# Fly free, Luca



## SnowyShiloh (Oct 12, 2008)

I found one of my two cockatiels dead last night  The one who died is Luca, my beautiful boy who I've had for 6 years. Luca never liked me (except for one time when he let me scratch his head), but he was Arthur's best buddy. I've had Arthur for 10 years, I originally got him and another 'tiel, Michaela, at the same time, but Michaela died 6 years ago after a freak accident. Arthur did NOT handle being by himself well, he barely ate and bonded to me so strongly that he screamed incessantly if he couldn't see me. We got Luca shortly after so Arthur wouldn't have to be alone, and they became instant best friends. 

I'm so surprised that Luca is dead. I uncovered the cage yesterday morning and he was looking a little fluffed, but I thought he was just sleepy and cozy since he just woke up. I watched him for a few seconds to see how he acted, and he stretched and ran around on the perch so I thought he was okay and ran out the door to go to work. Looks like I was wrong 

Now poor Arthur is by himself again. I'm not sure how he's going to take being alone, but I don't think well. It's so hard because to tell the truth, I don't want another cockatiel, but I want Arthur to be happy. My options then are to either get another cockatiel so Arthur can be happy, or find Arthur a new home with people who have cockatiels. I've never rehomed a pet before and really don't want Arthur to go, so we'll probably end up getting another cockatiel sometime in the near future.

Luca and I never bonded, but he was a wonderful birdy friend to Arthur and I'm very sad that he's gone. Seeing his little yellow body on the floor of the cage was such a shock. I hope that he had a good life, didn't suffer, and is enjoying soaring around heaven on his angel's wings.

Here's a picture of my boys: Luca is the yellow one, Little Bird is the one in the back (he was my best little buddy, I adored him, he was always sickly and the vet told me not to expect him to live a full life- he died at the age of 3 in January 2006), and Arthur is the gray one in front.


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## undergunfire (Oct 12, 2008)

I am so sorry, Shiloh . He was beautiful and looks like my tiel that I had as a kid.


:rainbow:


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## SnowyShiloh (Oct 13, 2008)

Thanks, Amy. Arthur isn't handling it so well. He was acting fairly normally yesterday and the day before, but if I recall, he acted normally for the first couple days after Michaela died too. Then he started the near constant singing and wolf whistling, which is what they do to try to help their mate find their way back. He also started screaming a lot, too, which I think he did just because he was miserable. This morning he started up with all the singing, and a few minutes ago with the screaming. He'll stop screaming if we whistle at him or go talk to him, but it's a temporary fix.

My poor guy! I think we're definitely going to have to get him a buddy. Problem is that there are VERY few cockatiels in Fairbanks- I've only ever seen them at Evil Petco. I doubt there are even any breeders up here. There are probably more in Anchorage, but that's hours away from here and now that the roads are icy, people are driving back and forth much less frequently. Plus, I need to be able to take Arthur and the potential new bird on a little "date" to see if they like each other- like bunnies, you can't just toss two birds together and expect them to bond.

There are a couple people trying to rehome their cockatiels on Craigslist, but they're all a few hundred miles from here and again, icy roads plus the fact that they aren't guaranteed to hit it off. I posted a "wanted" ad on Craigslist, we'll see if anyone contacts me. I may post an ad in the Classifieds too.


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## slavetoabunny (Oct 13, 2008)

I'm so sorry you lost Luca. What a pretty birdie. I hope that you can find a new friend for Arthur. How long do cockatiels usually live?

:rip:Luca


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## LuvaBun (Oct 13, 2008)

I'm sorry to hear about Luca . I love cockatiels, they have such cheeky personalities, and I'm so sad for poor Arthur. I hope someone contacts you, or you can find another 'tiel soon.

Jan


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## SnowyShiloh (Oct 14, 2008)

Slavetoabunny, cockatiels are kind of like rabbits in that they theoretically have a fairly long lifespan, but something so often goes wrong and a lot of birds die young. Tiels can live to 30 or so years, but I think about 25 is the average "normal" lifespan- a lot of them don't make it that long though, for a number of reasons. Arthur is the oldest cockatiel I know of all my friends with tiels. He's 10 years old. The bird cage was upstairs in the bedroom, but we brought it down into the living room so Arthur can have us as company. He hasn't been screaming as much now that he's down here. Our super tiny living room is now even more crammed because he has a big cage, and Rory and Skyler are in here too, plus Phoebe Mae will be in here soon also!


