Category — Product and Book Reviews

This one of a kind item is a feather pillow created by Patricia Sund.  It is for sale on Ebay to benefit the parrots of Phoenix Landing. What’s different about this from your usual feather pillow is that the feathers are on the outside. It was created from donated molted feathers from Patricia’s bird friends from all over the U.S. and Canada. It was made from Amazon parrot feathers, accented with cockatiel feathers.  All of the feathers were naturally molted. No birds were ever harmed, plucked or otherwise compromised for the fabrication of this item.

The pillow is 15 inches wide and 11 inches tall. The backing material is white monk’s cloth.

All proceeds from this sale will benefit the adoption and education programs of Phoenix Landing.  If you’d like to bid, go to:

(http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110654311455&ssPageName=ADME%3AL%3ALCA%3AUS%3A1123#ht_500wt_1156)

Thanks for Helping Parrots!

Hot off our new press, two books to enhance the quality of life for parrots.

Nourish to Flourish, A Healthy Cookbook for Parrots
Our new parrot cookbook has 125 pages of recipes, information about plants, herbs and general information about how to add quality whole foods to your parrot’s diet. ($24.95)

Project Parrot: A Behavior Guidebook for You and Your Bird, by Jenny Drummey
Re-engineer the relationship with your bird using a do-it-yourself approach. This book examines the many factors that contribute to good (and not-so-good) behaviors in your home, highlights the changes you can make to build trust, and helps you to create simple training plans. Also learn to teach your bird some important husbandry behaviors, such as how to forage, bathe, and even step up with confidence. Available December 10th. ($22.95)

Buy either book online here or on-site at an upcoming Phoenix Landing educational seminar.

I’ve recently tried a product I think others might like as much as I do.  I’ve had a number of sweepers through the years, but there always seems to be something about each one that makes me return to my good old broom and dustpan.  Usually they take up a ton of room, they won’t pick up those tiny down feathers, or they’re a pain to empty.

However, the Swivel Sweeper G2 is vastly different and better than any I’ve seen or tried before.  Here are some of the things that make it really easy to use:

1. It’s very lightweight; no heavier than a broom.
2. The head swivels in every direction.  It easily rotates to reach between cages, alongside playgyms, etc.
3. With a push of a button, the handle bends to easily reach all the way under even large cages.  This is an especially useful function, and it’s what really inspired me to buy the product in the first place.
4. It picks up all the food particles, feathers, and shredded toy parts our greys can drop…and that’s A LOT!  It works equally well on the wood floors under their cages and the carpet under their foraging tree.  (The carpet is covered with mats and newspaper, but bits of their chewed toys always seem to find their way to my carpet.)  Special rollers on the ends allow it to work right up against a wall or in corners.
5. It’s truly one-touch emptying; there’s no getting your hands dirty at all.
6. It’s cordless and rechargeable, but the good thing is that the battery pack pops right off.  The charger needs an outlet, of course, but since the battery is detachable you can store the sweeper itself anywhere you’d store a broom.  It doesn’t need a plug in.  Also, the head of the sweeper has a magnet that attaches it vertically to the handle when not in use.  It literally takes up no more room than a broom.

I’ve had the product for a few days, and it has made keeping my floors clean a snap.  I really like anything that makes my life easier!   This won’t be a substitute for a vacuum, but it’s much easier to use than a vacuum for those several-times-a-day sweepings that seem so necessary when you have parrots.