# Pigeon household hazards...???



## minimonkey (Apr 7, 2005)

Okay -- as our little guys get bigger, we're letting them flap around the apartment more and more. Question is... what should I watch out for regarding their health? I know that some things that are fine for humans (coffee, avocado) are toxic to birds --- 

So aside from the obvious considerations (hot stoves, panes of glass, household cleaners, etc.) what should I be careful to have them avoid? I saw a ref. in a previous post to a bird dying from Teflon???? Eek - Now I'm scared. Since I am new at this, please provide me a list of potential hazards! They are pecking at everything that seems vaguely edible, to boot!


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

This link is a good start:

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=15&cat=1912&articleid=3110 

Cynthia


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## minimonkey (Apr 7, 2005)

Wow, thank you for the link!!!!!! I'm a fretter by nature, and it seems that this is actually a GOOD thing in this case....

I was totally unaware of the teflon thing -- most of the rest of it I either read or intuited... I'll have to check our drip pans, and likely replace them....

I'm guessing that burning incense is off limits, too???? Happy part is, now that I am so concerned for my birds, I will start taking better care of myself in the process (I just quit smoking, for example, because of the secondhand risk to the pigeons....  )


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

I am glad that the pigeons helped you give up smoking. I wish that I had saved the money I used to spend on ciggies, it would be a tidy sum by now (12 years).

Unfortunately the smoke from incence could be harmful to pigeons, so that is another thing to avoid. 

Cynthia


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Hi minimonky,



Yes, overheating a "teflon" cooking utensile will create toxic fumes which can kill a Bird.

Any aerosols are to be viewed very cautiously...

Any cleaning supplies other than soap and water, that is, any which have any odor or smells or fumes ( tub and tile cleaners, oven cleaners, and so on..)

Any and all 'wall to wall' Carpets are VERY toxic for anyh Creature obliged to be on them and close to them. New carpets will kill a Mouse before it can get from the center of a room to the door.

Latex Paint, if one is 'painting' indoor walls and so on...

Any small 'roundish' things which might resemble a 'Seed' ( small, post ear rings for example) 

Windows, unless they have already learned to 'see' them as something solid they can not fly through...

Loose things on shelves which they can cause to slide off or knock over if they land on them...

Toilet Bowls when left open, for young Birds, can result in drowning if they fly into or fall into them somehow.

Cats, Dogs, Children, can pose hazards...

It is one thing, of course, for a Bird to have recourse to familiar indoor surrounds, while free to come and go out of doors as they like, or with some regimin anyway...

And another, if they are to live indoors entirely.


Phil
Las Vegas


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Hi Minimonkeys,

There are the toxic considerations mentioned, and of course the hazards of 
falling items from shelves, or as Phil mentions, things that could resemble
seeds and attempts at ingestion made. Many of the things that you may take
for granted around your home that could present a hazard, I think you will notice with supervised outings. If you are referring to an enclosed area while
you are gone, and supervised outings while you are there, I think you will catch on quickly what is or is not problematic. They like landing on high places, so if
for example you had torche (sp) lamps w/halogen bulb, you would not be able 
to have them on while the birds are out. They could land on the bulb as a perch and burn their feet. There are some common hazards that households share, but there are enough differences that nothing will ever take the place
of an anticipatory eye and common sense.


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## ZigZagMarquis (Aug 31, 2004)

Ceiling Fans!


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## ernie (May 3, 2003)

Zizag,
Mine use the ceiling fan as a toy. Kinda like a merry-go round.
Nooo, I don't turn it on, matter of fact motor is broken.
They will fly toward it at high speed and land on a blade, which will send it spinning lazily, then they sit there while they slowly go round and round. When it stops they jump of for a u-turn flight to have another go at it.


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Hi ernie,


Oooo! What fun..!

I will have something like that then, someday, for the indoor Birds to play on. Great idea...!

One could easily make a similar thing, of some arms arrayed from a bearing held shaft...a nice Merry-Go-Round for their amusements...

Most excellent...


Phil
Las Vegas


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## Birdmom4ever (Jan 14, 2003)

I love it--a pigeon-powered celing fan! Sounds as though it doesn't matter that the motor is broken. Gotta watch out for falling poops, though, LOL


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## PidgePidge (May 14, 2003)

I had a cockatiel that enjoyed the ceiling fan (again, not turned on--he liked to get on it and be pushed so it wasn't too fast--we must have too much time on our hands that we discover these things!!!!). He also enjoyed sitting on the record player--that makes me feel old as who has a record player any more!? But anyway, he was on America's Funniest Home Videos in the early 90s going 'round and 'round on the record player  (Not as cool as the person on here whose pigeon was on Pet Psychic though!)