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## RexyRex (Oct 15, 2008)

I'm really sorry Shiloh. Luca was a pretty bird. I had a cockatiel named Kiwi when I was a teenager and he was so awesome! He used to say "Kiwi's a pretty bird" and "Winter's a pretty bird". Funny thing is, I never taught him to say my name We always said that he learned it from my mom yelling at me to come downstairs all the time.

Have fun at the bridge Luca!! Look for Kiwi, he'll show you around!


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## JadeIcing (Oct 16, 2008)

I am so sorry. 

We had two Captain Hook and Peter Pan. We found them both dead. Peter Pan lying down Captain Hook laying over him his wings out.


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## SnowyShiloh (Oct 17, 2008)

Alicia, that's very odd how your birds died! It sounds like something in the environment suddenly killed them, I can't think of anything else. Were you cooking with non-stick pans or burning a scented candle, using a hair dryer or using any chemicals or aerosols before they died? That's so odd. A few years ago, someone on my birdy forum lost 6 of her 8 birds at once because her mother in law gave her a toaster oven for her birthday that had non-stick coating in it. She didn't realize it and turned it on to bake some turnovers, heard 6 thuds from the living room and ran in to find them dead. Can't help but wonder if something like that happened to your boys? That's so sad 

Poor Arthur's still hanging in there. I've checked out the classifieds section of the newspaper with no luck. I've got a couple replies from my Craigslist post, but both people live way down in Anchorage or even farther south than that. One person contacted me to say her friend lives in Fairbanks and has several cockatiels, she said she gave her my e-mail and phone number in case we can work something out. While we were at Petco the other night, we checked out the cockatiels, they have two. Both are whitefaced pearls- very lovely. I think one's a boy and one's a girl. I don't really want to buy from a pet store for a number of reasons, but Arthur needs a friend and we may have to resort to that if no other tiels pop up in the next month or so. A big gamble with that though is that like bunnies, you can't just throw two cockatiels together and expect them to bond. They don't all like each other. The pet store won't allow Arthur to meet the cockatiels they have ahead of time, and they don't allow you to return birds, so we'd be stuck if he and the new bird didn't like each other.


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## JadeIcing (Oct 18, 2008)

*SnowyShiloh wrote: *


> Alicia, that's very odd how your birds died! It sounds like something in the environment suddenly killed them, I can't think of anything else. Were you cooking with non-stick pans or burning a scented candle, using a hair dryer or using any chemicals or aerosols before they died? That's so odd. A few years ago, someone on my birdy forum lost 6 of her 8 birds at once because her mother in law gave her a toaster oven for her birthday that had non-stick coating in it. She didn't realize it and turned it on to bake some turnovers, heard 6 thuds from the living room and ran in to find them dead. Can't help but wonder if something like that happened to your boys? That's so sad




Nope no changes we weren't home and had been living there a long time.

We wonder if one died and the other having to stay with it died out of grief? These our birds that would freak if seperated.


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## SnowyShiloh (Oct 23, 2008)

My poor Arthur! He's been alone for almost 2 weeks now. I've made no progress with finding him a buddy. I keep checking Craigslist, and someone else posted an ad looking for a cockatiel in Fairbanks, too! No one is looking to rehome theirs though. I may have to bite the bullet and buy one from Petco. The birds look healthy and the cages are kept nice... It turns out they actually have a 15 day return policy on birds if you have the receipt. I would feel really mean bringing a bird back to the store, but I'm really hoping Arthur and the new bird would get along. When Michaela died, Arthur became very bonded to me and had to be with me all the time, but since Luca died, he's been very angry at me. He bites and hisses at me, and then begs for me to rub his head because he's starved for affection  Poor miserable birdy!


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## SnowyShiloh (Oct 25, 2008)

Today's the day! Tonight after work we're going to Petco to see about finding Arthur a friend. I'm also going to buy new perches, some toys and a cage for the new birdy to hang out in (figures I got rid of my spare a couple months ago) until s/he bonds with Arthur. Thankfully, bonding cockatiels is pretty straightforward- they seem to either like each other or they don't! Petco will be getting my whole paycheck for the week, if not more... I don't remember how much the tiels cost there, I know in the $200 range. For perspective, Arthur cost a whopping $29 when I got him in January 1999.

I'm kind of excited and hope we find a nice bird for him!


