" x 16"
Color: Black
Price: $60-80
Store: Amazon.com

Note: Another temporary cage. We used it to house Baby while she was in quarantine. Will use it for a temporary cage to sleep during travels, if need be.

Manzanita Tree Playstand (large):

Make: Local merchant perch (business is in San Diego - can't recall the exact name, sorry)
Model: Handmade
Dims: Tray: , Tree part:
Color: Natural
Price: $75
Store: Purchased at Everybody's Bird Mart

Note: Great purchase for the birds. They love hanging out on it. The large tray and height of the perch might look unsightly but can easily roll around and be put away. Wheels also make it easy to move the perch and clean the floor underneath it.

Manzanita Tree Playstand (Table Top):

Make: Local merchant
Model: Handmade
Dims:
Color: Natural
Price: $40
Store: Purchased at Magnolia Bird Farm (Riverside)

Note: All three birds hang out on this perch everyday. The smooth wood takes a few days of getting used to. Very easy to clean. We like to put a heavy food bowl on the middle so the birds can access food easily. This perch has been with us for almost 8 years and has caused zero problems so far!

Large Tabletop Playground:

Make: Local Merchant
Model: Old man's garage project
Dims:
Color: Natural
Price: $65
Store: Purchased from one of the venders at Everybody's Bird Mart (Pomona)

Note: This was a handmade play gym. It was a garage-hobby project from a very old man, and he didn't have a business associated with him. The mass-market play stands are a bit too small for the birds and this was the perfect size I was looking for - not too big, and not too small. Dante and Baby love hanging out on this playground.

Portable Travel carriers:

Make:Good2Go
Model: Ultimate Pet Carrier in Gray & Black, For pets up to 22 lbs.
Dims: 12" x 12" x 11"
Color: Gray / Black
Price: $80
Store: Amazon.com or Petco

Note: These are intended for small dogs or cats. Not the best for birds. The mesh is brittle and obsessive escape artists (cough* Dante *cough) can chew a sizable hole very quickly. There's no headroom for a perch, so the birds end up soiling their tails and feet with poo when they're in the carrier.

Make: Good2Go
Model: Basic Pet Carrier
Dims: Small (17.8" x 10.7" x 10.5")
Color: Black
Price: $45
Store: Amazon.com, or Petco

Note: Same problems as the above carrier.

Chewie's Green Eagle Playground:

Make: You & Me
Model: 3-in-1 Playground for Birds
Dims: 15" x 15" x 16"
Color: Natural
Price: $20
Store: Amazon.com, or Petco

Note: Chewie used to use it when he was very young (pre-Dante days). Best for baby birds to learn coordination, or for clipped birds. We don't use this playground anymore. Chewie also chewed through some of the elements.

Sandblasted Grapevine Branch perch:

Make: Unknown
Model: One of a kind
Dims:
Color: Natural
Price: $60
Store: TJ MAXX

Note: This is a decorative piece, but birds seem to like to perch on it. We've made sure to sanitize the branch and clean out all the crevices.

How do I get my birds to like each other?

I wish I had an answer for this, but every bird is different and it's hard to have a one-size-fits-all solution. We just let the birds figure it out (under human supervision). Birds are flock animals, so obviously there's going to be some squabbles and fighting, but they're inherently smart and quick to figure things out. If a fight seems to get serious, you should definitely break it up (especially if there is size disparity) -you don't want your birds missing toes or getting body parts damaged. If you have a clipped bird I would definitely keep a much closer eye on the situation since the bird has fewer options to avoid the situation. Try to refrain yourself from yelling at the bird(s) when you are breaking up a fight, as this can be interpreted as you encouragingly jumping into the fight, and let's never forget how much drama and involvement birds love!
If your birds aren't going for the mudery vibe, I think some arguments among themselves are a healthy social exercise. What if your birds' pecking order isn't established the way you want it to be? Welp, haha, that's too bad! There aren't many things we humans can do to influence the outcome. We are merely here to provide love and protection for them, and the rest should be sorted out the birdie way!

Where do you guys live?

All three of the birds are born and raised in sunny Los Angeles, CA.

Where did you get your birds?

Chewie came from Petco, Dante & Baby came directly from breeders.

Are Chewie and Dante a couple?

They are certainly bonded and very dependant on each other, but they do not engage in any sexual behaviors.
Think more... 'Dumb and Dumber' 🙂

Hey! Your birds seem quiet.

