AUGUST JOURNAL

August 4th, Journal and we're back! While we don't have a whole lots of news to tell you, we do have a couple tidbits.  And yes, it's us those Three Muskateers talking again today!  Shrek's here with us now and holy comolie what a fuss.  Oh, did we tell you we got moved downstairs to the Living Room and didn't Jo go and set Skrek's home up right beside us.  There is a male amongst the three of us and he dosen't mind Skrek not one bit.   But us two females don't want him with three feet of us!  We chase him away as quick we can.  Ha Ha on Jo if she figured we'd take a hankering to him.  We notice he's still sittin here after two days though.  Guess Jo figures maybe we'll have a change of heart.  Well maybe, who knows, but certainly not yet.  She makes him stay in most of the time (for his own good we imagine!) and us spoiled Muskateers still get to roam outside the house all day.  Did we tell you we even get to take turns when Jo takes off in her Jeep.  One of us always gets to go with her.  Oh and that Shrek there, he makes this funny noise, imatating the telephone is what he's doing.  Sounds just like the phone ringing.  Jo's peko used to do that trick also.  I guess we may as well learn it.  

So how do you like that violet whiteface guy next door here sitting with the lutino.   Some kinda stunning huh!  Heard Jo saying last night within the next week and a half there's about 30 of us leaving here.  Now won't she have some piece and quiet for a minute!  And that's about all she's gonna get as Sidney's hatching her babies, Little Pearl's hatching her babies, Lucy's due next week, Tilly's due couple days after that.  It's just ongoing in this house.  Then you got Moombeam there in the Resting Room.  Now that's a good story.  Jo's doing her supper feeding couple nights ago and what does she find in Moombeam and Intrique's pellet dish. A nice round white egg!  Was Jo impressed?  I don't think so!  They were not building a nest, nothing, just started poppin out the eggs.  Course the Breeding Hut is full up, so Jo had to give them a nest box right in the Resting Room.  But you want to hear a little secret?  It's Jo's own fault, Moombeam and Intrique reside right above Little Pearl and Seawilly.  Now let's see who else is gonna get going  in there.  

You want to see a really pretty picture.  Next Journal it'll probably be here.  Jo's gotta take it yet.  But she's got Opal, Archie, Mattie and Matt all in the same big house.  They all get along famously.  They all sit side by side, all lined up.  So you got a creamino, a cobalt, a lutino and a darkgreen bunch of linnies all lined up.  Oh are they ever beautiful all sitting together!  Jo's thinking she's gonna keep one of Opal babies so she can pair it later and get some more creaminos.  Course that'll be a year or more down the road.  

August 11, 2002 -  Sorry folks we had to leave it such a rush, but Jo had company come in from out of town, and then of course she's had to spend SO much time with us babies lately.  She's just been a going, going, going lately that Jo.  Shrek picked out himself a girlfriend and he's be leaving us today.  That leaves Turk, who's leaving this week for Edmundton and me, who I'm going on my car drive to Ottawa this week as well.  Then I guess Jo will have to spend all her time with those lovebird babies, who I hear a lot of them are leaving for their new homes this week as well, and then she's got a bunch more of those linnie babies growing up fast and furious.  Silly Jo thought all Archie and Opals babies were cobalts, well fooled her they did.  She knows for sure the oldest is a cobalt, but the next guy down is a sky blue, then two slates and the last little guy is yet to be determined.  Now you wanta see something funny, see that last little guy running around.  Don't matter to him, Jo's got a sponge wrapped around his legs to keep them together, he just trucks all around like nobodies business!    Guess Jo figured his legs weren't straight enough.  I heard today that Lucy and Linus have a baby so far and that Tilly and Tidbet have not one, but two, babies so far.  All Little Pearls babies have hatched and are doing fine, thanks for asking.  Jo's all impressed with Sidney this time round, she's not being her usual sloppy self with the babies.  Jo's only had to wash one face so far.  Course all five hatched, so Jo has pulled two so far.  Sundance is out there sittin on five eggs so far, then you got Jessica and Lucas building fast and furious.    Queen Betty's got six eggs AGAIN and Jo is so upset with her this time round, that she says she going to go get her a shot of the pill to stop her from having more babies for awhile.  Jo says she's got to get her to stop laying eggs to get her body and system a chance to charged back up and nice and healthy.  All these babies has got to wear anyone down and Jo's gets all concerned for her.  Luckily she's the only one that lives here that feels she was born to make babies!  Don't know if Jo could handle two like her!!  ..................  Well folks Jo sorta got this started for us yesterday, then with all the hustle and bustle round here lately, had to stop.  We are back, it's the next day and we had some bad news this morning.  Parently Little Pearl must have not sat on her babies too good last night to keep them warm cause Jo did her checking this morning and found three cold babies (Jo had already pulled one).  Course Jo scooped them all out and ran them up to the brooder to warm this up.  Too late, believe it or not, the oldest one died, but the littlest two and believe me, the youngest guy is no bigger than a second, are so far, doing fine.  Here she goes again, feeding every hour for awhile, till they get on track.  Lucy is out there with another baby hatched over the night, so's Tilly.  

