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Abundance Weaning Revisted.

The compiled works of Phoebe Greene Linden. Read a little more about the book that revolutionized how we feed, fledge and care for avian companions.

Now Available on CD for $14.95.
The PDF format is easily read, printed and bookmarked.

 
 

Abundance Weaning Revisted

At the PBIC Conference in May, 2002, I announced that I relinquish the trademark on "Abundance Weaning." I do this for several reasons.

1. In hope that all who understand the concepts and practices of Abundance Weaning join me in using the phrase correctly and the program completely.

2. To redefine what Abundance Weaning is NOT:

 

a) Abundance Weaning is not Over-Abundance Weaning. I've heard of psittacine birds still unweaned at two years of age because their caregivers mistakenly thought that Abundance Weaning has no terminus.

b) Abundance Weaning is not an excuse for a poor diet. Birds who do not eat high quality pellets and a variety of vegetables are not abundantly weaned.

c) Abundance Weaning is not over-abundance. Abundantly weaned birds might enjoy hot and wet hand held foods, but they will eat appropriately and independently without such offerings.

d) Abundance Weaning is not demonstrated in a lack of eating skills.

 

3. To redefine what Abundance Weaning IS:

 

a) Abundance Weaning is the developmentally sensitive acquisition of eating skills such as munching, throwing, juicing, husking, peeling, composting, holding, drinking, plucking, gobbling and sufficient food ingestion by psittacine birds.

b) Abundance Weaning is accomplished according to an individualized time table within reason.

c) Abundance Weaning (& Feeding [See "Abundance Feeding" in Abundantly Avian]) will continue to evolve. Advances in avian nutrition compel an anti-dogmatic, open-minded, finely educated approach to feeding companion birds. Both the principles and practices of Abundance Weaning and Feeding are therefore under continuous examination.

 

Abundantly Avian, the Compiled Works of Phoebe Greene Linden contains three sections:

Section One: Behavioral Development

“Socializing Baby Parrots.” A primer, first published in 1992. Basic guidelines, clearly explained.

“Abundance Weaning.” It seems impossible that over a decade has passed since this article’s first publication, but in a way it is right and correct that now so many people adhere to the seminal principles and practices of abundance weaning. At the time it was written, this article gently but firmly refuted the then common practices of forced weaning and gave psittacine caregivers new tools for feeding, weaning and raising companion birds.

“The Developmental Impact of Weaning” and “Eating Skills for Recently Weaned Chicks.” Two articles full of proven techniques that help companion birds round out life-long eating skills.

“Dependence and Independence: Finding the Right Balance.” Some good independent characteristics seen in pet birds include: happily playing with toys, willingness to explore new territories, being unafraid of new people and situations and enthusiastic acceptance of new foods. Positive dependent characteristics include willingness to be touched, ability to be interactive in a variety of situations, and confidence in caretakers. This article helps caregivers develop both independent and dependent skills so that we can assure our birds’ successes in the human environment.

Curious Baby“Developing Curiosity.” Psittacine companions are made more companionable by healthy curiosity. Successful social development for parrots depends heavily on well-developed curiosity.

“Encouraging the Intrepid Explorer.” Parrots with vigorous urges to investigate and explore their environments are engaging, charming, and challenging companions. Learn from Phoebe’s experiences how to develop exploration skills with your companion birds.

Also in this section, How to Set up A Cage, Managing Shy Birds, Difficult Stages, Understanding the Terrific Two’s and more.

Section Two: Companion Behavior and Care

Daily life with complex companions: Emotional Intensive Care for Stressed Out Parrots, Understanding Avian Adolescence, Exercising the Clipped Companion Parrot, The Don’t Touch Me Parrot, and many more truly decent articles.

Section Three: Species Specifics

Cockatoos, Macaws, Alexandrines, Hawkheads and companion flock dynamics are all explored in a variety of articles anecdotal, personal and practical.

“Pet Parrots in Flight,” first published in 1994, sparked debate that continues to this day regarding the pros and cons of flighted companion birds.

“Behaviorists and Breeders was first published in 1993 when I cautiously entered the field of applied psittacine behavioral consultancy. In this article, I identified myself as a parrot breeder keenly interested in behavior, interested in finding the common ground between practicing behaviorists and breeders. Then as now, I considered behavioral consultants who understand the ebb and flow of breeding cycles and the challenges of behavioral development most capable of assisting clients. Through professional feedback, behavioral consultants can also assist breeders who desire to improve the caliber of companions they raise.

For example, the problem of feather picking in juvenile companion parrots causes immeasurable heartbreak and frustration for everyone in the industry. The solutions to non-medically-induced feather picking, I am convinced, will be created only out of enormous cooperation between behaviorists who share information with breeders who will use that information to augment or rearrange their practices. When behavioral consultants consolidate information into coherent analysis, they will be taken more seriously by aviculture at large. After this article was written, I began a more serious and concentrated approach to behavioral analysis, an approach that permeates my current work.

All this and much, much more is included in Abundantly Avian, The Compiled Works of Phoebe Greene Linden.

Cute Babies

Abundtantly Avian is now Available on CD.
Easily read, print and bookmark
using Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Reasonably priced at $14.95 plus shipping.
Sales tax added for California sales.