Birds and Pomegranates

Being relatively new to the world of bird ownership, we still have to research their care, specifically food which are good or bad for them. We've read a lot about pomegranates and how other people's parrots 'go mad for them'. So, enthusiastically we put half a pomegranate into both cages and waited for the excited response - which didn't come. Obviously Larry and the Lovebirds (sounds like a band), haven't been reading the same articles. I did see Larry suspiciously licking his pomegranate (it's funny, I didn't think that birds licked things, but Larry really licks away at something to test it), but I think he is ignoring it now.

We could scrump pomegranates as there is a tree up near the castle. However, it's also near some houses and in someone's garden - so we decided to buy one instead.

The lovebirds have managed to chew away most of their sleeping tube now. It doesn't have much of a base left and it hangs at 45 degree angle. One of them persists in sleeping in it though, and every night we see him or her perilously hanging on trying not to slide out the bottom. They still have their lovely crochet nest that I made them, perhaps they'll use it when the weather gets colder.

We took Primrose back to the vet yesterday. She's much better, now pink again instead of yellow, however she won't eat. Antonio the vet checked her mouth and it was OK, but said she has a sore throat. He didn't want to give her any medicine for her because he didn't want to put any additional work on her liver, so we are to continue to feed her with a syringe. I am pleased she is getting better, she really is back on top form. Syringe feeding is quite messy. We do it outside, surrounded by cats and dogs waiting to see which way bits of sloppy food get thrown and they eagerly circle around like fielders in a cricket game.

Twice this month we've been woken up at 6.30 by early morning church parades going through the village on a Saturday. Goodness knows what's got into them. First we hear the bells which start slowly to wake people up and then rise to a frenzy to tell people to hurry to the church. Which is when we wake up in a panic, convinced that the village is on fire (one time, Ian did go to the sun terrace to check), only to drift back to sleep to be woken up by a parade of people wandering round the village singing hymns. Our dogs are surprisingly well behaved and just do an occasional 'be quiet I am trying to sleep' bark, however other dogs are less polite.  The hymns appear to be sung to a backdrop of howling dogs from around the village - and a curse or two from someone trying to sleep no doubt...

For Whom the Bell Tolls - A Tragic Accident

It is the custom, when someone dies, to ring the church bell. This alerts people to the fact that someone has died - and also alerts them to the fact that the funeral is likely to be later on that day.

Last week the bell rang and we wondered who it was for, and later than day we bumped into the funeral procession, walking from the church to the cemetery. But it was only yesterday that I found out that the person who had died had done so in a terrible freak accident. They got killed on the train track. Their car had stalled going over the steep bump in the crossing and it got hit by a train. But the really tragic thing about the accident was that there are only two trains a day in both directions, so the chances of an accident like this would be very slim. 

Lovebirds vs Parrots

Parrots and lovebirds appear to be very different. Well, at least Larry is very different to Barry and Gary (Sugarplum and Nutcracker). Larry always has to have the last word and doesn't like to be talked over - particularly be the coffee grinder or anything else that makes a loud noise. He also has an internal clock that tells him and therefore he tells us, when it is sunflower seed time or if Ian has forgotten to give him his morning salad.

Larry likes to know what is going on and seems to very much like being in the midst of things. He appears not to go to bed until we do - even though it is dark by then. The lovebirds, however, just chat amongst themselves and don't seem to interact with other noises. They also seem to go to bed as soon as the sun goes out of the patio. I hope this doesn't mean that they spend much of the winter in bed!

We've noticed that the lovebirds seem to want to play with Larry, but I'm not sure whether the way Larry head butts his cage while thrusting his beak through towards the lovebirds suggests he wants to play or something more sinister.

We're having to give Primrose homemade food which is a little like baby food. It is carrot, rice and chicken mushed up. She doesn't like it and we have to feed her outside because it is surprising how far she can make droplets of this orange mush spread. Most of the other animals have orange spots at the moment!