Lucky Bird

Sunday morning Blaine headed out for his weekend morning ritual, softball with Daddy. About an hour and a half later, Joey calls me. "Blaine just found a cockatiel. Can you come get it?" Umm....no! Yup, that's exactly what I said!

We have four dogs, a skinny pig, and a hamster. We are not running a zoo, and we do not need a bird. This, however, does not phase my two boys and their very dominant Savior of All Animals Syndrome. Evidentally, the boys (you know, the boys of the softball playing dads) saw this cockatiel in a tree. As much as Blaine would not like me telling you this, they threw rocks at him to get him out of the tree. The other boys wanted to continue throwing rocks at him once he was down, but MY boy stepped in and saved him, loved him, and wanted him. From what I understand, he carried that bird around on his finger for the next two hours while walking around the ballpark and keeping the other boys from hurting him.

So when he got home and walked in my bedroom where I was folding laundry, this is what I saw. "Look, Mom, it's Lucky, my cockatiel!!"



Y'all, he was SSOO excited. It was love at first sight! Not only had he saved him from the wrath of 8-year old boys, he saved him from something else, too. Something had really torn up his poor little head and neck. His feathers were completely torn off. I literally took 57 pictures trying to get a view, but he is never still enough for me to get one of his wounds. This is the best I could do.



Blaine wanted to call Dawn because, you know, "she loves her birds the best, and she'll know what to do." He and his Daddy talked to her. The next thing I know, they had Neosporin on a Q-tip and were doctoring him up, which, by the way, they've done day and night since then. Then they were researching on the internet what he needed, if he would live, etc. He was shivering alot, so Kylee said we should put a blanket over his cage. The boys put Gatorade in his water bowl so he could be hydrated. He actually drank it right away. It took him a day or so before we saw him eating. Blaine told me that night that he loved Lucky as much as Dawn loves her birds, and that's A LOT! I told Joey if this bird dies, it's gonna be a disaster, AND it's gonna be HIS fault for letting him bring him home!!

We made Blaine leave him alone those first couple of days, just to let him rest and recover. He couldn't stand it! Monday after school, he made Mom Mom take him by our house before they went to hers to make sure he was okay. He called me at work and said, "Mom, Lucky lived!!"

Since then, Lucky has just continued to improve. He chirps, swings on his swing in his cage, and eats regularly. It's like he knows Blaine saved him. He LOVES Blaine. The minute Blaine gets home, he gets Lucky, and they hang out, read books, and play on the computer.

Last night Kylee wanted to hold him, but she just can't quite make herself do it. She's so afraid Blaine's going to throw him at her or make her hold it, so Blaine put him on the floor and walked away to do his homework so Kylee could pick him up on her own. Kylee went to stick her finger out, but Lucky knew she wasn't the one who saved him. He took wings and flew...straight to Blaine's head.



His feathers are beginning to grow back, and he's awake and active. I think Lucky is going to be okay. Blaine said this morning, "Maybe he'll live 'til Christmas. I said, "Son, if he makes it until Christmas, he's gonna live longer than that." He said, "Yeah, maybe as long as Dawn's!"

Live long, Lucky bird!