4 comments about The Backyard Birdhouse Book.

1. excellent for the backyard birder. It offers really useful ideas for attracting birds and keeping them coming to your yard.



2. I was sent this then-new book seven or eight years ago to review for my newspaper column on birds, and found it to be an excellent guide, not only on how to build boxes for all sorts of cavity-nesting birds, but also how to deal with problems like predators and pests. I built one of the boxes; it went together well and has served quite a few feathered families over the past five or six years.



3. I was interested in putting up some birdhouses (nestboxes) in my backyard and trying to attract some of the more exotic birds, etc... I checked out about a dozen books form the library.. Well, this one hands down was the best...
   
   Book starts out by going over the birds you would want to attract to your nestboxes, with pictures and bios on all the birds, such as bluebirds, chickadees, titmouses, etc.... Then it goes into the nestboxes, pro and cons of certain nestboxes.. and tells you how to alter each nestbox to attract the birds at the beginning of the book (mainly you just drill a size hole)....
   While watching birds in my backyard or building a nestbox, I have consulted this book over and over.. It's a great book, and I have no idea why the other reviewer gave it such a bad review..



4. This book was terrible. I couldn't believe how bad it was. It was very out of date and made no sense. The directions are very hard to follow and it doesn't give nearly enough details. This didn't work for me at all. My birdhouses kept falling apart!!! I would highly suggest another book to replace this one, or better yet, you can have mine because I won't be using it!

No comments about Common Birds of North America - Illustrated Guide to 50 Most Common North American Birds!.

No comments about Parakeets (Practical Pet Care).

5 comments about Amazon Parrots Complete Owner's Manual.

1. I also found this book extremely outdated (the original version was written in 1987 and there has been an enormous amount of research and experience with captive parrots since then that has revolutionized the way parrots are perceived and kept), with much information that is contradictory, confusing or incomplete. This is indeed a "dangerous" book for someone who knows little or nothing about Amazons (or parrots in general) and is looking for advice and information. Examples: In considering "Amazons as pets" the "warnings" are incomplete and/or euphemistic (most Amazons will outlive their care-takers; they not only "soil things", they are outright destructive if not constantly supervised; owning an Amazon, or any parrot, is a major committment to a labor-intensive responsibility that is time-, energy-, money- and attention-consuming and should not be undertaken lightly); the "Advice for buying" is terrible!! and any parrot book written these days, especially for the American market, is not complete if it does not mention the thousands of parrots that are given up every year to shelters and rescues - many of these birds are desperately in need of a good home and can be adopted by serious people; under "Dangers for your Amazon", fumes from Teflon pans in the kitchen are not mentioned and these can be speedily fatal; the diet advice is simply awful!; advice to breed to preserve the species that are threatened with extinction is completely wrong - parrots bred in captivity do not contribute in any way to preserving the species, as is now recognized by conservationists.
   At least one of the addresses given under "Information" is completely out of date; a large number of the references have nothing to do with Amazon parrots, but are about budgies, African grays or Australian parrots - Amazons, as the name implies, come from South and Middle America.
   Yes, the pictures are lovely, but the incorrect and misleading information make this book one that should be removed from the shelves.
   Anyone looking for good up-to-date parrot information can best consult the Internet - there are a myriad of excellent sites, with forums for questions. Here you can also get recommendations for books that will really be helpful, informative and up-to-date. Be sure to look at many RELIABLE sites to get a good over-view the pro's and con's of parrot owning before beginning - we are talking about living, intelligent beings here, not playthings.



2. The book not only provides scant and outdated information, some of it is erroneous, and quite a part of it harmful. I am quoting the ones I can remember: amazons, like all parrots, do NOT need to be fed grit; not only cherry, but a lot of other types of fruit tree wood are poisonous to parrots, including apple and apricot; acorns and celery are both harmful to parrots, and should not be fed to them. All in all, this is a guide to quickly and painfully disposing of your pet, and ought to be avoided. I don't give it one star mainly because it has some pretty pictures.



3. After purchasing just about every Amazon Parrot book out there and being disappointed, I found this one. Instead of pretty photos and general narrative fluff, this book has good solid information for anyone interested in the species. Thank you.



4. As a new Amazon owner I was looking for a species-specific book that would give me detailed information about my blue-front. Unfortunately this book seemed superficial, simplistic, and somewhat out-dated (with some information actually contrary to what is widely recommended now). It has some wonderful pictures, and fragments of useful species information, but overall I think there are better general care books available (certainly more detailed), and this book's Amazon-specific information was sketchy.



5. I bought this book to help me learn more about the amazona genus that I was considering as a pet. But what I found was a book written before 1992 which was around the time importation was banned and hand raising and breeding birds within the United States had became more common. This resulted in very little information about todays common amazons. Also, this book described all the the precautions one must take to ensure the saftey of your wild caught bird, precautions that are now just plain useless! Though if what you are looking for is a picture book about amazons, this is almost a good book for you.

