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Original poster

the kids have named the baby budgie....

261 replies

gussiegrips · 15/10/2013 20:38

For reasons which have passed me by, we seem to be having to hand rear a baby budgie.

It is very small and wasn't responding well yesterday. It appears to have grey feathers, like it's dad.

I warned the kids that it was likely to die, and they were not, under any circumstances to give it a name not after the rabbit debacle.

Naturally, I overheard "well, he's grey. We should name him after something to do with grey".

uh oh

"Graeme"

Graeme the budgie. So named, because he's grey. Hope the fecker lives now. Cheered me up no end.

Graeme.

OP posts:
Methe · 22/11/2013 21:03

I love your posts Gussie Grin yay Graeme!

and I just twitched my twinkle

akawisey · 22/11/2013 22:03

This is the BEST THREAD I have ever read on MN Grin

Go Graeme!!!!!

PacificDogwood · 22/11/2013 22:17

Huzza, Graeme!! Grin

I feel tempted to link to 'fly like an eagle' again Grin

You'll have to put stickers on all your windows to make sure he does not break his neck, teehee

2Old2BeABluePeterPresenter · 22/11/2013 23:16

Fly Graeme, fly! Grin

MrsDeanAmbrose · 22/11/2013 23:31

Flying into the window is like a budgie rite of passage though, they all do it (well ours did anyway).

Graeme is a little superstar.

freckledleopard · 22/11/2013 23:58

This is a totally awesome thread. Love it. Will you be doing any stand-up in the Bristol area perchance?

akawisey · 23/11/2013 08:30

May I just enquire gussie? Are you in talks with Pixar?

Y'know, for Graeme - The Movie.

I'd watch it. I luffs critters, I do.

BoreOfWhabylon · 23/11/2013 10:44

Ooh Gussie, how exciting! I can see Graeme starring in a remake of Top Gun.

Can't wait for him to speak his first words - won't be long now. Grin

(my grandparents had Bobby the budgie, he was v talkative. He also used to bop along his perch singing 'dumdi dumdi dumdi dum...' whenever The Archers theme played on the radio. It was his 7pm nightly ritual)

Original poster
gussiegrips · 23/11/2013 16:08

Pixar...

Oh, I'd love to be a totally over the top LuvveyMummy. I have the potential to be cut-throat-competitive, completely obsessive and totally unrealistic. Sadly, my children seem to be devoid of any talents whatsoever...whereas...the budgie...

No stand up just now, Freckled. Worse luck. Middley Grip's still unreliably well, so, have cancelled everything until he's less of a dramatist. Which is ironic, given what I've said above. I've never gigged in Bristol - but, I have eaten sausages in a pub which only sells sausages. And, beer. Beer and sausages, yum.

Am away to start teaching GraemeGoose some words..."ah feel the neeeeeed, the neeeed for speeeeeeeeeeeed"

OP posts:
Tammytheseal · 23/11/2013 23:08

Only just found this thread - what a wonderful story! Graeme is such a little star Smile

I read the thread from start to finish last night and got a bit panicky when the leg was mentioned as a colleague of mine adopted some baby jackdaws that were made homeless after their nest was destroyed when the tree blew over. The family hand reared them devotedly but sadly all of the birds got rickets and only one survived (their legs started to fall apart).

I've NC'd for this post as wanted to share a Graeme-type story from my childhood (which would out me for sure)... DF was a marine biologist and when I was about 4/5, someone brought a baby seal to his workplace, apparently abandoned. He volunteered to take it home, and I can remember now him having to explain himself to my mother and apparently was convinced that the tiny baby seal would be ready for burying by the morning (they are notoriously difficult to hand rear). And so in the morning the seal was very much alive, much to everyone's surprise, and so followed a year of Tammy the seal living with us. She whiled away her time at home by wandering around on the lawn, pissing off the cat and scaring us kids and occasionally finding her way into the house (think she was retrieved from under the bed at least once). Every day DF would take her to work in the boot of his car and hang out with him all day (he was out in the boat doing dive trips a lot of the time so suited her quite well). In the end, she was pretty much like a working dog but once fully grown she had to be released into the wild. Easier said than done - first attempt (after being dropped off many miles away) had her back at his workplace before he was. Second attempt was more successful and she never came back.

Here's a photo of Tammy looking rather pensive in the boot of the car.

She is immortalised in film as starred in a Lavinia Derwent movie while she was with us (it was filmed locally). Would love to see it although not sure if a copy still exists.

Sorry for hijacking with long story but your lovely story of Graeme and his fortunate rescue brought back these distant childhood memories!

