Inara

+1 on all of the reasons stated above. Inara and I feel so fortunate to have landed here.

Taking on the stewardship of any companion animal can carry a heavy weight, as you are so acutely aware. Sometimes that means that we miss out on things, situations, and even vacations if one of them becomes ill. At 22, Ryan is an adult, and if he needs to bring his dog with him during recovery, then I would suggest that he crates his buddy and when not crated exercises him on a leash. It is your home, and his companion is his responsibility not yours. It may be a tough lesson for him to learn about the weight of responsibility, but it's one that can never come too soon. If this is not workable, then he needs to stay home with his buddy, which certainly would be sad for the two of you to not be together during Christmas vacation. A lot would depend on how far away Ryan lives from you, and if he has already made travel arrangements, etc. Brainstorm ahead of time and then offer him a couple of choices that you and Sophie can live with, but at his age, he needs to choose whether or not he can accept the option(s) you offer, even if that means staying home until his buddy recuperates. Keep in mind, I'm a pretty cut and dried kind of mom so YMMV You give such great advice to so many of us here, Nancy, what would you say to one of us under the same circumstances? It's OK for you to say that to yourself. EDIT: A very timely post and question, Nancy, as vacations and holidays are filled with "what kind of arrangement(s) shall we make" situations.

Jeff, maybe that's it. When Joe took the box of Quaker oats out of the grocery bag last week, Inara took flight when she saw it. Then later in the week, when I set the box out on the counter as I was preparing to make some cranberry oat bars, she saw it, and took to the air again! Who knew that he could be so scary? LOL I do think that because it is, perhaps from her perspective, an oddly small, disembodied head that she finds it weird and startling. Or, it's just an "Inara thing."

Oh Merideth, what a lovely intro. I could just envision every step of the way to where you are now with your wonderful flock. I've routinely given all of my non-human (and a few human) companions new names. I'm a firm believer that unless a name belongs to an aged creature whose name is very attached to them, that a fresh name and a fresh start are a wonderful way to move forward. Names are so important: the sound, the cadence, the emotion behind them. When we bestow a name, that we think is beautiful or that resonates with us, upon a companion (or a pet name for a human) then we are likely to say and/or call their name with a love in our voice or in subtle tones that can be felt by the recipient. My TAG, Inara, named me "Woo," and she says it so beautifully and at times she even whispers it near my ear. What could be more lovely? Myrrdoch is a beautiful name. Looking forward to becoming better acquainted with you and your flock. Warm welcome! Inara's human

Gosh, Grumpy! So glad you were at hand and saved your beloved Cockey. That had to be very frightening for both of you, and it is good to know that all was well in the end. How lovely it would be, I agree, if he picked up some of the canary's songs. I'm afraid my own whistle is not as clear as it used to be (surprising on how one's whistle muscles weaken if not used!! LOL). Inara's is far better than mine Love Grumpy's open play area, and I'm sure he does too!

Welcome, Cheryl, Beaker, and family! What a sweet little TAG, and how excited you all must be. I can only echo the thoughts posted above, but wanted to be sure to extend a warm welcome. You have landed in a wonderful place.

Twice now, this man has appeared in our kitchen and caused HRH Inara to take flight in sheer panic! Perhaps she remembers him from the days when she was temporarily dethroned and forced to work in a bird treat factory. Perhaps she feels his outdated attire is offensive to her refined sensibilities. Perhaps it is because compared to other humans, he appears tiny. In any event, take heed and report if seen!

Loved, loved the photos, Grumpy! So very sweet -- both of you! Miss Inara likes some snuggles, and then likes to be busy, busy. She 28 months old so is between 2 and 3 years old. She lets me know both vocally as well as with her body language when she wants to have up close and personal time with either myself or my husband. I was delighted the other day when I heard a flutter of wings, and two little feet landed in my lap as she took her first short flight of her own accord from her mobile perch to me. We were both a bit astonished and tickled. Nancy, and Jeff, I appreciated reading your exchange. One of the things that I enjoy so much about this forum and its members is the level of maturity and respect shown to one another, and the nonjudgmental input and feedback given even when opinions differ. Grumpy, I'll have to see if I can get my Joe to snap a photo of Inara and myself in one of our more snuggley moments, and I look forward to seeing those of others too! Great thread!!

Shane, thanks so much! I didn't see it in the rope section at all on the by the foot spools, so will definitely check by the chains. Mucho thankies.

I couldn't see the link for some reason (may be my browser/Firefox) but did find the tips, thanks Dave007. http://www.birdchannel.com/bird-holiday/bird-thanksgiving.aspx <-- in case anyone else can't see it OMLGG on the " Dave007 Thanksgiving with a parrot " --- that is priceless and would be a great article for Readers Digest! Or a Saturday Night Live skit! Thanks for the posting it danmcq and thanks for the giggles, Dave!

She is ready to pen a murder mystery, possible title: 50 Shades of Prey! What a lovely and brilliant girl, and a delightful photo. Thanks for the smiles!