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## SnowyShiloh (Oct 26, 2008)

We went to Petco but didn't get a bird  They had three lovely cockatiels, but the tiels weren't at all used to being handled unfortunately. None of them wanted anything to do with us. Poor birdies, I'm sure they'd be much happier if they being in contact with humans wasn't so scary for them! The store did have 2 Pionus, some caiques, 2 red shouldered conures and some sun conures that were very sweet and gentle, they clearly loved human attention. 

So, we were unsuccessful today, but this afternoon I mentioned to a coworker that Paul and I were going to look at cockatiels after work and one of my bosses overheard and said she may know some breeders! Apparently she used to breed tiels and is going to call a couple friends who may have a cockatiel for us. She said she'd tell me about it tomorrow, I hope there's good news!


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## slavetoabunny (Oct 26, 2008)

Too bad you are so far away - we have four cockatiels at our shelter right now. Someone dumped all four of them in the after hours box.


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## SnowyShiloh (Oct 30, 2008)

Slavetoabunny, those poor birdies! I hope they get good homes  I do have possible good news though, today someone posted an ad on Craigslist trying to rehome a cockatiel. They want $200 for him! Rather steep for rehoming a pet (cockatiels cost $150 at Petco here and pet stores always charge a lot for birds), but I requested more info.


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## paul2641 (Oct 30, 2008)

*SnowyShiloh wrote: *


> Slavetoabunny, those poor birdies! I hope they get good homes  I do have possible good news though, today someone posted an ad on Craigslist trying to rehome a cockatiel. They want $200 for him! Rather steep for rehoming a pet (cockatiels cost $150 at Petco here and pet stores always charge a lot for birds), but I requested more info.


That's terrible news on the bird dieing on you. Hope you find another one that will bond with Arthur.


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## SnowyShiloh (Oct 30, 2008)

I know Paul, I was so surprised. Two of my cockatiels died before him, but under different circumstances. I don't remember if I told the stories in this thread yet and I'm too lazy to look, so I'll just write it again! 

We used to not clip their wings because we thought birds should be able to fly, and we'd let Arthur and Michaela out to fly around the house. One day, Michaela flew into a wall and when I ran to pick her up, I heard a grating sound in her chest. We rushed her to the vet and she stayed over night. The vet couldn't find anything wrong with her and sent her home. Sure enough, she acted completely normal- birds hide illness well, but she was doing things like singing happily and mating with Arthur, which sick birds don't do! The accident happened in April. In August, we decided to breed Arthur and Michaela since they were such lovely birds and I had homes lined up for them. First I took Michaela back to the vet to make sure she really was okay. He said she was fine. I was relieved!

I did a TON of research and was thrilled when 6 perfect eggs, ALL fertilized (which is unusual for the first try) were laid! They were wonderful parents to the eggs. Then one day when the eggs were about 2 weeks old, I went into my room and found Michaela sitting on the ledge of the nest box, looking a little tired. Arthur was on the eggs. I was worried she was sick so my mom came home from work early and we took her to the vet. He said she may have a calcium deficiency but should perk up and wanted to keep her overnight. So I left her there. The next morning as I was happily preparing to go pick her up and telling Arthur and the eggs to hang tight because Michaela would be home soon, the vet called and said she had died during the night. I was crushed! Later my brother said he thought one of our parents had been in a car accident or something because all he knew was the phone rang, then I was screaming and crying. My poor sweet Michaela, she was such a good girl and I never forgave myself for letting her die alone at the vet office. Anyway, the vet asked if he could do a necropsy and I said he could. When we went to pick her body up, he said he was very surprised to find her liver nearly separated into 2 pieces and a bright shade of green. Her liver had been severely injured when she flew into the wall, but she'd hid it for more than 4 months. He didn't know how she'd continued to live happily for so long in that condition. He said she would have died eventually but having the eggs probably made it happen sooner. I was so shocked and horrified. I still miss Michaela, she was a sweet and very smart bird. We had her cremated.