Out in the Resting Room, it's become a daily escape now for Peanut AND Miss Betsy AND Mork to boot.  Jo opens their doors to feed them and out they come.  Miss Betsy graduated to a big aviary now and loves every minute of it.  Jo just wishes she could get her to eat a little better.  She's probably the only one here that won't eat her veggies.  Jo went to all the trouble the other day to make juice, right from scratch for all of us, and not one of us touched it!  She says she's gonna keep trying, maybe in time we will.  But we'll let you in on a little secret.  Second batch Jo was making, she forgot to put the juice cup back in the machine.  Now did you ever see someone's nice ceramic kitchen counter with 5 lbs of  carrot juice all over it.  Oh what a mess.  Jo says it was all coming out the back end, towards the wall, so she didn't even notice (till it was too late of course!!).  

Anyways folks Jo's got a busy week ahead of her sending birds out, making Happy Huts, and of course, number one priority... taking care of us, so we have to get out of here for now.  Guess we should say our Good Byes as well, as we are leaving this week too.  BYE

August 18, 2002 and today if you take notice next door at our pictures, you'll see a handsome little guy/girl (who knows, only me!) sittin on a perch Jo made and I get to do all the yapping.  Why you ask, cause Jo thinks I am just so handsome and loveable.  She's feeding the little babies out of the brooder and I'm having a hay day, climbing all over her, in the shirt, out the side sleeve, in the pocket.  She lets me do this as I don't beg and try to get to the food like some of the other guys still do.  She's having a hard time lettin me go, says she has to find just the right one. What do you spect, I'm another of Queen Betty's kids!  Jo called the Vet yesterday on the Queen Betty.  Lookin into gettin her a shot of something or other to get her to settle down.  Course she's gotta wait till she gets off those six eggs she's got AGAIN.    All those sky blue linnies left this week and all their new Moms and Dads are tickled pink with them.  One calls theirs a Little Princess!  Jo's got some of them here in all mutations, well maybe not ALL mutations, but most of them now.  Some of them can fly already and Jo's been lettin them fly around the Nursery.  She does this for a week or so before she starts clippin them.  They think its just grand.  Couple fellows were here the other day pickin out some babies and one of them left a "nice deposit" on his head!  They came to pick out three lovebirds, but says they'll probably be back later to pick up a couple linnies.  Thought they were something special, they did.  We all know Jo does.   They really liked the character of one of the cinnamons, so they got dibbs on one of them, plus one of the pieds you see here, plus the violet guy.   Anyways what else is new round here.  Theres bout another 15 lovebird babies leaving this week.  A whole bunch left last week as well.  That's o.k., the brooders are still full!  There's some cinnamons we hear in there now, the amercian ones, that are just beautiful and all little girls.  Five of them I guess.  They are about three weeks old now, just the age that they start knowin who Jo is and what that shringe is, so course all heads are up when they see her coming.   Then there's still more linnies hatching.  Oh and guess what Charlotte and Chester are gonna be first time parents.  Now mind you they haven't started laying as of yet, but any day.  Jo can tell.  Charlotte is a skyblue lady and Chester, he's a cobalt.    O.K. gotta break for now, Jo's gotta go feed babies in the brooder.......be back in a bit.....   I"M BACK . It's just like the band starts playing ... Jo gets to the top of the steps and says HELLO is her excited voice and that's all it takes to get us all going.  