Marty Becker D.V.M. - The Ultimate Bird Lover: Stories and Advice on Our Feathered Friends at Home and in the Wild

Stories and Advice on Our
Feathered Friends at Home
and in the Wild

Marty Becker
Gina Spadafori
Mikkel Becker Shannon

www.hcibooks.com
www.ultimatehcibooks.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

The ultimate bird lover : stories and advice on our feathered friends at home and in the wild / [edited by] Marty Becker, Gina Spadafori, Mikkel Becker Shannon.
p. cm.
eISBN-13: 978-0-7573-9511-6 eISBN-10: 0-7573-9511-2
1. Cage birdsAnecdotes. 2. BirdsAnecdotes. 3. BirdsEffect of human beings onAnecdotes. I. Becker, Marty, 1954- II. Spadafori, Gina. III. Shannon, Mikkel Becker.
SF461.3.U48 2010
636.6dc22

2009043806

2010 Health Communications, Inc.

All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.

HCI, its logos, and its marks are trademarks of Health Communications, Inc.

Publisher: Health Communications, Inc.
3201 S.W. 15th Street
Deerfield Beach, FL 33442-8190

Cover photo: Natphotos
Cover design: Justin Rotkowitz
Photo editor: Justin Rotkowitz
Interior formatting: Dawn Von Strolley Grove

We dedicate this book to everyone who loves birds,
both the domesticated and never-tamed.

To the people who consider their pet birds
to be family members, to the kind bird lovers
who put out food for the wild ones, and to
those whose love of birds takes them
to where they can see birds in the wild
and help to protect their habitats.

To the members of
the veterinary healthcare team and everyone involved
in the avian treatment, rescue, and rehabilitation.

To all who harness the special bond
of these most inspiring of Gods creations
to improve human health and well-being.

To the special love of birds as celebrated in these pages
by stories, photographs, memories,
and heartfelt emotions.

And finally, to God for the gift of
these winged wonders and the lessons
they have to share with us.

Is something Ultimately important to you?
Then we want to know about it....

We hope you enjoyed The Ultimate Bird Lover. We are planning many more books in the Ultimate series, each filled with entertaining stories, must-know facts, and captivating photos. Were always looking for talented writers to share slice-of-life true stories, creative photographers to capture images that a story cant tell, as well as top experts to offer their unique insights on a given topic.

For more information on submission guidelines, or to suggest a topic for an upcoming book, please visit the Ultimate website at www.ultimatehcibooks.com, or write to: Submission Guidelines, Ultimate Series, HCI Books, 3201 SW 15th St., Deerfield Beach, FL 33442.

For more information about other books by
Health Communications, Inc., please visit www.hcibooks.com.

Contents

Lisa Scott

Anne Culbreath Watkins

Cheryl Elaine Williams

Kathleen Kohler

Michelle Close Mills

Cathy C. Hall

Saundra Vallier Dearman

Lisa Scott

Rob Simbeck

Kim Weiss

C. A. Verno

Colin L. Fernandes, M.D.

John Geary

Linda Louise Sheppard

Mary Terzian

Anne Culbreath Watkins

Diane M. Ciarloni

Isabel Bearman Bucher

Danita Cahill

Danita Cahill

Jill Sunshine

Danita Cahill

Madeleine M. Kuderick

Cindy Fisher Traisi

Annie Eagle

Angela Cannon-Crothers

Valery Smith as told to Tracy Crump

Amy Mullis

John Geary

Ferida Wolff

Lori Hein

Marty Becker, D.V.M.

D. C. Hall

Marcia E. Brown

Nancy Edwards Johnson

Kristine Ziemnik

Mary Kirk

Lola Di Giulio De Maci

Jeanne Kraus

Bruce Squiers

Judi Moreo

Gay Martin

Wendy Beasley

Cynthia Stiverson

Kim Weiss

Jennifer Crites

Tom Bentley

Linda Allen

Sheryl DeVore

Steven D. Bailey

Valery Smith

Sarah Chase Shaw

Steven D. Bailey and Sheryl DeVore

Brian L. Speer, D.V.M.

Marty Becker, D.V.M.

Gina Spadafori

Marty Becker, D.V.M.

Brian L. Speer, D.V.M.

O f all the creatures who have shared our lives and our world since before the beginning of recorded time, birds are the ones we most admire for a trait we can only dream about: flight. Their world is one we cannot know, one where the unfolding of wings and a few strong strokes mean looking down on us and the rest of the world below.

We cannot know the world of the hummingbird, a miracle of wings beating so quickly that our own poor eyes can barely see them, our rich minds scarcely able to imagine the up to twenty beats per second of the hovering gems tiny heart. We cannot know the world of the eagle, the falcon, or the hawk, carried aloft on strong wings to soar on the air currents above us, their extraordinary vision scanning for the movement that betrays the vulnerable prey below. These raptors fall to earth at speeds we cannot fathom, striking their prey with a deadly grab and then heading aloft again. We cannot even know the world of the birds we see so often we dont really see them at all. We note them as occasional or persistent nuisances: the pigeons of the plaza, the starlings that swarm our trees, the nondescript little birds that are always hunting for food and hopping out of our way as we go about our lives.