Phoenix Foraging Rolls Blog

What we do for our birds! (Luigi the Quaker parrot)

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:24:48 GMT

What We Do For Our Birds!

That we never THOUGHT we would do

We would love to hear stories from some of you about what you do for your parrot(s). We haven't had a Parrot Lover of the Month story for a while because everyone is TOO MODEST! We want to hear your stories. It doesn't have to be anything dramatic. It will be interesting to other people with parrots. So for now, we have a link to some fun videos for you. This is a woman with a Quaker parrot. You may know Quakers are famous for building elaborate nests, which is why some states have outlawed them. They build nests that are a problem for power companies. So this little guy, Luigi, is lucky, he gets to build his nests INDOORS. In fact, his owner indulges him so much, she pretends to be lying down to sleep and lets him work on a nest on her. He nearly pokes her in the eye repeatedly with the sticks but she is smiling and indulging him. There are other videos of Luigi doing various tricks. The nest building ones are down at the bottom of the page here.

Dandelion leaf

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:23:33 GMT

We use dandelion leaf in our Green Chunks as one of the two main greens. The other, alfalfa, we wrote about before in our newsletter. (You can read it here.) Dandelion is ranked as one of the top four green vegetables by the USDA. As well as being high in vitamins and minerals, dandelion leaf has many other nutritive and possibly curative qualities and is known to be good for the liver. So if you have been pulling it up as a weed from your garden all these years, think twice next time you see one out there. Unless your yard has been sprayed with herbicides or pesticides, you might prefer to pull it up and put it in a salad. For you or your parrots or both!

To read more about dandelions, here is an article.

Wild, friendsly Australian parrots video

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:22:22 GMT

Wild but friendly Australian parrots:

Parrots in Australia

How to stuff your parrot for the holidays

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:20:34 GMT

How to Stuff Your Parrot For The Holidays

Have you seen this funny article? If not, it's really cute, you'll get a kick out of it!
Read it here

Two winter movies

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:16:49 GMT

Watch Our Holiday Greeting Movie!

Click HERE for our 30 second greeting!

Since it is the season of snow, here is another video with thousands of corellas, white as snow (plus some green budgies):
Click here

Chef Claire

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:15:18 GMT

Welcome New Parrot Food Chef Claire
A few months ago we introduced you to Kristin, who was going to take Tricia's place when Tricia had her baby. As it turned out, Kristin's talent was more in setting up spreadsheets and she has been really helpful getting our costs figured up on products. So since Tricia's baby will be here any day now, we were lucky to find someone who loves to cook and wants to work part-time. Claire went to law school but has decided to stay home with her two daughters. She is a runner, knitter, and PTA member and enjoys cooking. She says that making the foraging rolls is "zenlike" and is pleased to be making you tasty and nutritious treats for your parrots.

Food nutrient charts

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:12:57 GMT

Food Nutrient Charts
For Parrots and People

Are you interested in looking up the calories and nutrient details of foods that you and/or your parrots eat? Here is a web site listing nutrients for seeds, nuts, and grains and then there are links to other parts of the site with charts for other foods.

Parrot Lover of the Month, October 2011- Marie

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:12:03 GMT

Evacuating Before Hurricane Irene With Pets

Hurricane Irene found part of my family evacuated from our South Jersey home in the summer of 2011. Thankfully two family members were already out of state visiting relatives so that left myself, my adult son, my Vos Eclectus Ruby and our 16 yr old cat having to find a safe place to stay in a very big hurry. A young couple (very dear friends) quickly invited us and another couple to come 5 miles inland and take shelter with them in their very tiny one bedroom apartment. It took an entire day to secure our house. We truly appreciated having a place to go since it would have been very difficult to find a motel that would accommodate a parrot and a cat! Our friends did not bat an eye as two families moved in with big bags of personal necessities that we all were afraid to leave behind as well as our litter box, table top perch plus cat and bird carriers! Ruby, who is a habitual plucker due to food allergies, has recently started on a strict all raw veggie/fruit diet plus specific healthy seeds and nuts as well as Lucy's Unpellet and other nutritious food selections from Phoenix Foraging Rolls, LLC.

My biggest concern was not having access to fresh foods for her since the stores and all the roads were closed even where we were staying. What was I to do to insure Ruby had healthy food to eat for the duration since she refuses to eat frozen fruits and vegetables? I soon found I was able to relax and rely completely on my supply of Lucy's foods for the two nights/three days we were evacuated. It turned out this also helped keep Ruby calm because it was the one familiar feeling of home....she was without her cage, her toys and her home surroundings but Lucy's foods were now also her comfort food and I found listening to her rhythmic munching had a calming effect on me as my son and I spent the time wondering if we'd have a house to return to. Evacuation was lifted on the third day and we nervously drove through familiar streets now littered with the remnants of Irene. We were overjoyed to find our house was just as we left it with only downed trees and debris to contend with. There was not even one broken window!

