Bird in Flight

Call to Continental Airlines, possibly the most pet-friendly travel business in the world and life: yes, you may take your parrot with you. Yes, all breeds of parrots. Yes, you may bring your own carrier as long as it fits under the seat and complies with the checklist on the web. Continental Airlines - the Yes Airline.

Call to Qatar Airways, possibly the most bizarre conversation I will have in a while: yes, birds can travel in cabin with you, as long as they are a falcon. It is not a falcon? Please hold [Vivaldi intermission]. No, we do not carry birds. Only cats and dogs. And falcons. Not as cargo, not in any part of the aircraft. Only falcons. As carry-on. Carry-on falcons. We do not carry birds. Qatar Airways - Bird Falcon Friendly Airline.

Conures & cherries

The constant encounter with the flock of cherry head conures, the Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill is the reason why I have Parrolito. We used to live on Telegraph Hill. One day, as the parrots were taking turns sitting on our heads to have pecking fights, a random guy walked by with a parrotlet on his shoulder. The thought of keeping a pet bird literally laid eggs inside my brain, and has been there ever since.

Armed with my bird backpack, we went to meet the flock as they descended on a cherry tree. Conure yapping sounds exactly like humans making a bad impression of a parrot. Parrolito was momentarily impressed and contributed some parrotlet-sized tweets. He then went into what I can only guess is flock-manic-eating-mode on his bowl of pellets.

Passersby asked if I had the same type of bird. Someone asked if I was carrying a hamster. Then a pair of girls looked at my bird carrier and said: "now I have seen everything". Everything? Everything.

ps: members of the flock that become injured can be adopted at Mickaboo Bird Rescue.

Parrot(ˈpærət)[n]: stuff

I posted a request for international travel advice in a well-known parrot forum that I am part of, since I began my transformation into Crazy Bird Lady.

One of the contributors adequately piggy-bagged on my question, posting: I have concerns as well because we will be moving to Australia in the future as we have a home on 5 acres in [random bay of] Queensland. Later on, she could not resist adding: I do not have any other pets but we have a beautiful 30 foot fishing boat and I have gotten estimates for shipping it over there... 

I get it lady, you have stuff. Expensive stuff. Well done, many internets for you. Now, back to my (soon to be expensive) parrot...

Humans suck.

Pet Passport?

In celebration of this godawful date you people call Valentine´s day, I am commemorating my disbanded flock with this blog. This is what I have: I have a human overseas, a second human planning a transatlantic move, and a tiny parrot going through his teenage years.

And so it begins, the process of figuring out how to emigrate out of the United States with our parrot friend. The process begins at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, which, as it turns out, is nothing like the DMV. It is still going to be a long and bureaucratic spring.