Feathers of Love

While I was sleeping

2011-09-25T22:48:00.001-04:00

Last night I decided to go to sleep with both cage doors open. I shut off the lights and figured both birds would stay where they were and head to sleep. My room was pitch black - and after a few minutes I hear little footsteps from Allegra's cage. I wait a few more minutes before turning my lamp on... To my surprise, she went right into Charlie's cage and was laying right up against him! He didn't seem to mind at all - in fact.. I let them be and when I woke up at 6:30am they were still next to each other!! It was adorable :)
I do not really want them getting into the habit of sleeping together but I figure on weekends while I'm home it'll be a nice treat for them!

Weigh in

2011-07-20T19:47:00.005-04:00

I bought a scale about a year ago - when I first brought Allegra home. I told myself I was going to weigh the birds at least every month - but I will be honest with you, it's more like every three months. Both birds seem to stay around the same - although in the last year, Allegra has gained about 7 grams....lol she is the tiniest little thing, but she has the biggest appetite. I see her hyperness definitely keeps the weight off - wish she would get a little chubbier!

Here are their weigh ins tonight:

Charlie, weighing in at 157 grams! ::applauds:: he is always around 160

Allegra weighing in at 106 grams ::booooo:: lol she was always around 99 grams when I brought her home. I would like her to get around 130 grams.

cuddle time

2011-07-19T12:09:00.004-04:00

I love when they are like this :) they preened each other for about an hour - Charlie is in the middle of molting so my bed was full of his feathers. He's been doing well though, not too moody and I've been helping him get rid of his little spikey feathers that he cannot reach.

a simple walk on the beach...or so i thought...

2011-07-07T14:48:00.005-04:00

I put the fids in their leashes and decided to take a walk on the beach, just like i do every summer with them. The weather was perfect, it was after dinner and the sun was just starting to go down.

The only terrible part to this short story is...I came home after my walk. Took my work out pants off and my t-shirt..took a shower, went to bed. Woke up the next morning, showered again before work - and noticed a tick on me. At the time, I did not realize this was a tick, so i ripped it off my skin and then saw little legs. I never got a tick before but we do have a lot of deer around so I know to be careful. Anyway, it's been enough time to know that the tick bite was okay, it wasn't on me long enough to cause any damage (lyme disease). I will have to make sure the birds are clean after my walks as well now!

Updates: Allegra's Flight

2011-05-31T16:08:00.004-04:00

It's been a while! Hope everyone is well. I had a nice, long memorial day weekend - but it does feel good to be back at work too.
I have some pretty fantastic news: Allegra is now a flighted parrot. I decided about two-three months ago that I wasn't going to clip Allegra after her first molt. Well, I haven't and she has all but two feathers on each wing. She looks absolutely beautiful when they're spread, and when those two feathers grow in she will be ready for a photo shoot :) She really has been doing very well with her new flight. I have not flight trained her, but she has been cooperating very well when I do work with her a little.
When I'm home in my room, I close all my window blinds, and I cover any thing that Allegra can get into trouble with (my keyboard, my video game controllers, tv remotes, and plugs. I let her out and she enjoys flying around the space of my room. She will fly to me wherever I am, and if I am laying in my bed, she will fly to the top of my computer, the top of my tv, etc. but she will always fly back to her cage soon after. She has yet to poop anywhere that she lands, she usually flies back to her cage to do that (which I haven't even taught her, she just does it).
I haven't had any problems with her being flighted, so I am thinking of letting Charlie grow his wings in as well. I am worried with some things, like the mirrors in my room, or her getting outside of my room - but I am very cautious to always leave the door closed and everyone in my family knows to knock before entering my room.
I will post some good videos of Allegra flying around my room very soon, but for now here is a stupid quick one lol.

Thanks for visiting.

Regurgitating Parrots

2011-05-31T16:05:00.002-04:00

Charlie and Allegra always get in the mood to barf on each other. Last night, I decided to quick record them while they were performing some affection towards each other.

Easter

2011-04-17T22:25:00.001-04:00

Easter came early for me - Charlie and Allegra were very interested in the basket! I think this means I will have to get them a little something something for the upcoming holiday :)

Hug!

2011-04-15T11:23:00.002-04:00

Charlie giving Allegra a hug. hahah I had to post this photo!

Rangers

2011-04-11T15:25:00.003-04:00

Yes, sorry - this post is not parrot related but.....

The New York Rangers have made the playoffs!!!!
We went to the final home game (vs. NJ Devils)
and it was insane!! Had such a great weekend.
We are hoping to get some tickets to the playoff
games - but prices seem ridiculous. Maybe my
honey will still surprise me though :)

Review of Pak O Bird

2011-04-11T14:50:00.005-04:00

Three words to describe my view on the Pak O bird:

I
Love
It!

I took both fids out yesterday afternoon in the stroller. They loved it, they had so much fun walking with my boyfriend and I. A couple of the reactions from people were funny, but we didn't get to see many people since it is not beach season near my house yet. Once the nice weather comes, it will be a hit to see what people have to say.
One woman said "what is in that thing, a dog??" I said no, parrots - and her jaw dropped. She started cracking up and said "that is great!!!"
Another two girls passed us on bicycles and as they rode by, the birds squawked. Both girls gave us a double take and literally said "oh my god!"

I really look forward to some more nice days! :)

p0p cOrn!

2011-04-01T10:01:00.005-04:00

Photos of Charlie enjoying some butterless popcorn :)

Surprise! Pak-O-Bird

2011-03-29T19:33:00.017-04:00

I am SO excited for this blog! I have been wanting a Pak-o-Bird for a really long time and it finally was delivered last week. For those of you who have never heard of these - here is a blurb from the website:
"Pak-o-Birds are the most innovative light-weight carriers for travel with pet birds in comfort and safety. They come in three standard sizes and many custom designs. For leisure walking, as a mobile home for short stay in friend's house or hotels, Pak-o-Birds make it all possible. They can be carried as a front pouch, backpack, shoulder bag or in a stroller for one or more birds. Let's include your feathery friends in the next trip!"
--

Ever since I got Charlie and Allegra, I've always been interested in buying travel cages. I have a few so far (including little ones from petco) just to bring them to the vet in. I also sometimes decide to bring the birds to work and always wanted a somewhat nice size travel carrier for them to be able to spend a day in. I came across the pak-o-bird thru the bird magazine, Bird Talk. After researching it on it's website (celltei pak o bird) I saw the price and was a little taken back about making the purchase. I read a ton and ton of reviews, checked out many pictures on people's blogs who own it, and just decided that it was the right move for me.
I enjoy taking the birds on walks, especially out on the beach in my backyard, and I also would like to be able to bring them along on little day trips (on the ferry, on our boat, to the city, etc). The pak-o-bird is perfect for those activities. Although the weather is not warm enough to take them out, I have been leaving the pak-o-bird around my room and letting them get used to it. The other day I put the birds both in it to see how they'd react and both of them took to it quite well.

This backpack is made very, very well. Honestly, it is made better than I anticipated it to be. Every little detail on the pak is made for better quality and better safety for the birds. It has covers for every side of the backpack (incase your birds are frightened) - but the covers are able to roll up. It even has slots on the back of it to hook your car seatbelt thru! You can wear the backpack on your back, or on your front. The straps also remove and they supply a shoulder strap for you, to carry like a bag. The bottom is made of a plastic material which is easy to remove and easy to wash. The perch is made of dragon wood and the cups are a decent size for food and water. They also supply a spot which holds a water bottle.

