Fly free, Luca

[SnowyShiloh]

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!

 

[paul2641]

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:

 

[SnowyShiloh]

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...

 

[paul2641]

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.

 

[SnowyShiloh]

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.

 

[paul2641]

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?

 

[SnowyShiloh]

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!

 

[paul2641]

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.

 

[Jenk]

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

 

[SnowyShiloh]

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

 

[SnowyShiloh]

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!

 

[Jenk]

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

 

[paul2641]

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

 

[paul2641]

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

 

[paul2641]

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.

 

[SnowyShiloh]

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.

 

[undergunfire]

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 .

 

[SnowyShiloh]

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).

 

[undergunfire]

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 .

 

[Jenk]

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. :?