The first thing I did was place Ruby back on top of her huge cage and she promptly tucked her head under her wing and proceeded to take her first deep sleep in three days as my son and I started to put furniture back in place and hook electronic equipment back up in the rest of the house. It would take a good three days to get the house all put back together but it was only three hours after we returned home that I truly knew all would be ok because that is when I heard coming from the bedroom Ruby's loud girly laughter. My little redhead was happy to be home and as I let out a big sigh of relief, I realized so was I.

Mulberries, pine nuts, pistachios, black rice

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:09:50 GMT

Mulberries- Mulberries are high in several antioxidants including anthocyanins, reservatrol and zeaxanthin. They have significant amounts of several others, as well. They are high in Vitamin C and are a good source of B complex, Vitamin K, A, E, iron and other minerals.

Pine Nuts- High in protein, rich source of monounsaturated fats, Vitamin D, A, E and a good source of thiamin. Also, have lecithin. Our pine nuts are soft shelled. So they are a good foraging treat but are not difficult for birds to open. Most of them can be opened by squeezing between your fingers.

Pistachios- have a high quality protein with all 9 of the essential amino acids. They have a low glycemic load and are mildly anti-inflammatory. They are a good source of Thiamin, B6, copper and manganese. They are also rich in monounsaturated fatty acids.

Forbidden Black Rice- extremely high in anthocyanins, Forbidden Rice is also rich in iron. A new study shows that a spoonful of black rice bran or 10 spoonfuls of cooked black rice contains the same amount of antioxidants as a spoonful of fresh blueberries.

GMOs

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:07:19 GMT

What Do You Need to Know About GMO's?

(Genetically Modified Organisms or GE, Genetically Engineered)

There is scary evidence that genetically modified organisms in the GM/GE foods we eat may actually become part of the bacteria inside our digestive tract! One study showed that the Bt toxin from GM corn was in the blood streams of 93% of pregnant women. The USDA is wanting to remove all controls on GE corn and cotton. (Read more.)

When GM soy was introduced in the UK, allergies to soy rose by 50%. GM soy has two NEW proteins in it plus the amount of trypsin inhibitor (a known soy allergen) is seven times higher in GM soy. (See here.)

How do you avoid GMO? If you buy organic, it should not have any GMO ingredients. If you want to find out about other foods that are not available to you in organic, check out this shopping guide or this one.The actual GM crops that are sold in the U.S. are corn, soybeans, canola, cottonseed, sugar beets, Hawaiian papaya, and a small amount of zucchini and yellow squash. However, processed foods often have GMO ingredients in them.

For more information, go here.

Food allergies in pets

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:05:52 GMT

Food Allergies in Pets
Is This More Common Than We Realize?
Here is part one of a series on food allergies in cats and dogs. I haven't seen anyone who has written anything similar for parrots. I know several people with parrots with specific food allergies. I find it interesting that in cats and dogs (one of my cats went through this) many of the symptoms are in the skin. I just wonder how many parrots with plucking problems start it because of food allergies.

I think it's interesting that this DVM points out that HEAT can denature proteins and cause a food to become an allergen. As we know, pellets are processed with high heat when they are extruded, plus they are mostly grains, some of which are GMO, which have problems in and of themselves. There is evidence that just the extrusion process, in addition to the heat, may alter the grain proteins.

Some food for thought in this article.

I'm not connected with this web site nor am I advocating any of their products or supplements. They do have some good articles from time to time.

Quinoa

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:04:16 GMT

Is Quinoa a Superfood?
Quinoa has had a lot of attention lately. Why is this?

Although used as a grain, quinoa does not come from a grass like our common grains. Both the leaves and seeds of the quinoa plant can be eaten. What we get in the store are the seeds. They should be carefully washed as the coating contains saponins, which have a bitter taste and can cause allergies.

Quinoa was considered to be sacred by the ancient civilizations of South America. It is high in protein and has a good amino acid balance. It also contains antioxidants and is a rich source of Vitamin Bs. We use quinoa in several of our products and sell it in our Black Pack. Quinoa is most commonly sold in its white variety but comes in white, red, and black.

To read further about quinoa, click here.

Parrot Lover of the Month- August 2011- Nancy Donaldson

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:03:18 GMT

We Learn That UnPellet Mix is Not Just For Parrots and That Homing Pigeons Don't Always Know How to Get Home!