The more I blog about this product, the more I feel like a person trying to sell it. I'm not - I'm just very impressed by how it is made and I look forward to using it in a few weeks (then you will have my real, experienced review of it).

--

Ok, now here is my FAVORITE part about the pak-o-bird. Not only is it a backpack, but I also bought the foldable stroller to go with it. This stroller is specially made for this product and I thought it would be such a great idea to purchase as well. Since we have this little town on the water near my house, it is a lot easier to walk around and push them compared to walk around with them on my back. This town has boardwalks all over, and many people bring their kids and pets with them to walk around with. I cannot wait to see people's reactions to me pushing around my parrots. It may seem a bit nerdy but I am going to be one proud mama! hah.
--

Details:
I bought the Medium sized pak-o-bird in Gold (the other color choice was olive green). I bought the stainless steel mesh which I think is a total must (although it can get expensive). The stainless steel mesh is good because the birds cannot bite thru it and the pak won't get wrecked. I got the pak 13 inches wide (you can get 15 inches wide for a bit more money). Although the website says conures would fit well in a size small, I know Charlie's tail is quite long and I was worried about him not having room for it. I spent a total of $330ish dollars (if you search the website they offer all different kinds of coupons - I used the military coupon because my boyfriend/one day husband is in the Air Force which gave us $50.00 off). I am extremely happy with the decisions I have made for this pak, and so far I would definitely recommend it to anyone who has the extra cash for it.

Here are some additional photos:

new vids of the birds

2011-03-28T15:19:00.003-04:00

Camera Fun

2011-03-26T14:57:00.003-04:00

Took a few shots with them today..

Shower

2011-03-20T19:18:00.007-04:00

Today was not a lazy day. The weather was nice enough to bring the bottom grates of the cages outside and wash them - along with some of their toys and their wooden perches. My dad cleaned them all (he LOVES to do it! haha) and I cleaned the rest of the cages with poop-off wipes, etc. They are spotless! Also spent 80$ on a huge bag of zupreem colored pellets and some treats.
After a morning of cleaning and my little trip to Petco, I jumped in the shower and brought them along. When I got out of the shower, I put the water pressure on low and put them both on this little bench that I have in there. They had a ball - especially Charlie. He was jumping and fluttering all around with his wings open. Allegra just sat in the corner but as soon as I put her back to the top of her cage she dived into her water bowl. I grabbed my camera because wet bird pics are always the best.

Gave my little pumpkin a very rad mohawk:

And some dry photos:

preening: they look like headless twins!

Rabbit Air

2011-03-03T20:48:00.007-05:00

WOW!!! Ordered this bad boy 2 days ago and I got home from work to find it waiting on my door step! Can't believe how quickly it was delivered. Anyway, I hooked the air purifier up tonight. Obviously it's too soon to give my opinion about it but I can tell you that it was VERY easy to set up and it is VERY quiet! Two really great pro's right there. It read that my air quality was bad (it showed in the orangey zone (red is worst, then orange, then light green) - Light green is where you want to be. I am keeping the purifier on Auto for now. Can't wait to see if I wake up with no allergy symptoms in the morning! Here is what it looks like:

Air!!

2011-03-01T13:39:00.003-05:00

So, my parrots are both living in my room. Until I move out of my parent's house and into my own - this is where they will stay. I have noticed that I've been waking up with some allergy symptoms (itchy throat, itchy ears) and this has been happening since I moved them both onto the same side of my room. I realize that air purifiers are important - not only for my breathing but also for the actual birds.
Since they make so many different kinds I never knew which to buy. I'd go through pages and pages of reviews but they were usually always split 50/50. Like many bird owners - in the magazine bird talk - I've seen ad after ad about Rabbit Air Purifiers. The price is always a little scary which I think makes people back away real fast- but I've always been interested in this purifier for some reason.
After seeing Natacha's blog (poiworld) and her review of the rabbit air, I was pushed to buy it as well. I ordered it today (in pearl white) and used a coupon code from bird talk magazine (code: FPABT20) which gave I think 10$ off - spent about $330 with free shipping for purchases over 300$. I chose the BioGS-SPA-421A
Once the purifier comes in and I get some good use out of it, I will also submit my view to a new post. :)
Have a great day!!

New Toy

2011-03-01T13:28:00.004-05:00

Whoa!! It has been a while.

For Valentine's day I bought my babies a new toy. The owner of theparrotforum now has a line of toys he makes. (you can see all his toys here:parrotwizard toys - they have cute St. Patty's day ones!) I decided to buy one since it was all cute with hearts and looked like a good chew toy for my babes. Well -- it was a great success and everything was shipped so quickly. I look forward to getting some more toys in the future! Here are some lovely pics below of the birds on the first day of showing them their new chew toy.

below: charlie and allegra, scared of their new toy.

New Setup

2011-01-27T21:00:00.003-05:00

I always had the birds in my room, across from each other. I got all new furniture in my room on Saturday (new bed, desk and dresser) and I decided to switch around the bird cages so that they were next to each other. I probably should've always did this from the beginning, to keep their mess in one area but hey, it's not too late. I moved them next to each other tonight and it seems to be working at well. They have been out - climbing onto each others cage - and they are being so quiet! Here is a before and after - i'm crossing my fingers that this new way works out!
Before:

After:

Calendar

2011-01-03T20:37:00.009-05:00

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. I did - hence why I haven't been able to blog in a while! - plus I am leaving for Disney World (Florida) for the first time in my life in 11 days! Been quite busy getting my summer clothes out and making sure I will have everything I need. At age 23, I can tell you my excitement level about going is probably equivalent to a 5 year olds.

Anyway, I have some big news. I came across a site (conure community) and decided to send in some pics for a calendar that they do every year. It is non-profit and I thought it would be fun to see my actual babies get in. To my surprise, my night in shining armor (Charlie) made it on the COVER... on the friggen cover!!! Many people sent in pictures so I was very shocked to find out about this. Each calendar is 20$ and they have sold quite a bit! Allegra made it into the calendar as well for April (her hatch month) and Charlie is in his hatch month, November.
Wait, wait I am still not done - another picture of them together is featured in the month of October. I can truly say that I feel like the most proud mother there is! Please see the calendar pics below!

cover:

april:

october:

november:

This I thought was very cool, each birds face gets placed on their specific hatch day (like below):

2010-12-21T20:43:00.004-05:00

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate!! I am looking forward very much to this upcoming weekend. I have all the bird toys in their stockings and of course I had to put Charlie into his santa suit this week to take some pics. Tonight was the first time I put it on him in a year so he wasn't too fond of the idea!! In a few days he'll be more comfortable and I will get some good shots :) I would try it on Allegra but I know she would never let me get it on her! :P

here is a better photo so you can see the whole outfit :)

I'd like to proudly announce....

2010-12-21T14:02:00.003-05:00

Charlie and Allegra have made it into an official conure calendar, created by conurecomminuty.com -- I am a VERY proud mama of both of them!! Want to hear even greater news?? Charlie has made it on the COVER!!
I ordered two copies for myself, my boyfriend bought himself one and my coworker got one as a stocking stuffer for her daughter. I'm thinking that next year, each month I will take a photo dedicated to a holiday in that specific month (or season) and I will make my own calendar of just my babes for 2012.

Here is the calendar they got into:
Please note: Charlie is featured on the cover, october and november -- Allegra is featured in April and October. I think it so clever that the calendar also puts the conure's picture on their hatch dates!
2011 Conure Calendar

Caught you!!