Just a chirping... Jo's comin.  See the two masked next door here.  She's got them sittin in a special little home right next to the brooder and man do they get all excited to see her.  Just a bouncing.  Guess she's keepin the slate and her grandson already got it named.  The Next Tucker he calls him.  Remember she had called her first slate masked Tucker and Charlotte has him now.  Jesse just loved him, so Jo's gonna keep this guy and name him Tucker.  The little violet here already been spoken for as well, but Jo's told the people they won't be getting him for awhile as these guys are so prone to stress in their little lives that she's gonna hold them back longer.   Jo's still tryin the juice trick on everyone.  Now she makes it and mixes it everyday with the veggies.  Trying to trick them.  Hey its workin.  Some ate it the first day, some are takin longer.  Once they get used to this, then she's gonna try just the juice again.  Says to tell yous all that now she puts the juicer CUP in where it goes!!!  Takes less time and makes less mess that way she say!!!  Then she also make a contact last week I hear for more of those Roudybush pellets so there's some of them comin this week.  She's thinkin about weaning the baby linnies onto them as she has such a hard time getting them to eat any other pellets.  Some of the adults are now eating their guina pig pellets though.  Oh and what a mess, Lucy and Linus take those pellets and mix them with their water  to make a mush (mess Jo calls it).  They are feeding babies now, so she figures thats why.   Jo finally gave up on Nana and Nigel and brought them back to the Resting Room.  Out went Candy and Mango as Jo's been destroying their nests they been trying so hard to make all week.  Mango takes her shredded paper and trying to weave in into the wires of her home.  Course it ends up outside on the floor!  Poor Mango.  Then she tried to hide and build a nice nest all in one day under a piece of newspaper.  Jo says she's not having any more of this egg laying in the Resting Room.  Made her wait her turn!  Did anyone tell you yet that Jessica and Lucas are laying again.  Started Friday I think.  Jo's got her new whiteface violet silver cherry guys coming in a couple weeks.  We will make sure she gets some pictures on here for you.  O.K. lets see, what else am I supposed to tell you ..........  I can tell you the jokes on Jo.... we told you..... she still never did that floor in the Breeding Hut.  Says she's been just too busy with all of us guys.  Hey, us babies, figure we should have ALL her attention.  All Jo's whiteface babies that she kept are doing their first molt now.  Jo mists the linnies everyday and used to just give the lovebirds bath dishes.  Well now, as of a couple three weeks ago, she's been misting EVERYONE everyday and most all of them just love it.  Flo and Foxy fly right to the side when they see Jo coming with the spray bottle and just soak it right up.  Jesse and Pig Pen are not so fond of it, but Jo just does them a little and figures with time.  All the linnies just adore it, they'd let Jo spray them forever I'm sure.  Jo's doing her cleaning today and of course, the usual two (Peanut never managed to get out today) got out.  Miss Betsy and Mork just having a great fly around.  Oh did I tell you the other night Toby and Emient got out and got into the main house.  Here's Jo trying to get them, without scaring them into hitting those 20 foot high windows.  Now that was a chore.  She got them back home safe and sound and man did she secure their little trap door on the side.  Don't think they'll be escaping for awhile.  Jo dosen't mind if they escape in the Resting Room, but the main house is another story.  O.K. so Jo says I gotta be quiet now.  Says its time to feed the big guys and then it's be time to do the second seating for the babies.  Bye for now guys.

