All of our baby parrots are left with their mother for the first three weeks of their lives. Doing this ensures a strong immune and gut flora system develops. At three weeks of age, the babies are taken from the nest, are handfed and the socialization period begins.

At around eight weeks old, the babies have a complete examination by a licensed avian veterinarian to make sure they are healthy and doing fine. At the same time as the checkup we have them DNA-sexed. As the babies start the weaning process, we introduce them to a great variety of pellets, fruits, rice, pasta, eggs, vegetables and even some chicken.

Baby Parrot

This usually begins at approximately five to six weeks of age, but they are also still being handfed. We gradually start to cut back on the handfeeding as the babies grow and mature. We let the babies let us know when that time arrives. When they are not hungry, they will spit the formula back out or they just won't open their beaks. It is very common for a baby parrot to lose some of their body weight at this point.

All our babies are raised in our home, in a family environment. Our house is a very busy place, with lots of ongoing activity. We are Foster Parents, so we have children of all ages playing with, cuddling and just talking to the baby parrots. Running around the house also are two tiny Yorkshire Terriers and a Toy Maltese. Needless to say, our babies are exposed to many different faces and voices. The babies get to run around our kitchen for large periods of time throughout the day – this is their time to play together and get acquainted with their siblings and friends.

African Grey Congo Parrot

African Grey Congo

The African Grey is known to be the best talkers of all parrots. There are two species of the African Grey, they are the Congo (Psittacus e. erithacus) and the Timneh (Psittacus e. timneh) .The Congo is the larger of the two types. It has a bright red tail and their beaks are black. Their plumage is pale grey, although some are dark grey.

The Timneh Grey is smaller than the African Grey. Its tail feathers are a maroon color, and its beak is sort of a reddish brown color. They are normally darker grey than the Congo. Both species have dark grey feet, bare facial areas and pale yellow irises.

COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN:

Western Kenya, Northern Angola, Southern Congo and Northwest Tanzania and the Islands of Fernando Poo and Principe’

SEXING:	Undeterminable by appearance.
SIZE:	The Congo is a medium sized parrot, about 13 inches long and weighing from 500 to 650 grams.
PERSONALITY:	These parrots are very affectionate, but can also be very shy. They tend to bond strongly with only one person. African Greys have a higher incidence of feather-picking than most parrot species. The Congo Grey is a very playful bird, and is very trainable.
TALKING ABILITY:	These birds often don’t speak well until they are approximately one-year-old, and not all may even speak. The African Greys are excellent talkers and mimics, these parrots can accurately imitate specific human voices and household noises such as the telephone , microwave, door bell , dogs barking, a cats meow, and on and on. The African Grey is said to be the best talker of all parrots, although they will not very often speak when a stranger is in the room.
LIFESPAN:	50 to 60 years and maybe even longer.

Blue and Gold Macaw

The Blue and Gold Macaws are definitely among the most colorful and striking of the Macaw Family.

The Blue and Gold is a large bird. The head, back, and wings are covered with a blue-green color. The frontal body plumage is yellow. The Blue and Gold has the whitish skin facemask.

COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN:

Central America to South America, extending to Bolivia, Brazil and Paraguay.

SIZE:	This macaw, when full grown can get up over 2 pounds, and up to 34 inches long.
PERSONALITY:	Macaws make excellent pets, Some Macaws are one-person type birds, but the Blue and Gold is right at home in a family type situation. Sometimes they prefer a male over a female or vise versa. They require a lot of attention, and are very demanding and have a tendency to become aggressive or to pluck. They are fairly easy to train and are very playful and loving.
TALKING ABILITY:	Moderate to good, but are not considered very good mimics. They can have a general vocabulary of about 15 or more words or expressions.
DIET:	Macaws need fat in their diet and should be fed a fair amount of seeds or nuts daily to supplement a healthy and balanced diet. They love just about any fruit or veggies, eggs, pasta, rice, toast, peanuts, and chicken. Never feed avocado, as it is very toxic to birds.
LIFESPAN:	Sixty years or more.

Red-Sided Eclectus Parrot

MALE

The Red-Sided male is a yellowish green for the most part of the body, with red under its wings on the side of the body. His primary wing coverts and primary flight feathers are a dark blue color, trimmed in green.

The tail of the male is green with the tip of it being a yellowish, under the tail is black with a yellow edging. His upper beak is a orange yellow color, and the tip of it is yellowish.

COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN:

The eclectus parrots originate in New Guinea, Australia, and the islands of Eastern Indonesia.

SIZE:	The eclectus is a medium stocky parrot, somewhere between 14 – 16 inches in length and approximately 500 – 550 grams or 1 – 2 pounds.
PERSONALITY:	The eclectus is relatively quiet, but has got a harsh screech when it wants to. They are fairly easy to tame and are very sociable. Exercise and play are important activities for the physical well being of your parrot. This parrot makes a very affectionate pet and enjoys human attention.
TALKING ABILITY:	Moderate to excellent, some people feel the male is more talented, with more talking ability.
DIET:	Eclectus parrots should have all sorts of fruits and vegetables, such as carrots, corn, beet greens, broccoli, apples, peaches, apricots, bananas, grapes. Never feed avocado, as it is very toxic to birds.
LIFESPAN:	The lifespan of a eclectus is anywhere from 30 – 50 years of age. For this reason most eclectus will have to be willed to someone you trust very much.

MALE

The Red-Sided male is a yellowish green for the most part of the body, with red under its wings on the side of the body. His primary wing coverts and primary flight feathers are a dark blue color, trimmed in green.

The tail of the male is green with the tip of it being a yellowish, under the tail is black with a yellow edging. His upper beak is a orange yellow color, and the tip of it is yellowish.

She has a ring of blue that completely surrounds the eye. The blue eye ring appears after the first molt, but sometimes it doesn’t show until the bird is about one-year-old. All young eclectus have brown irises, turning to a yellow color after they start maturing. Their beak is black.