2 comments about The Game Cock - Being a Practical Treatise on Breeding, Rearing, Training, Feeding, Trimming, Mains, Heeling, Spurs, etc. (History of Cockfighting Series).

1. This book is great. It is not illegal. It is not garbage. Cockfighting is not illegal in every state. And lastly people breed game cocks and show them who dont fight them.
   
   AMAZON I AM A CUSTOMER AND THANK YOU FOR HAVING THESE BOOKS.
   
   PETA and the nazis both would have you get rid of books.



2. Interesting book on what has recently become such a trendy topic of outrage. Cockfighting is illegal in my state and I have no intention of violating that law. Nonetheless, I am glad that in this nation, founded on freedom, particularly of information and knowledge (the only way a democracy can function), I was able to read about the subject to satisfy my curiosity about the outrage towards the sport.
   
   It occurs to me that most reviewers here have probably little to no firsthand knowledge of much that occurs with our domesticated animals, be they for meat or dairy or laying...they certainly display a close-minded and hysterical attitude in their reviews towards 'cruelty' that is obviously mired in ignorance.
   
   I wish that before screaming their self-aggrandizing, high-handed moral biases...people would at the least read the book. Anyways, bravo to anyone who doesn't bow and scrape to would-be moral tyrants who scream on the 'innanets' (that's humorous irony in itself, I think).
   
   Once again: interesting read on what is obviously very deep subject matter.

5 comments about The Complete Pet Bird Owner's Handbook.

1. I'm pleased with this book purchase and can recommend it to both new and experienced companion parrot owners because it offers basic, simple information as well as more in-depth, veterinary-level advice. From bird species behaviors and "personality traits" to cage types to toy tips in what I'd classify as the "simpler" category to signs of disease and training tips and how to handle emergencies and disorders in the "heavier" category, Gary Gallerstein offers a ton of information. Luckily, there's more than one index to help find info if you're in a hurry: Index of Signs and General Index. There's also a detailed Table of Contents to help find information quickly, including appendices, weights and measures, etc.
   
   From Fantasy Author Sandy Lender



2. This is one of the most complete bird care books. It really should be in every bird owners home.



3. An excellent book that is easy to use as a reference and has the most current thinking on the correct way to care and feed birds.



4. This book was purchased for historical purposes only to see how far we have come in aviculture.
   
   I caution any new pet bird owner looking for a owner's handbook on birds to buy a CURRENT book--this is very important. Spend the extra dollars for the most updated information. Many things have changed over the years.



5. As the title indicates, this book is "complete". Dr. Gallerstein starts off with a chapter to really make a person think about whether a pet bird would be right for you. If the answer to this is "yes", he then goes on to help you decide which bird you should be looking for - age, size, noise level, how to pick a healthy bird, etc.
   
   He gives a brief description of several types of birds, indicating where they live in the wild, their size, noise level, age at maturity, activity level, playfulness, destructiveness, cuddliness, talking potential, biting potential and whether they are good for first-time bird owners. He also gives the potential life span for these birds.
   
   Dr. Gallerstein then talks about bringing your new bird home. He gives some excellent examples of the "do's and the don'ts" to help a bird owner introduce a new bird into the household. He talks about what causes stress & how to reduce stress as well as the daily care and the weekly care required for this bird and a few time saving tips to help you out.
   
   The chapter on proper caging & furnishings provides plenty of information to help you make a decision about what is required for birds ranging from finches, canaries & budgies to the macaws. There is even a shopping list provided so that you don't forget anything when you go to the pet supply store to pick out your bird's accessories.
   
   The nutrition chapter covers information for new bird owners as well as experienced bird owners. Dr. Gallerstein explains what should be fed to your bird as well as why so you will have a good reason to start making changes in your bird's diet, if you haven't been following this advice. This chapter ends with some wonderful recipes.
   
   At some point, you are going to have to hold your bird and the chapter on bird restraint explains how to do this for the various sized birds. Dr. Gallerstein then moves nicely into the chapter on grooming with detailed pictures to help with his descriptions.
   
   Safety for your bird is important & information is provided regarding young children, other pets (including other birds) and household dangers. Everyone wants a well-behaved parrot and Dr. Gallerstein leads both new & experienced parrot owners through some very informative suggestions and ideas.
   
   The chapter titled Avian Anatomy and Physiology has extremely interesting information including colour photographs of normal and not so normal parrot droppings.
   
   Home Physicals and Veterinary Care are both chapters that provide information for experienced pet bird owners as well as the new bird owner and should really be read more than once to help you remember all the important information in it.
   
