Doves, which are happier when kept in pairs, require the same food as pigeons. As a rule they are kept in wicker cages. They are not very interesting.
Parrots
Parrots are most companionable pets, and, next to a dog, quite the most interesting and intelligent. They are always cheerful: whistling, singing, and talking. The gray parrot is the best talker, and speaks much more distinctly than any other kind, but the Blue-fronted Amazon is more amusing and far better-tempered as a rule. These birds are very beautiful, with bright green plumage and touches of yellow and red, and a blue patch on the forehead. The best food for parrots is parrot seed, on which they may be fed entirely, and they should never be allowed dainties except nuts, fruit, and a little piece of sugar. In the summer time sprinkle your parrot with water through a fine hose every morning, but in the winter do so only when he asks for a bath by trying to get into the water basin. As to talking, parrots will pick up far more readily any words they hear by accident than any that you set yourself to teach them. They will also get by heart in this way a few bars of a whistled tune. When parrots are apparently spiteful it often proceeds much more from nervousness than from vice. If frightened they will peck anything near them. It is important to have a thick baize cover for your parrot's cage, and to put this over it directly the lamps are lit.
Smaller Cage Birds
Before coming to the different kinds of birds which you can keep, a few general words about their care ought to be said. Remember that with them, as with all pets, the most important of all rules is perfect cleanliness. The best cages are wooden ones with unpainted wires, and the perches should be of different thicknesses, as, if they are all one size, the bird is likely to get cramp in his feet. Once in a week at least the perches and tray should be scrubbed with very hot water with soda in it, but they must be dried thoroughly before they are put back into the cage; therefore if possible it is best to have two sets of perches and to use them alternately. A thick layer of red sand or shell gravel should be sprinkled on the tray, and occasionally a pinch of maw-seed thrown on it.
Baths
All birds should have a bath given them. They like best a shallow glass dish, which should be put in the cage when the tray is out. It is a good plan to put a biscuit-tin lid on the floor of the cage to prevent the bird from making the woodwork wet. Other rules in the care of all birds are—never let them be in a draught, but do not keep them in a very warm place. Cover them with a white cloth at night, and in cold weather put a shawl over that.
Food
Seed-eating birds do best if they are fed on canary seed and a little summer rape, with now and then a few hemp-seeds, some Hartz mountain bread, and a bit of groundsel or water-cress that has been well washed. If they look dull and sit in a puffed-up little heap, a drop of brandy in their water often does good; and, should they show signs of asthma, try chopped, hard-boiled egg, with a few grains of cayenne pepper, and a bit of saffron or a rusty nail in the water. These are also good when the bird is moulting. For insect-eating birds you must buy meal-worms and ants' eggs, and thrushes and blackbirds need earth-worms as well.