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Ripping up the road
Administrator
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
- Joined
- 4/15/10
- Messages
- 50,074
- Real Name
- Matthew
Our "Mayor of the Avenue" award is presented to a member who exhibits the qualities that distinguish them to be an upstanding credit to the Avenue, a loving, informed, conscientious and caring bird parront and an all around good neighbor.
I am happy to announce that FiatLux is May's Mayor of the Month.
I enjoyed reading your interview, and am sure that everyone else will as well!
1. What kind of birds do you have (age, species and names)? I currently have two birds.
Henrietta is a one year old rescue pigeon and Pitchounette is a 2 year old yellow sided Green Cheek conure.
2. What got you interested in birds?
I lived with my uncle and his husband when I was a kid and they had (and still have) parrots. Birds generally are also a shared interest with my mother.
3. What have your birds brought to your life?
It is hard to know how to capture this in words. Birds have served as a mirror for my sense of attunement and brought me into a somatic experience of the present moment. As someone who tends towards hypervigilance, birds have created a positive feedback loop —whereas with people and in public settings, my tendency to take in a lot of (sensory) information at once can be overloading and exhausting, with my birds it is rewarding and supports a healthy relationship —I notice tiny behavioral signifiers and they seem to pick up on my feelings.
4. What have you learned from sharing your life with your birds?
I have learned pleasure in routine -which is not a given for me lol! I love changing out their cage liners and their water and food every day. It is a quick routine with a high reward. I have learned to be stiller in my body. I have learned better boundary setting.
5. What's one birdie memory that will stay with you forever?
This is hard to think about but as some on this dear forum may know, my first rescue pigeon was a severely injured fledgling that I named Baby Bella. I was hand feeding her and she spent a lot of time in a scarf wrapped around me, cozy under my chin. She did not make it despite my best efforts —her last heartbeat, which I felt with a surprising clarity, was pressed against my chest 100 feet out from the avian vet where I was rushing her to because I could tell she was struggling. I am not one to cry, let alone in public, but I broke down as soon as I handed her to the vet tech who rushed to the car to get her. I am still humbled by the impact this little life had on me.
6. Where is your birds main living area?
Wherever my kids and I are lol! They both have main cages in our living room. Henrietta’s dog crate cage (recommended for pigeons) is pressed against my armchair so can be right next to me while we watch our nightly shows. Pitchounette splits his time between his beautiful @JLcribber made tree in our living area, his sleep cage in our boys’ room, his play area in our office/homeschool room and his small outdoor cage when we are playing in the backyard.
7. Did you change things in your home to accommodate your birds and if so what kinds of things did you change?
Our home is —to the degree that I could do so without impinging on my husband’s sensibilities lol!, furnished around the birds cages and set up. I designed my office as a bird room first and added in my desk.
8. Are you involved in any kind of bird related group or activities?
I joined the American Federation of Aviculture to take their online course, I take other online courses (I especially like Cassie Malina’s online offerings) and I apprentice at a breeder’s bird shop every Saturday because I am an experiential learner and love to learn from people with decades of experience. This has actually been one of the best things I’ve done — I look forward to every Saturday! The breeder has 50 years of experience and is very generous with me in sharing the insights that one can only gain from that much experience.
9. What is the one luxury item you would love to have for your bird(s)?
Like many of us, I dream of a walk in outdoor aviary with lots of tree branches and plants.
10. Is there any bird that you dream of owning and if so why?
My list expands as I do more research. Currently, I am fascinated by Golden conures, sun conures, crimson bellied conures, bronze winged pionus and Goffin’s cockatoos.
11. Describe a typical day with you at home with your birds.
Pitchounette talking to my boys is usually the first thing I hear in the morning. We all go downstairs for breakfast and I change out all the cage liners, waters and food prepare chop. Pitchounette and Henrietta both hang out downstairs with us; pitchounette on his tree and Henrietta on whatever ledge is closest to me (occasionally my shoulder). We usually spend time outside (boys playing, Henrietta on a harness and leash and Pitchounette in his small cage) to get some vitamin D then head to my office to work and learn. We all eat lunch together and then head upstairs to work and learn in my office. Pitchounette has a play area up there but tends to hang out on my office chair or the boys chairs. He goes to the boys’ room with them for quiet time and hangs in his cage there while they play and rest. We then all go back downstairs for more outdoor time and dinner. Pitchounette hangs in his tree until the boys’ bath time and then goes back up to his cage in their room until lights out.
12. What have you learned about owning birds that you would like to share?
I have learned that my neurodivergence is a strength and that human beings greatly benefit from observing the patterns of birds. I have learned that we share common fundamental needs and that our human understandings of intelligence is not multifaceted enough to fully appreciate the beauty and brilliance of birds.
13. If you knew then what you know now about birds, what would you do differently?
Oh lord where to begin. I would have started as a kid. I would have researched vocations that could center the joy I feel from animals generally and birds in particular. I would have covered all my
home entrances with mesh from the beginning. I would have sought out more parrot people as they seem to be my people lol.
14. What other hobbies do you have?
I love to learn and research. I have a lot of books about bees, unschooling, self directed education, liberatory practice and healing. I also have a deep interest in the brain-gut axis and in nutritional practices that maximize mental health.
15. Anything else you would like to share?
I am so grateful for this community. I am grateful for the learning, the kindness, the generosity of spirit of forum members. Every morning, I read posts to counterbalance the daily news. There are so many wonderful people on here who have taken the time to share their experiences and insights with me and I want to share that this generosity has been a balm for my heart.
