Life with Beaver  – Memoir

By Lynda J. Lambert (1981)

This story begins when a friend said,

“come along to the pet shop and see all the pretty birds.”

Little did I realize that this innocent invitation would begin an addictive habit, and “I” was vulnerable!

Upon entering the pet shop, we walked past rows of fish tanks, admiring the various vividly colored fish and turtles of different sizes and colors. We stopped to look at them and then went on. Then we stopped to admire the numerous lizards and some other reptiles.

Then, on to the bird department.

Again, I looked from one feathered delight to another. Each one is so beautiful and unique in its own right. Something strange happened to me there while I kept looking from the price list on the wall to the various birds trying to ascertain which bird cost which amount.

Eventually, I came to a cage with a timid bird clinging to the back of the cage. My heart skipped quite a few beats, I think, and my mind went temporarily (I hope) insane. I didn’t have the faintest idea what kind of bird this was, as I did not know one bird from another, but I did know canaries from parakeets. (I later learned that what I thought was a parakeet was actually a budgie.) My bird education had begun.

At any rate, back to this bird clinging to the side of the cage…I had to have this bird!

I inquired what kind of bird he was and was told, “A red-bellied macaw,” which meant absolutely nothing to me.

Well, I told myself I would go to the car and drive home and think it over. I was feeling like I wanted to buy this bird.

I was told his name at the pet store was Beaver because he chewed up his perches as fast as they put them in. (But this was all done during the night because Beaver was so timid and afraid of people that during the day he never left the side of the cage.

I went to the car and, as I went to drive out onto the highway, felt an urge to turn around, go back and stake my claim to this bird.

I did!

I left the pet shop with Beaver, a shining new cage, a book on Macaws, and everything they said he would need to be happy.

Within a couple of weeks, after reading about what kind of bird behavior is desirable and what is not, I began to wonder if I had made a great mistake buying this shy bird.

Beaver was terrified of anyone near his cage. He would turn and hiss and would tremble with fear. Finally, I decided to not let these things hinder me, and despite Beaver, we would tame him.

That was ten months ago. Today, Beaver is still a shy bird. However, with much patience and love, we overcame any obstacles.

Beaver will now go in and out of his cage at will daily. I leave his door open, and he likes to sit on a plant bracket near the kitchen window. He calls out to me occasionally when he feels the urge to do so. 

Beaver likes  to sit on my shoulder, arm, or hand. He can shake hands and wave  “Bye-bye.”

I am so glad I bought him before I read books on what kind of birds to purchase and what to avoid. Beaver was the kind of bird that nearly all the books say to avoid.

I would have missed out on the experience of loving this timid creature into responding and learning to trust a human friend. I would have missed having a special friend like Beaver, who learned to trust me, one slow step, day by day.Birds require a quiet and patient presence.

I was willing to work with Beaver for the rest of his life. I was dedicated to caring for him and making his life comfortable and safe.

Perhaps Beaver might still be shaking with fear and clinging to the side of his cage in a pet shop. Unwanted and unloved and lonely.

Oh, yes! Beaver now has ten feathered friends who arrived after him.

*

A version of this  story appeared in the April 1981 issue of  American Cage Bird Magazine.

Revised from the original essay.

©Lynda McKinney Lambert. 2022. All rights reserved.

BONUS:

Read Lynda’s  April Newsletter for the SCOOP on what she has been doing for the past four months –

Read it NOW.

My Books