None of the eggs hatched. Arthur tried his best to sit on them, but after a couple days he was overcome with grief and called constantly to Michaela. He started scattering the eggs around the nest box in an attempt to cool them down. I tried to save them, used a heating pad under the nest box with a thermometer, and even carried them around in my shirt with a thermometer. After one day of trying to warm the eggs myself, I was able to get ahold of a breeder half an hour away who immediately dropped everything and drove to my house to get the eggs. She had an experienced pair of breeding tiels who recently laid a clutch of unfertilized eggs, and the plan was to swap them out. The new parents took great care of the eggs, but none hatched. Something could have gone wrong at so many points during the eggs "lives", but I was still disappointed as I'd been hoping so much for at least one baby to keep for myself- a little bit of Arthur and Michaela. Michaela was cremated and I buried some of her ashes with the eggs and a few of Arthur's feathers.

So at this point, poor Arthur was beside himself. I started spending all my time with him and he bonded very strongly to me. If he was on me or in my sight, he was fine, but if he couldn't see me, he shrieked incessantly for hours on end. I'm not kidding, once I pretended to leave the house but just stayed downstairs and he screamed for 3 hours before I went upstairs. He definitely needed another bird companion as he had never been alone in the 3 1/2 years he'd been alive. He and Michaela had been so closely bonded, they were so sweet and funny together. Arthur eventually was so upset that wouldn't eat. I took him to 4 vets (even a homeopathic vet) before finding an awesome vet a few miles away. The vet said to get him a bird friend ASAP. That's how we got Luca... He and Arthur hit it off immediately, they were best friends right away and Arthur was finally relieved off his sorrow. They were best friends for 6 years.

We got Little Bird a month after we got Luca. Before the little eggs didn't hatch, the breeder who took them invited us over to her house. We saw her wonderful breeding set up and her MANY birds. At the time, she was handfeeding a little cockatiel chick, the only survivor from his clutch. Only 3 of their 6 or 7 eggs had hatched, and the parents proceded to kill 2 of the babies. The breeder walked in when they were killing the last baby, but she saved him. He was 3 days old at the time. When I saw him first, he was 10 days old... a super ugly, gangly little baby with a huge scab on his back from where he'd been attacked. Seriously, on this tiny bird there was a scab the size of a quarter. I don't know how he survived! Anyway, the breeder let me hold him but I was so scared of hurting him (he'd just been fed) that I put him down quickly. Several weeks later, the breeder and I were still sending e-mails back and forth and she was telling me how sweet the little cockatiel who she'd named ET had become. I mean, he was hand raised for nearly his entire life and spent most of his time with her (she carried him around), so he was VERY used to being handled! My mom and I talked it over and we decided to buy him. I was immediately smitten with Little Bird, the breeder brought him over to our house and in spite of having been in the car for 15 minutes, as soon as I opened his cage he ran over and leaned his head down to get scratches. He was THE most amazing cockatiel ever. He loooooved everyone, especially me (even from the begining). He loved attention, being kissed and held, and would cuddle on my chest for hours. We bought him a little bird diaper so he could play without pooping on stuff. He loved zippers and shiny things and earrings and everything really. He happily went to anyone who wanted to hold him. Most cockatiels only want their heads to be petted, but he would lie on his back in my hand and get belly rubs. Very special, happy boy.

Unfortunately, he also had many problems. He was really tiny and had deformed feet. He only had feeling in 2 toes on each foot and had problems perching on things and walking without tripping. He suffered from a ton of health problems and was at the vet every couple weeks. I spent at least $2000 on vet bills for him during his 3 years. The vet told me to prepare for him to have a shortened life span because he was so delicate and probably had things wrong inside. The fact that his parents had tried to kill him made me worried, because birds can often tell if something's wrong with their chicks and will try to kill them at a young age. I'd heard of many other birds being rescued from their parents and handraised, only to die a couple years later of what turned out to be a congenital problem. Little Bird lived for 3 years though. He was my constant companion. He hated Arthur and Luca, and they hated him. They never hurt him (tiels are very gentle birds), but they shunned him, so he lived alone and was bonded to me. He never ever learned to chirp like a normal cockatiel, even with Arthur and Luca in the same room. He made this sound that was similar to the sound baby cockatiels make when they're hungry. He could also whistle and when he saw his reflection or the other birds, he produced quite the array of funny sounds. Anyway, I had to leave him to go to college in Alaska in September, and my mom took care of the birds. Poor Little Bird missed me, but the separation was going to be temporary and my mom gave him attention. When I went home in December, he was so happy to see me! I missed him a lot. At one point, I remember being worried because something seemed to be "off" with him. His weight was good and he was acting normally, but I could sense something wrong. My mom and friend who was visiting (she had cockatiels for years and was a vet tech) assured me he was FINE and I was just paranoid, so I let it go. The next day I left to visit my dad for a few days in Louisiana. A couple nights later I got a call from my mom who said one of the birds had died. My heart stopped as I waited for her to tell me who it was... Of course I loved Arthur and Luca, but Little Bird was my darling. Of course it was him. My brother found him dead on the floor of the cage. Unfortunately, we didn't have a necropsy done... It would have been good to know what was wrong with him, I can't remember why one wasn't done. I think my brother had already taken him to be cremated so it was too late.

