We've raised countless baby sparrows. Hand fed them because they were abandoned. We had a cockatiel who died of a seizure when he was 1
my daughter was devastated...
We have a nanday conure named Rudy aka Rude Dude, Rudester, Rudy Pie etc. I've had him for 33 years. When I got him, I was told he was under a year but the vet says he was probably 5 yrs so he's at least 38
(Geez, makes me feel old
) One of the oldest birds his vet has said he's seen as I guess they don't live too long in captivity. He's come a very long way. He was WILD as in straight out of the rainforest wild when we got him. He'd bite my husband and I all the time and destroy everything he got his beak on. He has this old raggedy blanket we drape over his cage he's had forever that is hardly a blanket anymore due to all the holes he's chewed in it. When my daughter was born, he started plucking out of boredom so now he's permanently bald on his chest/legs but I love my bald lil man
He hated my daughter at first (as she was my new addition when she was born) but now 22 yrs later he's her best friend. If her friends get too close to her or touch her he lunges at them.
He's VERY vocal to say the least. Especially when he hears the garage door open or when he hears us walking around first thing in the morning as if to say "Hello!? Take my blanket off and let me out of here!!!" LOL He talks somewhat but did way more when he was younger. He'll say "hello hello hello good boy good boy good boy" over and over again and he begs for food/peanuts. My husband taught him to scratch his beak on the cage for a peanut. We have his wings clipped so we can leave his cage open for him to come in or sit on top and when it's bed time we say "Rudy, get ready for bed. Go in your house" he walks in his cage no problem
I'm very thankful I have him as I know he's getting old and our time is more and more limited. He's survived two gas leaks in our last two houses. In our first house, our elderly neighbor went off her driveway and hit into our gas meter causing our whole block to be evacuated. Once again, in our second home we weren't home and our neighbor smelled gas very strongly by our home so he called the fire department. They managed to get into the house because a snow drift had lifted up our garage door a little bit so it hadn't closed all the way. They found Rudy and tried grabbing him with their THICK leather glove to try and get him into his cage. Of course, when I talked to the firefighter he told me Rudy had managed to find the onlyyyy hole in his glove and bite into it. I also came home to find a huge industrial fan and every window and door open to air out our house...Rudy still made it.
He has his quirks. He has bad arthritis which we tried switching out his poles he has to climb on with ropes per our vet to make climbing easier but he wouldn't go anywhere near them. He stresses out big time with change. We can't get him a new cage, blanket or else he'd freak out. When we get him new bowls he won't eat/drink out of them. He won't touch a new toy. He eyeballs it like it's gonna jump out at him LOL
He has a crooked beak and a crooked neck but we love him none the less!
I know I know. That was quite a novel.
And here's a pic of lil old Rude Dude