Abstract
S ometimes you just never know when something is going to forever· change your life and the lives of those around you - such is the saga of Bink E. Berde, my four year old Solomon Island Eclectus male. I've always been an animal lover, bred Abyssinian and Balinese cats for many years, and had been visiting nursing homes and the like with pets years before the term "animal assisted therapy" was coined.
But a parrot? I had never even thought about sharing my life with such a creature - and truth be told, I was more than slightly afraid of them. Little did I know how that was all to change.
In 1996, the store where I usually purchase cat food was temporarily housing quite a few parrots of all sizes and descriptions. Before I knew it, the "parrot urge" took on a life of its own, and during lunch hour after lunch hour, I found myself haunting this shop, picking the brains of the friendly and knowledgeable staff.
"Parrot fever" had me firmly in its grip! I wasn't at all convinced that an avian companion would be warmly and graciously welcomed by my four cats but, one way or another, I had to have a parrot. just maybe, I thought, my boss would agree to house a parrot in our offices.
I have a great job as a paralegal/office administrator for a small law firm in San Francisco, where we specialize in representing persons with disabilities who have been denied access to public places, either because of architectural barriers or whose service animals (such as a guide dog) have been denied entry to a public place, such as a restaurant. Because of this, my boss is well aware of the many benefits pets bring to their humans. I had nothing to lose. I took the plunge and inquired, "Wouldn't it be nice to have a little bird in the office?" Somewhat to my amazement, the answer was yes - on the condition that the bird be exotic and that it be named "The Judge" (which never did quite come to pass)and the hunt was on.
Weeks of intensive research ensued as I tried to learn as much as possible in a short time about which of the
many parrot species would make the best office pet and he less inclined than some to be a "one person" bird, not too noisy, not too destructive, have the potential to be a good talker, and of course, be spectacularly beautiful.
I visited pet shops, private aviaries, read everything I could find and I'm sure bored all my friends to tears with my single-mindedness! When all was said and done, everything pointed to an Eclectus. That decided, I spoke to several breeders in the Bay Area and was impressed in particular with Steve Copeland and Paul Bianculi, of Eggsotic Parroting. From the first moment Steve placed this beautiful little green guy on my hand, I knew he was "my" bird.
After about six weeks of visiting my baby parrot, it was finally time to bring him home and thanks to the generosity of his breeders with their time, knowledge and advice, I felt reasonably confident in my ability to properly care for my new friend.
We had set up a large cage in our very overcrowded office, putting the baby parrot right in the thick of things. From the start, this bird amazed me on a daily basis. Perhaps it was because I had visited with him so often before he came home, or perhaps it was just because of the bird he innately is, but my new Eclectus had absolutely no problems adjusting to his new surroundings.
He ate the very first day, seemed thrilled with his toys and cage, and quickly set out to win everyone's heart and to make his corner of the office his vigorously defended territory.
We had plans to relocate to larger office space (and are now ensconced
in a spacious Victorian, complete with a glassed-in back porch for the bird cage), but at first, the quarters were tight, to say the least. The bird who would never be called The Judge, was wedged between a busy photocopy machine and a big supply cabinet. Soon, he became the "toll taker" at the supply cabinet and decided it was his job to guard the copier against interlopers and so on.
He was christened "Bink E. Berde" on his second day, as one of my coworkers was playing with him and exclaimed, "Oh, you're such a cute little binky bird." Something about it seemed right. Something about "The Judge" seemed wrong. So, Bink E. Berde he became and thus began his career as a "parrotlegal."
Our offices at that time were in a building that also had residential condominiums and it wasn't long before Bink E. Berde was winning the hearts of everyone he met. He soon became the mascot of the security guards in the lobby, and was voted "best pet" in the building, beating out a very special Akita and several other wonderful dogs. But Bink E. Berde's real forte was the calming, therapeutic effect he was beginning to have on our entire staff.
Perhaps because of the type of legal work our office does, or perhaps because I have a disability in the use of my arms and hands and am unable to work at a computer or other repetitive tasks for too long, I started to wonder if Bink E. Berde could qualify as a "service animal." It was certainly clear that his good nature and unfailing instinct to say or do something not only funny, but right on target, at the most stressful of times was good for the morale and well being of everyone in the office.
Other workers in our building looked forward to seeing Bink E. outdoors during one of his several daily outings and many people told me that he brightened up their day. As for Bink E. Berde, he never failed to get a laugh asking for "apple," or better yet - "cake." And he often amazes people by matter-of-factly informing them, "I'm Bink E. Berde. I'm a good, good bird."