JUNE / JULY 2005 JOURNAL

Healthy Bird Delights

Howdy folks.  Hope you all have been following our Hahn's Nursery Page.  Tis the buss around here, let me tell you!  We now have eight lovebird babies, 3 linnie babies so far (still in the nest) and three hahns babies, with more to come next week.  Yes, Jo is in her glory! 

As with babies fed right from Day 1, Jo says it's taking forever for these guys to grow up.  The past week she is pretty happy as  they are really picking up, and growing in leaps and bounds.  They take feeding time seriously and it's just too funny feeding these guys.  They get up on tip toes and just squeal for their turn.  Jo spoon feeds and you have to be sure to have a good strong grip on that spoon!!  Dakota did get his ankle bracket on today, but that's not saying it will still be there at supper time!

And it wasn't BUT it is back on him now.  As well Trixie is sportin a bracklet.  Goes to tell you these guys are growing fast and furious.  Now they their eyes are wide open, they are nosey everywhere and just wish they could get over at the other babies!  Jo gives them another day before the height of the "fence" goes up around them!!!  As of today the tincy little bum (O.K. tail) feather are coming in!  Tis just too cute.  You know they are going to have long tails when those are the first feathers you see.  Really Dakota is sportin a couple puffs of green on his shoulder. 

The lovebird babies are going full speed ahead and got promoted to their first big boy condo yesterday.  Don't take them long.  They have already climbed up and checked out all the perches, sat in all the food dishes and pooed in the water for good measure!  Too funny at this age, trippin all over their feet trying to be first to get out the door when it opens.  Four more should be advancing in another week and a half to their condo.  The little violet guy here had his new Mom come visit him on the weekend.  There are 3 more of the little ones spoke for as well, so I guess when you do the math, that leaves 4 left not spoke for.

Then we have three little linnies in the brooder.  A lady came and picked up her new olive baby linnie on the weekend and depending on what mutations these three babies feather in, depends on if they are all reserved.  Nelly's Mom (the olive baby) is hoping for a regular mutation green and we have a lady in NFLD wanting blues.  We do have one lonely olive waiting on a new home.  I should not say she's lonely, she's actually having a great time helping Jo feed all the babies and getting herself into loads of trouble.  And if you don't think this little lady dosen't talk up a storm.  Yap, Yap, Yap, Come here, Step up, Ah ah ah, hello all day long!

Our Hahns babies are feathering in very nicely now.  We give them another two weeks before Jo has a hard time keeping up with them.  Those little legs can move mighty fast with no particular destination in their minds>  When you have three on the go at once, and of course all with different destinations, look out!  We hope to get them sexed this week as the new owner of the little "boy" that "must" be amongst the three, new name will be Forrester. 

Lovebirds, well one clutch is at the tripping over each other stage and the other four, well they are going to clue in any day now that they can actually fly!  Right now they are far too busy all over Jo, on her playing in the paper on her desk,  working on her computer, you name it.  They are ready, willing and able to lend a foot!

Jo is very pleased to now say she is stocking the complete line of Goldenfeast Gourmet foods.  She is really, really impressed.  Heard her saying it's  been a long time since she has seen food of this good a quality.  She is also stocking Beak Appetit, Crazy Corn and some products from Peek n' Coo.  Between the youngins, big guys, and preparing for these new lines, she has been a busy camper.  Oh and when she gets a spare minute she even feeds Lou!   

Canada Day has come and gone.  Sure hope everyone had a great wonderful weekend. We watched beautiful fireworks in Shediac Friday evening.   As you can see we had lots of company this past weekend and the hahns got in lots of snuggle time!  They adore being wrapped up in their blankees and being snuggled.  Trixie sat snuggled in her blankee last night in one hand whist Jo did some one finger answering of emails!  She promptly took a nice nap!  Gail was down and so far Trixie has really caught her eye.  If so, Trixie will soon become "Brooke" or "Forrester" depending on the sex.  We were supposed to sex these snuggle bums this past weekend, but Jo decided she would rather wait until they reach the two month old birthday. 

Just posted more pictures of one clutch of lovebirds here today.  They are just going concerns as you can see.  Jo is getting quite good at snapping pictures with one hand as they are tramping all over her.  THe little pied one, being sexed today, but Jo is pretty sure that would be a little boy, is just a going concerns.  Full of piss and vinegar as they say!  Can't go near these guys home and they are at the front door, just praying it's gonna open! 

Soon we have to get some pictures of our new linnie babies and get them up here for your folks.  This morning they graduated out of the brooder and into their first beginner home.  When they crawl up the side of the basket and sit on the edge, you know it's time to promote them!  They are all reserved and I don't think Jo has even got them marked in our LInnie Nursery yet.  One is going to live with Nellie who left a couple weeks ago and then two other cobalts are going to live in a wonderful home in NFLD. 

