Lookin' for people in the Springfield area who raise birds... (coops, home)

[mrsgenealogy]

Actually, while it would be ideal to find others who raise birds in the Springfield area, I guess anyone in MO could help offer tips and suggestions, too.

Okay, here's my story...and I'm stickin' to it!

My husband and I used to raise birds in southern CA. Some cockatiels and love birds but mostly parakeets. We loved it and we'd love to do it again in MO but have no idea what we'd do to get them through the winter. You see, we had bird aviaries and a fenced yard out there and we would still want to do it outside, if it can be done in this climate. Therein lies our dilemma...what would we need to do/build to keep them warm in winter? If we could meet other bird-raising people, we might be able to get their advice and maybe even go see what they have done.

My second need is to find other bird lovers who might want to get a bird club going eventually. I can't believe there aren't any in this area...and hardly anything in this state.

Well, there ya go. Have at it...any suggestions? Tips, helps, referrals?

Thanks in advance if you have any ideas!

MrsG

P.S. I just can't seem to submit this post without mentioning our beloved parakeet, Pacer, who we got in 1993 and died in 2002. We got him when he was a baby and we didn't know anything about parakeets then. We finally got him tamed and in the process of trying to coax him down from wherever he had landed, he learned his name...and used it often. He wound up saying almost a hundred different words and phrases, including a cuss word that he made up on his own...but is an actual cuss word. One of his favorite things was to bob up and down in front of the mirror saying, "Such a pretty, pretty bird!" (Heavy emphasis on all the "PRET-TY's"!) Can you tell...I miss him still?

[Catankerous]

My husband and I had looked for "bird people" since we have moved here and haven't found any. The only avairy I know of is in London, Arkansas. When we lived in Cali we had a couple parrots, cockatiels, parakeets and finches. Would love to have the same here someday. I miss my birds too. They sure can be amusing but are a lot of upkeep. I hope you find someone to help because I'd like to know as well.

[jdslady]

MrsG, if you do end up raising birds let me know. I might be one of your first customers! I know what you mean about parakeets. We had one for several years that hated blondes. We used to keep his cage door open and one day of the girls put a blonde barbie on the table by him. He got out of his cage, marched over and shoved it off the table. We sat it up again, and he did the same thing. Then we put a brunette barbie up and he left it alone. He learned to whistle the theme from Andy Griffth cause dh watched it every night. Good luck in your venture and finding someone.

[mrsgenealogy]

Originally Posted by Mr.andMrs.Krinkle

My husband and I had looked for "bird people" since we have moved here and haven't found any. The only avairy I know of is in London, Arkansas. When we lived in Cali we had a couple parrots, cockatiels, parakeets and finches. Would love to have the same here someday. I miss my birds too. They sure can be amusing but are a lot of upkeep. I hope you find someone to help because I'd like to know as well.

This is such a little thread and I fear it will stay that way so I sort of regret responding to both of you at once. In case I get called away, though, I wouldn't want jdslady to think I had slighted her so here I go...

First of all, it's so nice to hear from you two again and am so glad to know you're still hanging out in the forum! We've had all of the birds you mentioned with the exception of finches...and we even considered those at one point. I might even be happy just to find a good breeder to buy a good, young parakeet a.k.a. budgie from. Our Pacer was an American parakeet but I often thought that I'd like to get an English one someday.

London, AR looks pretty far so it's not close enough to drive to. Ideally, I'd like to pick out my bird instead of have someone else pick them for me. More than just getting a bird for a pet, I want to learn about raising them in this climate so I'll have to do some more research to find someone who might be willing to answer some questions for me. Let me know if you find out anything, okay?

Originally Posted by jdslady

MrsG, if you do end up raising birds let me know. I might be one of your first customers! I know what you mean about parakeets. We had one for several years that hated blondes. We used to keep his cage door open and one day of the girls put a blonde barbie on the table by him. He got out of his cage, marched over and shoved it off the table. We sat it up again, and he did the same thing. Then we put a brunette barbie up and he left it alone. He learned to whistle the theme from Andy Griffth cause dh watched it every night. Good luck in your venture and finding someone.

Kewl! Thanks, lady! I don't want to brag but I think we had the best birds! Haha! Some of them got hand raised and I carried them around in a pouch around my neck. They got hand fed and were so tame! We sold them for more money than the others but it was still such a deal since it is so rare to find a tame parakeet to buy!

That is a great story! I was hoping that others might want to share their stories and lo and behold, there you are! I find their various personalities fascinating and it's amazing to think that he didn't like blondes! Hahahaaa!

As for whistling the Mayberry theme, I heard a story once of a bird who was left home alone a lot. He was so desperate for interaction that he found the oddest things to mimic. He whistled the sound of the beeping that the trash truck made while backing up. Isn't that sad? What a great pet he would have made and what a great life he would have had if he had been given a family who would communicate and spend time with him!

I may ask a question on this topic out in the general forum to see if I can find someone who will advise me on setting up an aviary in our climate. I hope you're both subscribed to this thread so you will know if I come back to update it or if someone else replies. Stay tuned, friends!

