NOTE: As owners of this website, we have chosen to share our experiences and opinions on these webpages. We present this info "as is", and we shall have no liablility to anyone regarding any circumstance or occurrence related to the starling(s) or other birds in their care. It is each starling owner's responsibility to make the best choices for the diet, safety, health, care and wellbeing of his or her own starling..

Holidays are times when many of us decorate our homes and have friends and family visit. It is easy to become so overwhelmed during these special times that we may not realize some of our holiday trimmings could be harmful to our beloved starlings. Below is a brief list of potential dangers to starlings during the Christmas holiday season. The list is not comprehensive; it only includes things we have learned from many years of living with birds. *For a detailed list of year-round household dangers, click here.*

Keep Small Items Picked Up or Put Away!
Another bird owner suggested that we begin this list by emphasizing that ALL items small enough for a starling to swallow should be kept out of your bird's reach during holidays and year round! Some examples include earrings/earring backs, rubber bands, staples, small buttons, sewing and craft items (needles, sequins, beads, wire, etc.), small screws (eg. the kind used in a computer case), and pieces of string or thread. A curious starling will often swallow string or thread by the inch; he can get it wrapped tightly around a leg, a toe, or his tongue; or he can become entangled in it. Now, on to our holiday precautions ...........

Holiday Plants
Poinsettia plants, mistletoe berries, and holly berries may cause irritation to pet birds if eaten. Generally, most starlings do not eat houseplants, but some starlings do like to grab berries or rip leaves and stems and eat them. (Stormy does this!) Poinsettia stems have a milky sap which can irritate. Holly tree berries may cause intestinal upset if eaten. Mistletoe berries can be toxic if eaten.

Christmas Scents
Most bird owners know the dangers of having lit candles in a room with a free flighted bird. However, they also need to use caution when burning scented Christmas candles or using air fresheners in a room with any bird (even caged birds). We suggest not using these items in the room with your starling. Birds have very delicate respiratory systems, and fumes of any type have potential to harm them. A homemade potpourri made from spices and fruits is a safer way to get that holiday smell in a home. For example, during Christmas holidays we often simmer the following items in a pot of water on the stove: cinnamon sticks, several orange slices, whole cloves and/or whole allspice, mint leaves. (NO starlings are allowed in our kitchen while spices are heating!)

Fireplaces
Many people enjoy using fireplaces during winter holidays. It is important to keep starlings out of any room which has an open fireplace in use. When a fire is burning in our fireplace, we either keep our starlings confined to their cages, or we keep the fireplace doors tightly shut. We also ensure that we have proper ventilation, for smoke can easily harm a bird's sensitive respiratory system. None of our birds are housed in the same room with the fireplace, due to dangers from smoke inhalation.

The Kitchen and Holiday Cooking
Lots of extra holiday cooking and baking takes place during the holidays. A good rule is to keep starlings OUT of the kitchen during these times! A pet starling loose in a kitchen when we are cooking is an accident waiting to happen. For example, starlings love to jump into liquids and do not discern whether they are boiling hot. A starling will land on anything in a room and might land on a hot cookie sheet, a hot burner, in a pan of hot or cold grease, etc.

(Avoid nonstick cookware! - Bird owners should think twice about cooking with nonstick cookware during the holidays or at any other time! During heating it emits odorless fumes that are deadly to birds. To read important info about nonstick coatings and teflon, click here.)

Christmas Goodies
During Christmastime when we all enjoy eating Christmas goodies, it can be tempting to give a taste to our starlings. They beg for whatever we eat anyway. But please use caution about what you let your birds have as snacks. Chocolate is a big no-no. Sugary foods, extremely salty snacks, caffeine or alcohol are items to keep away from your starling. Ask your visitors not to offer these foods to your cute little beggar bird either.

Christmas Decorations
It is not a good idea to use decorative items such as tinsel, fiberglass angel hair, or spray snow unless you can supervise your pet starling and keep him away from these things at all times. Some of these items are not toxic yet will cause problems if ingested, and we starling owners know how quickly starlings swallow items they pick up. Some spray-on decorations may contain freon as propellants, so do not use them in the room with birds. We cannot be too careful about the decorations we use. (During Stormy's third Christmas, she found a styrofoam ornament that had fallen under the tree. She not only poked holes in it but also snatched up tiny styrofoam pieces she had broken off and ate one or more before we grabbed her. We were lucky that it caused her no problems.)

Glass Ornaments, Broken Lights, Ornament Hooks & Wires
Be very careful to keep a check on Christmas tree lights and glass ornaments. They break very easily, and their broken, sharp edges can cause cuts and even worse if the small pieces are snatched up in a curious beak and swallowed. If you have trouble with glass ornaments breaking each year, you might consider using safer items made of cloth, wood, satin, etc. Also be watchful of metal hooks or wires used for hanging ornaments -- keep ALL empty hooks or wires picked up and away from a starling!

Metallic Wrapping Paper
Some metallic wrapping papers may contain heavy metals, so these papers should be off limits to busy starlings who enjoy ripping and eating paper.

Have Rules for House Guests
Holiday visitors need to be aware of safety rules if your bird will be out while they are there. Visitors need to watch where they walk and should look carefully before sitting on furniture. They should refrain from smoking around your starling and should not feed your bird any foods without your permission. They need to keep all drinks covered (a starling can drown in a glass of liquid) and keep hot food away from your bird. We have a webpage which discusses how we keep our pet starlings safe while out of their cages, and it may offer some helpful ideas for this busy time of year.

Be Cautious with Doors!
Because holiday visitors come and go frequently, this is a time to have strict rules about a pet starling flying freely in the house. Please be sure your bird is confined before you open the front door to guests! It takes only seconds for a starling to fly through a partially open front door. Caution must also be used with a home's interior doors, for a freely flying starling who tries to follow someone into a room can accidentally be slammed in a carelessly closed door.

Have A Safe, Happy Holiday with Your starling!
During the hectic holidays, you might find that your starling is confined a little more than usual. It is important during this busy season that you still devote some time to him daily. His needs must be met, and he needs to know he is loved, even if his free flight time is curtailed for a while. Starlings are such adaptable little birds, and they can bring their own kind of magic to our holidays -- just remember to keep them safe while enjoying your holidays to the fullest.