As for home dangers. Yes, teflon, and smoke--they have such sensitive respiratory systems. I've also heard that the scented candles that are so popular now can be dangerous... It's really sweet that you gave up smoking for your birds--congratulations!

Just to say, while all of this caution is really good and really necessary, I also think it's sweet that you're giving your birds some roam in the house, and depite 11 years of worrying about Pidge Pidge getting into dangerous stuff in the house, he's mostly been fine. Caution = good. But I'm glad you're letting them enjoy themselves too. The worst things that have happened to me with a 'house pigeon' are: he got shut outside on accident (picture a very concerned pigeon pacing back and forth outside the back patio door for about an hour before we realized he was there!!!! We're really lucky he wasn't hurt. but in retrospect it's kinda funny), and also one time he got some thread caught around his toes, which cut into one a bit (like you see feral pigeons with all the time). We had hung a mirror under a couch for him with a nylon piece of string, which unravelled a bit and in his courting of the mirror he got a thin piece on his foot and it got tangled. Hardly a disaster but worth mentioning. 

Otherwise, we've never had problems with him getting into chemicals--obviously we don't have them laying around so maybe that's why--just like with having a child around (or other pets like cats for that matter) we keep them up high and in a cupboard--common sense--but I don't find that he has a strong desire to get into anything 'bad' either. But yes, I think if they are capable of flight, the toilet bowl is worth thinking about, and also things they could land on and knock over.

A couple of times I've just mopped the floor with bleach and he has decided to prance across it, resulting in his having to be held with his little feet under the tap while I panic...  but he was fine... Although of course it's always about that one time it's NOT fine...

So anyway have fun and best of luck!  
--Jill


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

If you get Nolvasan and use that instead of bleach, that would put you over that 
hurdle. Also, unless you fear that the pijies will put upper beak in one slot of 
outlet and lower beak in other slot of outlet at the same time, you don't really
need to worry about that either. You could take a bare wire and hold the end
of it and stick it in either side, one at a time and you will feel nothing. The circuit has to be completed by contacting both sides simultaneously.


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## Birdmom4ever (Jan 14, 2003)

The worst thing that happened to my house pigeon (this was five years ago, as we now have strictly outdoor pigeons), was when I lost her. She'd been following me from room to room and I suddenly realized I hadn't seen her in awhile. I called and called but there was no response. Finally I retraced my steps. I'd been putting clean clothes away. I opened my husband's side of the closet and there was a very startled Percy, clinging to a pair of pants! I didn't see her go in. She was searching out nest spots for "us" at the time and I guess the dark recesses of the closet looked good to her.


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Doors of course, can be a hazard. Or, mostly, if a Bird is atop an open interior Door, and it gets closed by a draft or by someone closeing it, if the Bird clings instead of getting off quickly...

Not-a-hazard for the Bird, but a possible inconvenience for us, would be a Bird making a really 'wet' dropping onto one's Computer Keyboard.
(I sloshed a tiny bit of water into my Keyboard one time, and it really did a lot of odd things, among which, was obligeing me to get a new keyboard...)

Young Birds when in their sometimes exploring modes, should be prevented from getting into the back sides of the bottoms of Refridgerators, whose typically exposed Compressor fans, come on periodically.


Phil


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Yup, had a close call w/monitor yesterday when poo fell thru the vent slots  
All kinds of strange images, I unplugged, and today after it had a chance to dry
it seems ok.....got my fingers crossed.


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

feralpigeon said:


> Also, unless you fear that the pijies will put upper beak in one slot of
> outlet and lower beak in other slot of outlet at the same time, you don't really
> need to worry about that either. You could take a bare wire and hold the end
> of it and stick it in either side, one at a time and you will feel nothing. The circuit has to be completed by contacting both sides simultaneously.



Hi FP, 

 I dare you to try putting a paperclip or wire into one side of an electrical outlet. I did this exact thing as a kid and got a very nasty jolt of electricity!


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Pigeonpal2002 said:


> Hi FP,
> 
> I dare you to try putting a paperclip or wire into one side of an electrical outlet. I did this exact thing as a kid and got a very nasty jolt of electricity!


Just did, have done for years.....nothing. The technique behind "hot-wiring", ie.
only touch one leg at a time. This presumes that wiring is to code.


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Hmm...strange then. When I did this when I was a kid, it scared me so much that I never attempted it again obviously. Perhaps the outlet I did this in was faulty or not up to code as you say. In any case, you won't find me ever sticking anything into any electrical socket again!