August 27, 2002 And so how do you like all us baby linnies?  Jo likes us pretty fine.  Says we are all good little dubes as we get ALL our veggies everyday, the bowls be plum empty by the time we are done!   But Jo says we still haves to eat our pellets, some of us are, but not all of us, yet.  Then in here there still are all of Lacy and Webster's babies.  Now you talk about subborn, they are just starting to eat really good now, and their going on 10 and 11 weeks old.  One little guy is eating really good, but the others, well they are getting there.  The little pied fellers are still here, they are weaning nice Jo says and just beautiful little guys.  Then ya got all of Peanuts and Kibbles babies  who we hear may all be leaving this week as well as Toby and Emients.  Now you talk about a beautiful couple, Toby's lutino and Brooke's violet whiteface.  They are going as a couple to Ontario this week.  Then Jo's still got the spoiled little silver brat here.  She ain't kiddin when she says she does not want to let him go.  Really he was going to go to Ontario, but the lutino and whiteface got to go instead as they are already a couple and ready to leave.  Queen Betty's babies are hatching again and so far Jo's pulled one fellow and got him in here.  I think she's got all of us linnies babies in here now, but we hear Charlotte and Chester and now Olive and Popeye are both laying eggs  out in that Breeding Hut.  Next door here is the little Tucker and his violet sibling.  And man oh Mr. Man, while they may be tame, they are not like those peachface guys, when they decide to nibble, they NIBBLE.  They got a lot of power in those little beaks!  They are another two who Jo says will be awhile in weaning.  Figure it's easier if Jo feeds them I guess!  You'd think with the power they have in those beaks, they want to crush up their own pellets!  Oh ya, Intrique and Moombeams also starting hatching this week.  Then Jo says Sundance and Cassidy are also due this week.  Out in the Breeding Hut now, Jo has Pig Pen and Jesse and says those two are just too funny.  Only little male she has that is such a great little helper.  Jesse, he shreds the paper, tucks in his rump and takes right into the nest box for Pig Pen.  Then everynight at bedtime, Jo goes to turn the lights out, and you see two little heads pop up over the nestbox, with those big eyes, just waiting.  You see, these two, also being spoiled, sit everynight and wait for Jo to handfeed them their bed night snack of a couple, three, four seeds.  Its a ritual for them.    Jo has a swing in with them that she made and Jesse just swings and swings and swings then he'll come out on Jo's finger and maybe help her with her chores.  Just like his Mama (Peanut) that boy is!    Just loves it.  

Jo's been doing some fall cleaning this week we hear.  Went from head to toe in the Resting Room.  Walls, windows, aviaries, everyone got new perches, new willow vines for chewing, major rearrange and cleaning of toys.  Next comes the Breeding Hut she says.  Also Jo got her Roudybush this week, so she's trying to get those new whiteface guys onto eating their pellets.  Never even had many escapes.  Probably cause as she overhauled an empty cage, she moved a new couple into it, and just went right on down the line.  So not only did everyone get new perches, toys, branches, they even got new apartments.  You talk about change of scenery!  Their all happy though.  Todays popcorn day, so supper time tonight things will really be buzzing!  

Now lets see what else can we tell you.  Not much right now I guess, Jo says she's got to go give lunch to some youngings.

  Tilly and Tidbet are still sittin on their eggs.  Did we tell you Sundance and Cassidity were out there.  They are ready any day to start layin and then we guess Jessica and Lucus are there as well.  Jo also has the two olive linnies out there, but she has not had them DNA sexed so she's not sure if they are a true pair or not.  They sure loves each other, so here's hopin.  Nana and Nigel... they are still on vacation... as well as Charlotte and Chester and Dot and Dash.  Maybe they don't like those new nestboxes??  The others don't seem to have a problem with them Jo says.  Opal and Archie are back in the Resting Room now having a much needed break.  Same for Mattie and Matt.  Sidney and Slick are due to start hatching their babies this week too and too date their babies have all been cinnamons.  But if you also remember, they too keep Jo busy, as they never wash their babies faces  ..but hey, they sure feed them! Jo's in the process now of making all those guys some of those new perches with all the button beads that we hard all the guys in the Resting Room now have.  All the babies upstairs gots them too.  O.K. lets run back to the Resting Room for a minute cause we forgot to tell you something important.  Squak got a name change!  Jo just didn't feel it was right to call a bird Squak, something bout it not being nice, so she's calling them Chirp and Chipper. Squak is now Chirp of course!   And that my friends is todays Journal.   UPDATE  Jo just did her rounds and discovered Sidney has her first bouncing baby.  The fun has began!

sly