Welcome to our
B.I.R.D.S.
Roll Call!

Jeanne and I are dedicated to the Rescuing and Nuturing  of Birds which are either:

• BATTERED, or abused,
• INJURED, or deformed,
• REFUSED (Thrown Away),
• DEPRIVED, and/or Dehydrated
• SICKLY and/or STARVED

We use the CODES, listed above, to describe the individual condition of the birds which we bought and nurtured back to health, or at least we did the very best that we could. The greater the number of CODES, and not all CODES are equal in their severity, the less chance the bird has of surviving. The greatest number of individual CODE LETTERS is FIVE (5).

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      Our Most Recent Acquisitions

Our most recent birds have been the following 5 birds which we either bought or which were given to us, because everyone who knows us also knows that we will take these birds, and we will take good care of them.

To return to the Index, CLICK HERE!

 

"Miss Sweetums"   "Miss Candace-Fluff"

 
"Mr. James E. Faust"      "Miss Sherry Dew"

Since 1997, Jeanne and I have
traveled the San Antonio Metropolitan Area, as far as to the Houston Metropolitan area,to find and to buy and rescue Parakeets, English Budgerigars, and
the American Budgerigar Hybrids, from being BATTERED, INJURED, REFUSED, DEPRIVED and/or DEHYDRATED, SICKLY, and/or STARVED!

              **********************

"REFUSED" can mean ANYTHING, FROM, NOT worthy of being purchased, to being neglected, intentinally starved, deprived of water and/or sanitry living conditions, being abused,or even being killed or being allowed to killed!  Jeanne and I have personal knowledge of baby birds being thrown "alive" to cats for "cat food!" The horror, the terror, and the agony of being torn apart by a cat is almost beyond our comprehension!

              ***********************

Once you understand why Jeanne
and I have rescued, and continue to rescue these helpless baby birds and many birds who have physical challenges, and have been considered of little worth, you
will better understand the reason surrounding my writing my second book, Led by the SPIRIT, the
Foreword, to which also appears
on this website.

I also invite you to read a very  beautiful poem by Myra Brooks
Welch and is entitled,
"The Touch Of The Master's Hand," which appears at the bottom of my
web site. I wrote the very last verse, which I believe, goes to the heart of
the poem, and which is our reason for doing what we do...

Whom do we know who is 
Battered and Scarred, and
Forgotten by all, but you?
We are placed here to serve;
The Master requires that
Serving is what we'll do.

But should we fall short,
A Soul to save,
Then both of us will lose:
He, Live Eternal, and
We, Our Reward,
If we, not to serve, doth choose!

        Randy Faulk, the Author.

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Sweetums:(Codes 4 of 5: B.I.D.S.)

Purchased 9/26/09       
Hatched 2009. American
Budgerigar (Budgie) Hybrid. Hen. White Head & Teal Body.

She was thrown into the cage with the other birds by a friend of Mr. Carroll Myers, just as we arrived.  Jeanne noticed almost immediately that this baby bird was thin and emaciated, starved, dehydrated and that her top knot (head) was bleeding from her being picked on by other birds. Birds will severely injure or even kill other birds which are sickly or injured...

Sweetums was the very first of the "compromised" birds to be bought by Jeanne and me, and we think that if we had not bought her, brought her home and immediately set about to feed her, coax her to drink by force feeding her water from a syringe, and tending to her wounded head, she would have died within a few hours!

After 9 weeks of continuous medical treatment, feeding, caring for her and loving on her, she finally pulled through.  She has become a very beautiful and loving bird, despite the fact that she is still so very thin. She hates being held, and she voices her displeasure by cheeping loudly!

Jeanne bathes her periodically, and treats her left wing with Hydrogen Peroxide Solution,  but has to keep her wrapped in a thich towel unitl she is thoroughly dry, due to the fact that she has very little body fat to keep her warm.

Her physical condition is still very guarded, and now afer the untimely death of Alexa on 11/24/09, Jeanne and I are even more concerned about Sweetums' health and well being.

 Written Saturday, 11/28/2009.

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Candace: (Codes 4 of 5: I. R.D.S.)

