A New Bird for Me

[Wolf]

I don't know how many of you remember this, but a short while back Pajarita posted about finding a pair of Brazilian Cardinals. She was very excited about this as it was/ is part of a long time dream of hers. I would ask for a show of hands to see how many remembered this, but my crystal ball is out of order so I wouldn't be able to see you. Oh well!
Any way. during the back and forth it was mentioned that the people who had the cardinals also had a young parrotlet that they wanted to find a new home for. Well one thing leads to another and I opened my big mouth and asked about this little bird, I had never seen one of these little birds before, but It needed a home and I was intrigued. Pajarita told me that the people told her that they would give the bird to someone if they would find a mate for it, so that it would not be alone.
Pajarita and I started looking for a mate for her. I could not find one and neither could Pajarita, so I asked through Pajarita if they would let me have the bird any way, with the condition that I would keep on looking for a mate. They said yes! I was surprised as I didn't think that they would.
So I counted my money and checked to see what bills I still had to pay, and called in a couple of favors and came up with enough money to go up north to New Jersey to get my new bird. A few PMs back and forth to Pajarita and we came up with a date for me to make the trek that fit with everyone's schedules and I was ready to roll.
Well, I thought I was. Apparently my house didn't agree with me on this as it decided to develop problems with the water supply. Crawl under the house and check out the pump and water lines. I was fortunate and the pump was fine but I spent the next few days redoing the water lines. Now I was set to go. funds were a bit tight, but I was sure that I could still do this, I just couldn't afford to have any problems with the truck.
Friday arrived without any further problems and around midnight I was off and running. It is just a few miles short of 1200 miles to Pajarita's house from mine and back home, or about 9 hours each way, driving time. A little longer for fuel stops or anything else. I made it there without any problems at all, a little tired but ok.
I arrived at Pajarita's house about 11 am.
Finally, I get to meet Pajarita in person and put a face to the name. We all imagine what the other person might look like when all we have is a name to go by, and I had imagined her to be a little darker but not much bigger. I knew that she was Brazilian and a bit hyperactive, my lady is also hyper and they are close to same size. My lady is Italian and just a little darker and so I had them pictured as about the same and actually they really are.
I also got to meet her husband, he doesn't speak much English and I don't speak Spanish, so we couldn't talk a lot, but I like him. I can't say that I have ever met anyone like him and that probably has a lot to do with my liking him.
While we were waiting for my bird to arrive, Pajarita let me see her bird room and meet her birds. Since I already knew the approximate size of the room, I was surprised to see how well it was setup and how much room was still left for her birds. She has done a very good job of setting up her bird room and I hope that I do as well with mine once I finish putting in the hardwood flooring that I have stacked up in my sunroom. Either of the two rooms that I might use for my birds are a little larger and I only have 4 birds but I still hope that I set mine up as well.
Pajarita was wonderful and had prepared a very nice lunch and I really could not eat as I was in extreme pain by this time, but I did nibble at it a little and wish I could have eaten more, it was quite good. Thank you, Pajarita.
My bird arrived about 2:30 or 3 pm, and I got to meet her owners. They are a very nice couple but their life had changed and they just didn't have enough time to devoted to the bird and wanted it to be happy. I probably should have paid more attention to them, but at this point, I was fascinated with the bird and made friend with it right away.
She is just adorable. Before we left to come home she was perching on my hand and chewing on my fingers and just bobbing her head. Her head bobbing is so cute and she has a little sideways motion to it as well as up and down. Her name is Paquita and she is 5 yr. old. She is a Pacific or Celestial Parrotlet.
I did not stay much longer as I had a long way to go yet. Pajarits gifted me with a nice large cage for her and a loaf of birdie bread and a large block of gloop, which is very similar to what I have my birds eating too. Again thank you, Pajarita.
I got back home early Sunday morning, briefly said hi to my other birds and went to bed for a couple of hours before facing the music of my three, who were not pleased with me for being gone for so long a time. More on that later, maybe. Perhaps, I will have some new pictures then, too.

[Pajarita]

Yes, it was great meeting Wolf in person and, as he says, putting a face to a name. The poor man was in a lot of pain and my husband and I were very concerned about this but there was nothing we could do but commiserate. The icing on the cake was the fact that I was so happy to be able to find this lonely little girl a good home and I knew that I had done this with Wolf.

Paquita is adorable. I think all plets are... well, actually, I think all birds are -LOL- but plets are special because they look like miniaturized versions of a large parrot (and, if you've never seen one in person, you can't imagine how small they are!). Everything about them is just perfectly proportioned but teeny tiny so the cutesy factor is multiplied to the nth.

BTW, Pacific parrotlets are the same as Celestial parrotlets. One name comes from the 'side' of South America they originate (Pacific coast) and Celestial comes from the scientific name: F. coelestis which means 'heavenly' -very aptly named, if you ask me.

[Wolf]

I know that I mentioned that I had not yet found a mate for my new parrotlet so if any one knows where I might find a male Pacific Parrotlet please PM me.

