Petey Blog

I have a small confession to make: I am not who the blog says I am. I created this blog just for fun a little after my roommate got Petey. I write and take the photos and post them under his name. In December he moved across the country for training, and he couldn't bring Petey along with him. The options were for Petey to stay with me or find him a new home. No wanting Petey to end up with strangers, he stayed with me. But in May I was about to start a lot of moving around myself, so I couldn't take care of him properly for a few months. My roommate had gotten a house where he was, and I was going to be on that side of the country for my first trip. It was a punishing 1am flight across the country. I was so filled with anxiety that he was going to scream that I nearly got an ulcer, but he never made a single squawk except when the TSA guy took him. All of the security people were giving him so much attention, commenting on his unusual colors, nobody seemed to care if he had a certificate of health or anything. Anyways, this photo of him was taken the morning I left. It won't be the last post as I plan on visiting, but hopefully this will explain the delays.

Comments:
Ann-Marie : Hi there, I love your bird! I had a couple questions if you don't mind. Do you occasionally go out of town on weekends and is he ok on his own with enough food/water for the two days? Also, how much time a day are you able to spend with him? I work during the day and might have other activities after, but would be able to devote a couple hours at least on weekdays to a conure (thinking about getting green-cheek). Just wanted your thoughts, thanks so much!
A-M : Hi, I love your bird! I had a couple questions if you don't mind. Do you occasionally go away for the weekend and is he ok with enough food/water? And how much time are you able to spend with him during the day? I am thinking about getting a green-cheek and work full time and have some after work activities, but would be able to devote a couple of hours a weekday at least...Thanks so much!
A-M : sorry- thought the first didn't go through :)
Stewie the Sun Conure : When are we going to get more updates on Petey??
Amy : Hi Petey, I love your blog! I run a bird related blog too, about caique parrots. I was wondering if you would be interested in trading links? Drop me a line if you are!
Fabe : We have a Sun Conure named Sunny, not sure if it's a male or female, but for argument's sake we'll say female...because she keeps trying to feed me! She loves her baths, and tends to get right cranky if she doesn't get one EACH day! There was a time where we went for 2 days without giving her one, and you guessed it...she used her water bowl. We came home to water all over our new leather couch. The cage has sinced been moved, just in case! haha
Meg : hey, ur blog is pretty cool, u hav some awsome pix of ur roommates conure. in response to the person who is thinking about getting a green-cheek, i think it is probably not a good idea if the only time you will have for it is on the weekend. all conures are very social and my green-cheek screams if i dont get him out at least twice a day. on top of this you need to think about the time you need to clean the cage as they need quite a large cage for all their toys. maybe you should look into something that needs a bit less attention like a cockatiel.

Here is the damage after about a month. We will subtract off the time Petey was away from it and at a friend's house. You can see that he is cheating now, trying to kill the toy by going for its head.

Comments:
Paul : Neato!
otilius : wow, Petey! you really tear **** up!
Sue : Gorgeous bird! We have two budgies at home, and despite their size they can get into a lot of mischief!
Jacinta : Your bird is identical to mine! I've seen heaps of sun conures but usually there is a difference somewhere. His feathers and colours are exactly the same as mine. His name is Caesar. You've got some fantastic pictures here, sun conures are so photogenic.

The last palm leaf toy was obviously too small, even though it lasted pretty long, but we had to step it up a notch with the Spiked Pinata by Planet Pleasures, a large one to be exact. After seeing the enjoyment that Petey got out of the little Octopus Pinata, I decided that this would please him even more. It might look big for small bird like a Conure, but he is determined to destroy this thing. Maybe he will stop chewing on my sweatshirt's zipper, oh wait, he broke that zipper already.

Comments:
blueyes : Holy crap that's big. I guess it might take him 3 weeks to destroy this one.
YummY! : Nifty. And, it appears that birds and rats go through toys equally quickly.
Beth : Awww seeing Petey makes me miss my rats even more! I think I spent more money on those two critters than I have on anyone or any animal in my life- I became resourceful, though. They loved to rip apart maxi-pads and tampons.
Albert : Write any question to my mail

As you can see to the right of Petey, there is virtually nothing left of the Octopus. At first it seemed like it would be destroyed in minutes. But after Petey made it through the initial out layer, it was discovered that it was solid, tightly wrapped palm leafs. After much work he had shredded the upper segment completely and his attention turned to the tentacles, which kept him busy even longer. Overall it has entertained him for about two weeks.

Comments:
Tracey : I only just discovered the world of Petey...so cute. I have an Alexandrine Parrot who seems to be a lot crankier than Petey...
Planet Pleasures : I recently discovered your blog on a search of our company name, and I must say how thrilled we are to see your bird enjoying our toys! They are designed for birds, not for their owners, and are made from resources from their natural jungle habitat (and some safe dyes of course), with no plastic, paper, metal or glue. Birds love to pick and destroy, and our toys are constructed with that challenge in mind. They will eventually defeat the toy, but it will take a while, and it will be the most fun and greatest achievement for their self esteem. And to answer your question about who gets paid ,we are a Fair Trade Cooperative and we provide a village in the Philippines with a steady income and a very comfortable lifestyle. Our owner travels to the village two or three times a year to reward their work and explore new concepts and opportunities. They love him and he respects them all. Planet Pleasures is a win/win company. The villagers are compensated directly with no middle men, so they are taken care of and work hard to show their appreciation. And the birds get the end result; solid toys that are designed to be destroyed! Thanks for sharing these photos! Any chance we could borrow them for our own purposes?

Over the summer Petey has been getting used to his Happy Hut Hideaway. For about a week he ignored it. After that week he started sleeping in it after dark until his cage was covered. Lately he can be found sleeping in it when he wakes up in the morning. There have been reports of birds getting snagged in the threads. Just like other objects in the bird's environment, they should be regularly checked and have loose threads removed. Many birds prefer having Happy Huts that match their predominant color.

Comments:
stewie bird : Stewie bird LOVES his Happy Hut. Our vet said that it's probably not a great idea to leave it in his cage all the time because it makes conures get nesty and territorial... but I couldn't imagine taking it away from him; it's his little happy place.

Petey likes to ruffle his feathers after he takes a shower.

Comments:
Aidana : I love the petey blog... my favorite "Petey from a different angle"I also wanted to let you know I've added your link to the two blogs below.Pop in if you get some time, ok hun?AidanaMY HORSE BLOG:http://www.blogcharm.com/ShuvaniStablesAllNaturalHorseAndLivestockRemedyAndProductBlog/MY EXOTIC ANIMALS BLOG:http://www.blogcharm.com/shuvanimals/
Tricia : Petey so cute! I love his colours and all the wonderful pics of him you put up. :)
L : SO cute! I cannot handle all this CUTENESS!!!
blueyes : Will Petey be enjoying some of the warm weather after one of his showers soon?

Petey enjoys water quite a bit, if he isn't given an opportunity to take a formal bath, he just hops in one of his water bowls. More water ends up outside his cage than on him though. Currently, I use Ultra Care Bird Bath Spray from Eight in One on him and it seems to work pretty well, definitely better than water alone.

Comments:
Alejandro : Did you cut his wings? :?
mike : petey is probably the coolest bird ever, if they dont like it talk to chas he will want to box them
anlempert : awww such a cutie pie

This is Petey, he is a Sun Conure (Aratinga solstitialis). He was hatched on March 2, 2005. I got him in December after doing extensive research. It was between Petey and an African Grey, but the African Grey was sold at the time. Petey is a quite active and social bird. Overall besides waking up early, most of the house gets along with him very well.