So, that is the very long story of Michaela and Little Bird. Both of them were wonderful birds. They had such different personalities. Luca was pretty much untouchable, he hated humans but was Arthur's buddy. I worked with him for a looooong time and finally accepted that he didn't want to be friends with me. Michaela was Arthur's "wife", but still liked me. She would sit on my finger or shoulder and get her head scratched. Little Bird was the most hands on cockatiel I've ever met or even heard of, he took everything in stride and had such a huge personality for such a tiny bird. I miss all of my birdies and hope we can find a great tiel to be Arthur's new mate. I haven't heard back from the Craigslist tiels owner yet.

Sorry so long!


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## paul2641 (Oct 30, 2008)

"Hi I thought i would tell you that were I'm from Ireland teils arn't that expencive. Ohh And I am so sorry about your terrible losses. Hope you find a good friend for Athur.


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## SnowyShiloh (Oct 30, 2008)

I've been playing this video for Arthur over and over, he likes it! He whistles and chatters along with it. At least he doesn't scream when it's playing 

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_tdteFnE6s&feature=related[/ame]


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## paul2641 (Oct 30, 2008)

*SnowyShiloh wrote: *


> I've been playing this video for Arthur over and over, he likes it! He whistles and chatters along with it. At least he doesn't scream when it's playing
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_tdteFnE6s&feature=related


Thats good.


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## SnowyShiloh (Oct 31, 2008)

Good news! I got a reply about the cockatiel advertised on Craigslist. He's 4 years old and apparently a very nice boy. He's never been with another cockatiel, but likes to whistle at his reflection in the mirror, so he and Arthur may get along. We're going to set up a time for a birdy date in the next few days!


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## paul2641 (Oct 31, 2008)

*SnowyShiloh wrote: *


> Good news! I got a reply about the cockatiel advertised on Craigslist. He's 4 years old and apparently a very nice boy. He's never been with another cockatiel, but likes to whistle at his reflection in the mirror, so he and Arthur may get along. We're going to set up a time for a birdy date in the next few days!



Really hope it works out for you. Let you know kk. 

Hope love blooms. :inlove:


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## SnowyShiloh (Nov 2, 2008)

We're still working on setting up the birdy meeting time (she lives a little ways from here and we have conflicting work schedules), but the other tiel's owner sent me a couple pictures of him. He's so cute! He looks just like Arthur, I think Paul is going to have a hard time telling them apart...


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## paul2641 (Nov 2, 2008)

*SnowyShiloh wrote: *


> We're still working on setting up the birdy meeting time (she lives a little ways from here and we have conflicting work schedules), but the other tiel's owner sent me a couple pictures of him. He's so cute! He looks just like Arthur, I think Paul is going to have a hard time telling them apart...


Are you going to get the 2 of them? Really hope it works out.


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## SnowyShiloh (Nov 2, 2008)

Nope, just one new birdy. His name is Gus and he looks like Arthur. I have a knack for adopting pets named Gus, the rat we adopted last year was named Gus until we changed it to Colby Jack! Sorry if I confused you, my boyfriend's name is Paul and I was saying he would have a hard time telling them apart because Arthur and Gus look like twins.


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## paul2641 (Nov 2, 2008)

*SnowyShiloh wrote: *


> Nope, just one new birdy. His name is Gus and he looks like Arthur. I have a knack for adopting pets named Gus, the rat we adopted last year was named Gus until we changed it to Colby Jack! Sorry if I confused you, my boyfriend's name is Paul and I was saying he would have a hard time telling them apart because Arthur and Gus look like twins.


So are you set on getting Gus?


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## SnowyShiloh (Nov 3, 2008)

We're setting up a time for Arthur and Gus to meet. If they like each other and he likes us okay, and his current owner likes us, then I guess he'll be Arthur's new friend!


