The Time I was a Parrot Owner (Part 2)

I’ll start by letting you know that I ended up being a “parent” to 7 birds in total.it wasn’t easy but I did it. For as long as I was able to at least. So we’ve lost George and Lucy but my dad arrives with four new guys. Two are the squawking Senegalese parrots while the other two are a cute pair of green parakeets. Cute but also not talkers, at least they didn’t squawk like I was trying to kidnap them. Moving on.

The parrots settle in and life is going good. For only a few weeks because guess what happens? I wake up one morning and when I come in to check on them, the female Senegalese parrot(also named Lucy) is just rock solid and dead at the bottom of their cage. No signs of sickness, just decided to quit on life without warning. I had named her partner George like my previous parrot but my mother was against it. Her argument was that I could meet someone called George but I told her it was unlikely. I met a George 2 years later. That aside, I folded and agreed to give the parrots names I wouldn’t come across. The lone Senegalese parrot was renamed Poseidon, while the parakeets got Athena and Zeus.

We’re back to regular life again and all is once again, going good. Then one afternoon, the shop owner across the street comes over to tell me that he just saw my parrot walking down the road. Yes, that sounded just as strange to me as it does to you. I rush outside and guess which 3 feet tall bird I see, strolling down the street? Poseidon. I start walking towards him and I kid you not, this bird notices me and starts shuffling down the road in an attempt to move faster. It was hilarious. I catch him and put him back in the balcony are where the others stay. In a bid to mimic a life of freedom, I had taken them out of their cages and let them stay in a mini courtyard we had, which had a door that led outdoors. Apparently, there was a rip in the corner of the net and that was how Poseidon had escaped. I planned to stuff the hole but forgot about it until Poseidon tried another adventure. This time, he didn’t even leave the compound. Instead, he chose to go greet our pet dogs. The dude is unfamiliar with the concept of dangerous situations.

I’m in my room when I hear soft screams from outside and go to investigate. I find Poseidon being given a rough shake by our terrier crossbreed, Blacky. I command him to let Poseidon go and he does. Poseidon struggles to find his feet but eventually staggers over to me like a drunkard. Again, he paints a very funny scene. I get him indoors and immediately stuff the hole. Before Poseidon passes, he loses an eye in what we assume was probably a fight with a rat. We get him cleaned up when we eventually notice that he’s blind, but unfortunately, he seemed to have a caught a disease and passed shortly after.

Now I’m down to 2 birds.