My daughter loves birds. She always has done, since she was tiny.
Her aunt bought her a budgerigar a few months ago; a pretty, sweet, pale blue bird that had been hand-fed but not hand-raised. While comfortable enough with people, you can’t touch it.
The bird’s name is Star. Star is most definitely a male bird. But my Bump steadfastly refuses to accept this. “No, mummy. Star is a girl birdie!!!” So Star has been given official pronoun status.
As much as my daughter adores her bird– she sings and chats to him, enquires about his day and if he’s “okay”, hugs his cage to say goodnight– there’s something about keeping a bird in a cage that feels shameful and sad.
Star.
My dad kept birds when I was a teenager– I remember feeding tiny ugly baby birds with a spoon, their spiky quill feathers just sprouting and their beaks huge compared to their scrawny bodies. But that felt different. Those birds were either outside, together, in conjoined cages, or hand raised and kept inside as companions; almost flightless but free to roam by foot, or on a human shoulder– for hours each day.
They say Leonardo DaVinci made a habit of buying caged birds and releasing them back into the wild.
I don’t think breaking my daughter’s heart like that is an option here. And Star seems happy enough. He chatters away to himself, plays in his cage. He sings and squeaks. He’s taken to imitating the sound on rubber-soled shoes walking on our vinyl floor.
But occasionally, during the day when I move his cage to sit it in the sun streaming through the lounge room windows, Star will hear the calls of native birds in the gum trees outside. And he’ll respond, loudly and furtively.
The sound gives me a funny pang of hurting somewhere deep in my guts. It makes me ask questions about myself.
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Have you ever read the poem “I know why the caged bird sings” by Maya Angelou. This post made me think of that. Great poem.
Hey Marie, I haven’t thought of that poem for years. I remember hearing when I was about twenty. On Oprah, I think, of all places.
Just agreeing with prev posters. I knew nothing about this ’till yesterday but have been researching to determine the sex of the budgie I’ve just inherited. And yup, from what I’ve read, Star is a girl birdie!
Thanks Katcham! I have to confess I know nothing about budgies- we never kept them. I was just going on what the pet shop guy to my SIL… the Bump is going to love it!
Lori Dwyer recently posted…Star.
Star is a female. You can tell by the colour about their beak. If it is a beige/brown colour that means she is female. If it is blue, it is a male.
A Daft Scots Lass recently posted…Little Shop of Boerewors
My daughter is going to freaking love this
Thank you! x
Lori Dwyer recently posted…Star.
Birds born in captivity will not survive in the wild, they haven’t been taught, as babies, to fend for themselves in the wild. Don’t feel guilty then about keeping your budgie in a cage, it wouldn’t survive if, like DaVinci, you set it free!!!
That makes me feel better- thanks Snowie
Lori Dwyer recently posted…Star.
So I could be mistaken from the pic Lori but Star looks like a girl to me. Budgies with a brown cere (nose) are girls and blue for boys. Might be hard to tell in the photo though
Oh wow- really? Hahaha- thank you for letting me know! The Bump will be thrilled
Lori Dwyer recently posted…Star.
Have you thought of getting Star a friend to share his cage with? I’ve bred and raised baby cockatiels, and they are free to roam the house, and are very much part of the family.
Lisa@Circle of Toast recently posted…Life and Death At the Library
Hey Lisa, I hadn’t thought of that actually- that’s quite a good idea. I’m wondering if the cage would be big enough for two? I’ll have to check it out! Thank you
x
Lori Dwyer recently posted…Star.