Now means today is going to be another extremely hot day here, as usual (seems to be the trend lately huh) we are leaving you and going to get our chores done!  I seem to recall the big guys telling Jo the freezer has run out of their favorite pumpkin bread!  As if Jo wants to turn a hot oven on today, but ya gotta do what ya gott do she says!  Today they are all having Asian Medley (goldenfeast product) mixed with shredded carrots and sweet potato.  We'll let you know how they like that.  We can tell you they LOVE the Bean Supreme,  Hookbill Legume and Treat Petite.  The poic's expecially love the Peck N'Coo Berry Biscuits!

We had a lady here on the weekend picking some up for her conure, the Hookbill Petite and Gardenflora Blend II.    She called Jo last night to tell her she has never ever seen her bird eat so well. She has eaten every morsel, no waste, no throwing overboard!  Here is another excerpt Jo received in an email. 

WOW I am sooo pleased with the Golden Feast Products! They are amazing! My cockatoo loves it. (smile).   .............Joy

As you can see, or should I say, Jo will tell you, pictures are very deceiving, as this little babe above has the most beautiful violet rump.  Picture shows all you folks that I have a blue rump!  Guess we heard today is the last day we are going to get to enjoy these nice long flight feathers.  We are our way to loosing them! 

Pretty busy times in this house lately folks, we gotta tell ya.  Seems there has been no spare time for nothing, cepting a bit of shut eye maybe! Check out http://www.lovebirds.ca/Hahns%20Nursery.htm

to see all the updated photos of our hahns babies.  Man oh man, are they growing, funny and oh so nice babies!  Just as gentle as can be.  It was pretty funny yesterday.  Jo and Helper Jo were snipping toes to do DNA sexing.  Until then the hahns  had a nice LARGE bowl of water on the floor of their condo.  Poor Pippin did not like this toe snippin experience at all, combined with the fact it was really muggy he was just panting when Jo put him down.  Jo decided she should put a dish of water right beside the perch he was on to see if he would take a drink.  SURE DID, must have figured we really soiled him with our nice clean hands, as he jumped right in and took a bath.   Monkey see, monkey do, as soon as we finished each one, they took turns jumping into that little dish.  I don't know who had more fun, them or us watching them.  Today they got their first spray mist.  It is not hard to see these are three hahns that ADORE water!  They were fanning and flapping and loving every minute. 

Joey and Oscar the two new kids on the block are growing and doing wonderful.  This weekend could prove to give us even more new kids on the block.

We only have one picture of the cobalt linnie  here, but he and his sibling are going to live in NFLD when they are ready.  The cute part of this story is their names are going to be Skye and Stormy.  Identical names of two of Jo's linnies in Fredericton, where one of the Hahns is going to live!

The news is in!  We have two little boy hahns babies and a little girl.  Pippin, girl.  Higgins (aka Trixie) boy, Shazza (aka Dakota) boy. As fast as Oscar is growing up, Jo would swear he is a little boy as well.  Joey, is not far behind, but given he is 4 days younger, he's a ways behind Oscar. 

Now do you want to hear more exciting news of the week.  Jo is absolutely delighted to tell you, so far we have two little red belly babies.  Jo was about ready to pack it in with Rosa as she is just so tame and always wanting to get out and be with Jo.  Gosh, three days before she started laying eggs, she was out helping Jo feed the others and "trying" to feed Jo!  Never would Jo have assumed she was getting ready to lay eggs, never mind two being fertile and hatching.   One more to go!  It was priceless yesterday, what Jo would have done to be able to record it.  Jo opens the nestbox to check on Rosa.  Rosa calmly looks up, then goes back to the task at hand, while Jo watches.  Feeding her wee little babies.  Not the least bit concerned.  This I must tell you is the only pair we have that are this mellow when nesting!  We are probably premature in telling you all this news as they are only three days old, but Rosa is such a good Mom and Chum such a dedicated Dad, we "hopefully" are not anticipating any problems. 

As you can see Sola, the little linnie next door here is looking pretty scuffy.  The "whites" you see on her head are new pins coming in.  First major molt for her.  The "her" part could be subject to change as well.  We have sent the sexing away for her, in hopes that she is a little girl.  If so, she is going to live in Ontario with another little olive boy who now resides right next door to her.  We were going to put them together, but then decided we had better wait.  Don't want them becoming all cozy together and then having to break them up, if it's not a true pair. 

As you can see, Jessica and Lucas were here to visit us, Jessica right in her glory!  Not intimated at all by the size of the hahns babies.  This was her first time seeing these guys all growed up and as you can tell, she loved them!   This is Higgins having a little cuddle and exploration in her hair. 

TINY RASCALS AVIARY