2010-12-14T13:31:00.000-05:00

Caught my little babies holding hands after some wrestling ;)

The reason I don't like buying products online....

2010-12-02T20:36:00.010-05:00

I bought Charlie's Java tree from kingscages.com and was extremely happy with it. Although you buy the item from a picture, they do ship you the actual item that is shown in that picture. Of course, you can not really examine any blemishes on it but you can cross your fingers and hope that it gets delivered how you picture it to. Java trees get quite expensive and I am rather picky with the way they look. With Charlie's, I made sure that the branches were more on the thin side due to his bad foot (he has trouble grasping because of two nails that grow weird).

I've posted pictures of the tree many times in other posts. I really love the shape and the birds seem to move around well on it. Charlie started to get bratty when Allegra was on "his" tree and he would take food right out of her mouth as she was eating. This is the main reason I decided to get Allegra her own. Since I got Allegra, I've been looking on this site for a while -- I've been waiting for a good looking branch that I really like. Hm, about five months it took til I spotted this most recent java tree I just purchased. It was $99 bucks with free shipping - not too bad in my opinion. The following picture I took before I received the product by mail ...to have to compare it with.

It looks pretty good, right? I received it today by fedx. The box was in pretty poor shape - I definitely don't remember the last one looking like that. It was all lop-sided and mushed on one side. I unfortunately didn't think to take a picture of it when it arrived. So I got home, opened the box and was very excited to set it up before dinner. My dad helped me (he's better with the wrench lol) and we were quite pleased..until I spotted the main branch Allegra will be walking on. It was all cracked and sharp and looked really crappy. She is definitely more of a biter/shedder so I am concerned that she is going to bite through this piece of it which will ruin the whole idea of being fed on this java tree. Java wood is very, very sturdy which is a main reason why they are used for parrots - they are hard to chew. This branch seems like it is ready to flake off - as you can see below she has already started to peel it away. Also, It seems that when she walks on it her nails go right in between the space which I didn't like.

I do plan to email the manufacturer - not to return it or ask for a refund - just to let them know that I am disappointed that the picture didn't show this blemish and that they wouldn't at least sand it down to be smoother before sending it out to the customer (a.k.a me!). I am sure they will apologize and bla bla bla, the end.

For those of you who have java trees, are any of the branches damaged from either the parrot or from when you first purchased it? Is it a big deal?

above: a piece in which she has already broken off

New Toys!

2010-11-26T16:06:00.002-05:00

Just received an order from Windycityparrot.com -- Spent roughly 20$ for everything shown with free shipping.

Allegra's Beak Pics -- Before and After

2010-11-26T15:53:00.002-05:00

I took these pics last week when I noticed her beak growing like this. I wasn't sure what was wrong so I took pictures just in case I caused something to happen or if it was caused from some kind of disease etc. I wanted to have examples for other people and be able to show what to look for/what not to look for.

Anyway, since I did overreact, this beak growth is just from an injury most likely when she was little. A nick in the beak caused a tooth like effect on the upper side. Like I said last post, the vet just filed it down and it is fine now. Although the bottom beak is still kind of long and causes her not to be able to close her beak 100%, he said that is okay.

Above: this shows the bottom beak being long enough to not let allegra close her beak fully.
Below: this is the side of the beak that shows the tooth like growth on the upper part.

Here are some pics I literally took 3 minutes ago (after it's been filed):

Vet Outcome

2010-11-26T14:30:00.004-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving! Hope everyone had a nice one.

Okay, so I panicked for no reason at all. Allegra had her vet appointment this morning and the vet said she is absolutely fine. Her beak issue was (in his words): "When she was younger and her beak was forming, she could have nicked it/banged it which formed a little 'tooth' to grow on her upper right side of the beak." He said it's nothing to be worried or concerned about. He drilled it down with an electric drill - and Allegra actually seemed to like the feeling of it. She closed her eyes and acted very calm while a vet assistant held her. They said if it does grow back to being like that that it's not a big deal and I could have it drilled again if that is what I prefer.

Now for the only down side...nothing too crazy to be worried about but the vet did say Allegra has less bacteria in her feces than normal. He gave me bene-bac bird gel to give to Allegra three times a week. It's a tooth paste looking kind of gel and you give a pea size amount to them off of your finger. It is to try and help her digestive system so that her poops will become more firm - because right now they are more on the watery side. Her weight and everything else was very good! I'm proud of my little girl today, she didn't make a peep.

Cost: I had a dream last night that I took her and it cost $542.00! I woke up and was like "oh boy, today better not go like that." I am "happy" (for lack of better word) that it only cost $119.00 - I think it's about $75-80 just to walk in there and be seen. So leaving less stressed and with the proper medicine for her, I am not too mad about the price. He also commented that I am doing a very good job on the clippings of the nails/wings. :) Yay for a good day! I feel much better and I hope Allegra does too!

To the vet...

2010-11-22T12:32:00.002-05:00

I noticed later than sooner unforunately, that Allegra's beak has been growing really abnormal. I am angry at myself because the more I look closely at her beak, I know that it didn't happen like this overnight and that I could've caught it sooner than I did. :( I called the vet and will be taking her this coming friday morning after thanksgiving. Am I nervous? Of course. I'm not sure what caused her abnormal beak growth (it could be a number of things) so I am not going to jump to any conclusions. From my own research, if i had to GUESS, it looks to me as if it would be scissors beak but again, I don't know for sure. Scissors beak is a condition where the upper beak is not straight and does not meet correctly over the lower beak. She is unable to fully close her beak because of the bad allignment that is being caused mostly from the lower beak being too long.

Things that may be causing Allegra's beak issue: a liver problem, poor nutrition, not being raised long enough by a parent bird, the breeders way of feeding the syringe to the bird could've also caused beak deformities. Blood tests should tell us for sure. I am going to guess that the vet on friday will trim her beak (with a drill depending how bad it is?), both upper and lower. We will probably have to go through this a few times to get the beak to grow correctly on it's own. I will update with all of the info on friday as well as add the pictures I took of the beak close up. If it's something that could've been prevented I will be sure to post on here and the forums I am apart of to try and help others. Good luck to my little pumpkin and check back for updates!

Five pics sum it up

2010-11-18T20:44:00.007-05:00

Charlie....

Allegra....

Need I say more? Charlie is a lazy bum that wants to preen himself and get preened all day. Allegra doesn't stop playing with toys for a minute. She is so curious and wants to explore everything. She has more energy than I've ever seen in a bird! Charlie is like an old fat man, I think thats why I love him so much lol :)

Turn around

2010-11-17T20:03:00.002-05:00

Walk away from the little fids and this just may happen to you. You should've seen the mess BEFORE i cleaned some of it up.

When I was younger...

2010-11-17T19:43:00.004-05:00

We first had a nanday conure named Ziggy. I was about 9 or 10 years old when we first decided to get a bird - my father was more into it than anyone. A place near home sold koi fish (which is my dad's obsession) and they sold birds there as well. He explained to the owner, who also happened to be a friend of his, that this was our first bird and how he has two young kids etc etc. We went with a nanday - because one, there wasn't many different species and two, my dad liked the size/coloring of it etc.

When we got this bird, I would say it attached itself to my father and I - more than my brother or mother but it did get along with them as well. Ziggy looked exactly like Charlie from what I remember - we don't have many pics of him. My family did decide to keep Ziggy clipped but during dinner one night, there was a squirrel on our deck right outside the big glass door that was across from the bird cage. He got spooked and darted right into the window, hurting his neck pretty badly. He died about four days later. My last memory of him was at the Vet hospital, he wouldn't stop kissing me - almost like he knew he was never going to see me or my family again. :( My mom shares that same memory.. we missed him a lot after that!

