My Best little Budgie

Chippy was the bird that made me realize just how intelligent birds are. This is where the love I have for birds began. Some of you may wonder how can a Budgie be your best friend? Well, he cared for me as much as I cared for him.

We went to the pet store in April of 1987. My birthday was coming and a friend wanted to buy a Budgie for me as a gift. Somehow I felt the need to choose the bird myself. That is how Chippy came to live with us. I would talk and hold Chippy every day. Within a week he was finger trained and would jump on my finger with the "up" command. Within a month he was repeating sounds. At this point I must say, not every bird is like this. Each bird is different from the next like any other creature. They have their own personalities. He quickly became part of the family. I truly believe he thought he was human. I had two young sons and Chippy loved them. The boys would run through the house and he would fly with them to the next room. He would fly where they ran. Dinnertime was quite the experience! Chippy had is favorite human foods. His two favorites were chicken and pasta. We would try to set a plate for him, but it didn't work. He wasn't happy unless he could eat with you.

In time he began to talk very well. He would amaze me with the words he would say. My fondest memory is when this small bird asked me a question. I was doing something and remember thinking to myself "that was dumb." Chippy, on my shoulder said, "What did you do that for?" I stood there shocked. He learned to speak in sentences. If I was to discipline the boys he was there to help. He would say to them "Stop that" "Don't do that" words he picked up from me. He learned how to "Bark like a dog". There was a dog next door he used to listen to. I then taught him to "Mew like a kitten". I thought it was funny when my landlord came to my house and asked me if we had a cat. To her amazement (I still wonder if she believed me) it was Chippy! He would speak so many words, sentences and phrases I can't list them all. He also was a big music fan. He loved certain types of music. If the beat were right he would dance with you on your shoulder! This was my husband's favorite trait with Chippy. They spent time dancing and enjoying each other's company.

One day after breakfast, Chippy was on the floor. Having young children there were always tidbits on the floor. Not realizing he was there I stepped on him. I can still hear in my mind his cries. We took him to the vet right away. The vet said that he had a broken wing and a concussion. They warned me he might not make it through the night. He did survive, but not without an effect. Due to his injury, he would never fly as well. That is not what took his life he had survived so much. A couple of years later, our lives had changed. We decided to get a dog. I made the mistake of putting Chippy in a room where the dog figured out how to open the door. That is all I care to say. To this day I still cry like it happened yesterday. As I am writing this, tears are streaming down my face. It wasn't the dog's fault. He was part Golden Retriever and he is a bird dog. I was the one who made the mistake. I couldn't live with the dog so we found him a good home. I couldn't live without a bird and we have since then brought our new family member's home. I do need to stress the importance of having different types of pets. It is the predator and prey when you mix dogs, cats and birds. If something happens to one of your pets, PLEASE remember that it is instinct creatures go by. They don't mean it; it is just their nature.