Birds and Babies: My Experience. This is a brief account to show that adding a baby to a house full of birds works! Proper planning and flexibility is the key to successful integration of a baby into a houseful of birds.

Our pets are not disposable. We can not in good conscious shuffle them off to a new home because they have suddenly become inconvenient. Our birds bond to us and consider us part of their flock. Birds are able to adjust to changes in schedules and lifestyles much more easily than they are able to adjust to a new owner. Our birds would rather be with us through good times and bad, then be shipped from home to home to home.

Here's a picture of a few of us. (Don't look at me, I had just given birth! :) )

In my case, after trying to conceive for years with no luck, I didn't think we would ever have a baby. At the time we had 3 dogs, 12 birds, and a lizard. Our house was literally wall to wall pets. We were glad to finally be expecting, but I wasn't sure where or how the baby would fit in! The "spare" bedroom had 3 pairs of birds I had tried to breed. The other bedroom had the big birds' cages in it. The lizard lived in the kitchen. The living room had long since lost most of the furniture, replaced by large play stands for the parrots. Every inch of the rest of the house is lined with furniture.

After great deliberation and soul searching, I decided to place the 2 pairs of conures with new owners. The birds were not to be separated, and they were far more bonded to each other than to me. The only reason I felt comfortable letting them go, is because they had each other. I found good homes for them. The woman who took the green cheeks also had a young daughter who I felt would be a great person to have the 7 year old cockatiel which a friend had given me a few months earlier, so I gave him to her.

That left me with 7 birds and an empty bedroom. I would not even consider giving up my macaw, my greys, my amazons. They mean so much to me, it would be like cutting my heart out to let them go. I began to plan for the changes that were coming. We squeezed the play stands in the living room a bit closer together, freeing up a bit more space. We replaced the 2 x 4 edging on the stands with PVC, as the birds had recently begun renovating them, and pieces of wood covered the floor daily. That cut down a lot on the cleanup load!

When the baby came, I had plenty of special snacks and treats for the birds on hand, as well as new toys for all the birds. I knew there would be a few days where they would not be able to come out of their cages. As soon as possible, I resumed their usual routine of out time. My own routine had to become more flexible though. I had to constantly ask myself, what is most important, in case I have to stop now to tend the baby? I used to clean the cage trays first, then do the water. Water bowls are more important, though. I now do them first. Daily maintenance of the birds always gets done, in a reasonable time. Major cleaning is reserved for times when my mother-in-law is in town to watch the baby! No, the cages are not as clean as they once were, but they are acceptable. Some day, when my babies are older, I can get back to weekly scrubbing. The birds still get their fresh vegetables daily, and their muffins and bean and rice dinners. I make plenty in advance and freeze them. Sometimes I even chop veggies in advance and keep them ready to serve.

Their routine is basically the same as it always has been. However, many days they do get less attention than they used to. They tolerate it very well. They are out on their stands for 6 or 7 hours most days, in the room where I am. So even though they may not get a lot of one on one attention, they are not neglected. They are part of what is going on in the house. As the baby grows older, and becomes a bit more independent, they will get more attention. For now, they seem satisfied, in fact, they are all very healthy and happy!

The room with the cages has a gate to keep the baby out when they are locked up. Like most birds, they are very territorial. They would not tolerate curious little fingers touching their homes. When the birds are out on their playstands and I am in the cage room cleaning, I do allow the baby to come in and climb up on the cages and play with the cage doors. I have to watch closely, as there are usually nut shells and pieces of wood flung about. Fortunately the dogs gobble up any food the birds drop!

When the birds are out on their play stands, that is when I have to be most cautious. The baby is very tall, and he can climb to a stand and put his hands well within reach of the beaks! So far only one of the birds, my timneh grey, has shown interest in biting those little fingers. I taped some white card board around the legs of the macaw's stand to keep the baby from climbing on that one. When he does get too close to the birds I gently move him away. I keep a playpen in the living room, in case the birds get startled and jump to the floor, the playpen is a safe place to deposit the baby until order is restored. The baby has enjoyed watching the macaw play from a very early age. Now he is also interested in the congo grey, who talks well and imitates baby noises, too. I think its wonderful that he can grow up with these birds! And maybe someday, he will inherit them.

As the baby grows, so will the challenges. I feel we are prepared to weather any challenges that come our way. If changes are needed, we will work things out in whatever way is best for both the baby and the birds. Giving up the birds is not an option, whether I have one baby or ten!