Feathers and Foxtrot

Wild Bird Rehabilitation Training,  Ballroom Dance Teaching, & DJ

Heather Parsons

23 Lindsay Ave Ermington, 2115, Australia

Home

Navigation Page

Ballroom Dancing

Dance Lessons

Theme Nights

Ballroom Dance Links

Where is Rooty Hill RSL

Dancing Hints

My Book "Caring For Australian Native Birds"

Contents

Reviews

Photos

Bird Rehabilitation

FAQ's

Rehab contacts in OZ

Web sites for Rehab

Bird Weights

PCD or PBFD

Training Courses

"Caring for Australian Native Birds"

CONTENTS 

Chapter 1- Wildlife Rehabilitation   

  • Why we do it?

  • What is involved?

  • When is rehabilitation not an option?

 

Chapter 2 - Coexisting with birds

  • The ethics of care

  • Why should we help disadvantaged wild animals?

  • How we can better live with and not adversely affect birds?

  • Setting up a bird friendly garden

  • Bird Friendly areas in the wider community

  • Where to find help?

  • Wildlife rehabilitation organisations and shelters

  • The Law and Caring for Wild Birds

  • How do birds come into care?

  • The  Future?

 

Chapter 3 - Identification

  • Carnivores

    • Raptors, kookaburras and butcherbirds

    • Insectivores

    • Sea birds

    • Waterbirds

    • Waders

  • Omnivores

  • Nectarivores

  • Frugivores

  • Granivores

 

Chapter 4 - Bird behaviour

  • Bird Behaviour

  • Preening and bathing

  • Communication

  • Migration

  • Intelligence

  • Predators

  • Food gathering_

  • Begging behaviour in young birds

 

Chapter 5 - General physical aspects and rehabilitation

  • Skeleton

  • Feathers

  • Digestive system

  • Respiratory System

  • The Senses

    • Vision

    • Hearing

    • Smell and other senses

  • Over-stimulation

  • Salt Glands in Sea Birds

 

Chapter 6 - Catching a sick or injured bird

  • Useful items often used when catching and transporting birds

  • Catching with a net on the ground

  • Catching a bird using only a towel

  • Special Precautions

    • Parrots

    • Small birds

    • Large birds

    • Raptors

    • Small ducklings

  • Catching a bird that can still fly

  • Special Situations

    • Birds caught in netting covering fruit trees

    • Birds trapped in a swimming pool

    • Fishing line entanglement

    • Birds trapped in buildings

    • Large flightless birds

 

Chapter 7 - Examination

  • Dehydration

  • Body temperature

  • Head

  • Wings

  • Feathers

  • Body

  • Legs

  • Weight

  • Internal

  • Poisoning

 

Chapter 8 - First Aid

  •     What is shock?

  •     Signs of shock

  •     Shock and dehydration

  •     Treatment for shock

  •     Stabilisation

  •     Measurement of body temperature

  •     Heat Stress

  •     Simple first aid kit for rescuers                                                          

 

Chapter 9 - Stress

  • Stages of stress

    • How do we recognise stress in a bird?

  • Types of stress

    • Immediate Physical  Stress

    • Normal Physical Stress

    • Perceived Mental stress

    • Actual Mental stress

    • Normal Mental Stress

  • Ways to reduce stress

 

Chapter 10 - Common injuries and diseases

  • Head injuries

    • Concussion

    • Eye damage

    • Beak Injuries

  • Neck injuries

    • Signs of neck injury are

  • Internal injuries

    • The signs and symptoms of possible internal injuries

  • Broken bones

    • Treatment of fractures

  • Skin tears

  • Feather damage

    • Feather Removal

    • To pluck feathers from a bird

  • Metabolic bone disease (MBD)

