Friends of the Cockies
Birds of a feather flock together
After I uploaded the story of the Cockatoo family in our back yard, I emailed a few friends and family who passed it on to others, who passed it on to yet others. Within a few days the website was visited by thousands of of people from all over the world. At first we were amazed by the overwelming response but if you think about it, love, loyalty and parenting are universal values.
I receive emails from the USA, Britain, Holland, Mozambique, Denmark... the list goes on. A paper in Western Australia wants to publish the story; there are forums in the Web discussing the story and I made contact with many friends with feathers in their souls. I am listing some of these here so you can meet them too.
Also a big "Thank You" to the people who pointed out my typing errors, spelling errors and errors of grammar. You were very kind, polite people who improved my web site out of sight! I type like an emu - hunt and peck. English is a second language to me and lets be honest, it has so many illogical constructs.
But before we start, allow me to tell you the Story of our Miracle Bird
Bruce is a Sulphur Crested Cockatoo living with Debora on Bronte Beach in Sydney - just south of Bondi Beach. What a life Bruce!
Bill Warren told me: "It amazes me just how smart these birds are. Sophie our Sulhpur watched me put up an extra food bowl for her so after it was up and new food was in it, about 10 minutes later I hear this crash and she had watched me turn the wing nut so she reversed it and got the new bowl off crashing to the bottom of the cage."
Here is another link. . . . . and this one
Meet Toby, Jodi and Kenny.
Make sure you click on the "Tobi at the waterfall" link at the bottom of the page.
"Dear in the Yard" by Rasa is a must-read story.
New Life Parrot Rescue & Helpline A remarkable organization in the UK. I quote from their website: The problem: Unfortunately, when any exotic species becomes a victim of captivity, the restrictions put upon most individuals are overwhelming. Many animals are imprisoned in small cages, deprived of freedom, exercise, stimulation, and are often fed a very poor diet. Most people who keep them do not understand the necessary overall care of parrots. As a result of their living conditions, many parrots suffer from insanity and nutritional deficiency. These are the underlying causes behind many clinical symptoms which we see, including feather plucking and self-mutilation.
Parrot Chronicles is your number-one source of health, behavior and care advice for companion parrots. I love their "Your Birds" photo contest. Forget about the contest part, the pictures are all very nice.
Ellen From Holland in English from near Rotterdam, Ellen; author and parrot lover. She has a menagery of Lovebirds, Budgies, and an African Gray.
Another One From Holland even if you do not understand Duch, I am sure you will apprciate the pictures.
There must be a lot of parrots in Holland! Is it the cheese, the tulips or the nice people? Have a look at Sue's pages.
The Amazing Ulrich Born with a spinal deformity, this website will show you Ulrich's Xrays! The website has nice bird sounds.
Australia's Avian Newspaper It's called Talking birds and they talk all sorts of things about all sorts of birds!
Charlie King is the moderator of one of the largest Cockatoo websites. This link leads to a discussion on the Tale of Two Cockies. God loved the birds and created trees. Man loved the birds and created cages. The opening page of this website has a sobering message for novice parrot owners
Betsy from Washington, IL sent me pictures of her parrots:
Eileen Smith from Tasmania sent me this beautiful tale of Willy Wagtails
Hayley Young (13 years) sent me pictures of her parrots:
I got this email from the USA about a lady who lives in a Hummingbird fly zone. As the hummers were migrating, about 20 of them visited her yard. Just on a whim, she took a little red dish and filled it with sugar water and this is the result:
Hi - we are from Chandler, Arizona, USA and really enjoyed your story about the Cockatoos.
We have a female Umbrella Cockatoo, Jasmine, that is about 5 years old. She just laid her first egg this Fall. She has been with us for two years having been rescued from some abusive people. After a great deal of love and patience, she has become a very good bird. She now loves showers, shredding magazines and pine cones, and burrowing in brown paper grocery bags. I guess we make do with what we have to give in order to give her that sense of wild freedom. We agree they are extremely smart. She has figured out how to escape from her cage several time despite all kinds of locks. And now she talks in context, saying hello appropriately or laughing (cackling) when people laugh. She also says "Stop It" in context too.
Several people I know from Australia tell me what pests these beauties are. We are glad to have her. Please keep us posted on your Cockatoo family.
(Names removed by request)
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