I am happy to announce that FiatLux is May's Mayor of the Month.
I enjoyed reading your interview, and am sure that everyone else will as well!
1. What kind of birds do you have (age, species and names)? I currently have two birds.
Henrietta is a one year old rescue pigeon and Pitchounette is a 2 year old yellow sided Green Cheek conure.
2. What got you interested in birds?
I lived with my uncle and his husband when I was a kid and they had (and still have) parrots. Birds generally are also a shared interest with my mother.
3. What have your birds brought to your life?
It is hard to know how to capture this in words. Birds have served as a mirror for my sense of attunement and brought me into a somatic experience of the present moment. As someone who tends towards hypervigilance, birds have created a positive feedback loop —whereas with people and in public settings, my tendency to take in a lot of (sensory) information at once can be overloading and exhausting, with my birds it is rewarding and supports a healthy relationship —I notice tiny behavioral signifiers and they seem to pick up on my feelings.
4. What have you learned from sharing your life with your birds?
I have learned pleasure in routine -which is not a given for me lol! I love changing out their cage liners and their water and food every day. It is a quick routine with a high reward. I have learned to be stiller in my body. I have learned better boundary setting.
5. What's one birdie memory that will stay with you forever?
This is hard to think about but as some on this dear forum may know, my first rescue pigeon was a severely injured fledgling that I named Baby Bella. I was hand feeding her and she spent a lot of time in a scarf wrapped around me, cozy under my chin. She did not make it despite my best efforts —her last heartbeat, which I felt with a surprising clarity, was pressed against my chest 100 feet out from the avian vet where I was rushing her to because I could tell she was struggling. I am not one to cry, let alone in public, but I broke down as soon as I handed her to the vet tech who rushed to the car to get her. I am still humbled by the impact this little life had on me.
6. Where is your birds main living area?
Wherever my kids and I are lol! They both have main cages in our living room. Henrietta’s dog crate cage (recommended for pigeons) is pressed against my armchair so can be right next to me while we watch our nightly shows. Pitchounette splits his time between his beautiful @JLcribber made tree in our living area, his sleep cage in our boys’ room, his play area in our office/homeschool room and his small outdoor cage when we are playing in the backyard.
7. Did you change things in your home to accommodate your birds and if so what kinds of things did you change?
Our home is —to the degree that I could do so without impinging on my husband’s sensibilities lol!, furnished around the birds cages and set up. I designed my office as a bird room first and added in my desk.
8. Are you involved in any kind of bird related group or activities?
I joined the American Federation of Aviculture to take their online course, I take other online courses (I especially like Cassie Malina’s online offerings) and I apprentice at a breeder’s bird shop every Saturday because I am an experiential learner and love to learn from people with decades of experience. This has actually been one of the best things I’ve done — I look forward to every Saturday! The breeder has 50 years of experience and is very generous with me in sharing the insights that one can only gain from that much experience.
9. What is the one luxury item you would love to have for your bird(s)?
Like many of us, I dream of a walk in outdoor aviary with lots of tree branches and plants.
10. Is there any bird that you dream of owning and if so why?
My list expands as I do more research. Currently, I am fascinated by Golden conures, sun conures, crimson bellied conures, bronze winged pionus and Goffin’s cockatoos.
11. Describe a typical day with you at home with your birds.
Pitchounette talking to my boys is usually the first thing I hear in the morning. We all go downstairs for breakfast and I change out all the cage liners, waters and food prepare chop. Pitchounette and Henrietta both hang out downstairs with us; pitchounette on his tree and Henrietta on whatever ledge is closest to me (occasionally my shoulder). We usually spend time outside (boys playing, Henrietta on a harness and leash and Pitchounette in his small cage) to get some vitamin D then head to my office to work and learn. We all eat lunch together and then head upstairs to work and learn in my office. Pitchounette has a play area up there but tends to hang out on my office chair or the boys chairs. He goes to the boys’ room with them for quiet time and hangs in his cage there while they play and rest. We then all go back downstairs for more outdoor time and dinner. Pitchounette hangs in his tree until the boys’ bath time and then goes back up to his cage in their room until lights out.
12. What have you learned about owning birds that you would like to share?
I have learned that my neurodivergence is a strength and that human beings greatly benefit from observing the patterns of birds. I have learned that we share common fundamental needs and that our human understandings of intelligence is not multifaceted enough to fully appreciate the beauty and brilliance of birds.
13. If you knew then what you know now about birds, what would you do differently?
Oh lord where to begin. I would have started as a kid. I would have researched vocations that could center the joy I feel from animals generally and birds in particular. I would have covered all my
home entrances with mesh from the beginning. I would have sought out more parrot people as they seem to be my people lol.
14. What other hobbies do you have?
I love to learn and research. I have a lot of books about bees, unschooling, self directed education, liberatory practice and healing. I also have a deep interest in the brain-gut axis and in nutritional practices that maximize mental health.
15. Anything else you would like to share?
I am so grateful for this community. I am grateful for the learning, the kindness, the generosity of spirit of forum members. Every morning, I read posts to counterbalance the daily news. There are so many wonderful people on here who have taken the time to share their experiences and insights with me and I want to share that this generosity has been a balm for my heart.
I loved your interview and learning more about you. I'm so sorry about losing Baby Bella.
