Guide to Happy Lovebirds (Part 2)

[Indy]

Guide to Happy Lovebirds
Part 2
by Indy


(Continued from Part 1)


Music and Natural Recorded Bird Songs

Lovebirds are musically inclined. Indy and Mindy love the almost 500 (yes, ALMOST FIVE HUNDRED) iTunes played during their waking hours on an iPod through stereo speakers surrounding their cage.

Indy and Mindy sing and dance all day long (and dancing as we all know is excellent aerobics) to

- Hits from the 1970's (from various albums purchased at the Apple online iTunes store);
- Classical hits from Beethoven to Strauss;
- Naturally recorded bird songs, again purchased from the Apple store.


Indy and Mindy dance to the hits from the 1970's, and Mindy does the sweetest little "disco dance" to some of these. Their favorite? "Schools Out!" (a cute British punk rock song with entertaining lyrics that start "School's out for summer! School's out forever! ...") Indy and Mindy love this long so much, they excitedly hop in unison while singing, and really raise their sweet little voices whenever the band sings, "School's out forever!"). Watching them brings me so much joy and has been the best "medicine" for me during these depressing, uncertain economic times.

Indy and Mindy sit together with serious expressions and muted chirps while classical songs like Strauss or Beethoven are playing. During some very emotional ballads they preen one another back and forth and Indy lays his head on Mindy's breast as they both listen intently.

And they LOVE the natural recorded bird songs. When the birds start singing or there is a chorus of exotic rain forest sounds, Indy and Mindy come to life and chirp so loudly! By the way, contrary to many parrot behavior experts, happy chirping and even "squawking" is how birds release energy and express themselves in the wild. Encouraging Indy and Mindy to let loose and chirp as loudly as their little souls can belt out songs, is the greatest gift of all. Their chirps and squawks are music to my ears. When they hear real birds singing you can feel their energy come to life clear across the room, not just in the volume of their chirps, but in the happiness emanating from their souls.

Again, this gift is not expensive. I have the following set-up:

- iPod Classic (80 GB) (from Apple; approx. $150);
- Insiginia 2.1 Amplified Speaker System (from Best Buy; $39);
- Timer.


Steps for installation:

- Plug the timer into the same power-strip as used for the first timer (used for the UV light).
- Set the timer to go on in the morning when your UV light goes on, and go off in the evening when your UV light goes off.
- Plug the speaker system (small and very light) into the timer.
- Upload your selected iTunes songs (complete albums are less expensive than buying individual songs!) into the iPod Classic.
- Set the iPod Classic to repeatedly play all your songs (which will play them over and over indefinitely).
- Plug the iPod Classic into the power-strip. (You may now need to plug a second power-strip into the first power-strip for enough room since timers cover more than one power outlet.)
- Plug the speaker system's headset connector into the iPod Classic's headset connector outlet (usually found on the charging cradle of the iPod Classic).
- IMPORTANT!!! Adjust the speaker and base volume levels to a comfortable level. I noticed Indy and Mindy actually prefer the volume level a little higher than I would have thought. Just use your best judgment. Adjust it to a level you would imagine a room full of diverse people, such as grandma and your nephew, might "compromise" on. Not too loud, not too soft.
- Keep the iPod Classic remote control handy so you can pause the songs playing if you need to talk on the phone while in the same room as the Lovebirds.


A Real Bird Bath

I have little room in my house and fine art everywhere, so a real open bird bath might seem incompatible. Birds flip bath water on themselves until drenched and then flap their wings to their hearts content. Indy and Mindy do this with reckless abandon and they love it. How does my art keep dry and not spotted with little droplets of water? Read on.

First of all, I can't use one of those cool bird baths that are like plastic bubbles that snap on to a cage door, and extend outside the cage. If only I could! But it is not to be, because Indy and Mindy are deathly afraid of it, and will not adapt. They will painstakingly use even a tiny water source on a tube to sprinkle a little water fruitlessly on themselves, than to enter that fancy bird bath!

The truth is that to give Indy and Mindy the luxury of a bath, I needed to mimic an outdoor bird bath. I placed a small platform on the side of the cage. Then I took the bottom part of the bubble bird bath for use as an open bath (setting the top plastic bubble aside to collect dust).

