Farewell Billy Boy.

Today is not a good day in our house.

If you like sad stories with happy endings, then stop reading now! This is a happy story with a sad ending. I shall explain.

A few months ago we noticed a bright blue flash of bird around our feeding pole. Then for days, nothing. Then the flash of blue again a few days later, and finally we saw... a budgie! Bright blue and turquoise, he had obviously escaped from either a cage or an aviary and had managed to find our 'Roadhouse' where there was food, water, fruit and sugar water freely available. He was not tame, but he did allow us to get fairly close, and he would perch on the antenna wire and 'chat' to the insulator.

Billy drinking the sugar water.

We had no intention of trying to catch him as he was happy as a free spirit and mingled with the other birds in the garden. We felt sad for him in that he had no 'friend' and even thought about getting another one to turn loose, but there was no guarantee that a second one would stay with him and then there would be two loose and lonely budgies!

Billy with his insulator 'friend'.

He became well known in the area and we were able to track his movements as friends of ours mentioned that he was a regular visitor to their bird table too, and he spent a lot of time next door in Emma's garden.

Then on Saturday he met Basil.

Rob was reading when he heard the commotion. Basil had caught Billy and had taken him under the fireplace in the lounge. As he ran out, Rob threw a cushion and Basil released him. Minus his tail feathers and with a damaged wing, Rob knew that his chances of survival were slim, especially with the shock of the trauma. So he put Billy safely in the bathroom on a towel in the bath with food and water, and he sat there overnight. Alfie was entranced and I think he knew that Billy was injured and confused.

Alfie telling Billy it'll be ok.

We phoned several people to see if they had a cage for us to borrow for Billy's convalescing period, but with no luck. The people that we thought had aviaries no longer had them, so we were drawing blanks with each call.

Then yesterday morning Rob came up with a Brilliant Masterplan. He hauled our old cat Clyde's travelling cage out of the garage. He made the cage in 2006 when we left Johannesburg and trekked South (thank goodness!), and Clyde travelled safely (but not quietly) in the back of the Golf. Over the years it has been used as a goose cage, a cat cage, and now, a budgie cage. He fixed some sticks in for perches, and we put water and seed in it and we hung it outside on the veranda so that Billy could see and hear the birds coming and going.

Billy in his cage.

He spent yesterday happily moving from the perches to the floor and was eating and drinking.
And we thought that he was on the mend. And we started planning what to do once he had recovered, as we knew that his wing would never be strong enough to release him into the wild again. We brought his cage in when the wind started to turn chilly and we put him in the office and closed the door.

No tail, but looking positive.

Safe from the cats.

But this morning when Rob came into the office, Billy was dead on the floor of the cage.

We buried him under the trees that he loved. And we feel so very sad.