We know that some of you nibble on some of your Phoenix Foraging Rolls foods when you feed them to your parrots. that's fine because all of our products are made from human grade ingredients. But we hadn't heard of them being fed to other types of birds until now. Nancy Donaldson is home most of the time and is in a wheelchair. So her birds are important companionship for her. Nancy tells this story about her homing pigeon, Blessing:

"Blessing arrived at our house unexpectedly. She came to the storm door and pecked on it, then walked around the porch and came back to peck again. She knocked on our door for about 30 minutes when we decided to open the door and see what happened. She walked in and got up on Jeff's chair. We put her in one of our wire dog crates and kept her in a quiet room for about a month. When she arrived here, she was terribly emaciated, covered in mud and missing her tail. The avian vet said she was basically healthy but had likely lost her way and been attacked by a predator. She had no band but knew the command to step up. We found a really big wire crate and fitted it with perches. I had to learn how to feed her because pigeon food comes in 50 lb sacks. I mix dove food with split peas, lentils, barley, brown rice and pigeon/chicken vitamin supplement. We've had Blessing for 5 years now. We have no idea of her age. She's a beautiful bird and was likely part of a flock before she came here. People raise white homing pigeons and rent them out as "doves" to release at weddings and funerals. If they used real white doves, once they are released they would just fly away. If they release white homing pigeons, they look like white doves but will go back to their loft. Blessing just lost her way.

When I was in the hospital for my amputation, I was gone for 2 months. At the same time, Jeff was working in Kansas. We had a house/pet sitter staying here. Blessing went into a depression and started just sitting in the back corner of her cage. We took her to the vet. She got a physical and was so happy to be back home that her depression lifted. I was running a little short of food for Blessing so I gave her some of the food I had gotten from you for Samson. Blessing loves several of the items. She eats the rice, the lentils and other small seed type foods. Being a pigeon, she doesn't eat cooked food or fruits/veggies. She is not able to eat things like the corn because she can't crack them open. She's a picky eater but ate everything I gave her from Samson's food. She loves brown rice and I bought a bag of Crispy Rice Snacks. She ate all the brown rice and left the black rice in her bowl. LOL! I guess I'll be ordering extra of her favorite foods!"

Samson is Nancy's male Eclectus. Nancy also has eight small dogs, three of which were rescues. They have a room with their crates and it also has a gate to keep them away from the birds. Nancy calls this their "gated community." Two of the dogs have learned how to put their paws under the grate of the birds' cages and scrape out any food that was dropped and eat it. When they were doing this recently, Samson went down and looked at them and said "Whatcha doin'?" Samson entertains Nancy with other expressions that he learns from a variety of situations. He learned to yell "Help!" from watching Grey's Anatomy with her. He also likes to watch the ventriloquist, Jeff Dunham, and he laughs every time the audience laughs. Samson enjoys reggae music but if he gets too excited, Nancy puts on classical music and this calms him down.

Eating UnPellet Together

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 22:01:50 GMT

Look at this great video by one of our customers!

Serving Phoenix UnPellet.wmv

Nancy Richards has made lots of entertaining videos of her parrots. Here Dusty and Emme Jane are served their UnPellet. As Nancy says, "Dusty is being his cute grey self and Emme Jane is being her usual patient self. She knows very well that she will get one of those dishes to herself."

Parrot with its toy bunny

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 21:57:28 GMT

If you haven't seen this video of this parrot with its new toy bunny, you shouldn't miss it!

parrot loves new bunny

Ingredients in pellets

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 21:55:15 GMT

Helpful Link that Explains What They Are
In case you use pellets and wonder what some of the ingredients are this artlcle is helpful in explaining what various ingredients are.

Sheila Byers- Parrot Lover of the Month, September 2011

Lucy Towbin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 21:50:19 GMT

Mr. Hooks with his family

The Parrot Who Goes Everywhere His People Go- Mr. Hooks

Hooks was adopted approximately 5 1/2 years ago at the age of 3 months. We followed his development from infancy with Carol Stanley, his breeder. The first few days we did everything wrong, from his feeding to the size of his cage. Thank goodness Carol helped us often with advise, god diet choices, and handling. My daughter worked full time but lived in a cottage in back making it easy for me to pick him up mornings after she left for work or Jenny would bring him in to our house each morning. It didn't take long for us to fall in love with Hooks and know we could never and would never give him up. I thank goodness Jenny appreciated the special bond between Hooks and my husband and me and let us keep him upon her move. We would have been devastated.

Jenny found a "Pack O Bird" back pack and ordered one for Hooks. Upon its arrival, Hooks and our life changed dramatically and wonderfully so. Hooks goes everywhere with us. We even take him on vacation and out to dine. When dining Hooks always remains in his back pack (except for the photo for the newsletter), and we carry him on our back. He has great table manners and hardly ever makes a sound that would draw attention to himself. We make sure to put something he enjoys eating into the back pack with him. The only time I recall when he became known to others was when we were at lunch with our son and daughter and I excused myself to go to the ladies room. Hooks gave a loud wolf whistle and several diners were probably wondering why someone would wolf whistle at an elderly lady. We felt inclined to explain it came from our bird.

