The Menagerie




Oh, my goodness, what a week. First there was the budgie, who looks quite adorable in florals. She is a baby, six weeks old, and was extremely friendly, hopping onto our hands and perching on our shoulders like a tiny pirate budgie. Her cage was a bower of delicious bottle brush branches and excess kale leaves, she had bird baths in the bathroom sink every day and she appeared to have made friends with the cat. As of yesterday though, she has decided that she doesn't like us, won't hop onto our hands, and if we take her out of her cage, scrabbles desperately to climb back into it again. I suspect a) the cats, or b) the hordes of ten year old girls who have possibly loved her not wisely but too well. Her cage is now permanently hung out of cat range, and we are patiently (well, some of us are) holding our hands in the cage with some seed, waiting for her to love us again (the great lesson of parenthood - bribery, bribery, bribery...).




And then, last night our fence finally became dog proof, and today, we have a lovely, lovely puppy. Now I am not a dog person. BUT Benson is a lovely boy, with eyebrows and a white tip to his tail and velvety ears. I am still not a dog person, but I am now a Benson person. We have been walking him every day that he has been staying at the RSPCA, and he has grown on me. He also lies on his cushion curled up like a saucer, which is rather fetching, and rather a relief, because until we got him home today, we had never seen any evidence that he could actually sit down. We are going to get very fit, apparently.

So far we are taking the advice from the RSPCA and keeping the cats away from the dog for now, but it is like a military operation. They will no doubt meet quite soon, not from any deliberate intent, or under supervision, but due to sheer carelessness on our behalf. That will be exciting.

In other news, my parents are also visiting, but so far they have been very well behaved, and only require the occasional treat and a few walks to keep them happy.

Comments

Jen's Busy Days said…
I hope you enjoy Benson for a very long time. We had to put down our 18 year old Tibetan Spaniel before we left NSW and I miss his dog hair floating everywhere and mingling with my long hair in the vacuum canister.

Enjoy your new family!!

Best wishes
Jen in Qld
Unknown said…
You are too funny. I think you treated the budgie too well and it got delusions of grandeur. Treat em mean and keep em keen. I hope your parents enjoy their visit and are appropriately toilet trained because that's probably all you want in life right now?
Jo said…
Oh Jen, so sorry about your old friend. Hope you find a new one sometime..
Lynda, possibly your diagnosis is correct re the budgie. And yes, parents well toilet-trained.. for now..
Anonymous said…
I am like you - I am not a dog person, but I like particular dogs that I know. Have never owned a bird, though!
Anonymous said…
Who's a pretty girl then? I am in agreement. Who couldn't love Benson? If he is laying down on a cushion, that is a good sign that he is a good dog. The fact that he is laying and not shredding is a very good sign. Glad to see you have your parents under control. Unlike budgies and dogs they tend to think that they can run amok and are seriously unpredictable things. Hopefully Benson will learn to love his cat overlords or at least ignore them (like Bezial) and we won't talk about Earl and cats (lips buttoned!) Welcome to Chez Blue Day Benson and Squeaky Miss :)
Evi said…
I have been enjoying your thoughts lately - especially 'Here Be Dragons' - I can truly relate to that one although for me its not The Break and singledom thats doing my head in, rather my own new found sense of purpose, the growing independence of my remaining children and the mid life crisis of my Man.
And then today, I'm chuckling over your new menagerie….including parents!!! You are a hoot!
Thanks for lightening my day!!!
Jo said…
Dar, Benson is about the first dog I have ever really liked, maybe because he is mine:)
Fran, the fact that enson is not racing around shredding everything in sight is SUCH a relief! The Christmas tree is up and he hasn't even looked at it! Milo the top cat has Benson right where he wants him. Suitably cowed. Benson runs away whenever he sees him, and Milo the tiny tabby cat knows that is just what nature intended.
Evi, these life changes are so tricky. Change is something I am generally dragged kicking and screaming towards.. but always grateful for afterwards. All the best:)
Kristen Johns said…
We have two beautiful budgies in our household and our blue one looks exactly like yours in the photo! They could be long lost cousins! We've had our birds for a year now and perhaps we're terrible people but the birds still hate coming out of their cage and definitely won't sit on our finger... although one will reluctantly sit on a hand held perch. I would never have believed how moody budgies are, but maybe it's because the birds are both female, and I live in a house full of boys and a man!
Jo said…
Ha ha Kristen, yes, I am sure they are long lost cousins, because all budgies came from outback Australia originally. Bluebell the Budgie has us in stitches this week because she does circus tricks hanging upside down on the bottle brush branches to get at the flowers. But often she falls off (yes, we are unfeeling. But it is funny). And oh, yes, moody. Sometimes this week she has let us stroke her and hold her, and other times she screeches at us like we are collectively, the devil incarnate. Hormones?
Kristen Johns said…
Hormones, possibly. But to me it always likens more to an over tired toddler! Love the bottle brush, by the way. I wish I could find that here!

Popular Posts