Birdblog: a full cage and an empty nest: 12 things a java sparrow might do

Birdblog: a full cage and an empty nest: 12 things a java sparrow might do: So what does a lonely bird do to keep himself occupied? 1. He buries his beak in the birdseed and throws seed over his shoulder into the b...

12 things a java sparrow might do

So what does a lonely bird do to keep himself occupied?
1.  He buries his beak in the birdseed and throws seed over his shoulder into the birdbath.
2.  He bathes in the water feeder, since the birdbath is full of seed.
3.  He tries to get to the seed that has fallen though the bottom of his cage.
4.  He chirps.
5.  He sings.
6.  He hops a bit.
7.  He flies up to the walls of the cage and hangs out there.
8.  He perches
9.  He looks around, tilting his head prettily
10.  He listens to other birds outside.   He is especially impressed by his cousins the cardinals.
11.  He preens and flaps his wings.
12.  He avoids the human who feeds and waters him.

Birdblog: a full cage and an empty nest: Hey, buddy, where are you? Jack calls out to Atti...

Birdblog: a full cage and an empty nest: Hey, buddy, where are you? Jack calls out to Atti...: So no feather nor foot of Atticus, the departed pet java sparrow. Jack is quiet. He is not mute, but he's not exactly singing. I wonder ...

Hey, buddy, where are you? Jack calls out to Atticus.

So no feather nor foot of Atticus, the departed pet java sparrow.  

Jack is quiet.  He is not mute, but he's not exactly singing.  I wonder what will happen when I open the cage tomorrow morning to change food and water.  Will he make a break for it, to be with his buddy?

I've been thinking about this all day, as I went through the ebb and flow of teaching.  I did know they weren't tame or friendly, but I guess I let down my guard.  I wonder where Atticus is.  I keep thinking I hear him, but it's probably Jack.  (He just chirped a couple of times).  Hmm...I see what people mean about java sparrows singing more if they're alone.  He just said a whole lot.  Probably telling atticus that he'll get out when I open the cage again, to not go away without him...

Birdblog: a full cage and an empty nest: This bird has flown

Birdblog: a full cage and an empty nest: This bird has flown: So this morning I tried to clean the cage with the "Poop-Off," and was doing a good job when Atticus got out. I chased him about the house...

This bird has flown

So this morning I tried to clean the cage with the "Poop-Off," and was doing a  good job when Atticus got out.  I chased him about the house and had no success retrieving him.  He finally flew behind the couch and after awhile seemed not to be there.  No chirping, I pulled the couch forward and he wasn't behind it.  So I sat down to wait.  Finally, as I was taking out the trash, he appeared suddenly and hopped away.  I realized that he had clipped wings, so he does not have a good prognosis "in the wild."  I would not let Jack out for the same reason.  I hope he survives.  I don't think he'll come back.  Various lessons could suggest themselves, but none of them really apply.  If you love a bird set him free...that leads to "he was never really yours in the first place."  I accept that.  Should I have gotten a "holding cage" to clean the cage more fully?

Anyway, I don't think Jack will do too well without Atticus, and I don't know where I'd find another Java.
     Perhaps he is also waiting to make a bolt for freedom.  The other symbolic lesson for me I suppose, is to not expect company.  For the moment I will not accept that lesson, and will go off to work.  In the meantime, he has not left the side of the cage to drink or eat.  I have given him strawberries, a small enough portion for a tiny doll, and a bit of lettuce fit for a fairy.  I never had the illusion that they were liking it here, but it's still emotionally draining.

Birdblog: a full cage and an empty nest: Pellets and poop-off bird poop REMOVER

Birdblog: a full cage and an empty nest: Pellets and poop-off bird poop REMOVER: So I went to a big-box pet food emporium to see what they had for the java sparrow contingent, and they had some interesting foods. It appe...

Pellets and poop-off bird poop REMOVER

So I went to a big-box pet food emporium to see what they had for the java sparrow contingent, and they had some interesting foods.  It appears that I should be feeding Jack and Atticus pellets rather than seeds.  "Specialized pelleted diets are highly recommended and should consist of 60-70% of the diet; use fortified seeds in moderation as they are higher in fat and less nutritious than pellets."  So I bought a large bag of tiny pellets (I was told they were pellets, but they looked more like the brightly colored sprinkles that are put on cupcakes, only dull, not shiny, and fluorescent and ochre in color).  The boys don't seem to like them.  I saw on the same informational card quoted above, "If your bird is used to a seed diet, convert to pellets gradually."  Where would java sparrows get day-glow pelletlettes smelling of fruit in the wild???

I also purchased a specialized product for cleaning, "poop-off bird poop REMOVER"  (this is the typography on the bottle).  It is hard to use because I don't dare to let the birds out, and they dive bomb my giant hand when I'm using it, no doubt alarmed by the shaking of their purple cage.  I'm working at it, anyway.  It advertises that it ends "the tedious task of cleaning up after birds."  I don't find it tedious, just a little scary.

Here's the miracle product!

Birdblog: a full cage and an empty nest: Paddy Bird and Flower

Birdblog: a full cage and an empty nest: Paddy Bird and Flower: This Hiroshige Print hangs in my local museum, the Honolulu Academy of Arts. At first I had trouble understanding the caption, since it sai...

Paddy Bird and Flower

This Hiroshige Print hangs in my local museum, the Honolulu Academy of Arts.  At first I had trouble understanding the caption, since it said:  Camellia and Paddy bird and Korean Nightingale.  The Nightingale is looking to the right, and the "Paddy bird" is looking to the left.  But the Paddy bird is another name for the breed my friends belong to, the Java Sparrow, Rice Bird or Rice Finch.    Its Latin name is the Padda Oryzavora, or Paddy rice eater.  My friends would not be welcome in a country where rice was a major crop.  They are right now looking as elegant as the bird in this engraving, with equally distinct, clean colors.  They are preening and grooming each other, sitting on their perch.

The print is in a tradition dating to early Chinese painting, birds with flowers.  Perhaps I should get my boys a Camellia.  I wonder if they'd eat it.  A hibiscus would be more locavorian.  I give them rice whenever I eat it, and they usually have some of it.  

A Bird Bath With a Mirror

So I got the birds a bath.  It has a mirror at the bottom of this.    I'm not sure why.  They have avoided it, but at least they have not stayed on the wall of their cage in terror, as they did when I tried to install a millet tree, complete with a bell and millet.  They have just declined to use it.  On the other hand I got them some special songbird mix which they really seem to enjoy.  It's a supplement to their usual parakeet or small bird mix.  I've also seen them go for the gravel, which is supposed to help their gizzards digest their food.  

They are like twins, and I'm not a good enough mom to know who's who.  They are virtually identical, like mirror images of each other.  I've named one Jack and one Atticus.  They require very little care, and are very pleasant to have around.  I enjoy driving up in the car and hearing them chirping as if they're plotting their escape.  They fall silent at first when I enter, then resume chirping.  Right now they are both preening, and they've been flapping their wings.  They are both on their perch, which is also where they sleep.  

I like them, even though they don't seem affectionate or need human affection for other things than food, water, and changing of the newspaper.  They are also very handsome, with their miniature puffin suits.

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