Mom Again?

[Zumaria]

Hello and greetings fellow parronts!!

My name is Amberly and I hail from the great city of Chicago! I've come to you all today for some understanding that only those who've had a fid can understand.

To begin - I used to have a CAG named Woody. When I was much younger (18/19), I decided I wanted a talking pet - wouldn't it be cool to have a talking pet that could impress all my friends? So, I began to inquire how one would go about getting a talking bird. I emailed the lady who owns Welcome to Africangreys.com and asked about getting one, what it entails etc. (fun fact, if you visit that link, I am the picture in the middle with the CAG cuddling my face. I've since lost 100+lbs though!) and she said that she just so happened to be emailing with someone who needed to rehome their CAG - and the lady looking for a new home was located in Columbus, Ohio which was exactly where I was living! Fate, right?

That's how I ended up with Woody. I finally had talking bird, how cool. Little did I know that I would end up falling in love with this bird, little did I know he would be able to communicate with me about his wishes and hopes and that he would end up - literally- being like a son to me.

Like I said, I was very young and foolish at the time. I broke up with the guy I was living with and was working 3 jobs to stay afloat. I was a member of a parrot club and I offered up Woody to a fellow member because I was no longer able to care for him. Looking back it was the biggest mistake I have ever made - in a way. It was certainly right for him, seeing as how I was almost literally never home, but I regret it everyday. For years (almost 6 years later now) I have regretted that decision. I still keep in touch with his mom - he is living fat and happily on a farm with some siblings and an aviary, he is blessed, but he isn't with me. I kick myself for not finding a way to make it work. Thinking about the day I lost him still makes me a little emotional.

At any rate - I'm sure you can relate!

Well, its 6 years later now. I’m done with school; I live in Chicago, with my own 2 bedroom apartment. I have a wonderful 9-5 M-F job which pays all my bills and then some. I have the space, I have the money, and I certainly have the love. So why am I waiting? Well, I’ve been thinking about it and I’m still so heartbroken over Woody that I think I’m scared to get another bird because I will love it just as much but don’t think I could go through another loss like that – I mean, it literally almost killed me. It was what I imagine losing a child is like (though I hope many of you can’t relate to that!). Also, I’d be out of the house from 7:30 am – 6 pm with my commute and I’d want to spend every second I had with my new fid.


Guys, I guess what I’m looking to find is some encouragement – some success stories of you and your birds. Are there any other single folks out there who work full time and have a happy birdy? I'm worried about his/her enrichment time - but they will have a HUGE CAGE (or two.) Have you ever lost one, if so, how did you ‘get over it’?

Thank you in advance for reading this sad post and offering up your support. While no one is ever in a position to guarantee their situation for life, I think this is as good as it’s going to get and I know I could make some lucky birdy out there very, very happy, I just need to get over the fear of losing them.

 

[thekarens]

We lost two greys. One at the age of 3 to pbfd and the second one when he was 13 to some unknown seizure disorder.

It's been a couple years and we recently got a sennie. My partner won't have another grey because of what happened even though those are her favorites.

I don't work the hours you do, so sometime else will have to chime in there. I think though that you can make it work.

Maybe consider getting an older bird or a bird that needs a home and needs as much love as you need to give love.

 

[noblemacaw]

I am no stranger to loosing a parrot. If you look at my signature you will see that I have lost three boys. One to cancer, one to stroke and one to a heart attack. It is hard not to feel like a failure with my boys. They were suppose to out live me but they did not. Each death was hard on us and I almost gave up on parrots for companions. I could not help but feel they would die an early death in my care.

I went two months without any parrots in my home and that was a very dark time. I realized that not to have parrots after living with them for 20 plus years was not how I wanted to live. My boys were my companions, they were more than just a pet to us. They were involved in our daily lives more than any pet could be. I loved each boy in different ways but each were special to me.

After Diego suffered a stoke but before Mihijo had his heart attack I found a wonderful breeder of Red Fronted macaws. This parrot would be the largest parrot I ever lived with so I spend a lot of time with research and soul searching about "getting another parrot".

We ended up moving forward with the decision for a RFM but missed out on that year breeding season. I had to make payments on the parrot and could not come up with the funds that quickly. As we made payments the next breeding season started and females kept hatching no one was having any males. The last hatched that season was a male and we realized it was meant to be.

Two months before Valentino was weaned and old enough to leave his home Mihijo died of a heart attack. His necropsy revealed the health complications he was having were corrected but that his heart gave out. I was shocked to learn his great vessels were clean with no build up. Mihijo would of been 18 years old the following February.

