About 15 years ago in New Jersey, an all yellow parakeet showed up at my backyard feeders. I noticed a grackle eyeing him, and feared that soon the grackle would decapitate the budgie as had happened to a couple finches out there. I caught the budgie by throwing a towel over the caged feeder he was using, and brought him into my screened in porch while I got a suitable cage ready. Long story short, after a course of meds for the pseudomonas infection he was suffering from, and a reasonable search for his ostensible owners, he became the most delightful and enlivening pet for the following 12+ years. Solomon Wallace Wigwam, aka Solly, freely flew from play tree to play tree in our spacious home office, and especially enjoyed bathing in moist green leaf lettuce leaves that I held in my hand for him. He travelled out here with us in his travel cage, sharing the back seat of the car with our cockamamie cockapoo Curly. If a parakeet ever shows up here, I'll be ready for him (or her).

Marcia Ian
Bellingham