Hi, I go by "JR" and I am no different than you all, I love birds! My FID family is made up of mostly macaws, but I also have 2 adorable hawkheads, 3 conures and a Black Palm Cockatoo. In addition to my fids, I have a small canine family, Kada, my Newfoundland and Bell, my Old English Sheepdog. I have been fortunate to have lived, visited, and worked all over the world and have enjoyed every experience. I am married to Winged Victory, am a proud mother, grandma, and my profession is management consultant.

Well that is me, doing what I do best Vacationing with a cold BudWeiser close at hand. Well lets start off by saying this, I am 26 years old. I have a wonderful wife named Amber. (Big Red) I work for an elevator company called Otis, (Im sure you have all been trapped in one at some point or another) and I recently realized work takes up way to much time. But in that little bit of free time I enjoy spending it with Amber, our Fids Jack & Seymour, and we can never forget the two hounds Lola & Sophie.

~Lance
AKA "Dude"

My name is Karen. The feathered and fur gang consists of my Green Winged Macaws; Kady and Kita and my Pomeranians; Mickey, Minnie and Kessa.

Kady has been with me since late July of 2005 and Kita joined the family on May of 2006. Since then life has never been the same! They have taken over every inch of my heart...and the house.

I am a Pet Sitter and started my business in 1998. I recently scaled back and am now enjoying seeing to the needs of just a few select Clients and their pets. It's been a great business for me, as I love doing anything that involves animals.

Hi! I'm Nate, aka Quito's Qage. I live in a little town in northern Maine, population 650 give or take. The household sits on a knoll surrounded by six acres of Cedar swamp, and we fondly refer to it as "Agony Acres". Inhabitants include me, one S/O, the two fids and Buddy, a rescued Black Lab mix. There's also all the "outside" wild birds we feed, and the occasional wandering Moose, Deer, or Bear. My life pretty much revolves around the fids, the computer, and my work with the U. S. Postal Service.

Quito is a female Green Cheeked Conure, and Tausi is a male Red Bellied Parrot. By a quirk of fate they were both hatched on the same day in different states, February 16, 2006. Since then they have become so much a part of my life, as have so many of the fine folks I have met here on Parrot Chatter and other bird forums.

I am both honored and pleased to be asked to join the team here at PC. We have already shared so much joy and laughter, as well as some frustration and sorrow as we struggle to learn how to be the best possible caretakers for these worthy creatures. I am continually struck by the depth of love, thirst for knowledge, and willingness to help others that bird keepers display, and my respect for you grows with each passing day.

I very much look forward to contributing to the success of Parrot Chatter in whatever way I can. If I can help anyone, please don't hesitate to ask.

My name is Sarah, aka svolk, and I’m 27 yrs. old. My husband and I reside in a quaint little town in Michigan, just over the border of Ohio. Our family includes two very active budgies, one sweet cockatiel, one loveable dog (Beagle/Spring Spaniel mix), three very different cats, and two beautiful freshwater fish tanks (55 gallon community tank and 90 gallon aggressive tank).

When we’re not at our full time jobs – I’m a chemist and hubby is a teacher – our life revolves around the critters. We’ve always been cat and dog and fish people and we have been blown away by the impact that the birds have had on us. Jerry, our violet factor opaline American budgie, was our first bird and he is an absolute joy to have with us. He has been home with us since November of 2005. He’s a true comedian, has the energy of a roadrunner, and talks to all of us, including the cats! He’s a constant ray of sunshine every single day.

Lulu came home with us in February of 2006 after she boldy chose my husband by marching onto his hand, up his arm, and onto his shoulder as if it was meant to be – and it was love at first sight from that moment on. She’s smart, sassy, independent, and a real princess. She’s Daddy’s little girl and as sweet as can be (usually lol). Lulu is the calm and rational bird amongst the budgie madness, and she handles her budgie brothers’ crazy antics very well.

Winston is our most recent addition to our family. I stumbled upon him in a pet store where he was alone in a cage after being dropped off at the pet store by his previous owner. He is an adult male English budgie (grey factor), presumed to be roughly one year old when we brought him home, which was in March of 2007. This big dude has come a long way in a fairly short amount of time – everything from trusting humans to learning how to use those lovely wings. Every day he is learning and coming a little more out of his shell. He has learned so much from Jerry and Lulu and he continues to amaze me – and himself! – with all that he can accomplish. He’s a real sweetheart and his previous owner(s) didn’t realize what a wonderful bird they are missing out on.

Every day I am reading and researching and learning how to further enrich the lives of my birds. I am so pleased to be a part of this board and I look forward to working with everyone in hopes of learning from each other and keeping the birds’ best interest in mind.