He loves shopping and knows Macy's very well, he even has a following. I cease to be amazed at his interaction with people known to him as well as strangers. The other day we were in the Home Store and a women asked if she could take a picture with Hooks. When we asked Hooks,he answered "OK!!!" Sometimes he will answer "No!!!" Hooks vocabulary is in my mind extensive as well as his interactions with us and others. He loves singing and will sing along to "The Lion Sleeps Tonight"; adding " Yea Hookah" at the end. He sings the phrase "A weem a Wop, A Weem A Wop!" He refers to me as Grand Ma and my husband as Grand Pa. Hooks loves the Blue Tooth phone in our car and if someone calls he is the first to say "Oh Hi" and "By By" When he is out of sorts such as his episode with wing flipping, he would say "Wo Is Me" when I would ask how he was feeling.

Hooks will gladly come out of his cage to have his picture taken, we will only allow him if he wants too and if it is safe for him to do so. We were shopping at Macy's very close to Xmas one evening and the small appliance department was virtually empty until a lone shopper asked if a picture could be taken of Hooks out of his cage. From that point on the department filled with customers from other departments all thanking us for allowing them to visit with Hooks, they felt he put them in the Xmas spirit to make purchases. Needless to say we were invited back by management to have Hooks visit in other departments. We still go and Hooks actually has a following when it becomes known he is in the store and what floor he is on, he especially loves the shoe department and will converse with the men salespeople, going so far as giving deep laughs and the such. Macy's was contemplating having him in one of their adds at one time.

Hooks is like a 3 year old child and we have had to adapt to his needs in many ways. Caring for Hooks is our joy as we know it takes time and effort to nurture a happy, healthy bird.Although Hooks has his wings clipped and cannot fly I feel in my heart he is content with the life he has with us.He is such a happy little thing, never at a loss to throw kisses and give cuddles.

A good diet, as I have learned, is essential for the well being of Eclectus and every effort should be made to offer a healthy diet to our little green and red friends. Hooks is doing wonderfully after a few changes were made and with gratitude from all who offered such good advise.

If I were asked to give advise to someone wanting to adopt an Eclectus, I would say, be prepared to adopt a young child with an attitude problem at times. Take his or her needs seriously, spend time with him or her on a daily basis. Know before hand, they take forethought and love to a higher degree and level. Their diet is all important as well as their showers, clean cage, playtime interaction, and quiet time. It takes work, and lots of love!!!! Know you will always be learning something to assist you in caring for your Eclectus and never hesitate to make him a member of your family, it is all important to the bird and you. Hooks loves to sit at the table with us when he is eating. If we have guests he knows intuitively to be on his best behavior and will not try to remove food off their plate, athough he checks out what is being served and if he is being cheated. We only allow him at the table when good foods are being served such as fruit or veggies.

Mr. Hooks is our Bird grandchild, he is spoiled, he is pampered, he is loved. A complete trust from us to him and him to us is something so wonderful that only others like me can speak to. It is so special, and when he calls Grand Ma in that sweet voice and says 'I Love you", I melt!!!!! George and I have been accused of Loving Hooks more than our grandchildren, unfounded as it is, there is a special bond between Hooks and us!!! Thank you for the opportunity and allowing me to speak for Mr. Hooks, to his special uniqueness as a family member, and our love for him.

Mr. Hooks Comes Out for Photo Session at Sizzler

Food Allergies in Pets

Lucy Towbin — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 21:43:54 GMT

What Do You Need to Know About GMOs?

Lucy Towbin — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 21:42:15 GMT

What Do You Need to Know About GMO's?

(Genetically Modified Organisms or GE, Genetically Engineered)

For more information, go here.

New Improved Green Chunks

Lucy Towbin — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 21:40:49 GMT

New and Improved Green Chunks!

Less Crumbling!

Green Chunks

Green chunks are one of our most popular products. A great way to get some very nutritious leafy greens into your parrot's diet as well as all of the other seeds, grains, and fruits they have in them (go here for a list of ingredients or to order). We hear nothing but good comments from our customers about them. But still, we want to make them even better. We know from our own use that there are always some crumbs in the bottom of the bag. Depending on how shipping went from our facility to your home, there may be more some months than others. Many of you use the crumbs to sprinkle over fresh foods or add to a birdie bread or mash. BUT we want that to be an option, not something you are doing because there are lots of crumbs there you feel you don't want to waste. So we have added a bit of tapioca flour and some xanthan gum to the chunks to help them hold together better.

Tapioca comes from the root of the cassava or yucca plant. It is not a grain and is gluten free. If you want to read more about it, there is information on Lance Armstrong's Livestrong site. Xanthan gum is a high fiber carbohydrate used as a thickener. Lance Armstrong's Livestrong site also has information about xanthan gum.