The Vet Visit

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You already know that Alex had an appointment to get his nails trimmed. Mark took him because I was busy. I wish that I had gone. The following is Mark’s account of what happened.
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When they got to the vet Mark answered the inevitable questions about Alex from the other people in the waiting room. Mark explained that yes, he does talk, but would be unlikely to do so because he doesn’t normally talk in front of strangers. Alex was quiet during the entire wait and even held Mark’s finger to calm his nerves.
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Soon after he was taken into the back the screaming began. These aren’t just normal macaw screams; these are frantic, indignant and blood curdling. The screaming continues for the entire time he is getting his nails cut. This, of course, prompted more questions from the other people waiting. They wanted to know if it hurt him and how long it would take.
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All of a sudden the screaming stopped and everyone heard a loud voice: “OW – SON of a B@*ch!!”
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The door opened and the female vet tech appeared with Alex in his carrier. She looked at Mark and told him that Alex was not happy. (I think people for the surrounding mile probably knew that.)
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Mark inquired about the “Ow.” She expressed surprise that everyone had heard that and told him Al bit the male vet tech as he was being returned to his carrier. Mark got up to pay, then turned and asked Alex if he had bitten someone.
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Alex promptly began to laugh – a low, diabolical and nasty laugh. “Heh, heh, heh.”
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Everyone in the room turned to look at Alex – eyes wide and mouths agape.
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Mark asked Alex if he was ok.
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“Oh. . . Oh. . . Oh God, Oooh God.” Alex moaned pitifully in reply while holding up one foot.
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The place exploded in laughter.
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“But you got ‘em back, right?” asked Mark.
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Alex began that slow, evil laugh. "Heh, heh, heh."
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After a couple seconds Mark said “So then you’re ok?”
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Again Alex went into his Oh God routine.
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One of the people asked if Alex really understood what was being said to him. Mark told the guy that he had to reach his own conclusions about what he just heard.
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As Mark picked him up to leave, Alex grabbed onto a bar on the front of the carrier with one toe. His foot was about the same level as his eyes.
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One of the girls behind the desk noticed and said “Oh look – he’s flipping us off!”

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Cathy

Hangin’ With My Peep

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It’s been a while since I’ve added anything to the blog. If you’ve been waiting, I apologize. This is a really busy time of year for me and time is flying past like crazy. It’s almost mid-June already . . . Unbelievable!
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Today I’m waiting for a guy to come and give me an estimate for a new pool liner. He called last night and said he’d be here around lunch time. That should have been 2 hours ago!! I just hate waiting for anyone. If I start doing anything they show up right at the worst time and if I sit and wait, chances are they won't show. I can never seem to win.
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The birds are all fine. Nothing new, really – same old, same old. Alex has an appointment this afternoon for a nail trim. He won’t like that much, but he’ll get over it.
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Peeper has been sitting with me every night lately. Sometimes she is anxious for me to hold her, other times she bites me when I try to pick her up. I wish she would find a nicer way of telling me she would like to be left alone. Oh well, I’ve learned how to avoid most of the hard bites and to enjoy the time spent with her.
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She is just the cutest little thing. I love how she snuggles in my hand. She will stay that way for hours if I let her, sometimes she even falls asleep. Another thing I’ve learned is that if I let her stay for more than an hour she will poop on me before I can get her back to her cage. She just can’t hold it much longer than that, and I don’t like to be pooped on, so I try to keep track of the time while she’s with me.
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Oh, and if you're wondering if the pool guy showed up while I was writing this - NO he didn't. Guess I'll go do something else.

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Cathy

P.S. It just started thundering (Chloe -the German shepherd - just hightailed it upstairs to hide under my desk). The pool guy probably won't show up now at all!!