Tuesday, February 12, 2008

LolaWatch: Update

Over the holidays, it became very apparent to The Peach and I that our little bird, Lola, was in desperate need of some companionship. We tried to hand-tame her and give her as much affection as we possibly could, but it just wasn't working given how skittish and paranoid she was. So we went out to get another bird to be her friend. After a few days of searching we finally settled on a blue budgie, which I was initially allowed to name but after 98% of my real suggestions were rejected outright, she settled on Zoe. (I still maintain that Zeppo would be a great name for a bird.)

So as not to pass any unknown diseases or infections between them, we kept them apart on opposite ends of the living room for 3.5 weeks. That's a little less than we were technically supposed to, but The Peach just couldn't wait, and really neither could they. Every time we let Zoe out to wander she immediately went to the other side and tried to figure out a way to get up and into Lola's cage. Once they were put together, though, they became great friends, despite their differences: Lola is quiet and terrified, Zoe is loud and excitable. After a few days they became pretty much inseperable: when one left or accidentally fell out of the cage (from a very low height, don't worry), the other would immediately join them.

Last week, when The Peach was giving them some food, she called me over to look at Zoe's beak. Her sear, which is the area just above the nose, was turning bright blue. "Huh," I said. "I think Zoe's a boy," she said. "You sure?" I asked. "I don't know, but I think so." Later that week, we had NinjaStolz and Fi over, and he took one look at our new bird and said, "Oh yeah, that's a guy." So that explains her loud personality and relatively large size. She's actually a he.

I've tried to suggest a few new names that would fit a male bird better (seriously, what's wrong with Miles?), but in the end, we have a boy named Zoe. And we've been assured that as long as we don't give them any nesting materials, we won't have any baby birds in our future. I'm still a little worried about that, but when I see how happy they are together,
I think it's a risk I'm willing to take.


(photo credit The Peach)

I just wish Zoe had been a better influence on Lola's constant terror. Now they're BOTH jumpy.

3 comments:

Foofa said...

Miles is a very good name but so is Zoe but Zeppo is my favorite.

Unknown said...

Wow, Zeppo was an option? That's a great name!
NinjaStolz really doesn't think you'll have too many issues, except maybe that Lola & Zoe might become a little less fond of the two of you, but only because they're so fond of each other. At least they're happy. It could be so much worse, i.e., our Inferno, who only knows extreme hatred as an emotional option.

The Doc said...

It was my favourite too, Natalie. But sometimes, I have to willingly admit defeat on a few battles.

Fiona, if you ask The Peach I'm pretty sure that she'd say it WASN'T an option. But ah well. And they've definitely bonded and are much less warm to us. Not to Inferno levels, thank goodness.