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Pigeonpal2002 said:


> Hmm...strange then. When I did this when I was a kid, it scared me so much that I never attempted it again obviously. Perhaps the outlet I did this in was faulty or not up to code as you say. In any case, you won't find me ever sticking anything into any electrical socket again!


Ya...can agree w/you there, that things that arouse red flags as kids can be
caution signals later in life. There are "plug-in" test/indicators that you can 
purchase in USA for around 3 bucks that have a series of lights on it that will
indicate if your outlet is wired properly. Also explains the existing problem. Also, you could have a situation unrelated per se where one stands on a carpet
during cold weather, etc.


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Thanks FP, 

I've never really thought about outlets much, other than my very scary experience as a kid. I just figured due to whatever reason, there was still high voltage going to each side and it was potentially dangerous and/or fatal. Still not sticking my fingers or anything else in any socket though

Do you think it's still completely safe though for pigeons to be around them, possibly poking their beaks into either side? What if it was an old house or old wiring done by an inexperienced person. Isn't there still a potential of something unforeseen happening?


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Pigeonpal2002 said:


> Thanks FP,
> 
> I've never really thought about outlets much, other than my very scary experience as a kid. I just figured due to whatever reason, there was still high voltage going to each side and it was potentially dangerous and/or fatal. Still not sticking my fingers or anything else in any socket though
> 
> Do you think it's still completely safe though for pigeons to be around them, possibly poking their beaks into either side? What if it was an old house or old wiring done by an inexperienced person. Isn't there still a potential of something unforeseen happening?


Hi Brad,

It's endearing that you are so protective and proactive w/your pijies, first 
of all. And, IMO, since you are the caregiver, I think it should be based on 
what you feel comfortable with as you shoulder the ultimate outcome of your
own actions. 

I gave info on the inexpensive tester so that if inclined, a member could check, if concerned, to see if their outlet was wired correctly. The norm would be as described, if only one leg were touched, no shock. Even in old
houses, the principal that electrical current is based on is the same; hot and neutral. What you'd be testing for would tell you if it were in the wiring or not.


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Hi FP, 

Yes, you're right, good advice about the tester just in case people are so inclined to check or feel uncomfortable. From my own experience with my pet pigeons, it seems like if there is something bad for them to get into, they will find it. I just assumed that an electrical outlet was a potentially lethal hazard and covered the ones up in their room. Seems like it was a little over cautious on my part now after this discussion but I tend to worry a lot. I have come to realize that it's impossible to think of everything that could cause the pigeons harm, but I also hope that I've thought of many of them. Thanks for the info


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Pigeonpal2002 said:


> Hi FP,
> 
> Yes, you're right, good advice about the tester just in case people are so inclined to check or feel uncomfortable. From my own experience with my pet pigeons, it seems like if there is something bad for them to get into, they will find it. I just assumed that an electrical outlet was a potentially lethal hazard and covered the ones up in their room. Seems like it was a little over cautious on my part now after this discussion but I tend to worry a lot. I have come to realize that it's impossible to think of everything that could cause the pigeons harm, but I also hope that I've thought of many of them. Thanks for the info


Brad...so you're "Canadian-Irish"=Murphy's Law : rolleyes: lol, sometimes I think
they know how to do things to "create drama", guess they have been around
humans too long


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## auntisocial (Apr 25, 2005)

Just a funny story...

I've seen on this board that smoking is bad for pigeons and my husband and I both smoke (not heavily). We wish we had this on video...

One night Bob took a brand new unlit cigarette out of my hubby's mouth before he could light it and threw it on the ground. We still laugh about that and have commented on it as we've read this thread. 

And I agree, if there's something BAD to get into they will find it. They also understand the word "NO" and enjoy going there.


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Hi FP and all, 

Yes, I'm a believer of Murphy's Law, and I've probably got some English or Irish blood in my Canadian body My older pair of pigeons, Henny and Eggbert aren't so much of a worry when it comes to getting into trouble, although they have. It's the younger two that are very curious and nosey still even at a year old. 

