Shira lived with us for 11 years.
When I got married, Shira stayed on in my mother's house.
One time when my mother was doing renovations in her apartment, Shira got to stay with us. Zusha was 17 months then, and he was delighted!
When Shira first came to live with us, she was a scared little thing. She didn't like interacting with people much. We had other cockatiels who loved head scritches, but Shira would have none of that. Eventually she warmed up to my mother. I had a hard time believing her when she told me that Shira drops her head for my mother to rub!
She became a little puppy, understanding commands, being able to express her needs, expecting certain routines.
Just look at that beautiful bird!
My mother made different gyms, climbers and toys for Shira. All the bird things in all these photos are made by my mother!
Shira taking a nap next to photos of me and of Zusha.
Airplane bird!
Shira has been through a lot. She's had times when she would lay eggs in hidden places all over the house, and my mother had to find ways to discourage her so she shouldn't waste her body resources. She's been sick, and my mother nursed her back to health each time.
But last night, Shira died. There aren't that many people who would understand the pain of having a pet die. Because most people just have pets for entertainment purposes. Like fish that they win at carnivals. They expect them to die, sooner rather than later. I even saw a sign for a backyard carnival this spring, and they were raffling off a budgie.
But we really treated Shira the way any living thing deserves to be treated. She was allowed to fly around the house, share our food. We researched safety for cockatiels, things they aren't allowed to eat, etc. my mother kept her out of the kitchen when using the microwave. She made sure to be home to turn off the light for Shira at 9:30, her bedtime. She really listened to her needs. When you love and care for any living thing, you establish a relationship. The same can't be said for people who don't feed their pets for over a week because they can't be bothered to research which foods are allowed on Pesach.
We miss our little yellow bird and barely remember a time without her!
Shira eating, climbing and getting her neck nuzzled:
Bath bird!
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