I took in Waldo as a rescue. I used to keep Brotogeris (orange chinned parakeets), and when the last one died I have this big aviary with no occupants. I am friends with a bird rescue lady and she had a conure looking for a home.
Waldo had been kept by an older couple and in his cage with him was a parakeet. All of you bird people know, parakeets are mean little devils. And the parakeet in Waldo's cage grabbed hold of Waldo's lower beak and ripped it away from the beak bed. It healed, but one side is now not attached.
The man part of the older couple used to hand feed Waldo. The bird said quite a few different words, but mainly, "Hello!" He said that every day all the time. One felt compelled to respond, so the whole time I'm outside working, I'm answering him, "Hello!" He was also very vocal when my metal leaf rake was scraped across the black top, raking leaves. I've heard him say, "What's your name?" and when Misty barks, he barks back at her. When visitors came by he was very vocal and talked and chirped and squawked a lot at them for attention.
About a month or so ago I noticed I hadn't heard anything from Waldo and took a close look at him. He seemed a little puffed up (not a good sign in birds) and was very quiet. I figured since he was an old bird, he might be reaching the end of his life, so I set him up in my bedroom in a large cage.
Waldo has been an indoor bird for about a month now. He still doesn't make any sounds...no bird sounds, no human sounds. But he seems perfectly healthy. He loves it when I bring my lunch into the bedroom to eat in my recliner, and begs for bites. He'll eat anything, especially things that aren't good for birds.
His regular diet consists of veggies (usually what I'm feeding the tortoises that day), seeds and pellets. He takes the pellets one at a time and dips it in his water to soften it. He holds one seed at a time in his paw and breaks it open to eat the meat inside. If I shell a peanut he'll eat that too.
Do any of you bird people out there have any ideas why he's silent? Nary a peep out of him in over a month.
(I'm aware his beak and nails need trimmed. I do it as needed and right now it's needed):
Waldo had been kept by an older couple and in his cage with him was a parakeet. All of you bird people know, parakeets are mean little devils. And the parakeet in Waldo's cage grabbed hold of Waldo's lower beak and ripped it away from the beak bed. It healed, but one side is now not attached.
The man part of the older couple used to hand feed Waldo. The bird said quite a few different words, but mainly, "Hello!" He said that every day all the time. One felt compelled to respond, so the whole time I'm outside working, I'm answering him, "Hello!" He was also very vocal when my metal leaf rake was scraped across the black top, raking leaves. I've heard him say, "What's your name?" and when Misty barks, he barks back at her. When visitors came by he was very vocal and talked and chirped and squawked a lot at them for attention.
About a month or so ago I noticed I hadn't heard anything from Waldo and took a close look at him. He seemed a little puffed up (not a good sign in birds) and was very quiet. I figured since he was an old bird, he might be reaching the end of his life, so I set him up in my bedroom in a large cage.
Waldo has been an indoor bird for about a month now. He still doesn't make any sounds...no bird sounds, no human sounds. But he seems perfectly healthy. He loves it when I bring my lunch into the bedroom to eat in my recliner, and begs for bites. He'll eat anything, especially things that aren't good for birds.
His regular diet consists of veggies (usually what I'm feeding the tortoises that day), seeds and pellets. He takes the pellets one at a time and dips it in his water to soften it. He holds one seed at a time in his paw and breaks it open to eat the meat inside. If I shell a peanut he'll eat that too.
Do any of you bird people out there have any ideas why he's silent? Nary a peep out of him in over a month.
(I'm aware his beak and nails need trimmed. I do it as needed and right now it's needed):
