BIRD TALK and BirdChannel.com editors recently plied on the sunscreen (well, mostly me since I am the palest of them all) and enjoyed a rare “workday” at the local fairgrounds for America’s Family Pet Expo, an outing we look forward to each April. After all, where else can you watch a diving dog demo, see a parade of adoptable dogs all dressed up in cute costumes and experience an outdoor bird show, complete with aerial tricks, among many other pet-related activities?

This year was extra special because we were part of the expo’s entertainment lineup. Web editor Crystal Apilado, BIRD TALK’s assistant editor Jessica Pineda and myself donned aprons and took turns demonstrating how to turn our “5-Step Bird Mix” (featured in the January 2008 issue) into an edible foraging toy for birds. (Now we can add “Cooking Host” to the long and eclectic list of BIRD TALK editor duties) We shared the stage with the editors of Dog Fancy and Cat Fancy magazines, who also demonstrated recipes for their respective pets. We performed six cooking demonstrations in all, which were spread over the three-day expo.

Those who weren’t bird people seemed surprised to learn that companion birds enjoy having to “work” for their food (via a foraging opportunity) or that you can make a fabulous bird treat from items you already have in the pantry, such as Cheerios®, dried fruit, pasta noodles, etc. Before they sat down, they probably had the notion that feeding a bird meant dropping a handful of seed in the dish. This was reason enough to pass ourselves off as “kitchen divas” (actually, Crystal and Jessica really are adept in the kitchen; I’m the one who benefits from easy-to-make recipes like the “5-Step Bird Mix"). We hope to take to the stage in next year’s expo as well.