Marlene
Welcome to the neighborhood!
It is my great pleasure to introduce the
Celebirdy of the Month of September 2011, Clopin
Celebirdy of the Month of September 2011, Clopin
Here is what Kelsy had to say about Clopin.
1. How did you aquire your bird?
Oh boy, Clopin's story is quite long!
I first saw Clopin in November 2007 in a little pet store in the middle of a busy shopping mall. She was kept in a cage that was knee level to all the customers and as a result she was prodded and poked by all the children passing by. Of course she was scared and became quite timid. This, along with her hefty $700 price tag, reserved her a place at that pet store for a very long time.
I kept seeing her month after month in that store until one day, in July 2008, I saw the store was having a closing down sale. Her price had been reduced to $640 but still no-one had shown much interest in her. I decided then and there that I was going to find a way to bring her home.
My boyfriend, James, managed to talk the owner of the store into reducing the price to $200! In addition to this, I arranged with the owner to only take Clopin home just before the store was set to close down for good in December 2008. This would give me 5 months to save up money for a proper cage and vet visit. In the mean time I paid all but $50 of her price in order to "reserve" her.
I visited her often and December was fast approaching. I was so excited!
I entered the shopping mall on the day of collection I had arranged with the pet store owner. When I reached the pet store the doors were closed and the entire shop was emptied. I panicked and flagged down a security guard. He told me that the pet store owner had quite a lot of debt and had thousands of dollars of unpaid rent stacked up. So she had packed up her goods in the middle of the night and disappeared. No-one knew where she was. She had taken my little Clopin with her.
I'll save you the boring bits, but in the following weeks James managed to make the impossible come true. He spent hours and hours on the phone to many different companies and lawyers. Eventually he tracked down the ex-store owner's email address. We sent her an email and waited... and waited... and waited. No reply. So we sent her another email, this time threatening legal action (which the lawyers told us we were entitled to do).
Then we got a reply! We made some quick arrangements to meet up with the owner. She dropped Clopin off the very next day and collected the $50 we still owed her.
Her leg band confirmed that this was indeed the little fid I fell in love with many months ago. Clopin was more timid and scared than ever, but she was in my house and she was mine! We haven't looked back since! Clopin was "missing" for 6 weeks. It is pretty incredible that we managed to get her back at all.
2. What is your birds name, age and sex?
Name: Clopin
She was named after a character in The Hunchback of Notre-Dame simply because I loved the name. It is pronounced the French way.
Age: Approximately 5 years old.
Sex: Female
3. Does your bird do any special tricks?
Clopin is clicker trained and knows a few tricks:
- Turn (spins in a circle on command)
- Come Here (recall trained)
- Drop It (drops what she is holding in her beak)
- Follow (follows the target stick)
Next on my list I want to train her how to clean her own cage and vacuum the floors.
4. What are some of your birds favorite foods?
Clopin's favourite foods happen to be whatever I am eating at the time.
She loves her Harrison's Birdy Bread for breakfast and her Nutriberries for an afternoon snack.
5. What is the funniest thing your bird has done?
The time she decided to grow an unibrow and beard was pretty funny:
Luckily I convinced her it wasn't her style and she has since moved on to more classical looks.
Oh and I almost forgot. Once her head almost slid off her shoulders. That was pretty funny too.
6. How has your bird enriched your life?
Clopin made me realise that absolutely no bird is beyond hope. Here I suddenly had this very scared, very flighty creature in my possession and I had no clue how to reach her. She hated hands, she hated humans and she definitely did not enjoy my company one single bit.
And so I began researching and exploring the world of clicker training. It took a solid year of clicker training before this happened:
In my research I discovered a whole community of bird loving people. This has enriched my life beyond measure because I've forged true friendships and learnt many, many things online. It's all because of Clopin.
7. What would you tell people who are considering this species?
Don't push them. They will do things at their pace and, if you respect them, you will form a very strong bond that will last a lifetime.
Plum-headed Parakeets are gentle little souls and in my experience they are quick to bluff but never quick to bite.
Clopin is not a cuddler. However, this should not be mistaken for a lack of affection. They just show it differently.
They are the absolute perfect little bird if you want a companion that is happy to just sit on your shoulder all day and observe what you get up to. They don't ask for much. All they want is to be near you. If you grant them this then they will be on their best behaviour and you run the risk of forgetting they are even on you!
8. What is the activity and noise level of your bird?
I am probably not the best judge on this because I have two hyperactive Lorikeets in my flock.
In comparison to them, Clopin is very calm and very ladylike. She waits and considers things before she acts. Observing her surroundings is one of her favourite activities and this is what makes her the perfect little shoulder parrot.
Clopin has a beautiful, bouncy, musical vocalisation that she likes to make every afternoon when I come home from work. I find it pleasant and not too loud. Then she also has a very loud contact call that sounds very similar to a smoke detector alarm.
9. What are some of your birds quirks?
You know how they say you should get a cage that's wider rather than taller because parrots fly from side to side and can't fly straight up like a helicopter?
Well... Clopin can fly straight up like a helicopter. She hovers like a spaceship before she does a gentle touchdown on your shoulder. She can over in one place for seconds at a time. It is a little weird and very spectacular all at once!
10. If your bird talks, what is the most surprising word or sentence it has said?
Clopin can't speak or mimic any other household sounds.
11. What is your bird’s favorite treat?
She is quite capable of commiting murder if it will get her a Cheese Supreme Doritos chip.
Very happy that this turned out as it did. Wonderful interview.
Clopin nice getting to know you better...you have a GREAT Mommy,you lucky handsome birdy you..hugs to your mommy
