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Parakeets for Valentines
Experts claim they're not really lovebirds,
but you can't prove it by American sweethearts
By MARYA SAUNDERS and ROBERT GAINES
A MILWAUKEE ATTOR-
hey recently
dropped in to the pet
shop of an old friend
and asked plaintively,
"What can I get him
for Valentine's Day?"
"Get who?"his friend
yelled, trying to out
shout a large cage of
brightly colored birds.
"Oh, you know who.
The only one I know who loves me for myself
Petie, my parakeet."
The pet dealer nodded sympathetically. It was
an old story to him. The shell parakeet or Austral
ian budgerigar is one of the most affectionate birds
in the feathered kingdom and has been a favorite
pet and love gift throughout the world for more
than 100 years.
In 1925, for example, a Japanese prince visiting
England was given a pair of blue budgies by King
George V. He brought them home as a love gift for
his prospective bride. .
A craze for giving parakeets began among well-to-do.
Japanese sweethearts' that soon boosted
prices as high as $1,000 a pair. It was during this
period that the parakeet first became known in the
United States and was often incorrectly sold as a
lovebird.
The real lovebird, according to Sylvia Gray, who
has bred and distributed 150,000 shell parakeets
in the past 15 years, is African in origin, larger
than the budgie, and not even in the parakeet fami
ly. He is sullen, irritable, and capable of pecking
out his mate's eyes. While the 11 million parakeets
found in American homes today are not officially
lovebirds, they are by nature more lovable birds.
Once they mate, the parakeet pair will remain
together for life and can pine terribly if separated.
When offered genuine affection by humans, the
parakeet responds with an enthusiasm practically
unmatched in the bird world.
Parakeet owners usually become as attached to
the bird as the bird to them. Some even take them
to bed at night, and others never go visiting with
out budgie coming along in his little carrier.
How much a man can love his parakeet was
demonstrated several years ago when New York
City police arrested a prominent mobster for the
brutal slaying of one of the city's worst loan sharks.
They questioned him for 24 hours, but he wouldn't
Family WwJtly, Ftbranry 11, I Ml
say a word. Exhausted, the detectives finally gave
up and said the man could make a phone call.
They were amazed when the criminal rushed to
the phone and instead of calling his lawyer dialed
a local pet shop. In a worried voice, the mobster
asked the owner to hurry over to his apartment
and feed his pet parakeet, who hadn't had any
fresh water or seeds in a day.
Another indication of America's love for the
"lovebird" is that we spend $60 million a year
on birdseed and parakeet toys. In return, we get
not only a bird kiss but if budgie is trained
properly even a "thank you," since the parakeet
can imitate a large number of human sounds.
. According to "All Pets Magazine," the first report
of a talking budgerigar came from Germany in
1877 and from America in 1930, when a nine-month-old
bird spoke 20 words. A couple of
months ago, an English woman claimed her bird
had a vocabulary of some 2,000 words.
Compared with other birds, the parakeet is un
rivaled in his enthusiasm for human affection.
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If you plan to buy one of these birds, here
is what Sylvia Gray advises you to look for:
1 . A healthy parakeet: he should be active, not
puffed up, and should have a completely dry rump
with no sign of diarrhea.
2. A young bird: the stripes should still be on
the head and should reach the cere, which is the
soft top of the parakeet's beak where you see the
nostrils. The cere should not be a strong blue or
tan, which indicates that the bird is a mature male
or female, and the beak should be black.
3. A plump and fully feathered bird: if you can
feel his bones when you hold him, he is probably
not eating well and will not live long.
You'll also find that the current love affair be
tween parakeets and the human race, has the en
dorsement of many doctors. Some recommend
parakeet breeding as an excellent form of rehabili
tation for cardiac patients because it requires so
little heavy work.
Many psychiatrists encourage parakeets for chil
dren with speech defects. The careful, slow enun
ciation needed to teach a parakeet to speak is as
beneficial to the child as it is to the bird.
Recently, a psychiatrist in Austin, Texas, was
visited by the worried parents of a seven-year-old
girl who kept running away from home. The psy
chiatrist suggested the child have a pet. A parakeet
was best for their small apartment.
"Let the child care for the bird herself," the psy
chiatrist said. "When she realizes how dependent
it is on her,' she won't want to leave home. You
just can't walk away from love."
Which gives you an idea why another parakeet
phenomenon is growing in the United States
giving a budgie as a Valentine's Day gift.
You can't get much more love in a four-ounce,
feathered package.
Free Parakeet Booklet
If you would like a free copy of "Parakeets Are
Fun!" a 32-page illustrated booklet on the care,
feeding, and training of parakeets, write to Para
keets, Family Weekly, P. O. Box 4S16, Chicago, 111.