I have a thin board of wood, almost like hard cardboard that sits up against a wall on the youngsters side of the room. It's about 2.5' high and about 3 feet long. I have it there to cover up an extension cord and the light timer plugged into an electrical outlet. It's one of those non digital types of timers that uses pins to activate the on/off switch on the timer. Before I put up the board to cover the cord and timer mechanism, the babies would peck and pull at the pins on the timer. On two occasions they did mangage to pull out the pins on the timer. Needless to say, I didn't realize this until one morning I noticed that their lights didn't come on when scheduled. I found one pin on the floor and the other one was never found, eaten????-maybe! LOL. So, at this point I decided to put up the board, leaning it against the wall to cover all of this. Now, this board is pretty light and probably leaning against the wall at a 75-80 degree angle. Well, the pigeons have discovered that it's nice and dark in behind there, that favourite seeds will get trapped behind the board. Just two weeks ago I found the board fallen down from the wall, another pin missing from the timer and their seed bowl covered by the board. I surmise that they were crawling or squeezing into the narrow part at the bottom and getting stuck inside. Then they probably found that they couldn't turn around and tried to back out and in doing so, caused the board to slide down, hitting the timer switch, knocking out the pins and then ended up covering up their food dish. Fixed this problem now with a brick at the base of the board preventing it from sliding down the wall.

Another thing: My pigeon room is divided into two rooms with a barrier I built with 2' x 1's and some plastic mesh. Parents on one side, babies on the other. Do to several complications, I couldn't build the barrier to the full height of the ceiling. The barrier/wall falls about 10 inches lower than the ceiling itself. Now for normal flying pigeons, this would be a piece of cake for them to fly up to the top of the wall and get over. My runt pigeons, being heavy, large and not the most fleet of wing, aren't able to fly up to that height and traverse the narrow opening to get over the wall...YOU'D THINK!. Well, it took them some time but they figured out how to get over the wall. By clinging onto the mesh and half flapping and climbing at the same time until they reached the top, then over the great wall they went. Doesn't sound like a big deal really but in my situation I found my young male on Henny and Eggberts side of the room upon getting up one night. It was pitch dark, I found the male youngster on the floor and there were feathers EVERYWHERE!!!!!!  Eggbert is very aggressive and nearly plucked him bald. Not sure how long he was over on this side because I generally go to bed at around noon and wake up between 8-9pm. He had a potentially long and stressful day on the other side getting picked on. 

Now for Henny and Eggbert. One particularly scary incident occured nearly 2 years ago. Before they had these babies, there were in the other room in my basement by themselves. It was bigger but had more spaces for them to get into and more objects around than their new room. Well, I kept their meds/vitamins etc in a box on top of the bar. It was a heavy box (I figured) not precarious or seemingly tippable. One morning I went downstairs to find the whole box on the floor, medication bottles everywhere, powdered products spilt. I also had a pill case/cutter filled with baytril in this box. These were cut up into quarters and stored in the reservoir and ended up scattered from one end of the room to the other. I was panicked that they might have eaten many of these small pieces and overdosed. Somehow I underestimated the birds ability to knock over such a heavy box and didn't think of the potential consequences of the spillage. 

All in all, my worries were/have been mostly for nothing that I know of. I think it does show us that pigeons are very prone to getting into things they shouldn't be or rather they will find things to keep themselves busy. Inadvertantly, there is the potential for serious consequences in any sitation. Even the most innocent looking setting can become a dangerous and perhaps deadly playground for the birds.


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## PidgePidge (May 14, 2003)

Wow, we always laugh about Pidge Pidge's antics, but I never appreciated how overall 'good' he is until reading you guys' stories!  Pidge Pidge is very active but we have hardly ever have any serious concerns. Although I did think of one more-- the first time he decided to nest, he went straight to the house plants. As we have occasionally treated our house plant's soil for white fly, I was concerned about him getting in the dirt, and having the leaves in his mouth. So we stopped poisoning our house plants (and on that occasion, as I have done sometimes since, I went outside with scissors and helped him get some materials from the yard).

Otherwise though, he doesn't really peck at things he shouldn't, or get into things he shouldn't. We definitely find random things in his nest (shopping lists, my hair bands, paperclips) but nothing dangerous. The most 'meddling' thing he's probably ever done was, many years ago we came home to find that he had made a nest out of the pile of dried roses that I had collected over the years and was getting ready to throw out. It made for great pictures! Wish I had them on me and I would post one. My mom said that when he laid in it it looked like he was in a parade on a float. Again I worried a bit about chemicals had been used to grow the roses, but he was fine...


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## TerriB (Nov 16, 2003)

Brad, so sorry your young male had such a harrowing experience! Just when you think they can't do something, they go and to it. We didn't think Walter could fly that well either until he saw a cat in the yard and flew to the top access door we had just cut out for the little birds!

I can just picture Pidge Pidge in a bed of roses - what a great photo that would be!


