crows

[absinthe]

hello everyone

writing from Africa & am getting a hand-reared black crow as a pet in a few days. the aviary is nearly ready, the other animals are primed and all the love & attention are waiting......problem is there is NO info anywhere on care of crows or ravens. I know they are seen as pests here( farmers actually shoot them) but I did think there would at least something useful on the web, but no decent info. at all. Soooo, if anyone has any info on them (cape black crow) PLEASE pass it on, but for the moment, lots of love & protein will have to do

[John_White]

This is a useful site: http://birds.cornell.edu/crows/crowfaq.htm

[JuliusSqueezer]

My grandmother told me if you split their tongue they can learn to talk...lol silly urban legends.

Here are a couple of links:
http://212.187.155.84/wnv/Subdirecto...Av_Corvids.htm
http://www.riverbanks.org/subsite/pact/corvids.pdf

[Bry]

All Brett and BW need now is a talking crow to help them find snakes on their herping trips. And that doesn't necessarily mean the crow will find the snakes FOR them.

Bry

[agrutz45]

I would think they are a little hard to tame and to keep as pets. But i would think it would be cool to have a wild pet. [/b]

[Ed_r]

Good luck finding a wild crow nowadays. They are dying left and right from west nile virus. Around me i haven't seen nor heard a crow in almost 3 yrs. and i used to hear them daily.

[Shuba]

Ed I remember there used to be alot of crows in Chicago, you actualy made me realize my self that I havent heard there bird call in a very long time.

[Nycteris]

It will be a sad day when crows no longer caw... I didn't realize that West Nile was doing so much damage.

[SteveP]

I think they all moved out west here!!! They've been so prevelant in recent years as to have an adverse effect on the baby desert tortoise population. As urban areas spread in the southwest, so grows the crow/raven populations. Kinda ironic that a native bird, such as crows, which have been viewed as a nusince in recent times should succomb to west Nile virus. They are VERY hardy birds however...can't imagine a few adapting and surviving the disease. But then again they wouldn't be the first species diminished or wiped out by a non-native life-form.

[CC]

lol....If you want to see a crow all you have to do is go into my front or back yard. We have some huge trees and the one in the front has vines growing all over it. They are everywhere. They are a very big pain in the &%^$ as well because if you park your vehicle anywhere near the tree expect to need it washed within the next couple hours.

[Alika]

Wow! Very jealous... of all the birds I would love to own, crows are very near the top of my list. They belong to the corvid group, and are considered by many experts to be the smartest birds in the world... even smarter than african greys. Unfortunately, they are illegal here in the states without a rescue/rehab or education permit.

And yes, they can learn to talk.

I have the priviledge of working with a crow at the aviary where I am interning as a bird trainer. She is extremely smart, and an escape artist. If you're planning on keeping your crow outdoors, definitely consider building a double door to prevent escapes. You're going to have to stay on your toes to stay ahead of a crow...

In the wild, crows have been known to make their own tools to solve problems and get at food. They've also demonstrated this ability in lab settings, utilizing objects placed in front of them to get a bit of food placed at the bottom of a pipe.

As far as what to feed, you'll have to do some more research on that... I'm still learning myself. Where are you getting the crow from? Perhaps they can give you some direction. In the meantime, a good softbill diet base (like something designed for Mynah birds and other corvids) is great. Supplement it with insects like mealworms and crickets and offer occassional pieces of rodents, like mice.

Like parrots, crows need toys to keep them stimulated. Use your imagination, just remember to keep things safe. It's also good practice to hide food in empty boxes, like cereal boxes, to make them forage for it on their own. Since they are so smart, keeping them stimulated is extremely important.

If I think of anything else, I'll let you know. Enjoy your crow!