Author Unknown
On January 31, 2002 and we took home a new addition to our family. Her name is Jazz. She has come from an abusive home and we have decided that we would get the funds together to save her. We couldn't bear to see her miserable. The lady that she used to be with beat her. For the longest time she would look behind our backs before getting close to us. Jazz was scared of everything. She picked her feathers off of the front of her body from stress. She hissed at us constantly and was not content until we brought her home. Amazingly, she did a 180 degree personality change when we brought her home. She was all cuddly and happy to be with us. I wonder if she is just so greatful to have a good home to live in.
We gave her a shower the second day she was home and it improved the look of her drastically. She was in terrible shape. She wouldn't let anyone near her to take care of her. She had dirt inbetween all of her feathers. I think that all that dirt is part of the reason that she picked herself. It took a week of showers to get her clean. Thanks to my friend Karleen, she sent us some special cockatoo shampoo that makes her smell wonderful and her feathers soft. The good thing is that she loves the shower. She has turned into a closet shower singer. We made sure to talk to our neighbours and let them know that we had Jazz with us. They heard her singing the other day and were laughing at her.
Sophie is excited to have a new buddy to talk to. She has come up with some new words and sounds since we brought Jazz home. Sophie was acting jealous and needed to be reassured that mommy still loves her. It took a week alone just to do that. My husband says that she reminds him of a 2 or 3 year old child that has to deal with mom and dad bringing home a sibling. When Jazz gets loud, Sophie pipes up and gets loud with her. "WHEE!!!"
It breaks my heart that Jazz had to be taken into our home in this condition. If anything, I hope that Jazz's page will make you think twice about parrots being a "cool" pet. Please do not get a parrot unless you are willing to see things through. Like a child they can go through some difficult periods. Having a parrot is like having a two year old forever. People will get rid of their birds when they go through these difficult periods. They reach their sexual peak between 5 to 7 years. During this time they can become aggressive. Please stick it through with your parrot. Don't give up on them. You wouldn't give up on your teenager, don't give up on your bird. It would be a worse stress to have the bird go from home to home.
I believe that parrots should not be owned by everyone. You have to make an informed choice. We are still learning, but they are our pride and joy. We started with a large knowledge base. We have done our homework. They go everywhere with us. We choose not to go on a vacation without them. Our parrots are not pets, they are companions, which means that they are very important beings in our lives. There is nothing that we would not do for them. They go into their avian vet 3 times a year to make sure that they are healthy. Are you willing to spend this kind of time and money on owning a parrot?
I'm going to be honest with you. Parrots are loud and messy. If you like your house to be immaculate then do not get a parrot. If you do not like loud noise, do not get a parrot. If you do not want to get pooped on, do not get a parrot. They try not to do it on you, but accidents happen. We just carry around extra paper towels. They make the mess, we clean it up. How many people do you know that have dogs but do not clean up after them? We are responsible for our parrots every actions, even the not so nice ones.
are you going to have changes in your house? are you going to introduce new people into your birds life? Right now Peter and I do not have any children. We are expecting now, so we are working on changing feeding schedules to work around a baby. This will stress the birds, but we are willing to include our birds in these changes. All four of them would be willed to our child anyways. What better than being raised in a household that respects and loves their animals. Our child would grow up thinking that a four parrot household is normal. Are you willing to think this way about a bird in your life?
All I ask is that you do your research. Please do not bring a bird into your life until you have done your homework. There are so many unwanted parrots out there, would you consider rescuing one? We have always brought home older birds. All three of them have been wonderful companions. It is heartbreaking to see that the bird trade is still alive. There are still wild caught birds in the market. Please do not promote this trade. Leave the parrots in the wild where they belong.
Jazz may not be perfect on the outside, but she is beautiful on the inside. As long as she is happy and healthy, that is what is important, not the fact that she is missing feathers. She may never regrow all of her feathers, but she knows that she is in a "safe place".
I will update this page with pictures as she improves over the next year.
This picture was taken on February 6, 2002
This picture was taken in May 2002.
This picture was taken in October 2002. It is taking Jazz much longer than we thought for her to regrow her feathers, but we still love her anyways. As you can see, she loves her daddy!
Our Wedding Photos
See our twins!
Willy's Page
Simon's Page
Sophie's Page
Ducorps Cockatoo Page
See Snoopy and Mitzvah our new additions!
Omar's Exotic Birds Website. This is where I got the cockatoo shampoo from. It is wonderful stuff!
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