My first intro to pet birds was my Uncle George's African Grey. I had never been to his house and every 5 years we have family reunion where we open a chest that has our family history in it. I think I was around 12 years old.
His grey would swing from the ceiling of his cage which was suspended from HIS ceiling so the whole cage would swing and when it was really rocking, he'd yell out "ROCK AND ROLLLL!"
I was IN LOVE! I spent nearly the entire reunion sitting in the room with the bird, talking his ear off and watching him.
After highschool, I got a job working at a local pet store, now mind you, it made me no bird expert, but it certainly spiked my interest once again however, I was still living at home and my parents were adamit - "NO BIRDS!"
I met a guy, got married, had my daughter. And in 1996 I took her to the pet store and on whim, picked 2 parakeets and bought them. I knew my husband wouldn't much care and I didn't have my parents telling me I couldn't.
We named them Bobo and Joker. It's sad looking back, because I just didn't know anything about birds and these little guys weren't hand tame. After getting bitten over and over again while trying to handle the little guys, their novalty quickly wore off. We didn't have the information so easily accessible back then, like we do now with the internet and forums and such.
I didn't know enough about their dietary needs and they only got cheapo grocery store parakeet seed.
When they passed, I had no desire for anymore birds.
Life went on, I had 2 more children, got divorced, opened a home daycare, bought my own home and had a whole smorgus board of pets, fish, dogs, cats, horses, goats and one afternoon late August of 2005, out of the blue, my ex-father-in-law called me and asked if I wanted a bird.
I said, I dunno, what is it? He said he didn't know, he thought it was a cockatoo. He found it in his front yard, he'd had it several weeks, posted ads in the classifieds and posters all over town hoping someone would come forward and no one did. He said he couldn't keep it and knew I loved animals.
So I said, sure...why not. And that is how I got Chaco Bird.
Chaco was a gray male cockatiel. I don't know how old he was but I can say someone must have missed him dearly.
Chaco could talk, he said pretty bird, pretty birdie, he wolf whistled and kissed and laughed and mimicked my phone ring and a squeeky dog toy.
We got him just before the start of school and as I mentioned I had a home daycare. This school year was great because all my kids were in school at least part of the day and I had 2 hours every morning ALONE!
Well I vowed to get to know this bird and be able to handle him. He was amazing! Chaco bonded to me pretty quickly and within a couple weeks he was regurgitating for me. I researched everything about cockatiels I could on the internet information freeway and the day Chaco melted my heart was when he was preening my arm hair, then he walked up my arm, across my shoulder, onto my chest and put his beak right up to my lips, touching my lips. I was a little bit nervous but didn't move and then he and made a kissing sound.
You could have pushed me over with a feather! What a sweetie! He just kissed me!
I loved Chaco and every chance I had, he was out of his cage hanging out with me. Chaco really did teach ME everything HE knew. And I learned.
One day almost exactly a year after he came into my life, Chaco was being particularly clingy to me and I had to leave to pick up my boys from school. When I went to put him back in his cage, he flew up onto the top of the curtains. I was running late and didn't have time to play catch me if you can so I thought...what the heck, I'll just leave him, I'll only be gone 10 minutes.
I opened the front door and I heard him take flight, at the same time I stepped out onto the porch, Chaco landed on my head....now mind you I freaked! I said "Oh no! Oh No! Chaco!!" INSTEAD I should have calmly turned around and walked back inside. Had I done that, I'd probably still have Chaco today.
But my reaction to him being outside AND able to fly made him fly off. He flew 3 times around my house and landed up high in a spindly alder tree. I said OH NO! Chaco, come back!
But he didn't, I hurried up ran to get my boys came back and Chaco was still in the tree. He'd talk to me I put his cage on the roof of the house with Millet in it hoping he'd go in, but he never did.
For 2 days he lived outside my house in the trees and I couldn't get to him. Why he wouldn't fly down to me I just don't know, he flew to me in the house all the time.
Talk about break my heart!
On the 3rd day, I went out to feed my horses and I said "Pretty Pretty" and I could hear him respond, he was further away but still in ear shot. I went to all the neighbors and let them know that Chaco was on the loose and if they caught him, to please bring him back to me. I posted ads on Craigslist and in the local classified and put up signs, but I never got Chaco back.
I was so heart broken I had no desire to have any more birds, and I thought NO cockatiel could ever top Chaco bird, because he talked and I thought cockatiels that could talk were 1 in a million.
But 5 years later, on whim, I just had to have another bird...what can I say I just missed 'em in my life. Birds are so unique and individual and they just have a charisma that dogs, horses and cats don't have.
We now have 6 birds, 2 cockatiels we bought, 2 cockatiels we rescued, a conure who wouldn't let us leave the store without him and a feral pigeon I rescued from the big city and, well...I can't call it feral anymore. It's totally tame and even goes with me wearing a flight suit!
I can't imagine life without our birds, we love them soo much and it shows in them, that they love us equally as much.
Toni