Katana, I bet your little Miss Gilda would/will love it as much as Inara does. This morning, I looped her big cotton rope that she loves to swing on over one of the posts (it has lots of knots at one end) and stuffed half of a parrot bagel into one of the knots so that everything is wedged tight. I also put near it a smaller commercial perch that I use for weighing her by putting her and it on my kitchen gram scale. She has enjoyed stepping up from the smaller perch onto her new perch and is having such a good time. In addition, I put a piece of paper towel roll over one of the posts then put her little toys back on. So she has lots of things to do. She has particularly enjoyed perching atop the knots of the rope, grabbing hold and exercising her wings. She is now contentedly preening while I am typing. She was a bit nervous at first yesterday, but it took her no time at all to decide she loves it. With today's new additions, even more so. Shane, I use 3/4" PVC for this small perch, I would bet for your gal Scarlett, that 1" might do the trick. I did pick up sisal rope/string to wrap the perch with as in the video, but it had an odd petroleum type smell to it, so I opted for Vet tape just to be on the safe side until I can order some that I can be sure does not have toxic stuff on it. You would know better about what size would be sturdy enough for a portable one for her. No big surprise that she flies to find you when you leave the room -- you are her guy!! :D

How exciting for you all, mixed for sure with some trepidation about Buddy's plucking. Is s/he plucking any particular area like the tummy, or is it just all over? It will be interesting to hear about Buddy's reaction to your homecoming. It was so nice of your parents to welcome him into their home while you were away. Welcome home!

Thank you, we'll see if I can finesse him into it. But hey, after making this little table top perch, I'm pretty darn handy now with a PVC cutter and may just tackle designing one myself after the holidays. Shane's is so nice, and I love his base for it, especially.

Too many predators where I live to even consider it. However, if I were to ever be in a position to free fly a bird, I would invest in and fit it with a telemetry device. I do love watching the videos of people who fly their Macaws, and other birds, and while I've been out countless hours with falcons and have seen up close and personal what it is like to have a bird return of its own accord, it gives me the willies (in the USA sense for you Brits!) to even contemplate what could be the fate of my little companion in this part of the country. But I'm not against it, and it must feel marvelous to the birds.

--- Made this today, using this youtube video: Couldn't have been easier. The hardest part was scrubbing off all the black print that was on the PVC. HRH Inara was/is so thrilled with it. It sits easily on the floor as I sit on the sofa at my computer, and/or it transfers easily to the end table next to the sofa, and then in a flash it goes downstairs to the exercise room to sit on a table there while I get my workout in. After seeing Shane's super gym, don't think I'm not hot on teasing my engineer husband into a little healthy bird gym competition. haha

WOW Shane!!! I was just getting ready to post some photos of the little stand I made for Inara today and by comparison it looks so tiny and simple. Yours just rocks like a boss!! I'm going to have to show yours to my other half, the engineer, and see if yours inspires him to improve on my little table one. hahaha Fantastic job, Shane. Your Miss Scarlett looks mighty happy. What a great parront she found.

She has my beak, and I wish I had her wings

Nancy, that is too funny with your bill paying "accountant!" Love that story! My first half of my life birds were just not interested in toys at all, except Lestat liked one with a bell. I think because both were so traumatized in their lives that they were just pleased to get healthy and live in a peaceful, serene, dependable environment where no one was terrorizing them and where they could count on food. So major toy shopping (and future creating) is new to me. The huge bag of toys that came with Inara, were dirty, worn, and I found what looked like black mold on a few, so I immediately tossed them, and replaced with two that she likes to have just hang up near her "roost." She loved this one, though, and I feel so badly that it slashed her. Judygram, you're a gem! Did get HRH a couple new toys -- all natural, no metal parts on either, and the larger one is sitting on a table in view. As you are aware, now that I'm an old lady, I'm rapidly becoming a helicopter mom, so I sanitized it first with vinegar and boiling water and it is drying. (does anyone else do this, or am I just a total OCD freak?) She talked to it for a good thirty minutes and now is just doing some relaxed beak grinding so I'm sure moving it in will be very welcomed. The other is just a small bundle of wooden maple leaves with some leather knots holding them together for a good, new little footie toy, to add to her others. Stopped in at her avian vet's today while I was out and about, and she said that if Inara starts to scratch or mess with her dings in any way, to cut the antibiotic back to once a day on the area rather than twice a day, allowing the area to naturally dry out more. Inara is as spunky as ever, and twice as sweet as she is sassy. So all is well in HRH's world.

