No comments about Parakeets (Practical Pet Care).

5 comments about Training African Grey Parrots.

1. Pease do not buy this book! My avian veterinarian advises that any book published prior to 1995 is so full of inaccuracies that you could actually damage your parrot following suggestions from the old book. DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK! Ask your avian veterinarian to reccommend helpful books to read about parrots!



2. This book contains information that is know to be wrong today. I would never recommend this book to a new parrot owner or anyone else. There are much more informative and accurate books and periodicals on the market. I was extremely disappointed as I thought it would teach me how to teach my parrot to do tricks, etc., but instead it teaches you about "taming" your wild-caught parrot.



3. This book is very unreliable and possibly offers some disastrous information for a first time Grey owner that does not know any better...the material is very outdated. With all the new information that is available today, this book suggest things that we know now to be harmful--such as clipping only one wing, keeping a bird out in winter, etc...in it's time (1979), this book might have been imformative, as not much was known about Greys then, but is no longer of any use. I was very disappointed. For a more up to date book, with excellent and up to date information, I suggest "Guide to a Well-Bahaved Parrot" by Mattie Sue Athan.



4. I have found this book somewhat out dated in it's information. It has color pictures that are nice but some , not all of the training methods are out of date. For the most part the book talks about training wild caught / wild Greys, not hand weaned Greys that now can be bought almost at any pet store. If you are going to be a new African Grey owner, or you own an African Grey keep looking for another book. Wrong information can be harmful to your pet bird. For a good book with good pictures check out "African Grey Parrots" by Annette Wolter. So far out of the three books I read on African Greys this one was the most up to date.



5. While this may have been a very good book in 1979, the, avian information gained over the last 20 years makes these older book obsolete, if not down right dangerous. These older books should remain out of print. I would recommend a more recent publication including periodicals such as "Bird Talk" magazine with up to the minute articles from today's (1999) experts. I've kept African Grey's for almost 10 years now.

2 comments about Long-Tailed Parakeets (A Complete Pet Owner's Manual).

1. Until I began reading about parakeets, I did not know LONG-TAILED PARAKEETS existed in the wild. I also thought all parakeets looked like my granddaughters budgies (blue or yellow with undulating stripes on their backs). The `Manual' on Long-Tailed Parakeets by Annette Wolter includes sections on everything from diet and health maintenance to 'how-to' brooding of parakeets. I especially like the many photos of the various wild parakeets from around the world (many taken in their native habitat) including a shot of a Quaker parrot like mine, which is apparently really a Quaker Parakeet. A number of the birds I think of as Conures are also parakeets.
   
   Wolter's book is an accessible easy-to-read volume with much of the material about companion bird keeping also found in other "bird" books (especially those by Vriends, who was her consulting editor) as well as relatively exclusive photos of various parakeets she describes as 'long-tailed'. The only thing I dislike about the photos in this book and many other bird books is that they often show birds biting on plants and almost always fail to identify the plant involved. As a gardener, I would like to know just exactly what that bird is chewing on so that I can grow it in my house (there are plenty of "do" or "don't" plant lists, but I know some of the plants shown in photos are not on those lists.



2. Not worth much more than that in my opinion. I feel it was a waste of my money actually. The book has some nice photo's but as far as information goes, I can learn more from 1 website than I did from this book..

1 comments about Bird Care (Quick & Easy).

1. 
   From canaries to parakeets to parrots, Diane Morgan's "Bird Care" offers quick and easy, step-by-step instructions in the selection, care, feeding, and training of birds. The informed and informative text is enhanced with the inclusion of 'quick-tip' boxes and full-color photography throughout. Of special note is the practical advice about keeping the birds well groomed and healthy while living a long and happy life. The addition of a list of resources and an index, make "Bird Care" a particularly 'user friendly', comprehensive, inexpensive instruction guide -- and ideal for novice bird owners and community library Pets & Wildlife reference collections.

1 comments about Lovebirds As a New Pet.

1. Answers many questions on compatibility of owning a bird as a pet. Make this a read before you buy the bird.

5 comments about Doves (A Complete Pet Owner's Manual).

1. I bought this book, and it's sister book Pigeons, the day after I was given an orphan day-old pigeon chick to raise way back in 1997. Normaly I deal with domestic birds (bantams, budgies, ect.) so when my Pidgie came to me, I knew the basics, but I also knew I didn't know enough about pigeons to raise him on my own. These 2 books were all I needed, they provide all the info needed to raise happy healthy pigeond and doves from chick to adult. I am so glad these 2 German classics had been translated and reprinted into English, I don't know what I would have done without them.
   
   ~~EK



2. This book is great. I looked for the information in this book all over the place for months. This book has absolutely everything you need or would want to know about being a dove owner. This book should be in every dove owner's book collection.



3. There is not enough information given on the domesticated Ringneck Dove. The book emphasizes too much on avaries and wild dove behavior and husbandry. It actually states that keeping a Dove in a cage is not a good idea when the Ringneck is a very good cage bird--but they do have specific husbandry requirements that need to be addressed.



4. As a dove owner,I have found this book to be a very clear treatment of dove species, behavior, and health needs. The pictures are interesting and the information provided is far superior to other books on doves that I have read. My only complaint is that more information could be provided on nutrition, but since most dove are such easy keepers (mostly eating seed, millet spray, whole wheat bread, vegetables, and grit) the information on this need not be extensive. I would recommend this book to anyone who is considering adding a dove to their household.



