- Species: African Grey - Congo (See species list for details)
- Location: West Covina, California, United States 91791
- Date Lost: October 7, 2012
- Banded: Yes
- Microchipped: No
I found her!!! With the help of a good young man in my neighborhood and police cooperation I got her back. A week after she was lost I got a call in responce to the fliers I had posted. The young man gave me the address where Dina was and told me that the people that had her were amused by the amount of fliers that were around town.The man at that address was startled when confronted; the first words out of his mouth was “who told you?”. He said the bird was sold the day before to someone but he didn’t know them. Then the story changed a few times until it evolved into his wife was the one that sold it – I should talk to her when she gets home. I left for home, got a different car, and watched him with binoculars as he hurriedly loaded something into his van and drove away. I thought I could be making a big mistake but I called the police and followed him.
I told the person who answered exactly what was happening, that I wasn’t sure my parrot was in the van I was behind and to my surprise, all she wanted to know was the value of the bird, a description of the van and where it was headed.
Before long there was a police car behind him with lights on but he didn’t stop. It wasn’t exactly a chase because he was going slower than the speed limit, but he traveled another 3 miles and picked up 3 more cop cars before it was over.
My bird wasn’t in the van but the guy was rattled enough to remember where he was. One of the officers said that it would be up to me to get it back because it was technically a civil matter that was out of their hands. A sargent interupted and said that his aunt had a bird like that when he was growing up that it was like a family member – he knew as soon as this guy thought he was off the hook I would never see my bird again. They ended up escorting us to the man’s bank so he could get $450 to pay back the people that he had sold it to, and then on to their residence.
With all the noise she made when she heard my voice, my girl let them know she was mine without the need to check the band information. It was a good day.
This morning I gave the young guy that called me a reward that he needed right at this time; he just got a job and won’t get paid for another 2 weeks. I’m sorry for rambling on so much but I needed to tell someone.
Thanks for your help,
Jim
——————————-
Dina is very shy around people she doesn’t know. The reason her wings weren’t trimmed is because the last time I had it done, she was so frightened she passed out. She is a one person bird. The day she flew away, she had pushed her food bowl out of her cage and followed it out. When she heard me come home she called to me but I didn’t go to her right away so she went looking for me.
She is usually quiet when she isn’t with her family. She makes noises like the microwave, telephones, car alarms, and anything that beeps. She tells her dog Tar, to sit and stay, and if she is scolded, she says “Tar”, or “Tar, don’t bite”.