Ziggy was with my family for about four years. It wasn't til a couple years later that my parents decided to get a cockatoo. I was against the idea of getting another bird because I felt my heart only had room for my first one. It was interesting comparing the two birds. They are much different in size, they had way different personalities and of course the dander was a whole new experience for all of us. Dander is a powder that cockatiels, cockatoos, african greys, etc all share. This powder gets EVERYWHERE! My brother ended up being allergic to the dander, forcing us to give the cocktatoo back to the store rather quickly- who by the way we named Sunny and was a dna sexed female.
Here are some pics of sunny below:
With my dad in the store we bought her from -

Caught!

2010-11-17T19:32:00.002-05:00

This pic isn't good because it was taken with an iphone but it was so hilarious how Allegra was sleeping. During a movie, her head was bobbing and as she fell asleep, her head slumped down lower and lower. Here is a pic we got:

happy birthday!!

2010-11-11T17:08:00.002-05:00

I did not get the chance to post yesterday because I was too busy celebrating Charlie's 2nd birthday! Yup - 2 yrs ago on november 10th Charlie was hatched in Florida somewhere.

I woke up bright and early (7am) and uncovered both cages. Charlie and Allegra have to exercise their voice in the morning - back and forth- for a while! After they simmered down a little bit I walked over to my little boy and sang happy birthday to him while he sat on top of his cage. His reaction - he fluffied up and gave me kisses as I sang real close to him. He is so sweet!!

When I got home, I happened to notice my little boy had a seed stuck in his nose! My first conure from when I was younger (he is now deceased) used to get seed stuck in his nose all the time. This was the first time I saw it happen to Charlie. I mix some seed in both birds food about 3 times per week. I guess when he was eating one snuck in the nostril. I'm not sure if there is anything I can do to help speed the process of him getting it out. I was hoping a sneeze would come along and the thing would go flying. He showed no discomfort though so I was not worried. I saw by morning time that the seed was out.

Here is my funny little boy.

A special thanks

2010-11-09T19:58:00.006-05:00

I want to dedicate this post to Mary Hughes. She has been wonderful and I can't show enough appreciation for the work she has done for me. I found Mary on Etsy when I saw a beauitful painting of a nanday conure she had done. I bought it right away to hang above Charlie's cage. When I adopted Allegra, I decided to contact Mary personally this time. I sent her an email with some pictures of Allegra and asked her if she would be kind enough to do a portrait for me. After hoping and wishing, I got a wonderful reply that Mary would be delighted to do the painting.

Today I received it and I am VERY, VERY pleased! It is such a nice and personal thing to have and it will be hung above Allegra's cage this weekend, along with Charlie's painting as well. Please check out the work Mary has done for me below and feel free to contact her for any pet portraits - not just birds! (she loves what she does which makes every painting worth it - the prices are really reasonable and they come out great!) Find Mary Hughes' info below.

Her Website: http://www.maryhughesstudio.com
Her Email: mary@maryhughesstudio.com

Thank you Mary!!

click the pictures below to see closer detail.

Shower Perch

2010-11-06T14:52:00.004-04:00

After my last post, I decided to try the shower perch out right away lol. I was surprised how eager Charlie was to climb aboard the perch since he is usually hesitant with unknown objects. Him and Allegra jumped right on and were ready for some splashing.

BEFORE PICS:

AFTER PICS:

Photo contest Gift

2010-11-06T14:00:00.005-04:00

With my $50 gift certificate to Windycityparrot.com I bought some wonderful toys that both Charlie and Allegra have been enjoying immensely! I think parrotchronicles.com does a great thing to hold their photo contests every month and supply the winners with their choice of bird stuff (food, toys, cages, etc) Since I am all stocked up on food I chose a few different toys and bought a bird leash for Allegra since the first one I bought was too big for her. I spent exactly $50 dollars since windycityparrot.com doesn't tax their items and ships for free.

Here are some of the items I bought:

above: a shower perch, allows the birds to sit in the shower and get misted by the water. i have yet to try this for them. when i do, i will be sure to take pics/video!

above: i got the hanging toy for allegra. it was smaller than i expected but she is smaller than charlie so that is okay. the cardboard rings below the toy are for both birds. they love them! they are great shredding toys and i got four of them.

above: i got a few of these balls. they are great shredding toys as well, allegra bites them to nothing!

Apples

2010-11-06T13:30:00.006-04:00

Today was the first time I let the birds experiment with an apple. I cut a hole through a piece of the fruit and attached it to the end of a tree branch on their stand. The branch is a sturdy post to have the apple attached to making it easier for the birds to pick at. They both seemed to enjoy the juicy, delicious fruit but I have to admit Charlie did a better job with it. Allegra tends to like smaller pieces of food hence why I always cut hers up. Here are some first time pics of their time with the apple.

the orbitor

2010-10-27T22:09:00.008-04:00

I've seen many people talk about these bird toys and a few people on the forum i'm apart of have them. Both, Charlie and Allegra, seem to be enjoying it.

who doesn't love bath time?

2010-10-27T21:49:00.006-04:00

Everytime I look at my babies when they're wet I can't help but get into a good mood. They get the funniest hairdo's and coloring. They really look like little ugly rats, but ones that you want to kiss and squeeze! :) Proof is in the pictures!

Photo Contest Winner

2010-10-26T10:10:00.002-04:00

YAY!! I want to thank my babies, Charlie and Allegra, for being soo adorable and winning a November-December 2010 photo contest for us! Please check out our winning photo and information @ http://parrotchronicles.com/

We can now buy $50 worth of food/toys/etc @ windycityparrot.com

Thank you to all and good luck to future contestants! Woo hoo lol :)

Batman

2010-10-11T20:54:00.003-04:00

The other night my mom and dad were downstairs watching the Yankee game. My dad got up to get a drink in the kitchen and my mom screams. She swears on anything she saw a bat fly by...yeh, in my HOUSE.... My dad doesn't believe her but she insists over and over that it was a bat that she saw.
My dad goes outside to get these big skimmer nets we have (he uses them for his fish pond) and we follow my mom to where she said the bat landed. We start looking all over, under cushions, under couches, in the book shelves...nothing. My father convinces my mother that she saw a moth instead and that everything was fine. My mom knows my dad a little too well so she agrees with him and lets it go.
I go back upstairs to my xbox and my parents go to sleep. They usually keep their bedroom door open but my mom pleaded to leave it shut incase the bat decided to fly in there while they were sleeping. My dad abides and off to sleep they go...

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"

Yep, a huge yelp from my mom. I run downstairs to find my dad in his pajama pants, no shirt, glasses on and the messiest head of hair - all while swinging a huge skimmer net around with his hands. It all so happens that when my mom and dad fell asleep, my mom woke up to a flapping noise. She woke my dad, he turned on their light and there was the little fucker flying around. Haha, my poor mom was frightened to death but my heroic dad saved the night and caught the little batman.

Here he is!

I think my dad hurt the lil fella :(

So after all, mama was right. We freed the lil guy outside, but in the picture is looks like he's bleeding so I'm not sure what the chances are that it survived. Hopefully we don't get anymore fun creatures like that in our house!

Nature Walk

2010-10-11T20:24:00.005-04:00

One of my favorite places. I will take the birds with me next summer.