[Harpmaker]

Congratulations, Wolf! I am glad you found Paquita, and jealous that you got to meet Pajarita in person! I am also sorry to hear that the journey was so physically traumatic for you, but I am old enough to have the same problem. I hope you feel better soon, and that the two of you find a mate for Paquita. If I hear of any, I will certainly let you know.

[cml]

Congratulations Wolf and thank you for bringing the new member of your family in!
Great work by both you and Pajarita .

I'd also like to meet and greet with Pajarita, perhaps we would get along better if we did or perhaps we would get into a fist fight, could go either way !
Jokes aside, thank you Pajarita for helping so many birds as you do, and thanks for helping Paquita find her way to Wolf. I am sure she will be happy there.

[GreenWing]

Oh! Oh! How exciting! You met Pajarita AND got to see her birds! PLEASE tell me about her Greys! I want to know about Sophie ♥

Anyway BIG CONGRATS! on the new addition to the flock -- that is so honorable of you to take in this bird.

[Wolf]

I can't really tell you much that you don't already know. Sophie had a clutch of eggs on the floor in a box over in one corner, which Charlie was busy protecting, not that anyone was going anywhere near them. Sophie just watched him most of the time from the top of a cage next to her nest box. Once, she went down to the box and Charlie rushed up next to her and kept bugging her, but all she did was push him to one side, must have been about 4 times while I was in the room.
Paquita is such a trip. As soon as she see me in the morning she starts talking with this cute little chitter. I have no idea what she is saying, but she just chitters away until I let her out. She then starts nibbling on my fingertips, which gets progressively accompanied by this buzzing sound that I am assuming is a growl and this continues along with the chittering until I start scratching her head and neck. She just loves getting scritches.
She also gives me kisses and she has a funny little head bob. It is so cute to see her bob her head, she does it sideways. And she is brave, she tried to get to Kookooloo this morning to bite her. Kookooloo was on my shoulder and Paquita was on the opposing hand. Kookooloo, fluffed up in a threatening manner and stretched trying to reach Paquita. Paquita saw this and made a beeline up to my shoulder and across to the side that Kookooloo was on. I grabbed her in the nick of time no one got bit, but both were trying to bite the other one.

[Pajarita]

Yes, Charlie DoodooHead Bird (DoodooHead is his middle name) thinks he is Sophie's husband while she doesn't even give him the time of day. Thankfully, she is a sweet-tempered bird which has no issues with people or other birds so she tolerates him pretty much the way a good natured adult would a child and, when he gets too pushy, she just nudges him away. I think this is because, although she has no interest on him as a mate, on a certain level, she appreciates his efforts at guarding her nest (he is certainly much more jealous of it than she will ever be) and even enjoys his company when they are inside.

[GreenWing]

Yes, Charlie DoodooHead Bird (DoodooHead is his middle name) thinks he is Sophie's husband while she doesn't even give him the time of day. Thankfully, she is a sweet-tempered bird which has no issues with people or other birds so she tolerates him pretty much the way a good natured adult would a child and, when he gets too pushy, she just nudges him away. I think this is because, although she has no interest on him as a mate, on a certain level, she appreciates his efforts at guarding her nest (he is certainly much more jealous of it than she will ever be) and even enjoys his company when they are inside.

Ahaha! Charlie DooDooHead - love it!

But Charlie and Sophie are nesting together? Will you keep the clutch, Pajarita?

[Pajarita]

Charlie is a sun conure and Sophie, as you know, is a CAG so, even if they had had sex (which they haven't) the eggs would not be fertile (one species is from South America and the other from Africa so there is no way they can procreate). But, in any case, I don't allow babies in my birdroom. I might, on occasion, breed canaries when I have people waiting for babies or when a particularly 'good' bird is getting old so as not to lose a good bloodline but even then I don't allow more than one clutch of 4 eggs per season. I got a Lizard pair about a month ago because, although I am not into type or color, I felt so sorry for them - they had a sign saying "Old breeding Lizard pair (hen is depleted) $40 for both" (this was at ABBA, the bird food manufacturer -the owner breeds and shows canaries and, on special occasions, would put some up for sale at the store). $40 for two is practically a gift for this breed of canary because the breed was almost completely extinct in the early 1900's and then again in 1940 with only about 30 birds left in the entire world. It has taken all these years to get a good size gene pool back (the genetic mutation that 'makes' them is extremely rare) and it's only now that they are available to hobbyists at a relatively reasonable price but it's still nowhere near $20 each! The hen's plumage (she is a frosted blue silver with a broken cap) was all raggedy and the male (a VERY striking golden with a wonderfully large bright yellow full cap) had a tail bob and, although I left without them, I couldn't stop thinking about them because I was afraid they would end up in a basement dying from overbreeding if purchased by somebody who did not know or care enough so I was there at 8 am promptly the following Saturday and, Mike, ABBA's owner, gave them to me for only $20 for both (he knows I take real good care of my birds and always gives me discounts). But, after I got them, I found out they are not really old! She is 5 and he is 7 so I might give them a year or two to recuperate and get maybe a single clutch from them and keep one or two of the best babies! He has already gotten over his respiratory, both were treated with milk thistle and aloe vera juice to detox them and she is very happy in the flight cage with the other hens and he in his medium size flight cage and both are eating up a storm of greens -LOL