If predators are near, watch your pet bird

My goffin cockatoo likes to go outside with me, and I want him to get vitamin D directly from the sun. I worry that he could be grabbed by a hawk or falcon, even if he is on my shoulder or hand. Is that probable if one was in the area?

-- Bruce Bot, Plainview

If you asked me this 20 years ago, I would have assured you that this would never happen. In the past two decades, however, there has been an increase in the number of predatory animals in this area, and they seem much less afraid of humans these days. I never would have believed that a hawk would snatch a pet bird that was being carried by a human until my own sister was walking in her backyard with her pet pigeon and a Cooper's hawk came out of nowhere and whacked the pigeon right off her hand and tussled with it on the lawn. She was just barely able to save the pigeon from the hawk.

There are other dangers, too. Someone told me she put her African grey parrot on the back of a lawn chair while she sat and read a book in a chair right next to it, only to see a raccoon charge out of a bush seven feet away and snatch the poor parrot up and run off with him.

These happenings are very rare; there are lots of pet birds that share yards and gardens of their owners without incident. But the dangers are obviously real, and you should do your best to never let your pet bird out of your sight or concentration when it is outdoors with you.

I would like to put a layer of mulch around my plants this year. I like the smell and look of cocoa mulch, but I have four dogs and I have heard mixed reports that this can be toxic to them if they eat it. What should I do?

-- Roseann LoFrisco, Central Islip

The cocoa bean contains an element called theobromine, and this can be toxic to dogs and cats. This is the reason we are told never to feed chocolate to pets. The mulch made up of the shells of the cocoa bean actually contains a lot more theobromine than milk chocolate candy. If a dog or cat ate the mulch, it could suffer from the effects of its ingestion. Even dogs that would not normally eat mulch or dirt may be attracted to the cocoa bean mulch, as they enjoy its aroma. I would advise you to choose another type of mulch to use in your flower beds.

I have an 8-year-old pit bull that is deaf and slowly losing his sight. Often, when he is laying down, he will suddenly pop up and start to bark. He will even do this in the middle of the night. Any idea why he would behave like this?

-- Dennis Horodyski, Holtsville

Since he is deaf, he most likely responds to whatever vibrations he may pick up - more than a dog that can hear and certainly more so than a human. When he is laying down, his whole body is even more in tune to sudden vibrations. Thus, when he feels something going on that you are not aware of, he jumps up to alert the household to it, just as a dog that can hear will alert you to a suspicious sound. It is just his way of being a good watchdog while dealing with his compromised senses.