Me on my lonely little rock. lol

Last few warm days

2010-10-11T20:16:00.005-04:00

Sat in my backyard with the babies for a little bit. Allegra almost fits into her leash and by next summer she will be out with us all the time. Again, I don't like letting her out without one but she was freshly clipped and watched very closely by her mama.

Allegra's bath time

2010-10-11T19:59:00.008-04:00

It truly amazes me how much conures love water. Through the forum I am on (www.theparrotforum.com) I've noticed many of us conure owners all say the same thing, "they can't get enough of playing in the water." I love it personally, because it keeps them clean, smelling good and it is good for their feathers. I also notice they tend to enjoy bathing in the mornings more than the evenings. After I shower, Charlie always jumps in the sink and Allegra will jump into the closest water bowl. Here is my little girl enjoying the wetness.

Then Charlie joins!!

Their Naughty Side

2010-10-11T19:56:00.001-04:00

Rated "R" pics :P

She didn't seem bothered by it at all. Lol

cuddly time

2010-10-11T19:43:00.007-04:00

My birds were so mushy the other day. Some pics and a video to prove it..

As you see below, Allegra loves to nip at Charlie's feet. She does this often and Charlie just puts up with it.

The vids get cut off on here so just click the video so that it plays on youtube :) thanks, enjoy.

Bronx Zoo, NY

2010-09-26T12:25:00.020-04:00

Yesterday I went to the Bronx Zoo for the first time since age three. It was a lot cooler than I expected! Animals are the best =) and the 'world of birds' section was really awesome to see.

Birds of Prey section of the zoo:

Additional Animals:

Fort

2010-09-21T21:56:00.005-04:00

The birds love going into little dark places (my shirt, under blankets, under my bed, etc) so tonight I decided to make them a fort out of my pillows. They had so much fun under there, playing with each other and running around. Here are some capturing moments:

Mystic, Connecticut

2010-09-20T13:55:00.019-04:00

This weekend I took a lovely trip up to Mystic, CT. It's just a ferry ride away but I've never been there and was wanting to get away for a few days. Although I missed my two babies, I ended up having a really great time. Mystic is a beautiful town filled with old houses, cute stores, and great restaurants. Also, for the first time I visited an aquarium. It was quite the experience :) a little different from what I was expecting.

To my surprise, the aquarium had a huge bird avairy. 800 birds flew around this caged area outside ~ parakeets, cockatiels, and rosellas. I've never had in interest in any of these types of birds but it was still nice to interact with them. As we walked into the exhibit, people working there laid down some rules.
- Watch your step (as birds do walk on the ground)
- Check your pockets/purses, etc. (as birds to like to climb into areas like that)
- You may be pooped on! (as birds sit and fly all above you)
- When exiting/entering the avairy, open the first door and close it behind you. If there are no birds in the closed off area you are about to exit, you may then walk out. (sometimes the birds will fly out the exit that brings you into a room before the real exit door. this is to make sure no birds escape. If one does get out, you have to have a worker get it back into the avairy before really exiting - CONFUSING? sorry I tried lol.)

Here are some pictures of the bird avairy:

Here are some pictures of additional animals:

Summer, coming to an end.

2010-09-07T14:02:00.008-04:00

Since summer has come and gone rather quickly, I am taking advantage of the last few hot days in NY. Nights are getting cooler but these last few days have still been quite nice in the afternoon. Decided to take the fids out with me on my walk that I've been doing every morning. They really seem to enjoy the beach, walking around the sand and getting some fresh air.

Before getting critizied, I want to say that I am not happy or proud that I've taken Allegra outside without her leash. She is very light and it is scary that if the wind decided to pick up that she could probably get a good distance with it. I trimmed both her and Charlie's wings before our walk and I know that we've all heard the horror stories that still can happen with clipped wings. The leash I do have for her is a little too big for her weight class right now but I am going to order a size smaller to have. :\

Here are some pics:

Could this be love?

2010-08-23T21:04:00.001-04:00

Charlie needs to relax a little bit. In this video, he is rubbing his vent (hiney) on Allegra...then decides to regurgitate (throw up) into her mouth to show affection. Poor lil girl is too young for this abuse from dudes already! lol i love my two babies :)

Some pictures:

Fruit

2010-08-23T19:31:00.005-04:00

Charlie and Allegra have been pigging out with the fresh fruit i've been buying. I think that both of them agree the mini grapes are their favorite (just really small purple grapes) - Took some pics of them a little while ago eating their after dinner fruit.

Sunset

2010-08-17T20:34:00.002-04:00

Close up

2010-08-09T23:47:00.011-04:00

Decided to take some close up shots of Allegra tonight. She doesn't sit damn still but I managed to get some.

Took the fids outside

2010-08-01T16:09:00.007-04:00

Bath time

2010-07-31T13:04:00.008-04:00

I decided to throw the two babies in the bath tub today. Usually Charlie just bathes in my sink (he voluntarily jump in) and Allegra has jumped into her water bowl (as seen in previous post). So, we tried the tub and Charlie seemed to be pretty comfortable in there. Allegra wanted to get out the whole time and even tried to jump onto Charlie's back so that she wouldn't get wet - lol - he obviously didn't like that.

They had a nice little preening session together after =)

This picture really captures their size difference. Gold cap's are supposed to reach 150 grams (which is Charlie's weight) so I'm hoping she catches up to his size eventually.

Allegra's new toys

2010-07-31T11:27:00.009-04:00

She's been trying to bite everything and I've been waiting for a delivery of toys that I purchased a week ago. They finally arrived yesterday and to my surprise, Allegra started playing with them right away! She's raised so well, not afraid of much and very explorative and playful. Charlie on the other hand doesn't like toys much. I'm hoping he "learns" how to play by watching her. Hence why I didn't buy him any new ones, but did buy him a new zig zag perch.

Below is Charlie's cage, not as many toys but he likes it that way =)

100% improvement, kind of!

2010-07-29T13:14:00.007-04:00

Charlie is doing soo well with Allegra. Allegra is not doing soo well with Charlie lol. She has become a brave little soul and decides to bite at Charlie's ankles every chance she gets. It's funny though, Charlie seems to not even acknowledge that she's doing it.

The two kids behaving:

Allegra's first bath

2010-07-27T19:56:00.005-04:00

This morning, while getting ready for work, I looked over at Allegra to find her splashing around her water bowl. It was the cutest thing because I really couldn't wait to give her a bath! She's been getting applesauce all over herself and I try to clean her off best I can but didn't want to force her into a bowl of water right away. I'm sooo happy that she did it on her own!

Video of bath time:

Charlie and Allegra

2010-07-27T19:54:00.002-04:00

First time I put them face to face up close and he reacted better than I thought! Nice to see them relaxed while getting to know one another.

video of the baby's introduction

2010-07-26T23:18:00.002-04:00

First time that Charlie and Allegra are on the floor together.

^watch it through youtube, blogger cuts the vid :)

Few new photos

2010-07-26T22:42:00.003-04:00

Some photos taken today of Allegra, my little mamita!

Stressful but getting through

2010-07-26T22:22:00.007-04:00

Not going to lie, I'm starting to feel like the picture above lol. I let the birds finally meet (I know, I'm horrible and couldn't last through a full quarantine). I'll put it this way... Charlie is trying. He's being pretty good with Allegra minus the few nips he tries to get on her. She is a pretty brave little girl, runs right up to him at full force and of course Charlie gets bothered by this. I can have them on each shoulder but if Allegra starts to make some noise he will try and sneak behind my neck to nip her. I never let him actually get to her and give him a stern "no" if he gets close to her. Sometimes he will take his aggression out on me instead, which I understand the way he is feeling so it is hard to get mad at him, but if he bites me hard I do put him away in his cage.

