Beth Anne - All my life I have loved birds. As a young girl, we had a blue parakeet that watched over me as I grew up. After high school graduation, I got my very own bird, a yellowface greywing sky budgie named Angel. She was one of those 'special' birds. I loved her so! I started college for the first time and left Angel home unattended. She looked lonely, so I got her a friend, Devil. That failed to ease my guilt. I began to fill in the alphabet with Baron and Cloud. By then I was hooked! I later discovered English budgies and exhibited at my first show only fifteen months later.
One day, shortly before Christmas, I came home from work to discover that Angel "wasn't right." Naturally, I took her to see her avian vet. He ran a few tests, including an x-ray, and informed me that she had cancer and that the tumor was inoperable. My worst fears were realized and I was devastated. In January that year, I held Angel for the last time and said what I always said as I turned out the lights, "good night, pretty bird" as Angel took her final breath. I stayed in bed sobbing for nearly a week afterward.
For years after Angel passed, I looked for a 'replacement'. Ten years later at Christmas time, I visited a bird shop in south Florida in search of an African grey. There was a silly little white bird with a tiny yellow (my favorite color) feather sticking up on her head. She flapped her wings and bobbed her head every time she looked at me. One by one, I had the greys brought to me so I could play with them and select the right one.
I attended The Ohio State University and graduated with a PhD in Avian Reproductive Physiology. I dedicated my dissertation to my loyal and trustworthy bird, Angel, with Lely looking over my shoulder as I typed.