Purchased 9/26/2009. 
Hatched 2006. Enlish Budgerigar. Former Brood Hen. Bluish-Purple with large Black spots on Top Knot.

Candace is a former Brood Hen which, when Jeanne first saw her, had a large fluid- filled sack which is very painful on her Vent or Bottom. Jeanne immediately bought her and named her "Candace," after a friend, but we started calling this beautiful bird, "Candace-Fluff," and "Candace-Fluff" is what we will call her for as long as she is ours!

Jeanne spotted this large English Budgie, just as Mr. Carroll Myers was about to put her in the "Show Case" and immediately notified Mr. Myers that the bird had a very large fluid-filled sack or cyst on her bottom.  Jeanne also noticed that the bird had no tail feathers, probably because she had been sitting on eggs and had broken her tail feathers. The large cyst on her bottom probably wasn't conducive to her growing tail feathers.

This condition is often the result of laying too many eggs during the course of a Brood Hen's life time.  From our earlier experience with another of our English Budgie Hens, "Miss Sally," Jeanne knew immediately what Candace's condition was and its underlying cause. A cyst is very painful and debilitating. The reason that Candace was being sold  was because she had outlived her usefulness as a breeder and also due to her age and size, although she has very beautiful Bluish-Purple plumage or feathers.

Mr. Myers suggested that Jeanne should puncture this large cyst with a pin in order to drain the fluid, but Jeanne could not bear to cause the poor bird more pain!  We bought Candace and brought her home with the other birds, and Jeanne immediately set about to care for her. After just a few weeks of nursing care, the cyst had reduced in size to 1/6th of its original size and the fluid has been reabsorbed so that the cyst is almost flat!  Jeanne continues to give Candace treatment, and together we give Candace lots of love!  Jeanne named Candace after her friend who works in the H.E.B. Pharmacy in Northwest San Antonio.

After almost 3 months, as of 12/6/09, she is finally growing tail feathers! Either the reduction of the cyst or the fact that she is no longer sitting on eggs or both may have contributed to the later  development of her tail feathers.

Written Saturday, 11/28/2009.

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Faust: (Codes 2 of 5: I. R.)

Purchased 4/18/09. Hatched 2008.English Budgerigar. Cock. Yellow Head and Green Wings and Body.

Due to the many diabled, sickly, and injured birds as well as the other birds which Jeanne and I have bought over the years from Mr. Myers, he gave this cute and cuddly Male Engish Budgerigar to Jeanne.

The only thing wrong with Faust, as Jeanne calls him, is that Faust has a "Bum" foot, but it doesn't seem to bother him, and he runs and plays just like the other birds. He doesn't know that there is anything wrong with him, but he will never be able to mate, because he cannot pivot and balance his body to mount the female, whose Ova Duct is on the top right side of her back, if you are looking at her back from above her body.

Faust is named after a very special man in our lives, the late James E. Faust, 2nd Counselor in The First Presidency of The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-Day Saints. 

Faust is one of our favorites, due to his sweet personality. It is fun to watch him "bounce" along the plasitc runway which I built across the top of the cages to connect the 4 cages together, end to end.

We have found a great treasure in a bird that was considered to be "Just a Cripple" and otherwise "REFUSED"!

Written Saturday, 11/28/2009

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Sheri Dew: (Codes 4 of 5: B.I.R.D.)

Purchased 9/22/08. Hatched 2004. American Budgerigar Hybird.
Hen. Lght Greenish Yellow.

Due to her dislocated Hip Joint, which makes her body look distorted, as well as a right leg which extends out parallel to the floor, this pretty little hen would never have a good home.

When Jeanne and I bought Sheri Dew and brought her home, we discovered that she is completely blind in her left eye and that the feathers around her right eye were so matted, due to "irritational tearing," that she could hardly see out of her right eye! 

Very much like one of our earlier birds, "Miss Julie," Sheri Dew's only defense weapon is her very sharp beak, which she uses for protection, as well as to crawl up the sides and around the top of the 4 cages.  She manuvers rather well considering her blind eye and twisted body. She was apparently deprived of food, and battered and injured by the other birds before we got her.