Wrong. All three are VERY loud.
I think it's safe to say all parrots are very loud, including the smaller ones. There's really no way to shut these birds up if they want to start screaming. I've been fortunate to have tolerant neighbors (I lived in apartments for the first 5 years of bird ownership and had shared walls with my neighbors), but if your living situation doesn't allow for noisy birds, acquiring a parrot should be seriously reconsidered.
Parrot vocalization is no joke. Once we had Birbdad go across a city block, beyond the canyon our house is backed into, and listen if he could hear Chewie from the other side of the canyon. Chewie wasn't any louder than he usually is, and birbdad was able to clearly hear him across a thick layer of forest trees, from the opposite side of the canyon.

Should I clip my bird?

This is completely up to your preference and what you think is best for your bird. To provide context, I can talk about my experience with my birds.

Dante was clipped once in his entire lifespan. It was when he first came to me at 3 months of age. I hadn't figured out Dante at that time and had decided to clip his wings because I was concerned about his safety. I didn't want him to try to fly out or fly into things at home. After his new flight feathers grew out I never clipped him again. He loves flying and he has zoomies, where he likes to dip and soar around in circles and flap out some energy. He has great agility, but not so much speed.

Chewie came clipped and was mostly clipped for the first few years of his life. He was allowed to grow out a few flight feathers here and there, but I felt Chewie's sassy attitude was kept in check better when he was clipped. He had flight feathers for a while before his last clipping, where he immediately got depressed and sulky when he realized his flight was taken away. I didn't know flying had mattered that much to him, so I decided to keep him fully flighted after a new set of flight feathers grew out. He is incredibly slow when he flies, so I don't feel too nervous about this flighted status. He's still cranky with or without full flight, so might as well let him have all his feathers.

Baby came clipped, and currently, we're keeping her at least partially clipped. She has the longest flight feathers fully intact, but the back flight feathers are slightly trimmed off. We're not sure if full flight should be allowed since Baby is fast as a bullet and zips by faster than fully flighted Dante and Chewie. Baby has had a few close calls to escaping the house, so we think it's safer to eliminate her speed by keeping the feathers partially clipped.

Is Baby going to get a new name?

Not at this point. Baby has stuck to become Baby's permanent name. You can read more about Baby's story here.

You seem to travel a lot. Who takes care of the birds?

I tag-team with Birbdad. I used to travel frequently Pre-COVID, so we had to coordinate schedules where one person was grounded with the birds while the other person was out of town.

Having three birds and one dog makes vacation planning tricky. We either have to go somewhere domestically, in a car, with all the animals, or we have to board them at pet hotels. We've thought about the option of a petsitter coming over and taking care of them, but there are too many risk factors to let a stranger in and deal with flighted birds. Also, when we're home the birds usually get 5-8 hours of out-of-cage-time a day - it doesn't make sense to pay someone to come twice a day to let birds out for hours.

We have some birdie friends who we considered, but the out-of-cage-time also makes things tricky. So, all in all, the conclusion is always to board the birds at a professional service and let them have a chance to meet other fellow birbs.

When we need to travel internationally we will book our flights in and out of SFO, rather than LAX. Then, drive up to San Francisco and drop off the birds at San Francisco Bird Hotel. Chewie and Dante have stayed there multiple times and I think the hotel is the best place for the birds within our reach here in California. We'll spend a night in SF, take a flight out of SFO the next morning, enjoy the trip, arrive back at SFO, pick up the birds and the car, and drive down to LA. It is an extra step, but it's better than having the birds locked up in foreign cages for the entirety of our vacation.

What Gear Do You Use?

The short answer is, many! I've used a bit too many machines throughout the years, and will try to only list the main gear I use to capture the birds.

Apple iPhone (whichever is the latest hero version)

Currently, I am using iPhone 11 Pro Max as the main phone for Instagram.
I usually get an upgrade every year, so the most current iPhone of the year the photo was taken, is most likely the phone I'm using.

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Fujifilm X-T3

X-T3 is what made me fully convert to an avid Fujifilm user. I was warming up to the idea of fully jumping ship with my X70 (listed below) but had a hard time letting go of the investment I had made on my Canon cameras and lenses. Long story short, the X-T3 is a tank. It's built to shoot and is packed with so many bells and whistles, it's hard to pick at the camera.