I have noticed that when we are not in "Charlie's room" he reacts much better to her presence. Lets say we are all in the kitchen, he won't pay any attention to her. He will go about his business, eating and playing, and she does the same. But then we will all go back into my room where the cages are, and he starts his little territorial behavior. We are slowly working on him, he's going to have to learn to share!

Some proof that Charlie isn't the most well behaved :P

Allegra and I

2010-07-25T22:30:00.001-04:00

First face to face meet

2010-07-25T22:04:00.003-04:00

i let the kiddies finally see each other. charlie acted so much better than i thought he would.. to be honest, he showed no aggression. i asked him for kisses and he paid attention to me rather than her. i mostly think that he wasn't aggressive because we weren't in "his" room, we were in the guest room where i'm keeping allegra's cage temporarily. hopefully once they officially are out together he won't go too crazy :)

Weighing Allegra

2010-07-24T21:01:00.003-04:00

To make sure my new baby is eating, I weigh her every night around the same time (7pm). Here is a video for an example
(click the video and watch it from youtube because i can't figure out why blogger cuts them off)

Allegra ~ Day 3

2010-07-24T12:57:00.005-04:00

Allegra is doing amazing. She is eating great and letting us handle her so well. Even my mother (who is frightened to death of Charlie) is holding her and tells Allegra everytime she see's her: "Grandma loves you!" in baby talk haha! We all love her. I think she is so beautiful :)

Charlie still doesn't know she is here. He hears her make lil peeps once in a while but hasn't made a big deal about it. I've been weighing her every night and shes right around 100 grams. Charlie, of course, is about 50 grams more than her. Can't wait till they're about the same! Planning to introduce them after another week or so ~ once I hear from the vet.

Trimmed her nails this morning cause they were really sharp. Also took this video of her eating some applesauce.

She is still doing the head bob that the babies do when they're hungry so we've been feeding her and keeping close watch. She does eat her pellets and spray millet as well. I'm gonna make sure shes drinking her water too but seems that she is from the little seeds i find in it.

Welcome home, Allegra

2010-07-22T20:25:00.010-04:00

(below) me patiently waiting at the airport

My new baby gold capped conure, Allegra, was shipped from Florida to NY and is finally home today. She is about 15 weeks old (hatched 4/13/10) and is absolutely precious! I say "she" but I haven't had it DNA sexed so were just going to go with it being a girl! I picked the name Allegra because I think it's unique, and honestly, I like it ~ although some people have advised me that they don't, I chose to pick it anyway.

Okay as for the experience...honestly, I felt like I was going to puke the entire day. I woke up an hour earlier than my alarm clock (6am) and was too excited to go back to sleep. Allegra left on a plane in Florida, went to Texas and took a connecting flight to NY. I was SOOO worried and nervous that it wasn't a non-stop flight because I really had no idea it wasn't going to be. Millions of bad thoughts ran through my head, but the support of positive thinking from my friends throughout the day helped a lot. I checked her flight status about every 5 minutes, (pic shown below) and saw that her flight was going to be a half hour earlier than scheduled.

My cousin, Megan, and I headed over to La Guardia Airport (NY) which took us about an hour to get to (wish I could say the same for the way back.) We waited about 30 minutes, and as the plane landed the woman at the pick up counter said that my new baby should be there in about 20 minutes after landing. I was filled with fear, excitement, and a bunch of other mixed emotions. Then, there she was... my heart smiled and I was just happy to see that whatever was in the crate was ALIVE! lol

As soon as I got in the car, I pried open the crate. She was absolutely gorgeous - calm, yet alert of what was going on. I lightly grabbed her and placed her on my chest where she then climbed right up onto my shoulder. I pet and rubbed her head without any fuss or nips. I was delighted and 100% satisfied with the entire situation. Along the ride I did place her back in the crate to try and force some food or water on her - funny thing is, there was no forcing involved. Allegra eats like a beast! Haha, she ate the entire way home which was awesome. Two big poops were let out along the way which was a good sign and I did see some water being consumed.

Once home, I set up a smaller temporary cage in the guest room. I understand you are supposed to quarantine new birds away from pets you already have (this is for health reasons, if the bird had an easily spread disease this would prevent it from spreading before it's too late.) I decided once cleared by the vet this weekend and once blood results are received - I will then let Charlie and Allegra meet. As for now, Charlie has no idea she is here and vise versa! Right now I am letting her relax - I did put a toy in her cage and she started playing with it as soon as I hooked it up. She seems to be just as great as Charlie but completely opposite as well. Shes a good eater and a toy lover - both of which Charlie is not! I can't tell you how happy I am and I will be updating with photos frequently. Thanks for reading!

I am pleased to update..

2010-07-20T21:54:00.003-04:00

that my baby will be here on Thursday! I just got word from the breeder that the baby is ready and we are setting up a flight for the day after tomorrow. Can't even tell you how excited I really am. Finally got some more pictures (honestly not even sure which one I'm getting in the pics) but both are precious! I really look forward to giving her a great life and having a good long-term companion.

I'm nervous for the flight.. (scary with the heat lately, etc) but I'm thinking positive and hoping for the best! I do have a name picked out but won't announce it until she is here with me and I take a long at her to make sure it really fits! I really look forward to blogging more since I can start from when she's really young. She is only 15 weeks old right now. I'm prepared with food, toys and cage - just need to make sure she keeps up on her eating once she's settled in.

Talk to you guys on Thursday! Be sure to come back and check up on all the new pictures I plan to take! :)

Hired!

2010-07-15T21:10:00.001-04:00

Charlie got a new job. I just wish they were paying him more.

New cage for the new baby

2010-07-11T21:10:00.009-04:00

Finally! The new cage is set up and the reality of everything is starting to hit! I'm hoping to pick up my new little baby in 6 days (hoping for Saturday weather permitting, will find out a definite day soon)

I don't love the idea of sleeping between these two. I did buy an air filter (which will be here soon) to make sure my air quality stays fresh haha. As mentioned in my other post, the new one will be moved to the guest room for a couple of weeks to make sure everything is okay healthwise, etc.

Charlie on his cage below:

My new little nameless girl's cage, still needs toys:

** Special thanks to Billy for helping me with setting everything up.

Gorgeous Walk

2010-07-09T19:58:00.010-04:00

Below, Charlie enjoying his view.

I'm starting to enjoy having such a handsome bird. It seems so hard not to get a nice photo of him LOL (wait, am I bragging just because I'm his mom?) Anyhow, I got home from work a little early today and decided to take advantage of whatever was left of the sunshine. It's been crazy hot in New York (temps reaching over 100 degrees) - today wasn't as bad as the last few days, seemed to be around 77-80 on our walk an hour ago.

I wasn't going to bring my camera with me, but I'm happy that I did. We have an osprey's nest down near the public beach of my backyard. They had babies about a month or two ago and it is so nice to see the progress they have made. At first you could only see the babies little heads peaking out, today you could see more of them moving around, etc.

I tried to get a picture of them but it was hot and people kept talking to me as they walked by or rode their bikes passed Charlie and I. We would get "Oh my Gosh - is that a parrot?!" or "Is your bird really on a leash?!" Some people are nice and really into it, while others are just clueless and whatever I say to them goes in one ear and out the other while they stare at Charlie lol. Either way, I always enjoy our walks and will continue to provide the blog with pictures of them! :P

Blooper Pic:

I love fluffy babies!

Ran out of toilet paper?

