I had written my usual long update a couple of days ago and my stupid laptop lost the internet connection before I could post it so I lost the whole thing
Here we go again.
The budgies are doing great! I noticed that the hens were not going out of condition so I decided to pay a little extra attention to them early in the am and late in the pm to see what I was doing wrong in terms of light because the diet has already been adjusted to less protein. I figured that the problem was that they were still getting enough light from the lamp across the street through the closed blinds to keep them awake because I could hear them chirping when all the other birds were already either asleep or almost asleep so I started covering their cage and now the hens ceres are slowly changing back to normal. Aside from that, Harley seems to be favoring his left foot and I don't know why. He did this before but he went back to using it without a problem so I thought that maybe he had twisted or sprained it and that it had gotten better on its own but it came back so I need to do something about it. It's not swollen or anything but he doesn't quite perch with it sometimes... he tends to put it on top of the perch while using his right one to grab but, when he is on a flat surface, he puts it down normally so I am thinking maybe a touch of arthritis in his toes but why only in that one foot?
Paquita and Rajah Plet are looking marvelous! The molt left them looking so pretty and they are doing so very well, good appetite and willing to eat a large variety of produce, good poop, etc. And they get along famously! You hardly ever see them together when you are near because Rajah always perches all the way up high while Paquita is constantly 'patrolling' the bottom of the cage making sure that she is there to repeal any invasion so, if you get near, she will run to that side and stand there with her beak open prepared for war
And she does the same thing if a dog or a cat put their face near her cage! It's the funniest thing to see this teeny tiny little thing, all fluffed up and mad as a wet hen threatening a big dog with her beak wide open - I LOVE her to pieces! She is such a source of joy to me, with her indomitable spirit! But, once it's time for sleep or a nap, up she goes to snuggle close to Rajah and, if you pay attention, at night, you can hear them chattering to each other in whispers until they fall asleep.
Codee GCC and Pablo Peachfront are doing well, too. Well, Pablo is doing as well as he can, poor thing, with his infirmities. He eats like a champ and, if he is at the bottom of the cage when food is being served, he quickly goes to his 'ladder' to get to the platform to climb up slowly and very laboriously but he makes it on his own and, although sometimes I put the food at the bottom for him, I do try to allow him to do things on his own. Codee is looking beautiful! Not a single black mark anywhere on her back! I know this is the way they are supposed to be but it took me three years to get rid of all her stress bars so, to me, the fact that she continues to molt perfect feathers is a source of personal pride. She continues being the sweetest, sweetest thing and I love her to pieces! All she does is kiss me over and over all the time she is with me but she also pays attention to what I am doing and often hangs upside down from one single foot of the front of my TShirt just so she can get closer to the 'action'
The old ladies, Mami YFA and Nadia BFA, are doing well. Naughty Mami already started overpreening her chest and neck feathers so grey spots are beginning to appear in the green feathers that had grown after the molt but she eats very well, drinks, poops, interacts and sings her heart out every morning while regaling us with conversations that nobody understands in the evening except for her calling for 'Peter'. Naida still has her feathers but it's only a matter of time that Mami starts messing up with her plumage...
Precie and Zeus Zon are doing VERY well! Not that they seem to mind too much being caged when I am not in the parrot room during the breeding season but they do love being able to roam about when it's not. I haven't been attacked or even gotten a bluff once for months and months and months now so it seems that Zeus has finally calmed down for good in terms of his relationship with humans. It took years but who can blame him when he had been punched by his previous owner?! He likes to be talked to and pays close attention when I do but he has never taken the next step to a closer relationship with me and that's just fine! He has Precie and Precie has him and as long as they are healthy and happy, I am happy too!
Sophie CAG is her usual wonderful self... sweet-tempered, attentive, etc. I've had her for a lot of years now and she feels safe and secure in her home and routine so very little fazes her. Her beef right now are the feral kittens I took in to socialize and adopt out. I put the adult cats in their room when the birds are out but I allow the kittens out of the bathroom where I am keeping them to come out and explore the house and, needless to say, they are fascinated by the birds! They like to sit and watch the budgies eating their gloop because when they do it, they are at the bottom of the cage and at the same level as their eyes but they adore going into the parrot room with all the space for them to run around, smell things and, best of all: Linus boxes! So Sophie has taken it upon herself to make sure they leave as soon as they come into the room and, when she sees them running in, she quickly climbs or flies down to the floor to throw them out. She is the bouncer of the parrot room
Linus is busy chewing boxes all the time but he has started barbering the wonderful primaries that he had allowed to grow during molt - little stinker that he is! If I forget to give him a new big, hard box for him to chew, I find primaries barbered the next day! But he does look better - well, let me rephrase that, at least, he does for now. He has many more feathers than he did when he first came. His back and lower abdomen are all covered and his chest only has 'holes' instead of being all skin plus he still has some feathers in his tail and wings but who know how long they will last...
I have a flight booked for Monday, Nov/13 in the pm to go down to Miami with the return for very early in the am on Tuesday [leaves at 7:45 which means I need to be at the airport before 6 am - not that I really mind because I am an early riser anyway!]. I already have an approved air carrier and a cage, purchased the airfare and made the reservation [United only allows two pets per flight] and his current owner is taking him to the avian vet this coming week so as to get the health certificate I need to get him into New Jersey. I am staying at the Hilton Miami Airport hotel which has shuttles every 15 minutes to and from the airport terminals so as not to have to rent a car but it's not a pet friendly hotel so I will have to hide him which won't be hard as he will be brought to me at night and we are leaving so early the next morning. It had to be on a Monday because that is the only day my husband is usually home and I had to be back Tuesday morning because if my husband has to work, he can do the food and such early in the am but I don't want them to go an entire day without out of cage time. So, my next update will have news about my new baby! His name is Cheeks and he is a white belly caique.
Aside from that, everybody else is doing fine. I managed to catch four feral kittens of a litter of six and they have been vetted, dewormed, tested for FIV and FeL and socialized to humans, other cats, dogs and even birds and, as I don't charge a single penny for them even though I pay for their vetting out of my own pocket plus I feed them good, expensive food [these kittens were NOT weaned to Purina Kitten Chow!], they go fast because they are beautiful, healthy and affectionate little thing! I am keeping one male back for a while because he had a real bad eye infection and although the infection itself is gone from the oral and topical antiobiotics, his eye is not looking too good and might end up blind so I want to make sure I know what is going to be before I give him away. I never lie about the animals I give away so if he is going to be visually impaired, this is something his new owners need to know before they make the decision to adopt him - but I don't foresee any problems finding him a home... three legged or one eyed animals go faster than 'perfect' ones.