Animals Unfolded

Exotic birds are interesting, intelligent creatures and are no different than other species of captive pets in that they gain pleasure from eating. It's not hard to get them to eat by and large, though some birds not exposed to a varied diet from a tender age can be quite fussy. Much like their exotic mammalian counterparts, they have preferences when it comes to food, and care needs the taken with their diet to ensure that it's balanced. Too much of one thing and not enough of another (including exercise) can lead to dietary deficiencies and obesity, which in turn can lead to illnesses like heart disease . Fresh vegetables and fruit, nuts and some seeds are beneficial to maintain not only physical health, but when they are offered in ways that enable birds to forage, they gain the benefits derived from that activity. ( Click here for more on creating edible foraging toys for birds.) Omelets are a great way to include a bird's favorite grains, legumes, seeds, fruit...

No one likes to hear negative things about their dog's behavior, not to mention their own when it comes to engaging with their pet. When our pets behave in a way that is less-than-ideal in a social setting (namely with other dogs), it usually doesn't slip through our radar to some degree, though we hope that it has in the eyes of others. Some social offenses are negligible, even funny. Others are, well, quite telling with regard to how our ongoing training is going. But let's face it: some of us share life with dogs that just never get the hang of navigating some social situations, so it's understood that we need to pick our battles, right? Picking our battles is something we can easily do when in the midst of other folks and their dogs, too. I find that just as with everything else, there's no shortage of opinions when it comes to how a canine should behave or how their said human ought to handle a situation, and often it doesn't seem to matter how muc...