Where should Oliver stay?

[Sophiestkated2]

Delton and I are going to Cancun for a week in March. We are in disagreement on what would be best for Oliver (CAG), while we are gone. So we want ya'lls thoughts please. Here are our options -

#1 - Leave him at home and have a sitter come a few times a day.
Pros- Ollie is in his own house. She's professional and I trust her completely.
Cons- It would only be few visits a day. He would not have time out of cage the entire week. Ollie likes her, but hasn't seen her in over a year. Also, it would be kind of expensive.

#2 - Leave him at home and have the neighbor check in on him.
Pros- Ollie is in his own house.He loves the neighbor and would get out of his cage for him. Rick loves Oliver. Rick is home all day, so can make alot of visits.
Cons- Rick drinks. Rick has 3 daughters he dotes on. The teenagers I trust with Oliver completely. They have a healthy respect for him, his beak, and the fact that females aren't Olivers favorite people. But the 7 year old cannot be left alone with him without poking her fingers at him and being generally rambunctious. She's not mean, she is just a little spitfire who's ears disappear when she is given instructions. I am sure Rick will bring her over.

#3 - Take him to my parents house.
Pros- My folks love Ollie. Ollie loves my dad, and enjoys my mom talking to him, but not touching him. He'll climb all over my father tho. He would have someone there 24/7.
Cons- He'll be in a strange house. (Tho I would take him over several times to acclimate him before we left him.) I'm not sure that my folks understand the importance of such things as fumes, tephlon... I can instruct them, but I believe that they think I am simply being overprotective and won't take it as seriously as I want them to.

Thoughts? Ideas? Maybe someone here on the board lives in Cancun and wants to trade houses for a week? (Yeah, like someone who lives in Mexico wants to vacation in Kansas!)

Jethica (who is hoping you pick the one I want to do!)

[peeker]

wow, hard call. I lean towards your parents, but I would want a written quarentee-no teflon for the week. I'm so paranoid on that one that i would want to box it up and hide it just to be sure. Maybe talk to them and let them know how much you love Oliver and they are your first, favorite choice, but the teflon issue is dead serious with you and you would be unable to rest knowing it was in the house.--well, you could try anyway and see if you get through to them on it--if not? well, then decide between the two other options.

****Could you take him with you?****

[chick101]

I lean towards your parents too...maybe you could print some of the articles, etc. (especially that one about the macaws that died) and give them to your folks. That would lend creedence to what you are saying. I know my mother-in-law always has to see something in print to believe it. On the other hand, if she sees something in print, it is definitely true..."they can't print it if it isn't true..." So if the tabloid says they've seen Elvis...lol.

You really should trust your gut...it's usually right.

Let us know what you decide, o.k.?

Barb

[Heaven]

Tough decision but it seems there are more cons than pros to the parents. If you can educate them and get them to understand it would be a good choice as you will know where he is.

If not, maybe you can combine the neighbor and the caregiver. Have the neighbor come give him some out of cage time and the caregiver to keep him company and keep food, water and cage duties done.

We took a vacation to Costa Rica last year for a week and had 3 sets of people coming over all week throughout the day. One set came in hung out watched TV and let them out while we were gone. It worked out good because they saw more than one person and they did not associate any one person with our sudden disappearance. I was so worried that they would become aggressive in our absense if they were with one set all the time. Kind of like a change of home and an adjustment period, I guess.

When we got home we got snubbed for about 3 hours and then it was even more lovey dovey than it ever was. I think they missed us terribly.

Vacationing is hard when you have sensitive flock members. We have decided we will stay home and vacation from now on. Thats easy to do in the Keys though.

Good Luck and enjoy your vacation no matter what you decide.

[CKD]

I would go with the parents as well. Maybe you can take him there a day or 2 a week so that he can get use to them.

[Imagemneye]

Hi Jethica---WOW Cancun!!!! And after ALL the Vacation time that you just had!!! HUMMM Must be nice(LOL) I guess that I have to agree with most of the others---The Parents! BUT---With each trip that you take him over there for getting him used to the place---take Them a different toxic/safe list or article etc so that they can Read and be AWARE of the everyday dangers that Non-bird homes have in abundance! Ollie does have a sleeping cage right? SO he would be quite comfortable in that for a week(with free time when Gram and Gramps could let him have it)If Ollie Loves both your Dad and Your Mom--the strange house will Not be such a big deal to him.Sometimes I dont think We give Our Fids the Credit they deserve for being quite adaptable. What ever You decide--Let Us Know and Have A REALLY WONDERFUL TIME!!! Ya could always bring him to Aunt Bonnies Birdy Camp ya know!!!LOL!!!!Love ya! Bonnie

[Tiki]

I am leaning towards the parents since you say Oliver loves them and they love him.....but with very strict instructions on bird care and a letter to your avian vet authorizing care on your account. There is another possibility, the Birdboard birdsitting connections in the FAQ and resources forum, don't know if we already have someone in your area listed.

If you can't be sure about your parents taking safety precautions, then I would go with the professional sitter, Oliver would recover from a week of being stuck in his cage-maybe a bit grumpily, but he WON'T recover from teflon poisoning or the like.

[Sophiestkated2]

Thanks peeps! Keep 'em coming, as we are running a tote!
My greatest concern is Oliver having someone around alot. Tho he actually is used to a schedule of us both being gone between 7-5:00. I don't know why I don't worry about him breaking a blood feather, or something else going wrong while no one is there when we're in town and at work, but leaving town now it's suddenly become a major concern! ERRR!
D's major concern is that Ollie will be more comfortable in his own home. And will not suffer any stress by moving him. He is very adaptable, but, your home is your home! And that is always where you feel most comfortable.
I wish there was a "bird person" close by, but there isn't. Thank you Tiki for pointing me to the bird sitter page. Perhaps you'd like to vacation in Kansas for a week? I'll bet that this is one place you've never been! heehee!
Loveday and Bonnie-Bonnie, (yes he does have his sleepy cage which is what we would take over for him. But it is only a third of the size of his regular house. D built an addition to his regular house, and it's huge!) ya'll just need to move to KC! Puh-LEEEZZE!!!
Keep 'em coming, ya'll are giving me things to think about that I hadn't even considered! Thanks!
Jethica

[Peregrine Harlequin]

Your parents used to hide dangerous things from you, right? How about checking out their cooking utensils, appliances, cleaners, etc. and hiding the biggest threats to Oliver? Or, if you don't like being sneaky about it, just trade pots and pans until you get back. Ollie won't die from teflon if there isn't any around.

Okay, maybe this way is a wee bit juvenile and sneaky, but if you worked it well it could turn out okay.

[peeker]

Originally Posted by Peregrine Harlequin

Your parents used to hide dangerous things from you, right? How about checking out their cooking utensils, appliances, cleaners, etc. and hiding the biggest threats to Oliver? Or, if you don't like being sneaky about it, just trade pots and pans until you get back. Ollie won't die from teflon if there isn't any around.

Okay, maybe this way is a wee bit juvenile and sneaky, but if you worked it well it could turn out okay.

LOL!! I think maybe alot sneaky! How's about explaining that the dangers from teflon are there for people too and buying them a set of stainless steel cookware to replace their teflon pans. It would be a loving gift, to protect them and to repay them for Oliver's care.