Today Would Be Phantom's Eighteenth Birthday

Today would be Phantom's 18th birthday. His brother Pippin will be 20 in a few days. Buzzy, the other African Gray who lives with me is a mystery. He was wild caught and imported at some unknown date prior to 1988. He could be as young as 25 or who knows how old. When he came to live with me he was a wild parrot, seemingly uninterested in much human contact. As inexperienced as I was at the time, I went to a questionable pet store to find an affordable parrot. I was not yet aware that efforts to breed parrots here in the US were supplanting the terrible practice of trapping birds in the wild, and then exposing them to the possibly life threatening process of shipping and quarantine after importation. I had wanted an African Gray companion after spending a month caring for an acquaintance's parrot, Pogo. I had a limited budget to match my limited experience. Two Grays were on consignment in the pet store with the largest selection of affordable parrots I had found to date. There was a small handsome Gray in an ancient cage with one toy. An old enameled bell, hanging on a metal chain, was the only plaything in the cage. I was told this was a female bird. She and her mate had been set up for breeding by her owner. Allegedly a child in the family had opened the door and the male had escaped. The family decided to cut their losses and try to sell this untamed single bird as a pet. The gray let out a constant low growl when people neared the cage. Despite her warning to keep some distance between us, something about this bird reached me. I had a feeling that together we could learn to develop a friendship. I did not see her wildness as a drawback - it was an opportunity for both of us. I could offer a caring home to a bird with questionable pet-quality, and she could teach me how to reach her with trust and patience. Little did I suspect the path this small bird would draw me toward. She had already begun to do so.