5. The major flaw in this book is that it is nearly totally devoted to the wild dove and pigeon species. It makes very little reference to the domesticated Ringneck and White Doves (Streptopelia risoria), which make excellent, tame pets and have different requirements, in terms of caging and care. Also, what references it does make to domesticated doves is somewhat confusing and inconsistent.

   For example, photos of domesticated Ringneck and White Doves (Streptopelia risoria) are labeled, alternatively, "collared pigeons" on page 16, and "collared doves" on pages 37 and 40. However, on page 5, the birds labeled as "collared doves" are probably the Eurasian Collared Dove (Streptopelia deocato). I realize that both species may be described by the same common names. However. I think the author should have done a better job in describing which is which, since 'Streptopelia risoria' is extremely domesticated and suitable as a finger-tamed house pet whereas 'Streptopelia deocato' is a wild species suitable only for an outdoor aviary.

   This confusion is not only in the photos but in the text as well. For example, the sections on "Housing" and "Doves as Pets" make little or no distinction between the wild and domesticated species. It implies all doves are basically untamable and require large aviaries but then also gets into a discussion about cages. Cages are really only suitable for domesticated species but the book doesn't SAY this anywhere. There is also no mention, anywhere in the book, of the great pet qualities that domesticated Ringneck and White Doves have. So, in my opinion, this book would be very confusing for someone who purchased a tame, domesticated Ringneck or White Dove and want to know how to care for their new pet.

   I think this book would be fine if it just stuck to wild dove species. In fact, it should be renamed "Wild Doves". Domesticated Ringneck and White Doves (Streptopelia risoria) really deserve their own separate book but, unfortunately, there really isn't one out there yet. "Doves" by Michael Gos makes a better distinction between domesticated and wild species but his book also tries to cover both types, in one one book, and can also be similarly confusing in text and photo labeling.

No comments about The Birds of Ecuador, Vol. 1: Status, Distribution, and Taxonomy.

4 comments about Guide to Owning Amazon Parrots: Breeding, Feeding, Training, Habits, Health, Choosing.

1. As with almost all TFH Publications, the books are woefully outdated and contain erroneous information. You are better off with the more recently published books by Barron's Educational Series or Howell House (John Wiley). TFH's book are a waste of money.



2. I was shocked at some of the unbelievably bad advice in this book. I worry about the woman who said she learned all she needed to know about her amazon - if she thinks she did she needs to find some real information so that she can care for her amazon correctly. Aside from the basic info that applies to most parrots there is so much bad info that it totally baffled me.



3. The book don't contain informations really useful: the text could refer to many other parrot species. The photographs are very good, but the legends are so incomplete that it is not possible to use the illustrations to identify the amazons species shown.



4. If you want an amazon that is well trained, healthy, and a great pet, this book is a must-have. It helped me understand everything I would have questioned before buying an amazon parrot. An all around excellent book!

5 comments about Falconry For Beginners.

1. Very informative, but of course I did not have any idea of what Falconry was prior to reading the book. I bought the book for a nephew of mine, who happened to obtain a baby hawk. He nurtured the bird from a very young age. The book was to improve his knowledge on how to take care of the bird. I had somebody else order the book for me - Darlyn Cobb" , that is why I am doing the review. Thanks.



2. This book gives good insight into the world of Falconry and the many items needed to become a Falconer. The one drawback is its author is English and deals with laws in England which are different then here in the United States.
   
   Anyone interrested in the sport would benifit from reading this book. The author gives both pros and cons which helps guide the reader to answer the question if Falconry is for you.



3. It is a very helpful book.But sadly, the pound and the dollar arent the same,and the price specifications are almost no use to me.I don't know if any thing else is different,so you will have to figure that out yourself.



4. I was at the stage where my own European Eagle Owl was flying free and ready for the next stage of training as we progressed (hopefully) to the day when he would take a rabbit. Having read books by other author's (including one called "Falconry" in which the subject of falconry itself is not even covered!) I needed the right book - and I needed it now.
   
   When the book first arrived it looked as though it might end up being a 4 Star book - but I was wrong. You see, each and every book I review (and I have reviewed several hundred), commences with a full quota of 5 stars. Stars may then be lost for any number of reasons - but they have to be lost through some shortcoming of the book itself. There are no shortcomings here.
   
   The book measures 9½in x 6¼in (24cm x 16cm) and contains 150 pages. It is well laid out, well written and well illustrated. The subjects range from an introduction to the subject of falconry, getting started, equipment (and it's all in there!), your first bird, care, illnesses, rules of the sport and the law.
   
   Not only did I come to the book with a lot of questions, but as I read the book (some sections more than once) I found myself asking yet more questions. It says much for the competence of this author that all the answers were found - within the book itself. I have already adopted the author's prescribed method of intruding a Rabbit lure to my bird - and it's working.
   
   In short, I am so delighted with this book that I could not find a single reason to deduct one star. The reader gets exactly what it says on the cover; This is a book about "Falconry for Beginners" and an excellent one at that.
   
   NM



5. this was my first book on the subject and it was close to useless.for a real book try the complete falconer by frank beebe or falconry and hawking by philip glasier.

No comments about The World of Amazon Parrots.