The lady who owed the Aviary offered to give Sherri Dew to Jeanne, but Jeanne insisted on paying for Sherri Dew.

Jeanne and I lavish a lot of love on her, even though she doesn't like being held. Sherri Dew is named after a very prominent lady in our Church and the owner of the Deseret Book Stores.

Written Saturday, 11/28/2009

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Shy Guy: (Codes 4 of 5: B.I.R.D.)

Given to us on 11/10/2008. Approximate age at the time: Less than 1 year old. Peach Cheeked Love Bird. Cock. Scarlett Crest on Top Knot, just above his eyes, Dark Hunter Green head and wings. Ligher green on chest. His tail feathers are Green, Iridescent Blue and Orange.

A very good friend, Cosme Becerra and his daughter found this little guy on the side of the road, as Cosme was driving his daughter to Warren High School. Either he had gotten loose or someone had simply thrown him out!

The little bird was encircled by a group of cats which were picking and pawing at him in order to grab and to eat him. Cosme and his daughter chased the cats away, but not before the cats had chewed into the muscles of his left wing and had broken his wing. To say the very least, this beautifull little bird was severely traumatized!

Knowing that Jeanne and I raise and love our birds, Cosme called me to ask me if we would take the bird. After speaking with Jeanne, we accepted.  Jeanne made it very clear to me that she would take care of him, but that we would have to find him a home, because we only raised Parakeets, Engish Budgerigars and the American Budgerigar Hybrid.  About 2 weeks would be the upper limit of his stay!

TO CONTINUE READING '"SHY GUY's" STORY, CLICK HERE!

Written Saturday, 11/28/2009

1.) TO GO TO THE "INDEX" AT THE TOP OF THIS PAGE, TO READ THE BEGINNINGS OF The Book of our B.I.R.D.S.,
CLICK HERE!

2.) TO RETURN TO THE "HOME PAGE,"  CLICK HERE!

3.) To return to the "Love Bird" article in "Raising Birds-2," CLICK HERE!

4.) TO RETURN TO "THE INDEX TO OUR BIRDS," CLICK HERE!

5.)  TO RETURN TO "MY BOOKS"
CLICK HERE!

BIRDS WHO HAVE RECENTLY DIED:

     Eulogies to Our 
     Departed Babies

Let it be known that just because I have not written an individual eulogy to each and every one of our departed babies, it is not meant to be construed that we loved them any less. Some of our babies died many years ago, and it is difficult to write eulogies for each one. Some of our eulogies have been lost, like "Our Eulogy to Our Mandy Jeanne."

Alexa: (Codes 4 of 5: I.R.D.S.)

Purchased 9/26/2009. Hatched 2008. An American Budgerigar Hybrid with a yellow head and blue body. Hen.
Died 11/25/2009.

I am dedicating this page to the memory of Alexa, who was undisputably my bird, even though Jeanne saw her first when Alexa was in the cage at the Alamo Exibition Bird Show on 9/26/2009.  Jeanne first noticed that the right side of Alexa's face was raw and inflamed due to mites.  Jeanne, a retired RN, said that mites can cause cysts to form and that the cysts are quite painful.  No one but Jeanne noticed that there were no feathers on the right side of Alexa's face and that the cysts had completely covered Alexa's right eye, much like a horse's "blinder" covers the horse's eye and prevents the horse from looking backward.  Jeanne bought Alexa from Mr. Carroll Myers and with several other compromised birds, Jeanne and I brought Alexa home.  Jeanne treated Alexa's face daily with Ivermectin, an antibiotice and with Arnica, a pain killer, until the cysts began to subside and Alexa could begin to see out of her right eye.  Alexa's face slowly began to grow feathers, and her energy level began to improve. But the mites and the subsequent cysts must have compromised her health, because she unexpectedly died of either a stroke or a heart attack on 11/25/09.

She was very much loved and wanted  and I believe she knew and understood how much she was loved and wanted and will be sorely missed!

Written Friday, 11/27/2009

To return to the Index, CLICK HERE!

