Outside for the day

Well, I finally did it. Monday I had a dentist appointment, that was just a bit to late in the morning to go to work, but not early enough to leave at a normal time. I had breakfast with the birds, spending about 30 minutes with them in our screened in patio.

I got busy with a couple of things and the next thing I know it's time to leave. I ran outside and put the birds away, closing the cages.

When I got home, my wife - who arrives before I do - let me know that one of the babies was left outside. She had put him back in so I don't know which one it was, but they all seem none the worse for wear. There was seeds left out (from earlier that morning) so he did have something to eat.

Needless to say, I'm counting to 6 twice a day. Then I'm counting to 2 for the other cage twice a day, everyday.

Zurich, the baby of the bunch

Here is Zurich, the "baby" of the bunch. I believe that this is a "she" because of both her temprament as well as the lack of vocalization. The other male birds are singing and vocalizing now. She always wants to be around her mother.

This is one of few times I've been able to keep her still to snap a photo.

Great photo of one of the resting babies

Here is a great photo of one of the Babies. Go back and lookup what they looked like when they were born (less than a year ago). The egg that they came from was barely the size of his head now.

If you notice the wings, you'll see that he's in for a clipping. Those feathers sticking out of the right wing there are just too long, enabling him to fly about. I just got finished cutting one of the other babies this morning, and he'll get his turn later today.

He's so much like his dad (Victoria) that he looks like him at night with the white wing sides and the bright yellow on the front of his face (around the eyes and beak). His dad is a bit more yellow, but at night with a light that casts a yellow shadow it's hard to tell them apart sometimes.

New Years Eve

Well, this year was a quiet one with nary a feather ruffled. Our neighbors decided not to set off fireworks like last year. Last year the birds were given such a fright that at least 3 of them lost feathers.

Cockatiels do not see well at night, they usually perch and wait for daylight once the sun starts to go down. Obviously, noises like fireworks and firecrackers scare them, and this is aggrevated by both not being able to see well, and the bright lights given off by the fireworks.

Hope your birds had a good new years eve, and a new year.