Lories

What to expect from your Lory!

Lories are brilliantly colored, playful birds with extroverted personalities and entertaining antics.  Due to their curious nature, these birds are often subject to traumatic injuries in captivity.  Although they have limited talking ability, they can be noisy, making a variety of high-pitched sounds.

Because of their high-carbohydrate, liquid diet and relatively loose droppings, lories may be best appreciated in outdoor aviaries in a temperate climate.  Because the birds also enjoy frequent baths, this environment provides the opportunity for them to play in light rains.

Lories can be housed in colonies with known birds, but they may attack and kill newly introduced species.  The primary consideration for the long-term health of Lories is their diet.  Improper feeding may lead to stress-induced disease.

What do Lories do all day?

Lories are playful and can chase, retrieve and roll over.  They are easily amused with simple toys.  Because they love to chew, any toy must be free of toxic metals, hooks, sharp objects or small, easily consumed components.  Check with local authorities for recommendation of safe trees.

Are Lories Tame?

Young, hand-raised Lories adapt readily to new surrounding and handling procedures.  They should be exposed early in life to novel situations (car travel, hospital visits, multiple visitors in the household, and other household pets) so that they are well adjusted to these events.  Lories tame easily and seek the company of their owners.  Lories are the companion bird species least likely to revert to a “wild” state if the level of attention is reduced.

Why the wings should be clipped?

Lories that are allowed unrestricted freedom in the home can encounter numerous physical dangers or toxins; therefore, wing clipping is recommended.  The goal of clipping the wings is not to make the bird incapable of flight, but to prevent it from developing rapid and sustained flight and to prevent escape.  Your Lory or Lorikeet will require additional trimming eight to twelve weeks after the start of the molt cycle.  Birds maintained in outdoor aviaries (with double safety doors) may not require wing clipping.

How to keep your Lory healthy, happy and safe!

·      Give lots of attention

·      Feed a fresh, high quality, pesticide-free diet formulated specifically for Lories

·      Limit supplementation to pesticide-free fruits and vegetable

·      Do not fee grit to Lories

·      Provide clean, fresh, uncontaminated water (try using water bottles)

·      Remove and replace food and water containers twice daily to maximize activity in a healthy bird.

·      Provide an occasional opportunity for bath, shower or misting (at least weekly)

·      Avoid spraying house with insecticides

Housing for your Lory should:

·      Be as large as possible

·      Be clean, secure, safe and easy to service

·      Be considered to durable non-toxic material

·      Contain variable sized perches made of clean, non-toxic, pesticide-free branches

·      Have food and water containers placed at opposite ends of the enclosure

·      Avoid having perches located directly over food container

·      Offer opportunity for protected outdoor exposure to fresh air, sunlight and exercise

It is important to prevent access to:

·      Ceiling fans

·      Hot cooking oil

·      Teflon-coated items

·      Leg chains

·      Sandpaper covered perches

·      Tobacco and cigarette smoke

·      Chocolate, avocado, salt, alcohol

·      Toxic houseplants

·      Pesticides

·      Toxic fumes

·      Easily dismantled toys

·      Dogs, cats, and young children

·      Cedar, redwood and pressure-treated wood shavings

·      Sources of lead or zinc

·      Plug in air fresheners