Through the combined efforts of many diverse groups of individuals including bird breeders, veterinarians, aviculturists and bird club members we have seen great advancements in the field of aviculture. We can readily see it in the improvement of aviculture over recent years.

In the early 1980's, when I began in avian medicine we would see parrots for physical examinations they would mainly be wild caught, wild parrots. We rarely saw hand-raised birds and if so they were mostly smaller birds, such as cockatiels. Now due to the restrictions upon importation we rarely see newly imported birds. We now see wonderful hand-raised companion birds of many varieties, varieties of which were not being hand-raised in the early 1980's.

Nutritionally since the 1980's we began moving away from seed mixes. Initially there were few commercial diets available. Many home-made diets were being used. Commercial baby bird formulas were not available and quite often were monkey chow or dog food derivatives. Dr. T. J. Lafeber was a pioneer in trying to gain acceptance for commercially available nutritionally complete and balanced diets in the form of pellets for pet birds. Due to the efforts of nutritionists we now have multiple varieties of balanced diets available meeting the varied nutritional needs for a wide range of pet birds. Commercial hand feeding formulas are being manufactured that insure a good nutritional start for baby birds.

Medically speaking, we had somewhat limited diagnostic capabilities and limited treatment protocols in the early 1980's. Many diseases were unrecognized. For example, the cause of PBFS (Psittacine Beak and Feather Disease Syndrome) was believed to be bacterial and termed "folliculitis" (a bacterial infection of the feather follicle). Throughout the 1980's and 1990's we have undergone an information explosion in avian medicine. Research in avian medicine has changed from mainly poultry work to include pet birds. The Association of Avian Veterinarians (AAV) was formed in early 1980's and became one of the fastest growing professional organizations in the country. The yearly meetings attracted avian veterinarians and aviculturists from around the world. Avian research was stimulated as well as supported by the AAV. Many outstanding textbooks are now available relating to avian medicine. More and more veterinary colleges have developed curriculum pertaining to avian medicine so that graduating veterinarians are more skilled in the treatment of pet birds. The end result is that more veterinarians are becoming involved in avian medicine and are able to provide better than ever care for pet birds.

With great minds buoyed by proper funding and support, the amount of avian research as well as the quality has increased tremendously. We have better understanding of certain disease processes. We now possess improved diagnostic tests and have the capability to detect diseases that were previously undetectable and a scourge to the avicultural community, such as PBFDS and polyoma virus. Treatments for many avian conditions have improved and are more effective. As mentioned earlier, avian nutritional research has led to better balanced diets such as pellets and baby bird hand-raising formulas. Better breeding techniques have led to the hand-raising of numerous varieties of birds and also responsible for conservation of endangered species. Veterinarians and aviculturists alike have benefited from this work - but most importantly - the quality of the life of the birds themselves have improved in terms of longevity and freedom from disease. The quality of aviculture has improved to levels unimagined years ago and all bird owners have been impacted - from the single bird owner all the way up to the large scale breeder.

So what is the purpose of all my preaching you ask? It is to emphasize that all of us that are involved in aviculture, no matter what degree, should become active in its support. We should provide support and funding of avian research, be it medical, nutritional or husbandry. Become a member of a bird club. Bird clubs provide educational speakers/seminars, put on bird fairs and make donations in support of avian research programs. Quite often seminars /conventions are put together that are open to the public, such as MARE (Midwest Avian Research Expo). These seminars are comprised of a series of lectures by distinguished speakers on various aspects of bird care which are pertinent to any bird owner. Participation in these various venues guarantees their continued existence which will benefit the bird owning public in the long run. In this way you, the concerned bird owner, can become more directly involved in aviculture on a larger scale.

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