- November 7, 2024
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"Pretty bird" is more than an expression with Oscar, an African grey parrot. Courtesy photo
Oscar is ready for the next patriotic holiday. Courtesy photo
Elliot is a timneh African grey. Courtesy photo
Gabby is an African grey new to Palm Coast.Courtesy photo
This week I will feature some of the responses I have received about African greys in Palm Coast. A couple of you asked when Rosie began talking. She was talking when we adopted her. Since she is adopted we can only guess as to how old she is. Seeing how she has developed over the past 10 years we have had her I think she could be about 25 years old.
Three new African greys roosting in Palm Coast live with Michele Evans. Evans moved to Palm Coast with one Congo African grey and two timneh African greys. They range in age from 17 to 35 years old. She adopted all of them.
The birds have always been in front of a window or sliding glass door. They enjoy relaxing music and have their own TV. Unlike my Rosie they are very quiet, perhaps because there are three of them? Disney is their favorite TV channel. The only time they get noisy is when they want to go to bed. They are insistent and will scream until all of the lights and electronics are off and the drapes are closed. This happens.as soon as the sun sets. Being a good sport, Michel goes to her room to give them the peace and quiet they crave.
Maureen Albrecht and Maxine have been together for 17 years, since Maxine was a baby:
Albrecht thought her grey, Maxine, would never talk, even though she left recordings of her voice and different songs for the bird to listen to when she was gone. After about a year everything changed suddenly. Maxine started talking and hasn’t stopped.
Maxine does pluck her feathers, a habit that can be a result of stress or even hereditary. The Albrechts have moved a lot in the 17 years, but Palm Coast became home six years ago when they retired. Like my Rosie, she has moods and if she isn’t in the mood to talk she won’t and there are times she needs her space.
Maxine sings “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” and “Old MacDonald” and others. She knows the children and grandchildren’s names. She has a “cousin” named Jerry, a conure who visits from time to time. Conures are loud birds and often screech.
“When we tell her Jerry’s coming and, ‘What are you going to say?’ She says, “SSHH Jerry, be quiet!”
While Rosie will warn visitors, “Watch out I bite,” call the dogs and cat, she doesn’t say full sentences like Maxine. Maxine’s repertoire includes “I am going upstairs and take a shower” and is always asking, “Can I come out?”
Christina Rois-Mendez shares her home with 5-year-old Oscar. Oscar chews on bones. He’s a lucky bird. Since he doesn’t have to share the house with curious dogs and a cat, he doesn’t have to be in a cage. He has a play stand and he gets to spend part of his day in a screened canopy with his humans. He enjoys chewing on cereal boxes and throwing balls and chasing them throughout the house. Being a bird with no boundaries, he also serves as an alarm clock by waking Rois-Mendez up at 7 a.m. and then running to the kitchen to wait for his breakfast. Oscar sings and chirps but hasn’t started talking – yet. He makes a high-pitched whistle when he senses danger, a cat or hawk outside. Evenings are spent in front of the TV with the family.
