PEPPER MADE IT HOME!!
I couldn't wait to get on here & tell you guys about my day with bringing Pepper home! He is the most lovable bird! When we got the the woman's house she brought us right to him. She took him out & he instantly came to me, I was making quiet kiss noises & he walked right up to my face, she said he likes to give kisses & then he gave me a kiss & pushed his whole body into my face for a snuggle! Was the most adorable thing!! Then she showed me how he likes to be cradles in her hand on her chest & rubbed with the other hand. So ADORABLE!! He went right to my brother-in-law & climbed up on his shoulder. (My brother-in-law is special needs & we told him this is his bird) It's like Pepper knew he was special & didn't want to get off of him!! We gathered Pepper's belongings & loaded him up in the car. The woman carried him out in his cage & put him in the back seat. Said our good byes & were on our way. We stopped for a quick bite to eat & I shared some of my lunch with him thru the cage bars. He wasn't freaked out being in a vehicle at all, in fact he stayed busy the whole way home in his cage chewing on his toys! I called my husband while we were pulling in the driveway & asked him to put Hercules in his cage until we could get Pepper settled in our bedroom. I was planning on leaving Pepper alone for an hour or so to get adjusted to the new surroundings, but he was ready to come out & explore. I can't believe how much he trusts me. He flew right to my shoulder & wanted cuddles. He is so snuggly! This is the complete opposite of Hercules first day home, he was mortified & it took me weeks to get him to accept treats from my hands & over a month before he really started to trust me. For anyone who has read this entire thread of Hercules home coming, you know it was a very slow process & he took awhile to tame. So this was a very unexpected surprise when bringing Pepper home. If you were a stranger, I could tell you I've had Pepper for months & you wouldn't know the difference. He calls for me when I leave the room & is happy as can be when I'm in the room with him. It's like he doesn't know or care he is in a different home with all nrw people & surroundings. Is this normal? I was dreading seeing a depressed bird, missing his home & "family flock" but he doesn't seem to care at all. I was so worried about getting him & now I can't believe how blessed I am to have him!
Now I have few questions.. His feathers seem a bit unhealthy, his tail feathers are in rough shape, guessing from being in such a tiny cage. She said he is molting, but Hercules didn't look that rough while he was going through his first molt. Also, he's been on a all seed diet in his 5 months of life, not sure if he's had many fresh veggies ect. Besides his feathers & small cage with a bad setup (pics at the bottom) he seems to be very active, playful, clear eyes & nose & full of energy. So hopefully with a gradual change in his diet, his feathers will look healthier. I added some perches & toys & Hercules favorite straw hat to the top of his cage so he isn't constantly sitting on the small bars of his cage, poor fella. I have an amazon order coming Monday with a play gym & toys & better feed & water bowls. The ones he has now are small flimsy plastic. (I prefer stainless steel) I am really praying when the time comes, Pepper & Hercules bond so the can share Hercules large cage, if they dont, I will Def be buying Pepper a large cage like Hercules. Until then, do you think this cage will be okay? It is small, awful setup & all standard perches. Feel so bad for him, he will only be in it for night or if I need to run errands quick. Going to try to introduce pellets tomoro & a variety of fresh veggies & sprouts. We will see how it goes! Thank you guys for helping me thru this, I had so much anxiety of bringing a new bird home that was going to be sad, scared, depressed & home sick and the time it takes to tame, but he seriously doesn't even seem to notice he's in a new house with new people. I can't get over it. Why did I get so blessed to get such an amazing bird? I am still in shock! Told you guys I'd let you know how it went & well.. Here's day 1. Pepper is amazing!! After a month quarantine, I hope Hercules feels the same way!!
Here are pics of the cage he came in. Very small & the setup isn't very good.
I added toys & few rope perches & Hercules straw hat so he could give his feet a break at the top of his cage.
Pepper on my brother-in-law, he hungout on him for close to 20 minutes, content preening his feathers
Also couple pics of Hercules enjoying his breakfast this morning in his dinner tote I made him. It sure helped keep down the mess of food thrown everywhere.
Hope you enjoyed the story of Pepper homecoming & pics of the beauties!
I will keep updating as we progress!