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The FUJIFILM X-T3 features a newly-developed back-illuminated “X-Trans CMOS 4” sensor, the fourth generation to feature in the X Series. Boasting a resolution of 26.1MP, the sensor uses a unique color filter array, synonymous to X-Trans CMOS sensors, to control moiré and false color without the use of an optical low-pass filter. Its back-illuminated structure enhances image quality while maintaining a high S/N ratio. Furthermore, ISO160, previously available only as extended ISO, is now part of the normal ISO range, allowing you to achieve incredibly clean, noise-free images. (excerpt pulled from Fujifilm homepage)

Fujifilm Fujinon XF23mm F1.4 R

What a dreamy lens! I love my XF23mm F1.4R lens and every single image it creates. The lens has so much glass in it, the heft of it in my hands is just right. It's definitely not for those who like their gear light and portable (I think the XF23mm F2 version might be better). The lens is pretty old (launched 2013), which means it's not as snappy as some newer lenses with the latest technologies. The autofocus sometimes hunts around and the motor in the lens is loud (def. not a lens for videographers), but the birds don't seem to mind the clinking of the lens - so all in all, this is a great lens to capture birdie moments. One slight complaint might be that the bokeh is sometimes oddly weird and not the creamiest of all the Fuji lenses I use. But that's me just nitpicking, and it's barely noticeable on mobile content.

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The premium wide-angle lens designed to maximize the performance of the Fujifilm X-Trans CMOS sensor for the highest picture quality. With a focal length equivalent to 35mm, the lens is suitable for a wide range of applications including portraits and landscapes as well as more general photography. The fast maximum aperture of F1.4 allows you to shoot hand-held in low light conditions, where zoom lenses would introduce camera shake, plus it creates beautiful bokeh for artistic images. Lens distortion has been reduced to the absolute minimum using only optical rather than digital correction, thereby delivering the highest possible picture quality. The rounded seven-blade diaphragm ensures smooth bokeh even when shooting portraits or product shots at a medium aperture to maintain reasonable depth-of-field. (excerpt pulled from Fujifilm homepage)

Fujifilm Fujinon XF90mmF2 R LM WR

Oh my goodness. THIS LENS.

If you're looking for a portrait lens, look no further, this lens is an absolute gem. The bokeh is buttery soft and the sharpness is razor sharp. I love how the subject is so well separated from the background, it's hard to fail a shot with this lens. If you're all about DOF and separating your subject, this lens is really the one you should invest in

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The FUJINON XF90mmF2 R LM WR is a fast-aperture prime lens with a focal length equivalent to 137mm and a maximum aperture of F2.0, that delivers ultra-sharp images with rich bokeh even at the maximum aperture setting. The optical construction of 11 elements in 8 groups (including three ED glass elements) minimizes vignetting and creates beautiful bokeh thanks to the rounded diaphragm, which makes it perfect for portraiture as well as other applications. (excerpt pulled from Fujifilm homepage)

Fujifilm Fujinon XF35mmF2 R WR

This is my entry lens and first XF lens I ever bought. It's the cheaper one of the 35mm lens, and I think it's fantastic for an everyday lens. The autofocus is fast, but sometimes it has such a hard time hunting down the subject (Dante, for example, is a hard subject for many Fuji lenses to focus on), I have to turn the lens to somewhere else and bring it back to where I want it to focus to give it a fresh start. The pictures come out a bit flat, but if I didn't have my 23mm F1.4 lens, this would definitely be my everyday lens on the camera.

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The “FUJINON XF35mmF2 R WR” offers a focal length equivalent to 53mm with the angle of view similar to that of the human eye and a maximum aperture of F2.0. It delivers sharp images with rich bokeh. The optical construction of 9 elements in 6 groups (including two aspherical elements) achieves the perfect balance of high image quality and compact size. The lens features the smallest diameter of the line-up and thanks to the inner focus system and stepping motor, it achieves an autofocus time of just 0.08 sec. The exterior of the lens is weather and dust-resistant and can work in temperatures as low as -10°C. The lens is ideal for any scene and application. This is the new standard for all photography fans. (excerpt pulled from Fujifilm homepage)

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Fujifilm X70

The FUJIFILM X70 features a 18.5mm F2.8 wide-angle fixed lens capable of covering everything from snapshots to landscapes. Using technologies developed in the X100 series, the newly-designed FUJINON lens is optimized for the 16.3-megapixel APS-C sized X-Trans CMOS II sensor and produces outstanding detail and sharpness. (excerpt pulled from Fujifilm homepage)

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Samsung Galaxy S6+ Edge, and Galaxy S4

I've stopped using Samsung phones in late 2018, but a lot of the pictures from 2014 to 2017 were from Samsung phones