   Another valuable chapter is titled Medical Emergencies and it starts off with a list indicating which emergencies are life threatening, which require veterinary attention within the day & which can wait until the next day for treatment. Each of the emergencies is then discussed in more detail throughout the chapter.
   
   This is an excellent book for both new and experienced bird owners that I highly recommend.

5 comments about How to Build Your Own Aviary, Cages, Nestboxes, Etc. and $ave a Bundle: The Ultimate Step-by-Step Guide.

1. This may be a good guide for people who raise chickens or pigeons. It's not helpful at all for folks wanting an outdoor aviary for their exotic birds. The book does not stress safety or bird-safe materials.



2. This book is a valuable resource in that if you follow the authors suggestions it can keep you from making a lot of costly mistakes. While this book is geared towards someone who is in the business of breeding birds, it is full of practical advice that can be applied to someone who just wants to keep birds for enjoyment. I recommend it...



3. An aviary is more than a cage. I found this book very expensive for chapters that basically repeated the same info, with just a change of bird name etc. I was hoping for some plans to build an outdoor aviary, but this book is about mass producing cages of lower quality to house
   hundreds of birds for breeding and profit.



4. This is a good book. It is not for the person who has never built anything though. Fortunately my roommate is a real handy dandy person and can decipher these how to books quite easily. I don't know what half the tools are. So if you plan to use it to build cages or an aviary, you better know something about building things to start with, or have a good friend who does.



5. this is a great book for those who want to start the bird business idea with the minimum coasts,it explains how to build all from scratches,the only thing taking against it is the black and white photoes used to explain how to make nest boxes and so ,but not really a big deal as long as explains all steps though building things.

3 comments about Choosing and Keeping Ducks and Geese: A Beginner's Guide to Identification, Care, and Husbandry of over 35 Species.

1. This is a good book for beginners. Good pictures. This is a good companion book to go with Storey's Duck guide.



2. Let's be honest... how many books do we really need on breed identification? The Storey's Guide to Poultry Breeds is much better than this one, or if you just want one for waterfowl: "Ducks & Geese in Colour" is a good choice. There are other chapters in this book, but all-in-all you won't find anything new or exciting in this book. It just states the obvious, the same subjects covered by every other duck book out there except that this book is a lot LESS thorough.
   
   The other disappointment with this book is that it was published by TFH, who are reknowned for their pet guidebooks. Despite this fact, this book is not geared towards pet owners at all, it's geared towards breeders. Everyone I knew who purchased it based on it being a pet guide was disappointed with the book and with TFH for not editing out all of the "for table" references. Additionally, there is a morbid photo of a dead duck on one of the pages. Who thinks to go grab a camera when faced with their dead animal, so they can put it in their book? And what, as readers, are we supposed to gain from this? I couldn't even get a good answer from the author on this point.
   
   Ultimately, breeders can find better resources (Chris Ashton's "The Domestic Duck" and "The Domestic Goose") and pet owners would do 100% better with "The Ultimate Pet Duck Guidebook" which is pure genius.



3. This book is really very good. The pictures are beautiful and the whole book is really well done. If you have other duck books and are looking for one with great pictures, this is it. On the other hand, if you are only going to have one book on keeping ducks, get Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks. It is the most complete of any that I have found (and I have dozens).

5 comments about Stroud's Digest on the Diseases of Birds.

1. why do i really like this book when i need to know nothing about bird health? because a) it was written by the bird man, a convicted murderer who was himself so genuinely curious about bird health, and b) in the glossary of this book there is a entry for sadism that reads: SADISM(sa'dizm). Donatien Alphonse Francois Conte de Sadem, 1740-1814. A form of sex perversion in which pleasure is derived from inflicting pain on another. Anyone who takes a keen delight in the infliction of pain is designated a sadist. (page 460) Is it a reflexive gesture by the murderer cum author, a veiled critique of the prison system, or both?



2. Great book considering I want to be a vet in the future, its very helpful and useful.



3. We rescue an average of 1000 birds a year and we owe a lot of our success to Robert Stroud. We use all his methods and we average about a 12 percent loss in our birds. He is our mentor and we have proven his methods work. The national rate for losses in wild birds is 33 percent we have averaged out to 12 percent. If you don't buy and then use Stroud's methods you will loose out.



4. As a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine I have found this book of both practical and historical interest. It is still considered a standard work of the diagnosis and treatment of Avian diseases. A modern bird breeder would not be at fault in following Mr. Stroud's advice. While browsing the library of a retired colleague, I found what I believe to be a first edition of Stroudt's Digest. Can anyone tell me how to confirm this? The edition I have bears the copyright date of 1943, the dedication and forward are dated 1939. Was there a printing between 1939 and 1943?



