Complete Psittacine by Eb Cravens

Back in the late 1990s when I was still writing for American Federation of Aviculture’s Watchbird Magazine, and in the early years of my “Birdkeeping Naturally” series, I did some interviews with notable avian veterinarians I knew and worked with. While going through my paper files recently, I came across these and decided to share them with Parrots Magazine readers, as much of that information is still very relevant to parrot owners today. Here, in the first part, are the high points of my conversation with Dr David Rupiper, formerly of Capri Pet Clinic, Tarzana, CA, now in Petaluma, CA.

What kind of vet office protocol by clients and their birds is most helpful for the veterinarian?

“First of all, fully-flighted birds should be caged. This is especially true for nervous and untrained birds. Secondly, do not mix species in a carry cage. So many people come into the office with all their small birds in one cage - lovebirds with canaries and the like. The more aggressive ones will bite at the smaller ones, even killing them. People also will put all their birds into the car and go out running errands, grocery shopping, etc. and just drop off their birds at the clinic, when in fact appointments are scheduled so that time can be set aside for each bird.”

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