It wasn't until the Wild Bird Conservation Act of 1992 that the U.S. banned imports of exotic bird species. Birds are not domesticated animals. Dogs and cats have been domesticated for thousand of years. We are just now beginning to understand the psychological needs of parrots, and with the proliferation of pet birds into the marketplace, the issue of unwanted birds is growing rapidly. Parrots are still very much ‘hard wired’ and react from stimuli as if they were still in the wild. When you chose to take any pet into your life it should be for that pet's life. Most people purchase parrots on impulse, not realizing that the bird may live for 50+ years and most pet stores, especially the large chains, are not doing their part to educate the consumer about what is truly required to keep a parrot healthy and happy. The birds always lose in this situation. It is a labor-intensive and expensive pet to keep. What's more is that these highly intelligent animals can have the intelligence of a 4-5 year old child and they have complex emotional needs and behaviors. They need to be mentally stimulated or they can literally go insane and self-mutilate. Many develop psychotic behavior and will scream nonstop or bite and lash out at their owners in aggression. Over and over I am reminded that we live in a disposable world. When something ceases to be cute, amusing or fun, we choose to 'get rid' of it. We must always remember that parrots were meant to be free, not caged.

It is my hope that pet stores will someday impart on owners the fact that their feathered companions are a lifelong commitment and that one day breeders and pet shop owners will not sell a bird until minimum knowledge has been imparted regarding the care, feeding and nurturing of these birds. If you think you want a bird as a pet, especially the larger, longer-lived parrots, please do your research first and try spending lots of time with several birds before committing to the care of one for life. Also remember that a parrot may outlive you and try to have a home designated for it if something were to happen to you. With the thousands of homeless parrots now available at rescues, I would encourage you to foster a rescue parrot or adopt an unwanted parrot. Please do not purchase a bird from the pet store or breeder as you are just encouraging the over-population of unwanted birds and allowing the cycle to continue. Most baby parrots are cute and cuddly and you want to spend lots of time with them. Then, when they grow up and begin to bite and scream, they just aren’t as much fun and this is when the trouble begins. However, the bird has grown accustomed to you spending time with it and it can become even more uncontrollable and aggressive.

Many people wrongly assume that birds eat bird seed. Most of the birds I take in are on a poor diet. Feeding just seed can shorten a birds life span by half. Parrots need a good diet consisting of nuts, a small amount of fresh fruit, lots of raw and cooked vegetables, and other nutritious foods such as legumes and protein. Some birds will benefit from a small amount of high quality pellets specially formulated for parrots added to their diet. Yes, you will need to cook for your bird! Many of the birds I take in have been on a seed only diet and it can take months to get them to try anything else. Some table scraps can be given if common sense is used. No pet should ever be given chocolate (very toxic), parrots should also not be given coffee, alcohol (their livers cannot process it), avocado, greasy foods, fatty foods, salty foods, or foods that are heavily supplemented with preservatives such as hot dogs. Pizza or cooked pasta is a good treat for them once in a while.

Because of my parrots, I've even learned a thing or two (besides patience)! When I began taking in unwanted parrots I didn't know anything about how to take care of them, so I got on the Internet to research their care and what I learned shocked me. I learned that if I burned a Teflon pan I could kill every bird in my house in less than an hour. I learned that cheap candles are made with lead wicks and the lead accumulates in their lungs and can cause death. I also learned that plug in air fresheners could be deadly to them. This information and much more like it caused me to wonder what these products were doing to my family’s health if they could be so toxic to my birds. So, I began to use only products in my home that were free of harmful chemicals. However, I was still unaware of the harmful chemicals in beauty and personal care products until I was introduced to NuVANTE. My girlfriend gave me a sample of the NuVANTE products and the literature she gave me said that these were products made without harmful chemicals. This made me curious and once again I began researching products on the Internet. I had always assumed that the FDA regulated personal care products. I learned that I was wrong, very wrong!

Food and Drugs are subject to an intense review and approval process by the FDA while cosmetics are not. The FDA classifies cosmetics and personal care products, but does not regulate them. In 1938, the FDA granted self-regulation to the Cosmetics, Toiletries and Fragrance Association. With the exception of color additives and a few prohibited ingredients, a cosmetic manufacturer may use almost any raw material as a cosmetic ingredient and market the product without FDA approval. Up to 70% of what we inhale, ingest or absorb through our skin ends up in our blood stream and most cosmetic and personal care products contain chemicals that have never been assessed for safety. Many drugs today are administered through transdermal patches, which have been shown to be up to 95% more effective than oral medication. This proves that the skin, the largest organ of the body and our first line of immunity, is permeable to all sorts of harmful chemicals. While there is great debate over whether or not these toxic ingredients are really harmful, manufacturers justify their use by recommending small doses. According to the ‘EWG’ or Environmental Work Group, the average adult uses 9 personal care products a day, exposing themselves to over 126 chemicals every day.

No longer can we say that what we don’t know won’t hurt us! NuVANTE’s initial offering is a line of skin care, sunscreen and hair care products for men, women and children. Visit my NuVANTE link for product information or to place an order.