5. Mr. Stroud spent, according to the publisher's notes, 54 years in solitary confinement--All of it devoted to the study of how to identify and cure the diseases of birds. This book although written many years ago, is still a comprehensive study of the diseases, injuries, ailments and conditions of birds. There are few vetinarians who have studied bird ailments so intensively, or can give such detailed and practical information on how to identify what is wrong with them. I suspect the modern state of avian medicine owes a great debt to the work of Mr. Stroud. The text is clear and even when technical, explains the condition, symptoms, cause or suspected causes and known or possible treatments in practical terms. Mr. Stroud's book was written when there were few avian veterinarians available to help bird breeders and owners. That problem persists to this day. The information provided covers the entire range, from the mundane to the exotic. I would not be surprized to learn that Mr. Stroud's techniques, discoveries and research are the backbone of all modern avian medicine and avian veterinary curriculum. The book also provides detailed vitamin requirement analysis and food sources as well as descriptions of vitamin deficiency ailments. It is amazing that so much information is packed into one book. I have seen nothing in any owner handbooks that I did not find in Mr. Stroud's book with more detail and clarity. As any bird owner who has had a sick bird knows, birds can progress from barely noticable illness to death while searching for a vet who knows anything about avian medicine at all. Mr. Stroud's book should be perused by all bird owners. And if one proceeds with caution regarding the suggested medications of Mr. Stroud which may be outdated or have better alternatives available in this modern day, this book can still provide health giving and life-saving information that one can apply while one is waiting for the vet to call back.

3 comments about Birds of Argentina & Uruguay: A Field Guide.

1. Don't know if experts agree, but for me it served the purpose well during my 2 weeks in Argentina



2. Basics: 2003, 15th edition, softcover, 341 pages, 256 color plates, 975 species, range map for each bird
   
   First published in 1987, this is a brief, concise identification guide covering all of Argentina, Uruguay, and the Falkland Islands.
   
   There are 975 species illustrated, with 3-4 on each page. The majority of the birds are illustrated with multiple views (e.g., perched vs. flying; dorsal vs. ventral) and are accompanied by a very short (20-60 words) physical description of the bird. Only the minimum of text is given to range or habitat - typically only a dozen words.
   
   The artistic quality is decent but not great. The physical structure of the passerines is captured with better realism than other groups such as the gulls, terns, shorebirds, ducks, or petrels. These latter groups have misproportioned wings, bills, chests, or length-to-width ratios. Additionally, similar species (e.g., elaenias, flycatchers, furnarids, etc.) will expose the limitations of the minimal descriptions, small-sized paintings, and average detail.
   
   The color reproduction is much better in the 2003 and later editions than in the books printed up through the mid 1990s. The earlier editions have muted or washed out colors on a thinner paper that allows birds from the other side to bleed through. The new books have sharper edges to the illustrations and are on thicker, glossy paper.
   
   The range maps are tiny at 1x2cm; however, they do effectively illustrate the generalized range of the birds.
   
   Heads-up: This book is the original source used to create four other scaled-down books that use the same paintings, text, and maps. They're mini-clones. These include 1) Aves de Patagonia y Antartida, 2) Guia Para la Identificacion de las Aves de Paraguay, 3) Aves de Costanera Sur y Ciudad de Buenos Aires, and 4) Guia para la Identificacion de las Aves de Iguazu. Owning this one book means you own all four of the other books, other than 60 species added to the newer Paraguayan guide.
   
   If you're going to the Patagonia region, I recommend you also take the Chilean guide by Jaramillo and/or the Birds of Patagonia guide by Couve. The illustrations are superior in Jaramillo's book. Couve's book, even with photographs, is also better. And, text is more useful.
   
   This book is available in both Spanish and English.
   
   I've listed several related books below...
   1) Birds of Patagonia, Tierra Del Fuego and Antarctic Peninsula by Couve
   2) Birds of Chile by Jaramillo/Burke/Beadle
   3) Las Aves de Chile by Martinez/Gonzalez (ISBN 9568426000)
   4) Birds of Southern South America and Antarctica by de la Pena
   5) Las Aves del Uruguay by Gore/Gepp
   6) Birds And Mammals of the Antarctic, Subantartic And Falkland Islands by Todd
   7) Falkland Islands Birds by Woods
   8) Guide to Birds of the Falkland Islands by Woods



3. This book served me well in Patagonia, Buenos Aires, and Iguazu Falls.
   
   Weaknesses: It's a bit big and bulky to easily bring along. Substantively, this book could be improved with larger maps and pages comparing similar species. With the biodiversity of this area, perhaps the only solution is to split the book in two.
   
   Strengths: Complete, good index, names of species in both English and Spanish.
   
   Given the alternatives, I'm still quite pleased that I bought and used this book.