HumbugsforChristmas · 04/12/2013 14:25

Lovely to read this thread....

Can I ask how Graeme is? Signed a contract yet?

Pleas tell me he is OK.

Original poster
gussiegrips · 05/12/2013 10:48

Graeme's great!

He's flying really quite well, landing is an issue what with the stupid foot and all. He seems to have some power in it because he can perch, but, the toes flail around when he walks so he kind of skips instead.

We're still doing BLW (budgie led weaning) - he gets formula food, but, from a dish rather than hand feeding (thank goodness, the novelty of that wore off some time ago) and he's got the hang of millet...

Which means he's bribe-able.

Which means the entire house is coated in a thin veneer of millet husks as the kids keep taking him upstairs to teach him tricks. So far he can ..... eat millet. Amazing.

I'm struggling with what to do with him. The medics have been clear that it's probably a bad idea to keep a bird in the house given that MiddleyGrip has unstable asthma (though, he's not allergic to feathers) - he really should go out into the aviary. Only, he doesn't see himself as a budgie.

If you've never had the joy of having your eyebrows done by a budgie, feel free to come round here he'll have a go at your witchy chin stubble too

OP posts:
Original poster
gussiegrips · 05/12/2013 10:57

Tammy, I have decided that your dad was Terry Nutkins? I totally want a pet seal now.

I loved those books as a kid, might need to find them again for our animal-geek daughter. I've got a copy of ring of bright water for her, cannae wait, she'll love it.

She's been caught researching praying mantises...which seem to be easy to look after...sucker Our house is turning into a whole eco-system.

OP posts:
ISawStrattersKissingSantaClaus · 05/12/2013 11:00

How have I missed this awesome thread? Xmas Shock

I am loving all the tales of Graeme the budgie.

ZombieBelle · 05/12/2013 11:47

haha I'm rooting for the wee guy, my DH is a Graeme

Spacefrog35 · 05/12/2013 12:11

Loving the idea of Graeme the Beauty Therapist. If his burgeoning Hollywood career fails to take off (much like Graeme) then perhaps you could set him up with one of those little stalls in the local Shopping Mall?

throckenholt · 05/12/2013 14:01

gussie - I like your style :) A most entertaining lunch hour reading.

But - I can't see your profile (waaahhh) - I can see other people's but yours just has a big white empty space under the MyMumsent line :(

kelper · 05/12/2013 17:45

This is a fabulous thread! My mum and dad have a tortoise with three legs, he terrorises the whole house but can no longer climb fences :D

MNHQ
AMyrryChristmasToAllMumsnet · 19/12/2013 15:28

We're pleased to announce the thread has made it to classics!

Let the celebrations commence!

Cake Wine

MrsMot · 19/12/2013 21:49

Hooray!!

Original poster
gussiegrips · 24/12/2013 11:58

He's a classic? Dammit. That'll go right to his head.

I think it's safe to say that Graeme's made it. Not for being promoted to a Classic, but, as in not dying off. Huzzah.

He's not right, the flappy foot is unreliable and he's got a definite veer to the right in flight. If I were overthinking things I'd suggest that he's almost got a cerebral palsy presentation - developmental delay and one sided weakness. But, he's a bird, evidently with very little cerebral anything.

He likes to perch on the Christmas tree and pull the baubles off. And to sit on your head and nibble your hair. But, his favourite is definitely chewing heel skin, the harder the better, which he'll do in return for a bit of cheek scratching.

Remember the Baruffa Fish pedicure? If I breed enough Graemes we could have a chain, one in every shopping centre throughout the land?

Merry Christmas.

OP posts:
MrsMot · 24/12/2013 18:58

Graeme's the budgie who just keeps on giving! Foot scrapes? Who needs a JML Pedi whatsit.

Hope you, dh and the little gussies (hesitating to call them gussettes for the obvious reason) have a lovely lively Christmas, you've made many a day of mine much brighter x

fanjofarrow · 31/12/2013 01:28

This thread is bloody marvellous. Graeme sounds cool!

ThePearShapedToad · 01/01/2014 09:22

Abso-flipping-fantastic Grin

How was Graeme's new year?

LadyIsabellasHollyWreath · 01/01/2014 09:45

Just found this thread thanks to the "threads of the year" link. You should definitely do a pet-related standup set Gussie, especially the bit where the DC's classmates go off eating eggs.

it's now Hogmanay. Does this mean Graeme is sexually mature? Is he spending too long in the bathroom and coming out smelling of Lynx?