Name: Sami
Species: Quaker
Age: 6
Favorite Thing to Say (if he/she talks): “Turkey bird” (she thinks she’s a turkey) “Where’s the boat” (She’s referring to my dad, not an actual boat) and “Hey, baby!” (Which is how she asks to get picked up)
Favorite Pastime: Hanging out on her shower perch
Favorite Party Food: Peas and corn
Most Treasured Toy: Anything that is shaped like a duck
Name: Pi Octavian
Species: Quaker Parrot
Age: Under a year.
Favorite Thing to Say: Peekaboo!
Favorite Pastime: Chilling in his outdoor cage. (Of course he has a large indoor cage and only goes outside when he’s supervised!)
Favorite Party Food: Popcorn.
Most Treasured Toy: Any sort of bell.
Sami just recently got over her fear of trees. Now sometimes she pretends she’s a real bird and sits in them sometimes.
She’s still scared of heights and grass and not afraid of snakes and other predators, but that’s ok.
Happy 6th birthday to the greatest little bird on this planet, Sami Kiwi.
Last year for her birthday I made her super yummy cupcakes and she was terrified of them so this year she’s getting beans and peas.
Last week, I was in an awful car accident. My car spun off the road, went airborne, hit a tree, and hit a fence. The car was completely totaled, with pieces of it spread over 100 yards or more. 2 windows shattered, and many of my belongings were thrown out of the car.
Sami, my quaker parrot was with me. She survived. Luckily, she was in her travel cage (it’s nearly the size of her home cage, but a bit easier to transport and take apart). Her cage flipped around multiple times, but she got away with not even a scratch. If she would have not been in that cage, she wouldn’t have survived. She would have been slammed against the sides of the car, crushed by bags and other junk in the backseat, or I don’t even know how many other horrible things.
Now, I try to keep my little girl as safe as possible, but I’m not going to lie, she isn’t always in her cage when she’s in the car. When there are two people in the car, she’s usually allowed out. She hates that travel cage. I know a lot of other bird owners do the same thing.
After this accident, when I though I had killed my baby girl for a split second, and when I realized that her cage saved her life, she is never setting foot in a moving car outside of her travel cage. Even if she complains and bites and grumbles and I feel horrible, she is staying in that cage.
And please, consider doing the same with your parrot.
The beauty of a Quaker Parrot 0026 by QuakerVille on Flickr.
I might be getting one of these beautiful birds next weekend! :)
They’re pretty adorable, though not legal in parts of the US. I live in a state that requires owners to register pet quaker parrots.
Quaker parrots are (wrongly) considered a dangerous pest in many parts of the US, and are therefore illegal or require an extensive registration process in many states. In some states, breaking such a law is punishable by euthanization.
There is a lot of material out there discussing how silly it is to criminalize a pet bird like this, mostly because in their native Argentina they are pests in corn fields. In the United States, however, they prefer coastal urban areas, and eat predominantly from bird feeders, not particularly stealing any natural resources from native species.
Many years ago, the United States had 2 parrots native to the mainland. One was killed out in the US but still lives in small numbers in Mexico, and the other is completely extinct do to sport hunting. It’s honestly a wonderful thing to have parrots back in the US, and it’s sad that we were given a second chance and are blowing that as well.
Quaker parrots are a handful, but are wonderful to have around. Having a quaker parrot (as with many other parrots) is much more like having a child in the house than having a pet, but it is incredibly rewarding.
Unfortunately, with all of these laws in place, I am severely limited to where I can live in the United States, as leaving behind my little girl is not an option.
To see if quaker parrots are legal in your state, check
http://www.quakerville.com/qic/statelaw.asp
Source: flippers-fins-and-flukes
Do you have any absolutely adorable/hilarious/awesome videos of your parrot or any other parrot? If so, please submit it. This coming week I want to heavily feature videos on the blog.
Thanks!
