Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities

See Zentangle art on coming show

Information on pet parakeets and making zentangle artwork will be the featured topics on “Creative Living” on Tuesday at 9:30 p.m. and on Thursday at noon. (All times are Mountain.)

If you’re looking for a pet for your child, how about considering a parakeet? Ray Pawley is a retired zoologist, and he says that budgies, or parakeets are extremely popular pets for many reasons. They are very friendly and easy to tame and some are capable of mimicking speech. Pawley lives in Hondo.

What is a Zentangle? Deborah Pace is an artist and designer, and she’s going to explain what a Zentangle is, tell how it got started and what supplies are needed to do this type of artwork. She’ll also talk about what surfaces you can use. She lives in Riverside, California.

Information on making inkblot butterflies and making a crayon roll will be the featured topics on “Creative Living” on Tuesday at noon and on Saturday at 2 p.m.

Margaret Peot is an author, artist and painter, and she is going to show how to make inkblot butterflies that can be mounted in a shadow box or in a frame for display. She lives in New York city.

Sewing instructor Nancy Lovett will show how to make crayon rolls, which hold a basic 16 pack of crayons or markers and even colored pencils. These items make great gifts and are a good way to keep the kids entertained when traveling. Lovett is from Albuquerque.

Parakeets as pets

The Parakeet is also known as the Budgerigar in arid Australia where it occurs in the wild in large flocks. Their natural color is green and black. They were first imported to the U.S. and Europe in the 1850s and instantly became very popular. Their small size and ability to imitate human words created a strong demand and they have been captive bred in large numbers since that time. They are now the third most popular pet in American households with cats and dogs being first.

Although they are small they have a hooked (parrot-shaped) beak and can bite if frightened or roughly grabbed or handled. For best results these social birds should be kept singly which encourages them to bond more closely with humans. On the other hand, if breeding a pair of Budgies becomes a priority then a male and female can be kept in a large cage with a nest box where they can lay eggs and raise their chicks. Budgies kept with one or more counterparts tend to be "stand-offish" since they do not need human companionship.

Budgies come in several colors. Their normal color green, which is a combination of blue and yellow will produce birds that may be blue, yellow, yellow lutino and mauve-colored. Albinos are often seen as well as some of the bird color patterns such as Opaline and Pied. Unlike many other bird species, their feathers will fluoresces under ultraviolet light. Interestingly there have never been any red or black parakeets produced.

For best results select a young bird, a male, one that does not yet have crown feathers growing over the fine zebra striping on the head. Older birds are not as sociable with people. The bare skin around the nostrils may be a light pink color in very young males whereas in females the 'cere' is usually light tan or brown.

Young birds can be taught to climb onto a short hand-held stick or perch which can lead to the bird climbing onto the person's hand for a small treat (piece of apple or carrot). Once trust has been established the bird can be lifted out of the cage where it may fly about the room. Be sure all doors and windows are closed beforehand! Exclude any cats or dogs.

Teaching words to a bird requires time and patience - do not rush this. Males usually pick up more words and learn more quickly than females. Older individuals or those with disabilities may find that companionship with a parakeet is especially rewarding since these little birds can learn words as well as simple tricks (i.e. ringing a tiny bell or activating any of the several kinds of toys available on the market).

Do not take your bird outside! Its impulse will be to fly off and it is very unlikely to return. On the other hand, a bird at liberty in a room will need to return to its cage for food and water. Avoid using a net to capture your bird if possible since it can bite through the fine mesh of the hand net and it will quickly learn to distrust people. Instead, wait until the bird is in its cage and then close the door.

“Creative Living” is produced and hosted by Sheryl Borden. The show is carried by more than 118 PBS stations in the United States, Canada, Guam and Puerto Rico and is distributed by Westlink, Albuquerque.