[Lonesomedove54]

Hello, I dont have any advice for you, but my hubby and I have two cockiteils we hand fed as babies. They both talk, "Hey come here pretty baby< Baby and Billy, and whistle yankee doodle dandy. They are wonderful babies and we love them very much. Sure hope you are able to do what you want, they are so very special! Good luck! ((((((((pacer))))))))))).

[mrsgenealogy]

Awww! How fun! Thanks for dropping by and sharing that, apparently-not-so-lonesome Dove!

I don't believe I've ever seen hand-fed Cockatiels but since other cockatiels are quite tame, these must be awesome ones! Are they siblings or a couple? It's pretty rare to see them talk, too! What a joy they must bring to you every day!

Hugs back atcha and your little birds, too! Hahaha! Yikes! I thought that sounded a little like the wicked witch in Wizard of Oz.

[linicx]

There used to be a wonderful bird shop on E. Sunshine. She handraised all of her birds, taught tricks like to "play dead" and carried the big red Amazon parrot on his back in her arms like a baby. She belonged to him. He was jealous and plain mean to everyone else. She also raised Mapes. She had one named Huggy Bear. The owner had a very distinct southern drawl and you know how birds parrot what they hear.....

One day when I was in the shop she told me to talk to Huggy. What do you say to a bird? That's what I did. "Huggy want a cracker?" kind of stuff. The bird paced back and forth on his perch several times. The last time he stopped in the middle of the perch, looked me dead inthe eye and in his most perfect manners and sweet southern drawl commented, " I can talk, can you fly?"

I laughed so hard tears ran down my face.

To keep your birds healthy you will a need an insulated, heated, a/c area just for them. I know many bird owners in Missouri. No one has an outside winter facility. Too cold. If you like outside birds put up humminbird feeders. I knew the licensed bander when I lived in Grove, OK. Her birds were inside too. The feeders were in a big covered porch area. They filled the porch all the time from spring to fall. Bids are fun to watch. I took care of a friend's dozen birds one weekend. They were inside birds too. He had them from tiny birds to parakeets and Mapes.
.

[firebll31]

I had a parakeet for 7 years, named Rowdy. He was a joy although he never learned to talk. He was very good at non-verbal communication-I always knew what he wanted by the way he dinged his bell, shook the cage or squawked. Would love to have another bird but with 2 cats and a dog inside......
I also had free roaming chickens for a while and loved to watch them interact as they searched for food and taught the chicks. Oh, the panic when a hawk whistled overhead! Each had its own personality. Most didn't mind when you removed their eggs, but some were just naughty. Always fun to watch.

[cali-grown]

MrsG, I don't know anyone here that raises birds, but my mother-n-law used to have her aviary outside. They lived in TN and the climate was about the same where they were. My father n law put in a heater for the winter time and covered the sides in heavy duty plastic. The canaries they raised sure did seem to thrive.
You might want to look for a bird enthusiast website to find out exactly what other people do. I've seen aviaries that kind of look like pigeon coops (fancy ones) so that a heater can be used in winter without having to cover the outside.
I have a Quaker and bring him in for the winter, but he's outside all summer and part of fall. His coloring gets deeper in the humidity of summer. He does tend to pick up some of the calls from the wild birds that come around and fools me all the time.
Good luck to you!

[mrsgenealogy]

Originally Posted by linicx

There used to be a wonderful bird shop on E. Sunshine. She handraised all of her birds, taught tricks like to "play dead" and carried the big red Amazon parrot on his back in her arms like a baby. She belonged to him. He was jealous and plain mean to everyone else. She also raised Mapes. She had one named Huggy Bear. The owner had a very distinct southern drawl and you know how birds parrot what they hear.....

One day when I was in the shop she told me to talk to Huggy. What do you say to a bird? That's what I did. "Huggy want a cracker?" kind of stuff. The bird paced back and forth on his perch several times. The last time he stopped in the middle of the perch, looked me dead inthe eye and in his most perfect manners and sweet southern drawl commented, " I can talk, can you fly?"

I laughed so hard tears ran down my face.

To keep your birds healthy you will a need an insulated, heated, a/c area just for them. I know many bird owners in Missouri. No one has an outside winter facility. Too cold. If you like outside birds put up humminbird feeders. I knew the licensed bander when I lived in Grove, OK. Her birds were inside too. The feeders were in a big covered porch area. They filled the porch all the time from spring to fall. Bids are fun to watch. I took care of a friend's dozen birds one weekend. They were inside birds too. He had them from tiny birds to parakeets and Mapes.
.

That's hilarious! What a funny thing for a bird to say! I wish she still had a shop now. I bet her store would be my favorite!

Yeah, that's what we figured we'd have to do...raise the birds inside. It seems like it would be too expensive to keep them warm through the winter. Once we add on to our home with a new bedroom, our old bedroom is already being discussed as a home for a few birds. Now, if we can keep saying "no" to ourselves when we visit the birds at the store until then, we'll be okay.

Thanks for the story and the tips!