Currently there is carpet under Inara's cage, I vacuum it daily. I have a vinyl chair mat in front of the sofa where she hangs out with me, and her mobile perch is usually over hardwood floors. So a quick wipe up with a spritz of vinegar and water and a piece of paper towel if poop happens anywhere. I change the papers in the bottom of her cage every morning after breakfast, and I wipe down around her food and water dishes, and also the bottom grate of her cage. I sanitize her water dishes daily by filling them with boiling water and a few drops of vinegar, rinse them with filtered water, wipe them out and then refill with filtered water. Her dry food dish is changed every morning, and her wet food dish is sanitized right after eating, in the same way I sanitize her water dishes. Once a week I wipe down every nook and cranny with boiling water and vinegar, and my avian vet suggested that about once every three or four months to wipe it down with a bleach and water mixture then rinse. With my first birds I used the same basic routine, but in the summer time would also take the cage outside once a month, hose it down and let it sit in the sunshine until completely dry and baked (we live in a very dry climate). I also once a week, clean all of her perches with vinegar and water and then rinse and air dry -- but I don't do them all at once. I rotate so that she always has at least one dry perch while the other(s) are drying but a bit damp. her rope perch, I take to the sink every couple of days and pour boiling water over it and the let it air dry.

Saw this video in the past and thought it was very good. While I have not yet seen the PBS Rescue series (so I can't comment on it), I agree that there is a very distinct difference between adoption/rehoming and rescuing. My first Grey, a CAG came to me in the late 70's literally half dead, abused, neglected and with physical problems that haunted him for the rest of his life even after the psychological ones abated. He was wild caught, and the rest is a long and not very pretty story. I lived in a sparsely populated western state, but had a good support system in the local falconers, and my vet who was also a falconer. Suffice it to say having obtained an Amazon a few years earlier that was ready to be destroyed and who was in the process of destroying himself, I feel strongly about what constitutes rescuing. My beautiful Inara was an easy "open adoption" between the people who had bought her as a hatchling, hand fed her, kept her until she reached two years old and me. For various reasons they put her up for sale via Craigs List rather than back through the bird store/breeder they had gotten her from. I have no idea why they didn't go back to her breeder first. My own opinions are very strong about choosing adoption over buying babies from breeders, and about breeding practices with such an intelligent species who have been shown to grieve for their babies and eggs. However, certainly there are reputable breeders in this world who do not engage in the "poultry mentality," and provide ethical treatment of their breeding pairs, as well as contribute to conservation and education. It would be lovely if (as in the dog world) that reputable breeders would have purchasers sign contracts that would cause them to return the bird(s) to the breeder if they ever decide to surrender them. I do understand that this is simplistic thinking, but you all understand what I mean. At this juncture in my life, I knew that while I wanted to give a bird a home that was looking for a new one, that I wanted a well-socialized, healthy bird but did not want to purchase a baby from a breeder. This as pale as it sounds, helps assuage my own heartstrings when it comes to all the members of the beautiful parrot kingdom who are living their lives in captivity and/or continue to be trapped, sold, and smuggled using unscrupulous methods. I can assist them by donating financially to sanctuaries, and conservation efforts, but by going to a breeder (even a reputable one, and this is for me, I'm not being judgy here) I felt that I would be contributing to the continuation of the endless chain of captive birds. It's somewhat of a catch-22 situation, and one for which there are no easy and pat answers. My rescue birds in the early half of my life, were some of the best teachers I ever had. My little chosen girl has reaped the benefit from their lessons to me, and has already begun teaching me new ones (like the fact that in my old age I'm apparently becoming a helicopter mom!). If you liked the above video, you may enjoy reading Of Parrots and People: The Sometimes Funny, Always Fascinating, and Often Catastrophic Collision of Two Intelligent Species EDIT: Dave, I could not agree more. 20+ years of living with parrots in the first half of my life, and I have (knock on wood) not been bitten once despite the fact that both of my first birds were considered unworkable/unhomeable. This, I believe is because of 1) not asking what they could do for me, but rather respecting them as birds first and companions 2nd, and 2) paying really close attention to the language of each particular bird, both non-vocal and vocal language. Currently, my gal Inara who has figured out that when our dog barks, that it is a warning/alarm now will give a little bark sound as a warning before an impending beak thump. She gets beaky if she is, tired, hungry, or nervous. Fascinating, that she gives the little puppy sounding bark now instead of her native sound. Naturally, I have now probably jinxed myself and will be a new member of the "Bite Me!" club...

My (departed) Congo, Lestat, came to me literally near death's door in the late 70s with the name "Porky." I had recently read Anne Rice's Interview With A Vampire, and loved the character of Lestat Lioncourt, so in giving "Porky" a new life, I also gave him the new name of Lestat. Turned out to be very apropos as with love and care he came back to life and lived out the rest of it in dignity, with some wildness, and definitely some rock and roll. (He loved Eric Clapton). My beautiful Inara had another name when we adopted her. At only two, it was an easy switch to Inara. I'm a life long science fiction lover, and the very short-lived but brilliant Joss Whedon series, "Firefly," is one of my all time favorite shows. In it, is a very beautiful, elegant, intelligent, "companion," who knows how to fly (her own shuttlepod). Hence, "Inara," which is Persian for "from the heavens/sky."

Welcome, Grumpy! I'm behind on reading posts. It was delightful to catch up on this thread and to see the beautiful photos of your new companion. My recently adopted Timneh Grey is just a little past 2 years old, so it will be fun reading about your young one also as they grow older here together. Congratulations, you will have so much fun, many surprises, and never a boring moment.