What is she saying?
Kazoo is a 16-year-old Double Yellow Headed Amazon parrot. She talks. We don’t always know what she’s saying exactly, but we always know what she means because she’s remarkably expressive.…
birds
Save the songbirds—curb your cats
I have always been a dog man myself. Cats … well, they can be cute and cuddly, but whereas dogs seem to belong with us, I have always found cats…
Saturday At The Movies
Hummingbirds are amazing – baby ones even more so!
Two new birds!
Well, they’re not NEW, exactly. The original lovebirds – Oboe’s parents, Billie and Lester – have moved from GC’s house to mine. It’s really nice to have them here, and…
Duncan meets his match
We have a bird perch in the shower – Simon showers with me, Kazoo showers with GC, and Oboe is versatile. Anyway, yesterday, after Simon and I finished our shower,…
Diagnosis: Too much freedom
We took Simon to see the avian vet yesterday, to consult about his behaviour problems. She thinks he’s got too much freedom and he’s taking advantage of it. He has…
First week of work, and a psychotic parrot episode
So far at my new job I’ve been immersing myself in reports and files and getting up to speed on the subject matter and my projects. The subject matter is…
Simon says hi
Simon has a new word. It’s a little word, and it’s not the most exciting thing a parrot has ever said. But there’s just something about the way he says…
Ask Me Anything #8: Why Zoom? Why Birds?
MiKa Art asks: “Why is your blog name “zoom”? What does it mean to you? When and how did you find out you loved living with birds?” As I recall,…
The Terrible Twos
My son never went through the Terrible Twos. He breezed through two just as sweetly as he breezed through one. He was friendly and agreeable, and we got along happily…
Only Pets
I still watch the Birds for Sale category on Kijiji, just in case. (In case of what, I’m not really sure. The last thing I need is another bird.) Last…
Tender Ears and Evil Eyes
Simon has discovered I have ears. I mean, he’s always known I have ears, but he used to think I only had them after a shower, when my hair was…
First, borrow a kitchen
This is a messy job. I recommend using your boyfriend’s kitchen, especially if he has a Cuisinart and a tendency to clean up after you. You start with this: About…
We know how to have fun
Here are some of the things we did this weekend: Spent a day out at Chandler’s, painting and glazing the rest of our pottery pieces. Went to the International Puppet…
Redneck Rib Fest, XUP, and Pottery Camp
We took a whirlwind trip this weekend to Orangeville to meet my newest great-niece, Sienna, and visit with my sister’s family. Is that a cute baby or what? She’s happy…
Happy Second Bird-Day Oboe
I’ve known Oboe since he was a freshly laid egg. He was the third of four eggs in Billie and Lester’s first clutch. We had a webcam on the nest,…
Simon’s first real conversation
“Wow!” says Simon. “Wow!” I say. “Wow!” says Simon. “Wow!” I say. “Wow!” says Simon. “Wow!” I say. “Wow!” says Simon. “You’re talking!” I say. “Wow!” says Simon. “You’re amazing!”…
Simon says!
They say you should never get an African Grey parrot because of their famous speaking abilities. It’s not fair to the parrot, and besides, there’s no guarantee that the African…
Next thing I knew, the duck was mine
Yesterday afternoon I walked right into an unfolding crisis on Fisher Avenue. The scene, as I approached, involved a man stopping rush-hour traffic while he retrieved an injured duck from…
The right place at the right time
First off, I’m happy to report that Cindy Lou was found and captured on Friday afternoon as she was running down the Queensway! It’s a miracle she wasn’t killed. Two…