TO READ "OUR EULOGY TO OUR
ALEXA," CLICK HERE!

The following 11 birds were
either bought or were given
to us because we would take
them in and love andcare for
them.

Some were obviously sickly,
injured, starved, or  deformed. Others were not so obviously
in distress or ill, like Gray Ray, Joseph Smith, McKay or Jennifer.
But eventually,all of 4 of  them
would have died, due to heart
failure or stroke, but all 9 lived
a very  useful life. Not only do
we love them and miss them,
but they, who were considered of litte or no worth, brought a
wealth of love and enjoyment
to both Jeanne and me.

This is our tribute to each of them.

This is NOT an ACTUAL picture of
our Alexa, but it is a VERY CLOSE RESEMBLANCE to her!  I sincerely believe that this is what she would have looked like had she lived, after Jeanne rid Alexa of the mites and the right side of Alexa's face had healed!
(Randy Faulk, Editor 2/16/2010)

Gray Ray: (Code 1 of 5: S.)

Purchased 9/26/09. Hatched 2005.
An English Budgerigar with  Charcoal Gray Plumage and White Tail. Cock.
Died 9/29/2009.

We only had Gray Ray, who was named after Dr. Ray Kaercher, Jeanne's Oral Surgeon, for three days. Birds cover up their illness & some "not so apparent" injuries from other birds and from their pet owners as a defense mechanism, so as not to subject themselves to injury or being pecked to death.  And so it was with Gray Ray.
We had no idea that he wa ill, when we bought him on Saturday morning, 9/15/09 from Mr. Carroll Myers. Gray Ray showed all of the signs of a well bird, but when Jeanne picked him up on  Tuesday evening, 9/26/09, to medicate him with Ivermectin, an Anti-Biotic, along with all of the other birds which we bought from Myers, Gray Ray died in Jeanne's hands.  He apparently had either a stroke or a heart attack. We will miss him!

Written Sunday, 11/29/2009, exactly 2 months after his death.

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TO READ "OUR EULOGY TO OUR GRAY RAY," CLICK HERE!

Joseph Smith:  (Code 1: S.)

Purchased 4/18/2009. Hatched 2002. An English Budgerigar with a yellow head and green body and wings. Cock. Died 6/18/2009.

We bought Joseph Smith from Mr. Myers because he was a large, older bird, but with beautiful plumage. When Jeanne introduced him to "Miss Sally," he bit her tongue and made it bleed so badly, that we almost lost Miss Sally due to her tongue's excessive bleeding. Jeanne did not punish Joseph Smith, because it was an apparent accident.  

Jeanne named Joseph Smith after the Prophet Joseph Smith, the first President of The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-Day Saints. 

We had no idea that Joseph Smith was sick or that there was anything wrong with him, but in so far as he was already 7 years of age when we bought him, he may have died of old age, or of a heart attack or a stroke.

Joseph Smith died on 6/18/2009.

Written Monday, 11/30/2009.

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TO READ "OUR EULOGY TO OUR JOSEPH SMITH,'" CLICK HERE!

McKay: (Code 1 of 5: S.)

Purchased 4/18/09. Hatched 2008. An English Budgerigar with a yellowish green head,  body and wings. Cock. Died 4/21/2009.

We bought McKay from Mr. Myers because McKay was a larger version of our little Sherri Dew.  We had no idea that there was anything wrong with him, because he was a very young bird, having been hatched sometime in 2008. The very oldest that he could be was 14 months old,if he were hatched in January of 2008.

Jeanne named him after the late President David O. McKay.  Much to our dissappointment, he only lived 3 days after we bought him and brought him home.

McKay died on Tuesday, 4/21/2009.

Writtten Tuesday, 12/1/2009.

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TO READ "OUR EULOGY TO OUR McKAY," CLICK HERE!

Mandi-Keet: (Codes 3 of 5: I, S. & S.)

Purchased 9/28/07. Hatched 7/2007. A parakeet with a white head and a cobalt (dark) blue body. Cock. Died 10/25/2007.