    • Signs of MBD

    • Treatment for MBD

  • Sticky substances on birds

    • Removal of sticky substances

  • Birds caught by a cat or a dog

    • Standard treatment for cat attack victims

  • Birds that have been shot

  • Hook and/or fishing line entanglement

  • Illness resulting from poisoning

    • Symptoms of pesticide poisoning include

    • Treatment of pesticide poisoning victims

  • Parasites

    • Signs of external parasites

    • Avoid further infestation by parasites

    • Signs for suspecting an overload of internal parasites are

    • Avoiding further parasite build up

  •  Infectious diseases

    •  Viral Diseases

      • Psittacine Beak and Feather Disease (PBFD) in parrots 

      • PBFD in Lorikeets

      • PBFD in birds other than parrots

      • Treatment of PBFD

    • Aspergillosis

    • Chlamydiosis

    • Pox

  • Bacterial Infections

    • Signs of Bacterial infections

    • Bumble Foot

    • Botulism

 

Chapter 11- Housing

  • Housing for sick / injured / or young birds

  • The Essential Aviary Requirements

  • General

    • Cover

    • Size

    • Plants

    • Floor

    • Compost

    • Food

    • Water

    • Exercise

  • Renovating old aviaries

  • Special Aviaries

    • Parrot Aviaries

    • Sea Bird Aviaries

  • Temporary enclosures

  • Predator exclusion

  • Housing different types of birds together   

  • The external environment

  • Principles when housing many birds

  • Cage cleaning

 

Chapter 12 - Feeding

  • Diet

  • Weight monitoring

  • Feeding insectivorous birds

  • Food to collect

  • Food to buy

  • Food to breed

  • Types of insects found in the gizzards of native birds

    • Insects found in birds that feed in the sky include

    • Insects found in birds that feed in the upper foliage include

    • Insects found in birds that feed in middle and low foliage include

    • Insects found in birds that feed on the trunk of trees include

    • Insects found in birds that feed in shrubs include

    • Insects found in birds that feed on the ground include

    • Insects found in birds that obtain their feed from underground include

    • Foods eaten by insect-eating birds that feed in water include

    • Insects found in birds that feed on other animals include

  • Presentation of insects for birds

    • Feeding nectarivarous birds

    • Feeding granivorous birds

    • Feeding frugivorous birds

    • Feeding wading birds

    • Feeding sea birds

    • Feeding carnivorous birds

  • Don't use dog or cat food because

  • Feeding debilitated birds

  • How to force-feed a bird

  • How to crop-feed a bird

  • Some emergency diets

 

Chapter 13 - Orphaned birds

  • Branchers

  • Young birds handled by humans

  • Young birds that are not injured

  • Young birds that have fallen from the nest

  • Types of young birds

  • Housing for Precocial Young

  • Housing for Altricial Young

  • Vitamin D

  • Immediate care of an unfledged bird

  • Normal behaviours for young birds

  • Average feed rates for some common birds

  • Preening and bathing

  • Sleep and rest

  • Identification of young birds

  • Moving a bird from nest to aviary

  • Weaning to self feeding

  • Educating a bird to normal behaviour

  • Imprinting

    • What is it?

    • Precautions to take to avoid it

    • What happens if a bird is imprinted

    • Can it be reversed?

    • How do you tell if a bird is imprinted

    • What can be done to reduce the affects of imprinting

 

Chapter 14 - Release Preparation

  • Habitat

  • Group acceptance

  • Weather

  • Time

  • Migration 

  • The Type Of Release

 

Chapter 15 - Care Plans

  • Care plans are presented for the various bird groups and some individual species 

  • Raptor care guidelines - requirements of NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service

 

Appendices

  • I. Weight ranges of some birds in the wild

  • II. Migratory bird' arrival and departure dates

  • III. Making a feeding puppet

  • IV. Building a flight aviary

  • V. Calorie and Energy requirement charts

  • VI. Wildlife organisations in Australia

Bibliography

 

 Feathers & Foxtrot   

All content on this site is copyright. Permission should be sought from the author for use other than personal.

For comments regarding this web site - or to contact Heather, send email to : heatherparsons ( insert at )optusnet.com.au

This email address needs to be typed into your mail browser due to spam mail problems with having a link on the page, Thank you.

Monday, 26 June 2006