2010-07-09T19:53:00.001-04:00

If so, you got a toy for your parrot! Charlie loved playing with this half of a toilet paper roll. Enjoy! :)

Nervous / new fid purchased

2010-07-07T19:55:00.014-04:00

I've been spending so much time thinking about Charlie. Today, I officially purchased a baby gold capped conure, hatched on 4/13/10. I won't receive the baby for about another 10 days (it is being shipped to NY from Florida) and I'm really nervous about the reaction Charlie will have. I think we all know that my bond with him is very tight, and I truly want it to stay that way although I know there is the chance that it won't. I have a feeling that he is going to be very jealous, as he is now towards certain people ~ but I'm hoping that we can overcome this change together.

Having another bird has always been a goal of mine. I didn't think I would decide on getting one as soon as I did, but I am ready for it and all I can do is hope for the best. It is scary not having met the baby yet, but the breeder has been very helpful and has provided me with pictures and lots of updates. There are two baby gold cap's and they're both doing very well. Almost weaned, and playing joyfully with toys. I bought the same exact cage as Charlie's, for the other corner of my room. I plan to keep the baby in the guest room for the first week or two till we all get used to each other. As soon as the flight is officially booked, I will set my vet appointment and hopefully all goes well from there!
I'm looking forward to blogging about our new friend, so check back for updates!

Here are a few photos of the babies from a couple weeks ago. Mine is shown on the left.

Note: I have been set on the name Lola for a long time for the next bird I was getting, no matter what kind it was. I told my co-worker about naming the new one Lola and her reaction was, "oh, you know that show?! My daughter watches it!" I had no idea what she was talking about...Turns out that 'Charlie and Lola' is a cartoon (based in the UK but aired in the US as well) about a brother and sister. This kind of ruined the idea for that name so I am trying to come up with others. I liked the name Autumn due to the birds colors but I am getting a mixed reaction from people about it. Also on the list were, Zoey - Layla - Martini - Lilly and any other suggestions that I can get! Feel free to comment any ideas you have. Thanks!

a warm welcome home

2010-06-24T20:11:00.002-04:00

EVERYTIME I walk into the door of my house, I know what's going to happen. The door that I enter (from the garage) slams shut behind me, and then it starts... Charlie will start whaling until I actually walk into my room and get him. Mind you, sometimes I will eat dinner first and let him yap away to try and not spoil him to death lol. So, I figured I would make a video to demonstrate. I just want everyone to know, before I actually get home (when my mom's cooking and stuff) Charlie doesn't make a sound. It only starts as soon as that door shuts at 6:30pm.

photo shoot

2010-06-17T22:01:00.012-04:00

Stopped my heart

2010-06-17T21:44:00.003-04:00

This one is a tough! I don't have many details because I don't know exactly what happened. All I can say is that Charlie is molting like crazy right now (Molting: New feathers replace old ones and are very sensitive in the process) and he either banged his wing into something - or the new blood feather that came in was irritating him and he tried picking it out. Whatever it was, resulted in me finding blood on his wing and the side of his belly (from his wing rubbing against him.)
At first, I thought charlie ate something that dried up on his feathers but I soon after realized it was dried up blood and saw some more blood on the outer wing. Right away, my heart dropped - I even began to cry because #1 I didn't know what happened, and #2 I wasn't sure what to do. It was around midnight, and I googled up some info. Since the blood was dry, I washed it out in the sink so that I would be able to notice if he was still bleeding later on in the night. Once the water dried off of him, he looked okay.
I have not yet brought him to the vet, although I know thats probably many peoples advice. There has been no signs of complication from him (no signs of weakness, tiredness, or loss of appetite.) He is normal weight, and acting like normal. I am keeping a close eye on him.

bath time video

2010-06-10T23:56:00.002-04:00

In the past, I have written a post about how Charlie takes a bath and provided some pictures. Tonight, I grabbed my handy dandy camera and filmed him. He is molting like crazy so it is important that I keep him moist (although he gives me no trouble in doing so). Enjoy.

Weigh in

2010-06-09T20:59:00.003-04:00

Today, I went to bed,bath&beyond to pick up a food scale. I've heard on some forums and other places that many people use them to weigh their birds. I have not weighed him once since I got him. If my memory serves me right, I think I can recall the vet saying that he was 140 grams(4.9 oz) and that was when i first got him in september '09.

Tonight, Charlie weighed 145 grams(5.1 oz) which is a normal, healthy weight for his type. I wrote it down in a log book and will probably weigh him once a week (?) Not really sure how often I'm supposed yet, but I will research it.

Here is a video of Charlie being weighed for the first time.

Aviator Harness + Leash..Continued..

2010-06-03T21:32:00.004-04:00

I loved the leash so much that I emailed the manufacturer of the product. I also sent some pictures of Charlie and I - well!! The owner actually emailed me back asking to use my email and pics as a testimonial. Of course, I gladly accepted and today, they appeared on the site.

Check it out! Click the direct link (from theparrotuniversity.com)
theparrotuniversity.com
Scroll down, and my picture will be the first one on the left side.
If you click "click here to read more" you will see 7 pictures, and my email that I sent in! I am excited by this lol.

Bird Talk

2010-05-27T21:26:00.004-04:00

Attempting to say something, anything!....One day he will :)

Corn on the Cob

2010-05-27T21:19:00.003-04:00

Charlie's first time eating corn on the cob. Although it's not in season yet, I think he did a good job introducing himself to it!

The Aviator Harness + Leash

2010-05-24T20:27:00.008-04:00

As I was searching online for food, I came across this harness leash. I have a couple of flight suits (as shown in earlier posts) which do have a leash attached, but i liked the idea of JUST the leash - without the suit. So, $29.99 dollars later - I decided to order the leash along with all of the seeds, pellets, and nutri-berries that I needed. Not to mention, a new toy!

After dinner, I went upstairs to my little lovie. He was excited to see me, as always! Screaming his head off as soon as he hears my voice from downstairs. We greeted each other and I put the box of goodies on my bed. I opened up the bag with the leash in it and left it on my bed to see Charlie's reaction. Instead of fear, he showed interest - felt the leash with his tongue and soon after, let me put it on him. He reacted much better to this leash, rather than he did to the flight suit. The harness went on very nicely, I ordered a size X-small as per the information they've included on the website.

The harness leash was a great experience thus far, although it has only been one day haha. I experimented with it on the beach - the walk that Charlie and I take every night (weather permitting.)

Parrot vs. Spider

2010-05-22T22:23:00.002-04:00

When you're laying in bed and see this creepy, crawly thing next to you - it's hard not to lose your cool. I kept calm though, was able to grab my camera and get a little action of Charlie's first encounter with an insect lol. I wish he actually got to taste him and save me from squishing it with a paper towel, but maybe next time!

2nd Molt

2010-05-17T21:33:00.005-04:00

On Charlie's 2nd molt, he lost 3 tail feathers so far. I love them, so of course I will save them and figure out some nice artsy project to add them to. The other two tail feathers were unfortunately ripped out (by me) on accident. I felt so badly that I went downstairs crying to my Mom and Dad. Took a while to forgive myself. Once they were ripped out, he acted fine and still cuddled right up to me with kisses, etc. I just felt horrible and learned to be WAY more careful when lifting up my blanket. :( Anyway, I took some pictures of them so take a look!

..and quickly growing back as you can see (below)

Woke up with my camera next to me

2010-05-17T21:21:00.002-04:00

Every weekend Charlie likes to wake me up before 8am. This gets quite annoying but I take him into bed with me and we snuggle for a bit until I'm awake enough to get my butt up! He is worth the early rise.