Jeanne and I bought him from a Petco Pet Store in San Antono, mainly because, like "Sweetums," he looked frail and sickly, probably due to being starved or unable to eat. Jeanne said that she thought that his foot was also injured. We quickoy saw that the other birds in the cage would not let him eat, but we mainly bought him because he reminded us so much of our Mandy Jeanne, whose story I will shortly tell. Just because he was now over 6 weeks old, didn't mean that he was healthy!

The problem with most pet store birds is that there are people called "Jobbers" who buy dozens and dozens of baby birds who are just barely out of the nest box and who have just started to begin to eat seed.  Most baby parakeets need to be at least 5 or preferably 6 weeks old before being taken out of the nest box, not at just 4 weeks of age,and sold to these "Jobbers" who are only interested in the monetary aspects of buying and selling birds. It is our opinion that this baby bird was taken away from its mother too soon, much like a 4 or 5 week old kitten or puppy is weaned and sold 2 weeks early!

We brought him home, and Jeanne immediately set about to hand feed him baby parakeet formula with a syringe every two hours around the clock.  She also hand fed him anti-biotics and a special non-medicinal "Systemajuv," which she bought from a company in Iowa. This formual helps build the immune system, but it is not a "cure-all".

The little boy bird seemed to respond and to get better, but like McKay and Joseph Smith, there were biological factors which little Mandi-Keet just could not overcome. We thought that he was coming around on 10/24/2009, but on 10/25/2009, he quietly died in my hands.

Written Wednesday, 12/2/2009.

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TO READ "OUR EULOGY TO OUR MANDI-KEET," CLICK HERE!

 
Spicer, A Special Bird (Code 0 of 5: N/A)
Purchased 11/05/2005. Hatched 1/04. A gray English Budgerigar. Hen. Died 10/31/2009.

Spicer was one of twin sisters bought from Melanie LeMay Pantel. They were both gray English Budgerigars, whom Jeanne named "Sugar" and "Spicer".  Sugar was Jeanne's bird, and Spicer was mine.  Sugar died on 3/09/2008. I miss her terribly!

It is important to note that neither of these twin sisters was battered, injured, refused, deprived, sicly or starved, hence there are no codes for either of them. They were very well cared for by Melanie and by both Jeanne and me.  What made Spicer so very special was that she developed "cataracts" on both eyes and became blind, but not helpless!  Her sense of hearing and touch compensated for her loss of sight, and we call her name before we would very gently pick her up and love her. She had the full use of her beak, which kept the other birds from injuring her, and she lived about six months after her loss of sight.  She knew that she was loved and wanted, up to the very day that she died. She died quietly in her cage on 10/31/2009.

Written 12/4/2009

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5 bird

6 bird

Sally-Imara's Mother (CODE 0 of 5: N/A)

Purchased 4/21/2007. Hatched: 2005. An English Budgerigar with a yellow head and iridescent-green body and green wings..
Hen. Died 11/13/2009.

Jeanne first met the bird, whom she bought from Mr. Carroll Myers and whom Jeanne named "Sally", Sally followed Jeanne from one end of the cage to the other.  It was almost like Sally was trying to tell Jeanne. "Don't look at those other birds! Take me! Take Me!"

Sally was a a beautiful English Budgie with a yellow head an iridescent green body and green wings. The bird on the right side is her brother, Larkin, who is a little larger than Sally and who has a blue cier, instead of a beige or brown cere, which Sally had.

She laid several eggs,but the chicks did not survive more than a few hours or a day, because they were not able to survive outside of their respective egg, but her last egg hatched into a blind and naked chick about 1 inch long and whose left foot kept clawing the air as though it was trying to grab onto something! 

Both momma Sally and the chick, whom Jeanne named "Imara," were too weak and exhausted to feed or to eat, so for the next 24 hours, Jeanne fed both Sally and Imara with an eye-dropper every 2 hours.

Chicks have a storage sack on either side of their throat. It is called a "crop"  in which food is stored for later digestion.  After 24 hours Sally started "stuffing" imara's two crops, until we were afraid that Imara would burst! Imara will be 2 years old on 3/4/2010, which will be my 63rd birthday, and Jeanne and I still refer to Imara as "The Great Exploding Bird!"