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## paul2641 (Nov 3, 2008)

*SnowyShiloh wrote: *


> We're setting up a time for Arthur and Gus to meet. If they like each other and he likes us okay, and his current owner likes us, then I guess he'll be Arthur's new friend!


Hope it works out for you.


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## Jenk (Nov 5, 2008)

Shiloh,

I am so sorry to learn of Luca's passing.  (I've been avoiding this particular forum for a while now, which is why I'm so late in responding.)

As you've said yourself, Luca is "enjoying soaring around heaven on his angel's wings." Please take some comfort in that thought. :hug:

Jenk


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## SnowyShiloh (Nov 6, 2008)

Jenk, today is such a happy day! We found a tiel friend :biggrin2: We stopped at Petco after work to buy a box of bunny treats (which I incidentally forgot to buy!) and they had a little Lutino cockatiel with black goo (medication or something) dried on her face. A couple weeks ago we tried to handle the cockatiels, but they were all completely untamed. The store manager was able to get the Lutino out and she sat on my finger and let me scratch her head. No biting (a little beaking, but that's fine). We decided to take her home and try her out with Arthur. She's only 10 or so weeks old and I think she's a girl because I haven't heard a PEEP out of her in the whole hour we've had her. When we got home, I took Arthur out of his cage and he immediately set to hopping around in front of her with his wings held away from his body (a mating behavior) and serenading her with wolf whistles. He started screaming when she went out of his sight. She seems rather oblivious to his presence, but he sure likes her. So sweet! I'm optimistic that I picked the "right" bird for Arthur


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## SnowyShiloh (Nov 6, 2008)

The new baby is settling in well! Arthur loves her already. He spent the whole evening strutting and hopping for her, and even tried to protect her from me when I approached them (he knows I wouldn't hurt them, he was just being possessive). We bought a very nice second cage to keep baby bird in until she could move in with Arthur, but after I put Arthur in his cage he wouldn't stop screaming until I put the new bird in his cage. He seems quite pleased to have her there. Cockatiels aren't like other animals in that they're very gentle and I don't need to worry about him hurting her- if he didn't like her, he'd just shun her. He definitely likes her though! I also bought them a bunch of new toys and re-did the cage. 

We like the new birdy too, she's so cute. She had some sort of injury and was at the vet for a couple weeks recovering, I think she's tamer than the other tiels at Petco (who are not the tiniest bit tame) because she was handled every day to get medication! She's still shy and runs away from hands, but once on your finger enjoys having her head and neck rubbed. No biting even when I clipped her wings, Arthur bit me more tonight than she did!

I ordered a DNA test for her but I'm 90% sure she's a girl. I correctly guessed the gender of all my other tiels (even when the very bird knowledgeable pet store Arthur and Michaela came from said Arthur was a girl and Michaela a boy), but the DNA test only costs $20 so I think it's worth it to know. All I have to do is clip one of her nails a bit short and collect a couple drops of blood on the little paper the DNA testing company is sending, then mail it back. I also ordered both birdies one of these: 

http://www.flightquarters.com/index.html

Little Bird had one of these flight suits from the same company. When he came out of his cage, I would quickly put it on him and he'd run around everywhere without pooping on things! Very nice. I also ordered them the little lanyards so NEXT summer, we can take the birdies outside to enjoy the fresh air without worrying about them flying away.

Paul and I are working on names for the new birdy. We have Dora, Hannelore, Jemma, Clementine, Piper and Savannah on the list. She's so sweet and dainty that she needs a sweet, girly name.

Pictures coming tomorrow!


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## Jenk (Nov 6, 2008)

That's happy news, Shiloh. Just be sure to observe a quarantine period (just to be safe, to protect Arthur).


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## paul2641 (Nov 6, 2008)

I hope that everything works out with the new birdie, can't wait to see it.


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## paul2641 (Nov 6, 2008)

I hope that everything works out with the new birdie, can't wait to see it.


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## paul2641 (Nov 6, 2008)

I can't wait to see the new birdie, best of luck hope everything goes well. Sorry I didn't know the first one went through.


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## SnowyShiloh (Nov 6, 2008)

Here are some pictures of the happy new couple! The black stuff on the baby's face is I think medication that unfortunately didn't get washed off, so now she will probably have it on her face until she molts!















































They're so sweet together, they've been grooming each other and they look so happy.


