Two new arrivals

[Peregrine Harlequin]

It's finally reached the point that if all the birds in this house were rubber balls, I couldn't juggle them. On Thursday we brought home 2 parakeets from some lady my dad works with. Their names are Dmitri and Delilah. He's about 2 years old and blue; she's roughly half a year younger and a light turquoise color. The lady we got them from was caring for them because her spoiled 21-year old daughter decided she didn't want to be bothered with their care anymore. So this lady did her best to keep them happy.

My dad says this lady is nice, but I'm not sure what to think. I'm sure she meant well, but these birds were scratching somewhere about every 5-10 seconds. Delilah looks a bit small, but I'm not too familiar with 'keets (last had one about 12 years ago). When we got home and cleaned their cage (which has caused their tails to be slightly bent, due to a lack of space) we figured that it probably hadn't been cleaned (or had the corn cob bedding on the bottom cleaned or changed) in about a month. Also, Delilah's beak rather small and sunken in, like a toenail with fungus). I'm not up to speed at all on parakeet anatomy, but the reddish part of her beak sticks out much further than the beak where the two meet. Luckily mom's had 'keets and finches for most of her 50+ years, so the birds are definitely in good hands (and more hers than mine).

But fear not, as they're both going to the vet tomorrow morning.

I'm glad we have them and I'm glad they'll be better cared for, but I really feel like visiting dad at work and having a little chat with this female friend of his. Specifically, I'd like to ask her whether she didn't know any better or if she just didn't care enough to take proper care of them (maybe not worded as harshly, but I would like to find out). If the former is the case, she might appreciate knowing that she did things wrong and next time can ammend things. If it's the latter, maybe my dad should stop talking to her.

But regardless of the how, where, and why, we now have two new members of our household. Although larger birds appeal to me much more than smaller ones, I'm already pleasantly accustomed to Dmitri's constant chatter. Now if I can only talk mom into adopting something like a grey or a macaw. Too bad she'll hear none of it for now....

Oh, and I'll post some pics as soon as I can find my brother and his digital camera. And Dmitri is semi-hand tame, but we'll have to work on shy little Delilah.

[greyburd]

Luke, I'm happy to hear about the newest additions to your family. I'm sorry to hear they weren't taken care of properly. I'm sure they're in good hands now. Good luck with Delilah's dilemma, I hope all works out for you and your family.

[Crebain]

1. The spoiled 21-year-old needs a spanking. (No, I'm not volunteering.)

2. The mom did "her best" by not cleaning the cage for a month??? (I'd hate to see her worst.)

3. These people are pathetic.

[Peregrine Harlequin]

Forget the spanking. I'd like to lock them both in a room for a month and let them live in their own waste. But at least she feels bad enough to pay the vet bill.

Speaking of the vet, they've finally recovered enough to be noisy again. Or rather Dmitri has. I can't recall the kind of mites they have, but we have an ivomectrin solution to put on them once every week or so until they're clean. After that, we'll see how tame they really are.

But I know you've all been waiting to see them, and on the hard drive I found some pics my brother took the other day. They've been cropped, and they're nothing too great, but they give you the general idea. :icon_mrgr

[mamalovesrico]

Luke, they are so cute. Glad they are in your hands now. Welcome to your new home Dmitri and Delilah.