I attached a piece of Velcro to the bottom of the bath. I place the bath on the platform, reach into the cage, and while holding the bath, attach the rough part of the Velcro to the Velcro stuck on the bottom of the bath (with one of the bars of the platform between the two pieces of Velcro). This prevents the Lovebirds from accidentally pushing the bath onto the cage floor. It also prevents Mindy, when she is in a mischievous mood, from pushing the bath to the cage floor with her beak. (When she tried to do this, I thought up the Velcro attachment idea.)

Indy and Mindy throw water all over themselves while perched from the side of the bath, then flap their wings furiously to dry their wings. I can feel their refreshment in these sounds and know that providing a full bath, changing the water every few days, is the right thing.

By the way, always use

- Distilled water. Birds are sensitive and will get fungal and bacterial infections that build up over time, from tap water. The tiny amount of microbes in city water, filtered out by the human immune system, could ravage a tiny bird and end up requiring antibiotic treatment. I have a water distiller, but you know what? Even a seemingly expensive 1.5 liter bottle of imported water will last a week, if you change the water twice in that week!
- Use "Sparkle" and liquid calcium in their water. I also periodically add liquid nutrients. My source of excellent natural products is the web store LadyGouldianFinch.com which I highly recommend.
- Put a hampster water dropper or two (each holds 8 ounces of water) with the dropper part next to where they sleep and another favorite spot in the cage. This discourages them from drinking bath water. Change this with fresh water (same mixture of "Sparkle" and calcium as the bath water) when it runs low.


To avoid splash outside the cage, I place plastic (sold in small rolls for use as a baffle to prevent water and seed scatter) custom-cut to fit around the area where the bath is located. At the end of the plastic, fold it and crease it with your fingernail. Then fit the creases (at each end of the cut sheet of plastic) around the cage bar to hold the sheet in place, at each end of the sheet.

Then I cover their cage with a custom fit 100% cotton cover made for bird cages.

The cage cover prevents drafts and keeps the cage warmer. I keep a thermostat near the cage and their area is routinely 80 degrees, which they seem to thrive in. However, at night it falls to the low 70's and keeping the air in the cage still, by surrounding it with a cover, helps isolate warmth around the bodies of the Lovebirds.

TIP: Buy a cage cover with a cover that opens in the front. After putting on the cover, open the front by folding it over the top of the cage. (The UV light fixture is under the cover, by the way.) The UV light never seems to get very hot under the cotton cover, so I don't believe it is a fire hazard. However, recently I noticed a vendor selling Nomex fire-resistant material for $50 per square yard on eBay, and purchased a square yard. I will cut the material so that it separates the light fixture from the cotton cover. Keep in mind, this is just my paranoia, I like to overkill on safety. The light does NOT get hot on the plastic cover part that faces upward in contact with the cotton cover. If you're like me, go ahead with the overkill and place a piece of fire-resistant drop cloth (used by welders) and use scissors to cut it to fit over the top of the UV light fixture, between the light fixture and the cotton cage cover. Who knows, it could avoid a freak accident, I figure.


Large Heated Perch

Please don't mistaken my putting this below everything above, as a sign it is a lesser priority. The more I read these priorities, the more I realize everything in this message is really of equal necessity! A large heated perch for sleeping at night is no exception! Cost? I paid only $39. When the lights go out Indy and Mindy immediately gravitate to the heated perch, cuddle together and quickly fall asleep.

I've examined the heated perch carefully and I'm convinced it is not a hazard. The voltage is very low and the perch is warm, not hot, to the touch.


(To be continued; see Part 3)

[Indy]

Photos of Indy and Mindy's customized stereo system that automatically turns on shortly after their full spectrum lighting turns on, plays almost 500 songs (70's hits, classic, bird voices and bird songs) all day, then automatically turns off 5 minutes before their "beddy bye" time in the evening.

After 12 hours of blissful sleep cuddled into a "ball" of feathers, Indy and Mindy awaken to 10 minutes of silence followed by automatic playing of music. (See attached photo of sound set-up.)

Also photos of Indy and Mindy drenched in water, immediately after their baths, which they take in turn. (Notice their heated perch to the left of the cage.)

[Indy]

For those new to the board, remember to click on the photos to get really good high-resolution and magnification of the shot.