After 10 days, Imara's eyes opened and she began growing tail and wing feathers. We knew that she would be a green and yellow bird, although we did not know if she would be an iridescent green like Sally. She wasn't, but she had a yellow spot on the back of her head, like her father, Cori Lemay, who was cobalt blue and white and who had a white spot on the back of his head. These spots are what give the birds the name of "Pieds". So Imara was a yellow "Pied," and Cori Lemay was a while "Pied". 

Imara stayed in the cage with Sally for almost 13 months, until she took up with the other flock members. Needless to say, with all of the feeding and pampering, Imara became very spoiled. I HAVE INCLUDED 5 PICTURES OF "IMARA," OUR SPOILED BIRD".

Sally broke her foot several times, and Jeanne gave her lots of pain medication and lots of love and Calcium. She was "egg bound," at least once, which means that she could not expel her eggs from her body. And in fact, she had two eggs, end to end, inside her. We took her to the veterinarianm who performed emergency surgery to remove the two eggs and thereby save her life. Most people would not spend almost three hundred dollars on a $50 bird, but Sally was Jeanne's darling, and I certainly did not object! 

On the evening of 11/13/2009, Jeanne found Sally dead in her cage. The rigors of two broken legs and being egg bound must have taken their toll. I would say that next to Jeanne's "Miss Buddy" and "Miss Carlie," "Miss Sally" was her favorite! And 3 birds out of 116 birds, is not a bad percentage!

Written Thursday, 12/24/2009.

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  TO RETURN TO "B.I.R.D.S BOOK 4."
                 CLICK HERE!

Larkin II, Sally's brother so very closely resembles Sally,who died before I could take pictures of her.  Only the color of the cere is different...

The next four pictures are of "Imara," Miss Sally's and Cori LeMay's daughter..."The Bird," who Jeanne quickly taught to climb up on her finger!

Third Bird (C0DE 0 of 5: N/A)       Purchased: N/A. Hatched: 3/2/2003
A Light Lavender "Pied" Parakeet with a Long Navy Blue Tail. Cock. Died 2/10/2010.

Jeanne named this cute little male parakeet "Third Bird," because he was the third hatchling of Miss Teal and Candi. His mother, Miss Teal was also a "third bird." Third Bird did not look like either of his parents, but he resembled his father, Candi, more in spirit and demeanor than his very high strung mother, Miss Teal. He was a a very protecive "big brother" to his little brother, "Midge," who died on 1/27/2009.

"Third Bird" had a "sway back," but he never seemed to let it bother him. As I recall, his mother, Teal, had a "sway back" as well. He developed Asthma sometime in late 2009, and Jeanne put him in her "Hospital Cage" which she set on top of a heating pad. Unlike humans, who can develop a fever when they get sick, birds immediately drop their temperature and have to be kept warm. Jeanne put him back with his dad, "Big Bird," and the other males who were kept in a big cage. The very first thing that I would do when I arose every morning was to uncover the boys' cage and look to see if everyone was still alive.
On Wednesday morning, 2/10/2010, I uncovered the boys cage, but I did not heard Third Bird's "wheezing," as I normally do. I only counted 4 birds instead of the normal 5 birds in the boys' cage. Then I turned around and saw Jeanne's "Bird Journal," and then I realized that Third Bird had died sometime between the time that I went to bed around 10 P.M. Tuesday night and the time that I arose on Wednesday morning. I leafed through Jeanne's book until I found the notation beside Third Bird's name: "Died Tuesday, 2/9/2010."

I waited until Jeanne arose and asked her when Third Bird had died. She told me that it was about 11:30 P.M. on Tuesday night and that he died in her hands. We miss him terribly, especially after the death of Midge a little more than a year ago!

Written 2/11/2010.

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The bird on the right very closely resembles "Third Bird," while the bird on the left somewhat resembles "Imara."  

Jennifer, AKA Jen-Jen: (CODE 0: N/A)

Purchased 4/21/2007.  Hatched 2004.
A light teal-green English Budgerigar. Hen. She was 3 years old when she died
on 8/19/2007.  

