Besides my job with the DNR working with the federally endangered Karner blue butterflies, I am "critter sitting" for one of my professors that is gone to Cambodia for five weeks.
Talk about a big leap outside my comfort zone. Yikes.
I am responsible for the care of two tarantulas, a parrot, a chameleon, a chinese water dragon, koi, two cichlid fish tanks, two tortoises, four turtles, two sand snakes, two sonoran sand snakes, a frog, a king snake, four boas (snakes), a frog tank, another frog tank, two scorpions, a hermit crab, a rat snake, and (for those of you wondering if they have any "normal" pets) 20+chickens, two cats, and a dog!
Mr Wilson, the parrot, is my favorite. He has a very extensive vocabulary that is usually pretty situational-appropriate. The other day I was getting ready to leave and I said "Bye Mr Wilson" and he said (in a really sad voice) "Bye" and then as I was stepping out the door he said "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine".
Another day he kept saying "Fire! Fire! Save the bird!" Finally I said, "Really? Is there really a fire?" to which he promptly replied, "Nope".
He can talk in both the husband and wife's voices. And he just started doing my voice the way I say "heellllooooo".
If he is bored, he makes a sound like someone is knocking on the front door, which causes the dog to start barking and run to the door. Or he will meow to the cats.
The other day I was trying to teach him to say "Hurry Hurry! Late late!" (cuz Deb is always running late). Instead, Mr Wilson said "No habla espanol".
He is so funny!
Learning to handle and feed all these animals has been a challenge! You won't catch me dead with any of the tarantulas in my hands, but I have had to handle a couple boas as well as seperate two sand snakes that were trying to eat eachother.
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| "Mr. Wilson" -African grey parrot |
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| Abby begging at back door |
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| Abby and "Pokey" |
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| some kind of gecko |
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| a rat snake. Very nice snake |
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| can you see the hidden gecko behind the fish tank? |
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| some kind of chameleon |
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| Chinese Water Dragon (he is sick, that is why part of his upper jaw is gone) |
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| big cichlid fish tank |
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| hermit crab |
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| One of many African frogs |
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| "Glump" |
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| always ready to eat Boa |
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| "Peter" -a boa |
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| Nice Boa |
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| Naughty escape-artist boa |
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| Koi |
2 comments:
I want to meet Mr. Wilson- he sounds HYSTERICAL!! Wow- that is a mucho amount of critters to take care of but if anyone can do it, you can! I agree about the spiders....ewewew.
WOW! I hope you got paid VERY well for that job. I would not even be seen near that place. And for the record there is no such thing as a "nice" snake!!!! JOSH
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