I went to work one day, in early July, and Dave was outside working on one of our rental machines. There was a baby bird sitting on a flat cart. The winds were strong that day, and he kept blowing off the flat cart, so I found a small box, and put him in it. I Called my wife and she came down with a small cage, to take him home. We fed him, and it wasn't long till he had lost all his baby down, and was fully feathered. We identified him as a European Starling. We let him out of the cage and his first flights were short, and he had trouble landing, but he soon got the hang of it, and we would let him out for an hour, or so, each day. He finally started eating on his own, and we decided it was time to let him join his other feathered kin. we took him back to Home Depot, in a wooded area, and opened the cage door, but he wouldn't come out. I reached in, and he hopped on my hand, and I took him out, set him on a tree limb, and he immediately flew back to Carol's head. We tried to get him to fly off several times, and after about 45 minutes decided he really didn't want to go, so we put him back in the cage and took him back home. This has to be the cleanest bird I have ever seen. When we let him out, we put a bowl of water in the sink, and he will bathe 3 or 4 times there, plus a couple more times in his cage. Of course he has to sit on your shoulder, after a bath, and shake himself dry. Looks like he is here to stay.
About 4 years ago, my daughter rescued an adult dove that had been attacked by a cat. It's left wing was almost torn completely off, and it eventually fell off, so it was helpless. He is now adapted to being in a large cage and will tolerate being petted, but he would rather you didn't. It is so cool to hear him cooing though, kind of a peaceful sound. Thought about putting Bert in with him, but afraid they won't get along, and they may start pecking each other.
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November 1, 2011, and Bert is still with us. He has learned to mimic our whistles, and can do some fairly intricate sounds. At times it seems like he is trying to talk. His coloring has changed, many more spots, and more iridescence around the back and sides.
Loves dried meal worms, and wheat bread. They require a high protein diet, and he seems to know what not to try.
October 10, 2012, and Bert is still going strong. Has learned many more sounds, and will normally stay close to the wife, when he is out. He's 15 months old now. Loves his many daily baths.He has to sit om someone's shoulder to shake dry, but we don't mind.
March 10, 2013. Bert has learned many new whistles, and can say "hi, bert", and "whatcha doing"? He is stringing whistles together, been trying to teach him Ode To Joy, and some of Mozart,s simpler tunes.
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