Needless to say after loosing Diego to a stroke and then with Mihijo's health problems I felt I needed to reeducate myself with parrot diet, even down to different species needs. I have learned a lot over the past few years of intense study and communicating with professionals, breeder and long time parrot owners. There is a difference with the species and their needs. I will never stop learning about how to care for parrots as best as I can. I will always be open to new information and will never feel compliant again. Even since you had Woody, parrot care and diet has come a long way.

With Valentino I have stacked the deck WITH me. I can trace his lineage back to his grandparents. His grandfather died at 82 years of age and his grandmother, still alive is pushing 70 years old. His father is 20 and his mother is 9. Valentino should out live me and has longevity in his genes. Even vet care for parrots has advanced well.

We also moved forward and adopted a Noble macaw. Julio is only bonded to Lupe and does not care for me at all. He can and has savagely bit me and I have a tiny scar on my finger. Although I do not handle him he is happy with being Lupe's bird and his vet care with labs look really good. Although he is plucked we took him home because he was in the rescue way too long and no one wanted him. I am sure his foster mom would of kept him as long as needed, even for the rest of his life if need be but now her home opened up for another parrot in need.

Over the past few months we made the decision to add the final flock member. Next year we will move forward and add a Panama amazon. The amazon will be fed differently than the RFM and even from the Noble macaw. The Panama will be our last addition.

As for working Lupe works a normal day time job but I have been working at home out of my office. Valentino is use to being in his cage 6 to 7 hours a day without interaction from me. Later in the year I am rejoining the workforce and will be working normal day time hours full time. I know this will be a great adjustment for Valentino who is bonded to me and loves Lupe but I will adjust my schedule if need be if problems persist.

I have my concerns with adding in the Panama but I know with dedication, heart work and time, balance will be achieved within my flock. You get out of your parrot what you put in which is why I think you placed Woody with a family that could meet his needs.

It sounds like you are very ripe to add a flock member into your life. You have stable work with regular hours and can afford to take on a parrots needs. Go with your heart. If you can open your heart to a parrot in need adopt an older parrot. There is a rescue near Milwaukee WI that I would of used myself and was in process of using but this past winter was too long and I was not able to travel safely until MID MAY and by then the parrots I was interested in were already adopted, information about Julio came up and we moved forward to adopt him. If you want more information about the WI rescue and want to reach out to contact them PM me and I will forward you the information. If even just to talk shop with them would be awesome.

Please keep us updated to your decision. I know more members will give you more input as well.

 

[Echo]

Funny enough, today my Avian Vet asked me if I knew of anyone interested in a Grey. I have no details other than knowing that a client of hers rescued him from a bad situation but can't keep him (he was kept outside! ). She is going to assess his condition and offer immediate medical care if needed. He is in Connecticut, and I have no idea if they will consider shipping, but I thought I would mention it seeing your post, just in case. I can also of course get more info if interested.....

 

[Zumaria]

Thank you guys for your kind words - this truly makes me feel so much better! It has been a really, really long time since I've been around parrot people!

I have taken the first step toward getting another fid - I bought a Roomba! In the meantime I'm going to use it for cat hair, but eventually it will be a slave to the bird room

TheKarens - That's so sad

Noble - I'd like to know more about that, if you don't mind. I've been checking out petfinder today, though when I adopt it won't be for a few more months.

Echo - thank you for keeping me in mind. I've don't know much about shipping birds...do you?

 

[Echo]

Delta offers pet shipping which I have used with no problems. However, I really don't know if it's an option, just thought that if interested, I could find out more about the Grey.

 

[Ash]

I work full time and I'm sure my fids are happy
Crumbs my conure he comes to work with me though and he loves it.
While my alexandrines stay at home(They do come with me to work from time to time). They have a huge cage, even an outside aviary(Loves of wooden toys as that's there fav). They are happy enough to be with each other and destroy their toys. They are very independent birds while they still love to hang out with me

The time you are out are the same hours as I am on some days.

Since you work full time maybe you should look into birds who are more independent? I would suggest an alexandrine

They are gentle birds, intelligent, can become great talkers, easy to read, laid back, easily entertain themselves, usually don't bond to one person. Though they LOVE to destroy and can be very loud (Have a high pitched/ear piercing squawk). ;p Not sure they would be the best apartment bird

I would find it very hard if Crumbs wasn't able to come to work with me. I think he would find it hard as well as he is use to having attention almost 24/7.

 

[noblemacaw]

I went ahead and sent you the PM with the information you requested. Please let me know if you didn't receive it.

 

[MikeyTN]

Welcome to the forum! I hope in time you can find that special bird once again, keep looking as he's out there some where. Good luck in your search!!!

 

[Zumaria]

Thanks guys! Noble, I did receive your PM (thank you!) and wanted to let you know here, I can't write you back yet because I haven't posted 20 times yet lol

 

[Zumaria]

I just submitted my adoption application

 

[thekarens]

I just submitted my adoption application

That's awesome! Congrats!