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## undergunfire (Nov 6, 2008)

Your stories and pictures are making me want birds again. I had two Tiels growing up who lived with me for quite a long time. They were not very tame, though. I also had parakeets for a few years. They all passed on in my care.

What I am really wanting one day is an African Grey, but I just worry about how long they live. I haven't taken the time to research them, but I find them to be gorgeous.


Keep those cute pictures coming .


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## SnowyShiloh (Nov 7, 2008)

Amy, cockatiels are such great birds. They're so gentle! Yes, Arthur does bite me sometimes (just because he's feeling ornery, I know he loves me :biggrin2 but they're so sweet with each other. Little Bird was an incredibly special bird and showed me how great single tiels can be- all my other tiels have been paired up with Arthur! Arthur and Michaela, then Arthur and Luca, now Arthur and baby bird. I get the feeling that this little girl would be a really sweet bird and would bond to me strongly if there weren't another cockatiel in the picture, but she needs to be Arthur's friend. I am glad though that we found a tiel that WE like and Arthur likes. I feel bad about never having really formed a bond with Luca, I took good care of him but honestly he was Arthur's bird. I'm going to try to form a loving relationship with the baby bird, but she will of course bond with Arthur so not have as much use for me as if she were an only bird.

Someday I really want to get a Pionus parrot to be "my" bird. I actually met a Pionus at the pet store Arthur came back way back 10 years ago. They had all kinds of parrots and most of them made me a little nervous, but the bronze winged Pionus was gentle and laid back. I didn't know what kind of parrot it was, but years later when I was researching different species, I learned all about Pionus and have loved them since. Figures that when I happened upon a picture of a bronze winged Pionus, it looked exactly like the parrot at that pet store! I'm hoping we can get a Pionus when we move somewhere bigger, sometime in the next couple years. I've gotten back into researching them a lot, and we played with the adorable blue head Pionus at the Petco that our baby tiel came from. I've been reading the book "Guide to a Well Behaved Parrot" in preparation and have joined a Pionus forum. Pionus, like all parrots, can have their issues and need a lot of love and attention, but they're much less prone to behavioral problems than other parrots (including African Greys).


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## undergunfire (Nov 7, 2008)

*SnowyShiloh wrote: *


> Someday I really want to get a Pionus parrot to be "my" bird. I actually met a Pionus at the pet store Arthur came back way back 10 years ago. They had all kinds of parrots and most of them made me a little nervous, but the bronze winged Pionus was gentle and laid back. I didn't know what kind of parrot it was, but years later when I was researching different species, I learned all about Pionus and have loved them since. Figures that when I happened upon a picture of a bronze winged Pionus, it looked exactly like the parrot at that pet store! I'm hoping we can get a Pionus when we move somewhere bigger, sometime in the next couple years. I've gotten back into researching them a lot, and we played with the adorable blue head Pionus at the Petco that our baby tiel came from. I've been reading the book "Guide to a Well Behaved Parrot" in preparation and have joined a Pionus forum. Pionus, like all parrots, can have their issues and need a lot of love and attention, but they're much less prone to behavioral problems than other parrots (including African Greys).



I will have to look them up, thank you !

I don't see a birdie anywhere in the near future, though. With Ryan joining the Navy *hopefully* soon and wanting to have a kid in 5 years....it's just not the time .


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## Jenk (Nov 7, 2008)

*undergunfire wrote: *


> What I am really wanting one day is an African Grey, but I just worry about how long they live. I haven't taken the time to research them, but I find them to be gorgeous.


You need to be _really_ prepared fora Grey before bringing one home. They can live between 60-70 years, so you'd need to incorporate him/her into your will. 

When I was 16 years old, I boughta Grey (yes, with my own savings). I thought she was male and named herMickey. The vet suspected that she was female, based upon her skull shape/size; the name _Mickey_ still stuck. 

Sadly, I had to give her up when I went away to college; my parents had decided that she was too much of a handful for them to care for in my absence. (Mickey _despised_ my dad and always bit holes in his shirts, even as he walked past her cage. It's not that he's a bad guy, but that he is a hyper person; Greys are _extremely_ sensitive to human moods/characteristics.)

Greys are _very_ smart and need much mental stimulation to remain happy. They're also very sensitive and need to have that trait taken into account, too. I realize now that, at age 16, I was not fully prepared for a Grey. And 16 years later, I'm _still_ not prepared for another Grey. :?


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