Charlie's Photoshoot

2010-04-25T14:03:00.009-04:00

Weekends are always my time to catch up on all of my bird needs - I wake up (late usually!) and I clean the whole cage. I wipe it down with 'Poop-Off' wipes and clean any toys that are dirty, etc. I needed more food so I did a quick run to Petco - I took Charlie with me but kept him in the little carrier that I have. I ended up buying him a new blanket and some chew treats in addition to his pellets. Unfortunately, Charlie is not a big toy lover so I stopped buying him new ones since all the others ones just sit there looking pretty. I'm not sure why he's not into them - I guess some birds just aren't.

When we got back to my house, the weather reached some nice temps. It was about 68-70 degrees out. I had clipped Charlie the night before (nails and wings) so I decided to let him walk around in the front yard with my Dad and brother present. He was walking all over the patio, tasting branches and big rocks. I would find a nice tree and put him in the branches, he would bite at the wood and just enjoy the sunshine and breeze. Of course, I did take some pics - I love the way he looks in the red japanese maple tree thats in my backyard.

this is one of the chew treats ^

:) kisses for his mommy always ^

Brushy Brushy

2010-04-15T19:49:00.002-04:00

Just the other day when brushing my teeth, I noticed my little boy trying to copy me. Here is a short little clip of it :)

At it again

2010-04-13T20:47:00.006-04:00

I can't have ALL good stories about Charlie, right? Let me just say - if you can't handle "the birds and the bees" talk (literally, in this case) you may want to skip this post. In a past post, I have mentioned (and proved with a video) that Charlie discovered what we can call 'self exploration.' He started on february 2nd and it lasted a few days on and off. He used this little blanket that i have tied to the side of his cage as his "mate" and I pretty much thought he got it out of his system because I haven't witnessed any action... until tonight... Only now, Charlie has decided to "throw in the blanket" - pun intended! and he has sadly chosen my face for his next pleasure pleaser.

.... I know what is going through your head right now!! - "EWW!" It was the first word out of my mouth too.

I have said before, in all my many bird books the topic about parrot masturbation is very brief. I leave it up to google and it's websites to educate myself on this topic. From what I have gathered, I am not going to "punish" him for his actions. I don't think it is right to throw him away in his cage for doing something innocent like that. Of course, I am notgoing to let him use my face, or any part of me for that matter - I would never condone that. I removed him quickly from my shoulder/chest (this is where he was when he started rubbing his vent on my cheek/chin) and I told him "no" which he does seem understand most of the time.

Because I love my blog on here and I love sharing stories with you guys, I managed to snap a picture with my iPhone knowing that I planned to write about what happened. It's kind of a messy situation, but I think in the end it will be taken care of and Charlie will move on to something else ::crosses fingers::

He kept tucking his head under my shirt

I think you all can witness the excitement I was getting from this....lol :(

Beautiful evening

2010-04-06T19:55:00.010-04:00

The weather has finally been great for a few days in a row now- I'll take it! Decided to go on a walk with Charlie after dinner today (mmm, chicken/ stuffing, sweet potatoes & broccoli with a tall glass of milk). It was not a slight bit chilly. I did hold on to him tight as we passed the osprey nest (shown above) - you hear too many crazy things! Normally, I would have him on a leash but today was a quick walk & I know he loathes the idea of having it on.

and then..our favorite - strawberries for snack after our nightly work outs.

Dancing and then what?

2010-03-29T21:33:00.004-04:00

I went to record Charlie dancing to his favorite MJ song. He preened, and he did dance. He also did this thing with his foot that I always find strange (@1min55secs). Not really sure what he is doing or why he is doing it. Just wanted to see if anyone else's bird does this movement or if anyone has seen this before?? At the end of the video he does try to regurgitate on me, he does this quite often when he is close to me/on my shoulder/ or when i rub his belly a little bit. Never lets the food fully come out of his mouth - he always ends up swallowing it right before.

Charlie, the wet rat.

2010-03-29T17:24:00.002-04:00

These were too funny to not post!

^ scary! lol

Parrot store

2010-03-29T13:10:00.017-04:00

I have blogged about this store before. I don't love the place due to the bird s&^t everywhere and birds just walking on the floor that could easily be stepped on by a kid not paying attention. As well as the fact that the store didn't make anyone wash their hands yet everyone handles the birds. I would never buy a bird from this place but my boyfriend and I went just to check it out because he has never been there. Although the pictures are crappy (taken from an iPhone) I still wanted to show you how the bird room was.

(above)i loved this little meyer

(above)these babies were hard to handle, all afraid-sun/jenday/dusky/black caiques

(above)these babies were more friendly and eager to be picked up- sun conures

(above) i hate to be mean, but i hated this little (but not so little) guy. he was nipping at my feet and chasing me around the whole time. lol such a pain in the butt!

(above)middle macaw talked his head off! (see vid at end of post)

(above)a moluccan cockatoo ( thank you natacha!:) )

(above) amazon parrot and umbrealla cockatoo
Note: all of these birds are open and in one room together. there are about 100 or more. some birds are missing tails due to bigger onces biting them. Although the owners are very nice, I just am not happy for the birds.

Also, here is a video taken by Billy. The bird was saying "hello" over and over til we started taping him of course. You can hear the bird say it a few times though, pretty cool.

More Laughing

2010-03-21T22:16:00.003-04:00

working on the phrase "i love you" since Charlie clearly has his laugh down lol.

Charlie started laughing

2010-03-21T00:34:00.004-04:00

I was on the phone when I suddenly bursted out laughing (he's a very funny dude) and Charlie decided to start imitating me! I thought it was the most hilarious thing and for the last few days he will do it everytime Billy or I start laughing. Here is some cute proof!

a walk on the beach

2010-03-21T00:29:00.002-04:00

happy first day of spring! it was (so far) the most gorgeous day of 2010 here on long island today. i took Charlie out with us on the beach in the afternoon when it got warmer to about 70 degrees. he loved being outside for the first time this year. can't wait for this beautiful weather to keep up so we can share more time in the fresh air (with a leash, of course!)

kisses on command

2010-03-09T20:54:00.002-05:00

full of love tonight.

Introducing people

2010-02-16T19:24:00.009-05:00

I'm going to give Billy props because of the way he acts towards Charlie -and let me add, he's never had a bird. When they first met, my little man would get really jealous. He would get all defensive, his feathers would get all ruffled, and he would have his mouth open ready to take a chunk out of Billy whenever he was close enough.

Billy shows Charlie no fear. When Charlie does bite him, he doesn't back away right away - he lets Charlie know that he's not here to hurt him (or take me away lol.) Anyway, they have been getting along so well now. Charlie will let Billy pick him up and play with him. Proof is in the pics :)

A must see

2010-02-10T19:39:00.005-05:00

The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill. If you are a bird lover, I'm telling you this is a truly touching film - I really, really enjoyed watching it today. I did shed a few tears but it's a film that makes you feel good after seeing it. The main dude in the story is a little weird (still give it a thumbs up though.)
If anyone has seen it, feel free to comment about what you thought ~ I'm interested to hear others opinions.

Blizzard 2010

2010-02-10T18:59:00.004-05:00

The East Coast got a huge blizzard today. My job was closed (fFOR ONLY THE SECOND TIME EVER IN 30 YRS!) because of the bad weather conditions.

So since i got to stay at home in bed all day, Charlie and I did what we do best:

Slept...

Slept...

AND slept some more...