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Hi Pidge Pidge,

Your stories about your pigeon sound hysterical! They are quite the ingenious buggers when they want to be. I TOO worry about plants, and toxins around the home, as there are so many. Recently, I collected some twigs and branches from outside. My old male was wanting to build a nest for his mate Henny but there was nothing to be found for him, other than old feathers. So, out I went to trim and prune branches and twigs outside in the yard. Cutting off exact pieces of the best size for him to present to Henny in the nest. I cut and pruned for about an hour and half filled a small grocery bay full of twigs.

I then scattered them on the floor for Eggbert to pick and choose for his mate and their nest. Luckily, he was afraid. He's a domestic bird and used to certain shapes, looks and colours of nesting material. He rejected the nesting material and was afraid of what I presented him with. Upon further thought, I think it was best. Wild birds poop on those twigs and branches routinely. They have insects and pests on them and I just got the willies over it all. My mind raced, probably unwarranted but still, I discarded all the material I had collected and just gave them their standard raffia and straw BOUGHT from the pet store


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Thanks Terri, 

Yes, I was terrified too of what COULD have happened. Thankfully, my male youngster was ok, shaken up, but ok. For a few days (at least) he stopped trying to get over the wall Finally I had to improvise again and board over the top section so that they couldn't get over to the other side.


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Jill, 

I almost forgot to mention and respond, but I'm SURE I've see your video sent into AFV with your cockatiel on the ceiling fan!!! I am a pretty regular watcher of that show, especially when they have animals on it. I can see this video you're talking about in my minds eye. You and your birds are STARS!


WAY TO GO!!!!!!!!!!!! and thanks for that clip,


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Pigeonpal2002 said:


> Hi FP and all,
> 
> By clinging onto the mesh and half flapping and climbing at the same time until they reached the top, then over the great wall they went. Doesn't sound like a big deal really but in my situation I found my young male on Henny and Eggberts side of the room upon getting up one night.
> 
> ...


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

auntisocial said:


> Just a funny story...
> 
> I've seen on this board that smoking is bad for pigeons and my husband and I both smoke (not heavily). We wish we had this on video...
> 
> ...



Hi autisocial, 

(I still wish to congratulate you on having such a cool name!) 


I would not worry about anyone smokeing, unless in a tightly closed house, and smoking really bad Cigars or something. But normal, occasional cigarettes in a normal home with windows or doors open now and then, will never matter one wit.

Far, far, far 'worse', than incidental Cigarettes, would be the 'normal' indoor Air quality of most modern homes and appartments and their central 'air' systems for heating and cooling, and their manner of re-circulating stale, mold spore, dust mite and nematode husks and fine allergen ridden, nasty 'air'. The off gassing of their flake board's sheathing and sub floors formeldehyde based glues, the offgassing of their carpets and Latex Paints...off gassing of synthetic fibers of fabris of all kinds, clothes, curtains, on and on...

Too, here in sunny Las Vegas, as in much of Southern Calilfornia and other 'basins'...the smog itself is bad, as a base line, which Pigeons, as well as us, endure...


...sigh...

Phil
Las Vegas


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## auntisocial (Apr 25, 2005)

We live on the 4th floor (so that is nice) and are able to keep the balcony door open most of the time. Bob and Chicken spend most of their time outside now. Lots of fresh air here in Seattle.

I close the screen and the curtains when I bring the babes out to feed them. Rocky and Apollo are growing like weeds. We named them because of their sparring... but who knows their REAL sex. Their personalities are very different than our previous pair. Apollo is scrappy and always has the wing thing going. Rocky is more laid back and loves to sit and look at me (no accounting for taste). They ALREADY wing whap each other. 

They look very different than Bob and Chicken (and from each other). Apollo is going to be gray/white with a dark head and silver and black on his wings. Rocky is black with patches of white and has silver and black on the tips of his wings. 

On a completely different note -- How I got my name! I have a brother who is 17 years younger than I am and when he was a younger teenager he used to call me up to say things like... 

Kevin: Hey Laura, your favorite band is coming to town!
Laura: Which favorite band was that again?
Kevin: Remember, your favorite band... Metallica!
Laura:  Oh yeah! Wow I forgot they were my favorite band!

He knew he stood a much better chance of getting permission from our parents to go the concert if he went with me.  So, I got to spend lots of time with him by going to rock concerts, including the band *Anthrax* -- who did a song called "Antisocial". I played the bass guitar and Kevin played lead. I always threatened I was going to learn "Antisocial", join his band, wear a gray wig, thick black-rimmed glasses and a black leather jacket with "Auntisocial" (in big red letters) on the back. Sort of an inside joke between us referencing this Anthrax song. LOL OK! I'm done boring you.  

Here are some new pics.


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## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

Great story of how you got your name, Laura.
The pics are fantastic. Love them.

Reti


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