memories,

[alfred]

Talking to one of my neighbours the other day about schools when i remembered , way back in time when my wife went to visit her aunt who at the time lived in a block of flats which over looked a school on the other side of the road


well her aunt at the time had a Minah bird and during the summer the bird and stand were placed on the balcony which over looked the school ,
with break times and other times when the children were playing  and at these times became quite crowded  and the noise these children made
meant at times the school teacher would blow his /her whistle simply to control the children getting too over excited,


at other times the playground was used for the girls to play net ball  or the boys to do keep fit exercises,  well the minah bird heard and most likely saw  the children running about and i suppose he got used to the noise ,


well on day during the summer the children during a break time were massed in the playground  and the noise was loud , suddenly a whistle sounded a really shrill note and the children stopped and were looking around for the teacher,


of course there were none but then many of the children realised it came from the Minah bird who it seemed knew exactly when to make a whistle sound , after that my wife's aunt had been asked by the school to keep the Minah bird in when the school was in progress  which she did,


it amazing just just how these intelligent bird can mimic a sound ,


Q; do you have a story to tell us about birds, cats, dogs , or any other pet, and will you share your story with us,

[Michael Rolls]

My first wife and I had cats. It was a hot summer's day so the kitchen window was open. The layout made it easy for the cats to jump in and out. Lucy, our little female (who ruled the roost) suddenly appeared on the window sill with a large fish in her mouth! We took it from her - much to her annoyance - and binned it, but wondering if we might find ourselves the subject of some neighbour's wrath - we went for a drive!
Mike

[crabbyob]

when i lived in Southern India the family was having a do, as europeans were quite rare i was very popular with all [i think i got about ten birthday wishes from Dindigul last week] any way they are quite common in that part of the world [Minah Birds or Indian Hill Minahs, i thought they were Miners,  so they were my favourites] anyway i explained they were caged birds in the UK and they could talk, this caused great hilarity among my friends, remember they were brought up seeing them daily, my mate pointed out that he could tell when i was lieing, because my lips would move, well the crowd erupted at that and mother came out of the house to see what had happened and they told her, she shook her head and told them as a child she had found one with a broken wing and cared for it, and that bird was known to repeat Phrases in Tamil.... everyone was shocked... i told them you could get over a huindred pounds for one in England, and they asked how many might fit in my suitcase...lol...[/i]

[crabbyob]

my friends Daughter who lives in Cambridge and is an [A] student is only ten,when she was 3 we were down town doing some shopping, i remained in the car with the child.... i noticed an Elephant chained to a tree so i got out and invited the child to come with me to see the animal... my god she almost went hysterical.... when i fanally got her quietened i asked why was she so afraid.... she told me she was afraid it might bite her....lol... even with my imagination of all the things i might imagine an Elephant might do to me i have never considered being bitten...
yes your right at least once a year i will remind her of it, then if she gets really smart in front of her friends i just ask if any of them has ever seen an Elephant, and that quietens her... she suggests its time to burry that tale..... but i remind her.... that an elephant never forgets...

[klondike]

I remember amusing the kids in a zoo where there was a caged parrot or similar with a silly croaky Pieces of Eight and Prettty Boy or similar. I just got withering looks from the kids but a woman nearby must have been fooled as she was trying to get it to repeat what I'd been saying. I crept away smirking.

[zoony]

when i lived in Southern India the family was having a do, as europeans were quite rare i was very popular with all [i think i got about ten birthday wishes from Dindigul last week] any way they are quite common in that part of the world [Minah Birds or Indian Hill Minahs, i thought they were Miners,  so they were my favourites] anyway i explained they were caged birds in the UK and they could talk, this caused great hilarity among my friends, remember they were brought up seeing them daily, my mate pointed out that he could tell when i was lieing, because my lips would move, well the crowd erupted at that and mother came out of the house to see what had happened and they told her, she shook her head and told them as a child she had found one with a broken wing and cared for it, and that bird was known to repeat Phrases in Tamil.... everyone was shocked... i told them you could get over a huindred pounds for one in England, and they asked how many might fit in my suitcase...lol...[/i]

When I was a little boy my ex-Navy dad had a small monkey and a Mynah bird in a cage which spoke well as I recall. The two creatures disappeared at some point in my toddler-hood and I remember mum complaining of the smell of the bird..

[klondike]

My eldest daughter learned violin. The old dear who taught her had a couple of parrots. I couldn't bear to stay in for the half hour lesson and sat in my car waiting. My daughter never complained at all. Very odd. Must remember to ask what she remembers of it.

[Scrumpy]

When I was very little I remember the lady in the big house next door taking her Cockatoo out with her when she went for a stroll.. It was perched a length of wood that she carried.. It was a very quiet neighbourhood and the locals would stop and chat..