Sweetie
Sweetie (top right), Governor (middle left), and Hashee (bottom left)
Hashee was the very *first* bird I ever fell in love with and started this whole "bird fever" thing :)
Sweetie's Story
I first met Sweetie in
December 1995. At that time I was working for a veterinarian. The
vet had been doing some work (vaccines & check ups) for a kennel
near the airport on her days off.
Sweetie had been left at the
kennel a few months before. Hew owner was moving to Hawaii. Sweetie
had to be placed in quarantine for 3 months before she could be flown
to her owner in Hawaii.
Sweetie had been at the
kennel for over 5 months. Her previous owner never sent for her or contacted the kennel.
The kennel gave Sweetie to
the Vet because they couldn't afford to pay her the money they
owed her.
The Vet was leaving on
vacation the day she got Sweetie. She brought Sweetie into work for
us to watch while she was out of town. I immediately bonded with
Sweetie. She was such a friendly bird!
When the Vet came back from
vacation, she took Sweetie home.
A few months later, she told
me she had not been spending much time with her and Sweetie had been
screaming allot and plucking out some of her feathers. I told her to
bring Sweetie back to the office to stay for awhile. At least at the
office she would receive some attention during the day. Sweetie had
one toy and was eating a seed diet. I bought Sweetie some new toys
and switched her over to pellets. I came into work early to play with
her, spent time with her on my lunch hour, and took her home for
weekends and holidays. If anyone at the office came too close to me
while I was holding Sweetie she would try to bite them. She felt safe
with me. She knew I was the one person who gave her love and
attention.
I offered to buy Sweetie,
but the Vet said she couldn't sell her because her daughter would be
too upset. (You know, her daughter was down at the office maybe an
hour a month and never even looked at Sweetie)
One day, Sweetie got into
trouble for chewing on a door frame. The vet said she had
to stay inside her cage unless we were holding her. I gets kind of
hard to hold a cockatoo while you are trying to answer a phone! She
would chew on the phone cord or climb up on your head. The Vet then
said she could only come out on lunch hours or before work.
Sweetie was
miserable.
One day, finally, the Vet
asked if I thought Sweetie was happy. I told her she would be much
happier living with a family and being loved all of the time. She
told me to take Sweetie home!! She said she wasn't ever attached to
her anyway. How can you not get attached to a snugly cockatoo?
Sweetie was so "upset" about
being locked inside cage for such long periods of time that she was
afraid of going in a cage. I didn't want to traumatize her anymore.
My friend (Deacon's Breeder)
had recently gotten a male citron, Governor, that was also
"neglected". Governor was about 17 years old when Carole got him. He
had been fed wild bird seed
his whole life. Because of
the lack of nutrients, he now has severe cataract and liver problems.
We thought that Governor and Sweetie would be a perfect match. They
could keep each other company so neither one would be lonely.
Carole took Sweetie home to
see if her & Governor would get along. Carole set Sweetie's cage
up near her other birds (U2, CAG, B&G macaw, Goffin). Sweetie
wouldn't even go inside the cage to eat! She would hang from the
outside bars and only stick her head in far enough to reach to food
bowl.
Carole and her husband made
a play stand for Sweetie and Governor to live on. They never have to
go in a cage, which makes Sweetie very happy.
Sweetie preens Governor often. He gets upset when you take Sweetie
into the other room and he cant see her. They will never have babies
together. They don't have "that kind" of relationship. They are
friends who look out for each other......except for when she steals
his food! : )
When we get a house, we will
bring both Sweetie and Governor to live with us. They will have their
own room to live in so I wont have to put them in a cage. Right now I
couldn't do that here. I work during the day and wouldn't be able to
watch her. Id be afraid that she would climb on top of the amazons
cage and get hurt or injure herself in some other way (chewing on an
electric cord, etc.)
I visit Sweetie often. She
will sit on my lap and let me file or Dremmel her nails without all
of the fuss that my birds make about getting a nail trim. She is a
wonderful bird.
(NOTE: I am
no longer working for "the Vet" (who will remain name-less) I was
always afraid to quit that job because I did not want to leave
Sweetie behind. I am now working for a wonderful vet!)
This Cockatoo Lovers' Ring site is owned by
Sweetie & Amber