The picture which I put on this page is obviously NOT Jennifer, to whom we gave the nickname of "Jen-Jen".  The picture is of her twin brother, Thomas S. Monson, which we shortened to "Tommy".  The only way that we could tell Tommy from Jennifer was to look at each bird's "cier," which is a small piece of skin just above the bird's nostrils.  A male bird or "cock" usually, but not always, has a bright blue cier, while the female or hen has a light brown, tan, beige, white or light purple or lavender cier.

When Jeanne went to the Bird Show on 4/21/2007, she saw these two birds which were huddled together like 2 book ends, side by side.  Jeanne bought both birds, because she knew that to separated one from the other would be a tragedy.  Jeanne also knew that if she did not buy both birds, someone else might have only bought one & not the other...Another tragedy!

Jeanne was a little bit afraid that I would say something when I got home, because Jeanne had told me that she was only going to buy 1 bird, but she bought 5 birds, 2 of which were Tommy and Jennifer.

I was NOT unset, and I congratulated  
Jeanne on her humanitarian endeavor NOT to separate these two birds.  We laughingly said that it was difficult to tell where one bird's wing ended and the other bird's wing began. They were like matching book ends and were inseparable in more ways than one.

Although Jennier's health had been severly compromised, it was not apparent to us nor to Mr. Myers, from whom we bought both Jennifer and Tommy.  As I have already stated in an earlier story, birds conceal their infirmities and injuries in order to prevent their being further injured or killed by the other birds in their common enclosure.  We had Jennifer 4 months less 2 days, from 4/21/07 to 8/19/07, when she died unexpectedly.

Birds grieve just like people grieve when a family member dies. Tommy grieved for 2 weeks, after Jennifer died.  We grieved just as long, just because we loved Jennifer so very much!

Written 12/07/2009.

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7bird

Miss Julie: (Codes 4: I.R.D.S.)

Given to us on by Lucille Probst on 8/24/2002.  Estimated Age about 2 years of age. White feathers on head, wings and back, with black and teal blue belly. Hen. Died 10/19/2006.

Lucille Probst asked us to take Juliette off her hands, after Juliette's mate, Romeo, died.  Juliette, whom we renamed "Julie," was starved, dehydrated, emacaited, and was living in a cramped and filthy cage.  It  was hard for us to image her living in that small cage, much less two birds!  Her legs were crooked, probably due to "rickets".

When we brought her home, the very first thing that we did was to take her out of that cramped and filthy cage and to put her into a much larger and clean cage.  Her only defense weapon was her beak, and she could and did draw blood on numerous occasions. Our fingers were raw and sore from her numerous bites, but we could not blame her, due to her previously deplorable living conditions, if one really considers her conditions to be livable!

It took us many months to gain her trust, so that she would quit biting us, but we finally tamed her.  Because her legs and feet were so badly twisted, she could not easily climb up and down the inside and the outside of her cage, so she used her beak as a third leg to climb up and down.  Often we would find her sitting on the top of her cage, just like all of our other birds!

 When we brought home an English Budgie Hen named "Carli" as well as her 3 fully grown chicks, one of the 3 chicks, named "Darcie" immediately took up with Julie and took very good care of her, until he died of a heart attack on 5/25/2005.  His brother, "Carswell" then became her mate and protector until she died of natural causes on 10/19/2006. We were grateful that she lived as long as she did, considering the traumatic and dispicable conditions under which we found her!

Written 12/08/2009.

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Rho-Rho: (Codes 2: R.D.)
  
Purchased 3/14/1998.  Hatched: Estimated to be mid 2/1998. A green and yellow American Budgerigar. Cock.
Died 4/10/2002.

Rho-Rho was a unique little bird. His mate was a very large English Budgerigar Hen named  Kari-Mel, who was at least 3 times Rho-Rho's size, but she absolutely adored him!  He was the 2nd bird whom we rescued from being eaten by Louis and Judy Baker's cats. Jeanne gave Rho-Rho his unusual name, which Jeanne says is a derivative of "Rowena".

