One Giant Leap of Faith for Mimi

[Pajarita]

YAAAAAAYYYYYY for Mimi! The final brick on the wall has fallen and she is on her way now!!!

[Wolf]

I hope so, we will see. She can have as long as she wants or needs.

[Pajarita]

She will, you'll see. I have found that although the change is gradual, there is always a precise point when you see the bird has finally given you (or Pam, in this case) its trust. And, once they do this and as long as you don't screw up royally, they don't go back.

[Wolf]

Well it has been almost a month since I last posted anything about Mimi so I thought it was about time for another look see into her private little world. So far she has not regressed but has also not made any apparent giant steps ahead either, or at least it would seem from all outward appearances. But I don't think that her progress has slowed down any at all internally. I see her watching things more closely and if her beak moving open and shut rapidly is any indication of what is going on in her mind there must be areas that are about to manifest themselves fairly soon and possibly energetically.
She has climbed around on the lower parts of her cage on the outside and has just begun to do this regularly although not enough to be called frequently and she still will not climb up to the top of the cage, it is a play top cage. Apparrently her previous owner used to say G*dd&%n as an exclaimation, for emphasis more then anything else because Mimi has started to say this in this manner and I know that she did not get it from either of us.
Mimi has reached the point of biting my Lady just a bit to hard on occasion, testing to see how far she can take it, I think and she nibbles her way up my Ladies arm tickleing her with this process and they are now playing for a few minutes almost everyday and almost wrestleing just a little during this play.
Sunday, I needed to go to town o give a friend some help and since my Lady, Pam was at home I didn't say anything and just left them playing. When I got back I was informed that Mimi had asked "Where Wolf?" So this qualifies as a first for us.
Monday, my Lady left the house several hours later than she does normally. This was due to her having to report for possible jury duty so she also got to sleep in for a change. Well she also returned home earlier than normal as well and as soon as her car door closed Mimi started screaming, calling out for her, which always irritates my Lady although I have tried to explain to her that she needs to teach Mimi how to call her in a manner that she finds acceptable. Anyway, she came in and walked over to the cage said hello and walked away. Mimi started screaming at her right away, which she hasn't normally done. Pam, being irritated yelled back at her, saying " why are you screaming at me, I said hi!" Mimi answered he just as clear as could be " I want to see you" My Lady almost hit the floor at this response., I just cracked up.
Mimi has often said clearly" I want out" the other day she said this and came out onto the perches that I put on her door and Said " I did it. Bird out!" So although I have not seen any major progress on a physical level I can see that mentally and emotionally she is going in overdrive and dealing with several deeply rooted insecurities. I don't think it will be much longer before she reaches a state that would be more or less normal for a bird of her type and age, a chance to see Mimi as she should have had the opportunity to be all along.
Just thought you might like to know how she is doing.

[Pajarita]

Oh, Wolf, no, no, no, you are 100% WRONG!!! She has taken huge leaps forward, my friend! HUGE LEAPS!!!

[Wolf]

Physical actions are pretty much the same as a month ago, but as I said mentally/ emotionally she is in overdrive as shown by the verbal connections that she has recently made and continues to be making. Yes, leaps and bounds in the mental/ emotional quarter although her physical actions have remained pretty much the same for the past month. Maybe , I said something the wrong way, but I could not be any more pleased with what she is doing if I wanted to be. I think that she has almost healed from her trauma and although she may still be a bit fragile mentally and emotionally, I also think that she is almost in the clear.

[liz]

Wolf I can't be happier for you and Mimi. Your little war orphan is reaching out to you and verbalizing how she feels. To hear her speak and know what she says must give you a shiver to the bone. "I did it. Bird out." is so wonderful and she is proud of herself. You have given her the respect she needed to regain her feeling of value. "I want to see you." is enough to make you laugh out of control.

It makes me want to track down her previous owner and beat the crap out of him.

[liz]

I have said before that this forum feels like a neighborhood and all your birds are the kids in it.
I woke up this morning thinking of Mimi. I told my daughter about Mimi's progress. Even though my family is not in the neighborhood, I keep them posted on some of the exceptional kids. My daughter, Rachel, wanted me to tell Wolf that it really warmed her heart to hear about Mimi.

I can't calm down from the excitement of hearing her progress.

Wolf you have a heart of gold. You have loved, cared for and respected Mimi to give her the feeling of self worth. She will never forget the trauma she went through for so long but she can now see through it. Her "I did it. Bird out." was being proud of herself.

I try not to think beyond what you tell us but I wonder what she would be like if you were her first dad.

My post is getting too long but I just can't contain my excitement about the little war orphan next door that you have given a fresh start on life.

Now we need to hear about Pajarita's kid.

[Pajarita]

Wolf, amazons are not what you would physically active birds, the greatest majority of them are nothing but perch potatoes. Oh, they might climb up and down, might walk around a bit or even follow you around the house but they are not like, say, a poi or a conure that would fly back and forth or a budgie that does it all the time just for the sheer fun of it so their 'wellbeing' is mostly measured by what we would call 'mental' achievements and lack of aggression and, in that respect, she is getting to the top of the class!

Liz, I don't know which 'kid' you are referring to. If it is the little sun conure I am taking care of while his owner gets better, he is doing great and I'll post something under his thread but poor Zachary (citron too) is not doing well at all and I am considering putting him down this weekend (I'll do a thread on him, too).

[Wolf]

Last night, well actually about 4pm in the afternoon, Mimi came out of her cage and climbed over to Kiki's cage and since Kiki was on me , she explored Kiki's house while Kiki screamed at her from my shoulder. Then she climbed on my Lady's arm and stayed with her for close to an hour climbing down to her knee when she sat down on the sofa. She was very calm and yet playful and totally relaxed during this time. It was a wonderful experience for everyone. To my point of view the last brick in the wall has been removed. While she may still have a few hurdles to deal with yet, I feel that the major obstacles have been removed now.