Clear the Shelters, a nationwide pet adoption event, takes place today.
Both Alfie and Ozzie were adopted from the County of San Diego Department of Animal Services. We really hit the jackpot with these two wonderful little budgies.
We adopted Sido from Free Flight Exotic Bird Sanctuary. Sido is sweetest cockatiel. She can’t get enough scritching and loves to be with her humans.
If you are considering adding a bird to your family, please consider adopting (rescues/shelters/craigslist). Every birdie needs another chance at a loving home.
Like all the other birds, I would talk to Harvey by saying, “Hey buddy”. He never responded and if he thought anything about it, I’m sure he didn’t consider me his buddy. But that’s OK because Harvey was the birdiest of the flock. Never one to sit on my finger very long and always looking to where he would fly next. He loved all the girls and was usually the last chirp and chatter at bedtime, maybe singing every-budgie a lullaby.
I remember when Harvey came into our flock after Gordie passed away. Poor little Harvey was all by himself in a dirty cage with very few toys. It quickly became obvious that he was probably not treated very well by his former people and it would be tough to win his trust. At least we would provide him with a new flock and he could have a better bird life.
We try to provide all the budgies the best possible life next to living free in the wild. Of all the budgies, I thought Harvey was the most likely to welcome just such a life, which always made me a little sad. I called you buddy, but knowing that I’d never really be your buddy made me love you even more. I hope you’re at peace and finally able to fly free. I’ll miss you, buddy.
Cooper and Harvey in felt, custom made by HashizouWoolfelt on Etsy.
This amazing artwork was a gift from our dear friend Jan (of Jan and Puck). These little felted faces bring great joy – thank you so much, Jan.
In mid-July we noticed that Harvey was feeling out of sorts. He had started to vomit, so we took him in to our vet. The vet suspected avian gastric yeast. He was given meds and we put him in quarantine. When he failed to improve, we took him back to the vet. He stayed at the vet’s office for two days and nights and was given different meds. We brought him home again, and he seemed to be improving a bit. He even put on a tiny bit of weight. On July 28th, Harry gave him his meds in the morning. When I checked on him later he had passed away.Harvey was our little “wild one”. We found him on Craigslist, where he had been living in a less than ideal environment. He was not tame, and was fearful of our hands. We did not notice he was was missing part of his lower beak until we brought him home. Harvey didn’t show any interest in toys and did not want to eat fruit, veggies or even millet (!).
It took a very long time to get Harvey to step up. But patience won out and it was a happy day when he did. I was still working on giving his little belly a kiss at bedtime. I did make contact a few times – we were almost there.
Harvey and the boys were great friends. He also loved the ladies. We called him “our little hormone”. He bonded with Lera and took great care of her. When she passed, he took up with Cooper. And Sunny. And he tried with Emmy (who belongs to Ozzie, and so was off limits). Harvey enjoyed his baths, and finally came around to eating his veggies. (and his millet). He was very vocal and would sing and chatter to his flock at bedtime. I’m going to miss his little voice. I still can’t believe he’s gone. Life will never be the same without our little yellow and blue budgie.
I was ten when I got my first budgie (named Budgie) from Woolworths. Didn’t have a grilled cheese, though. Budgie was a sweet bird, and very tame. He liked to turn the pages of my books – after giving them a nibble first.