Hi all,

I have been asked to help out on the moderation team and I am excited to do so! I'm Dana, 28, married to a very wonderful man named Danny, and we are owned by 2 macaws. We live in San Diego County, CA and both work in technology.

I have been "into" birds pretty much my entire life. Growing up I took in all unwanteds that crossed my path, and have done some rescue/rehab/placement with parrots of many different types. My obsession with macaws started the first time I saw a Scarlet Macaw, at age 3. When I was 16 - my dad brought home a 5 month old Scarlet for me; I named her Tiki.

Tiki is now 11, and will be 12 in July 2008. She is a continued tremendous source of joy in my life. Always quick to make us laugh, knows what she wants, she keeps us on our toes, is very affectionate, and quite frankly is the most beautiful creature I have ever met - though I may be bias there ;-} We have truly grown up together and share a very special bond.

Red is our Greenwing Macaw. He just turned 3 in March 2008. Red came via airplane to live with us in May 2006. His previous owner was faced with moving overseas and placed him with us. We are greatful every day that he has come into our lives. Red is a sweetheart with a large vocabulary and a goofy personality. He is currently in the "testing" stage where he is really pushing his limits as he masters the house rules.

We dedicate much time and many resources into keeping our macaws happy. I think the key to keeping macaws happy is : continued research, fresh diet, lots of love, and a great sense of humor.

I also keep the "empire finch building" - a 5' finch flight that houses two tiny zebras and an american singer canary that is a constant source of nice sounds and joy.

My pets never cease to amaze me.

Greetings all

I am thankful to have been asked to be part of this team. My name is Angie hailing from South Africa. I have had many animals and birds my entire life. Horses, cows, goats, ducks, chickens, fish, dogs, cats, budgies, ringies, suns, lovies, and teils. My budgies sort of bred by accident in my bedroom as a child. In those days hand feeding was not quite the thing to do and those babies were co-parented, with the budgies doing all the hard work of feeding. Also not knowing any better they had an almost entirely seed diet with greens and fruit as treats. Nowdays even the budgies enjoy a cooked fresh based diet and seem so much happier for it. Today I am passionate about Sun Conures but also keep Indian Ring necks and my old favorite, Budgies. I choose to allow my birds to breed and live with as little interference from me as possible, they get to raise families in peace. My pets however are a different story and get to live in the heart of the family as cherished members, sharing our food, living space, including our stuff, and bathroom facilities (the shower or basin). I do not breed commercially so I understand this is only possible with fellow hobbyist breeders, but it is my choice is to breed for pleasure rather than profit. In making this choice I don’t turn out the maximum number of chicks that hatch or live till banding stage but they get to enjoy the right of being parent raised for a time. My breeders are also not forced into a rapid breeding cycle that can result in tired out, frustrated parents and weaker chicks. It is my belief that a few extra weeks with the parents can make all the difference in a well adjusted pet which has a lifetime ahead of him/her. I choose to hand feed from just after pin feather stage with a spoon. Babies are never forced to wean and get to experience an abundant diet when weaning. I also believe in providing the babies with toys as soon as they show any desire in picking anything up as they must be able to entertain themselves rather than expecting a human to be the only source of entertainment. Babies are also raised in groups rather than single containers as the flock instinct is strong. I am continually learning what I can do to try turn out the best possible baby for his/her new home; who I hope will become a cherished member of the new family. I do try keep in contact with my babies and love hearing how they grow. I have a new baby blue & gold which I hope one day will be tolerant of my best boy Peanut.

Hi to all.
My name is Jac – short for Jacqueline. For now, I live in Toronto, Canada, [pop.2,503,281] and reside in a 29th floor apartment & office overlooking downtown & Lake Ontario. I live with my husband, teen son & 2 Budgies.

I read a great deal about most bird species and the care of them before choosing the Budgie. Our 1st Budgie, Laker, came from a shelter in 2006 & a year later we got him a pal [Rio] from a small breeder. They are free flighted & are out of their cages all day. Their ‘aviary’ is the back half of our apt. [3 rooms & a long hallway/flightpath]. They have very distinct personalities & make us laugh a great deal.

Budgies can be quite noisy. We have to lock them out of the office or little gets done; keyboards are jumped on, forms are chewed & clients are interrupted. I have also had Laker jump into my acrylic paints a few times. I am away some days working at clients’ [Home Décor, Real Estate Staging & Teaching Art] and the Budgies are apparently very quiet when I’m away. I know they are happy to see me and like to be with their flock.

It is a pleasure to be part of Parrotchatter. Since coming here I have learned a lot about bird & animal care. I will do my best to be of help.