His right leg was shorter than his left leg. 

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Mandy Jeanne: (Codes 2: R.D.)

Purchased 12/24/97. Hatched: Estimated to be late 11/1997. A teal-blue Parakeet. Hen. Died 6/25/1999.

Mandy Jeanne was our ultimate bird, and our Christmas gift. It was she that we first rescued from being eaten by Louis and Judy Baker's cats. We have no idea how many baby birds had been thrown to the the Baker's cats for cat food, just because these little ones were unfortunate enough to be sickly, deformed, weak, or too scrawny to be considered worth saving or selling. I truly believe that this was the first instance that Jeanne and I were aware of the beautiful poem, "The Touch Of The Master's Hand," a poem which now appears at the bottom of my website. It is a poem which addresses the Worth of a Soul in the Eyes of God, no matter if it is an animal or a human being. And yes, all animals have souls!

Yet another life experience served to confirm and to forever cement this knowledge and belief in our minds. 

Jeanne and I had read the story. "Puppies for Sale" in the first of many
Chicken Soup for the Soul books.

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Wren II: (CODE 2:1.R.)

Purchased 10/01/1997. Hatched: Estimated date of hatching was early 9/97. A pastel yellow, pastel tourquoise and black Parakeet. Cock.
Died 10/19/2000.

Wren II was, by all appearances, the very first bird whom we rescued from becoming eaten alive by Louis and Judy's cats. I had always thought that Mandy Jeanne was our first rescue venture. When Wren II, named after our first Wren bird, came out of the nest box, his wing was broken and drooping. We bought him and brought him home so that Jeanne could mend his broken wing. His plumage was so very beautiful that he was a delight to see. To give you an idea what he looked like, I am enclosing picutures of "Azure," another one of our parakeets.

Wren II was the mate to one of our Albino White Female Parakeets, "Miss Lucy".  Lucy laid several eggs, two of which hatched: "Miss Smokey" on 7/4/1999 and "Miss Pepper" on 7-6-1997. He lived a very useful life, and died on 10/19/2000.

Written 1/7/2010

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 "Third Bird" (CODE 0 of 5: N/A.)

Purchased: N/A. Hatched: 3/2/2003.
A Light Lavender "Pied" Parakeet with a long Navy Blue tail. Cock. Died: 2/10/2010.

Jeanne named this cute little male parakeet "Third Bird," because he was the third hatchling of "Miss Teal" and her mate, Candi. "Miss Teal" was also the third hatchling of her parents, Miss Amanai Onjanue and her mate, "Mister." Although "Third Bird" did not resemble either of his parents in appearance, he more closely resembled his father, Candi, in his very gentle demeanor.

"Third Bird" was the older brother of our "Midge Bird" and was Midge's protector and defender. He was also a "sway back," like Miss Teal, but he never let it slow him down. In the latter part of 2009, "Thrid Bird" developed Asthma. Jeanne put him in her "Hospital Cage," and put the cage on top of one of her heating pads. Unlike humans, who often develop a fever when they get sick, birds immediately drop their temperatures and have to be kept warm. After a few months, Jeanne took him out of the "Hospital Cage" and returned him to one of the larger cages in which she had put his dad, "Big Bird," and several other male birds.

One of the first things that I do when I arise in the morning is to uncover the boys' cage and  look for "Third Bird." This morning, however, I did not hear his "wheezing" as usual. I only counted 4 birds in the boys' cage. Then I turned around to discover Jeanne's "Bird Book" on the floor, and I immediately knew that "Third Bird" had died sometime during the night. On the page beside his name was a new entry" "Died 10 February 2010," so "Third Bird" died sometime after I went to bed last night. When Jeanne arose, I asked her when "Third Bird" died. She said that he died in her hands around 11:30 P.M. on Wednesday, 2/10/2010. I went into my office and wrote the information in the "History of Our Birds." She showed me his body which she had placed in a "Baggie." I bid him my "Good-Bye" and came back into my office to write his "Eulogy." I will sorely miss this little guy, who was sweet and gentle like his father, Candi and his little brother, Midge!

Wrtten 2/14/2010.

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