The Thing About Charlie

Charlie was a rescue Cockatoo. After bringing him home I'm not sure if we rescued him or the bird sanctuary that had him up for adoption. Just kidding. He's really a very sweet guy. He was featherless when we got him and we were told that he'd been plucking for over 5 years. After bringing him home he didn't pluck anymore. He now has all his feathers.

Charlie loves to chase his big bell. He also loves to shake it in his beak and make a lot of noise. He has learned a lot of new words being here, including "Goodnight, Mom." But not everyone is as trusting toward Charlie as my son, Aidan, and I. My husband and our youngest are actually scared of him. Charlie does have a rather sharp beak and he's tasted each of us. I think it was almost like a rite that he went through to ensure that we would be his faithful servants for the rest of his life. So far it's working.

One of Charlie's favorite past-times seems to be chewing up things. He's managed to break out of his cage by carefully inspecting how the doors work. He has chewed through the cage tray and escaped. We had to buy a new tray. We've had to patch the new tray. Now we need another new tray. Evidently plastic is one of his favorite snacks.

Looking at the price of trays I found that buying a new cage might actually be less expensive. So, we've got a new cage for Charlie on the way. This one has a metal grate that covers the tray. We'll have to see what devious plan he has in store for the new home he'll have. This could be interesting, but one thing is for certain - Charlie will find some creative way to be destructive, I'm sure. It's just his way.

Gotta love the guy. He's very intelligent and has earned the respect of the entire household, including the Shepherd, and that ain't no small task.