Meet the pets!

[Lizzie]

Hello everyone,

I often come across threads here in the Community Center where you have mentioned your pets, so I thought it would be nice to have a dedicated thread to talk about our pets/animals, along with any photos you might want to share! If you are like me, I regularly come across cute or funny photos of pets so feel free to share those too (just remember to include the credit/source of the photo if you haven't taken it). 🙂

* I'm sorry about the photo above...I couldn't resist! hehe

I would like to introduce my cat, Johnny:

This a photo of Johnny enjoying the sun! We got him as a kitten and despite appearances he is a very good tree climber, when he is not lounging around...it's a hard life being a cat! 

What about you?

[Lizzie]

Aw yes @Robin4, I had completely forgot about that episode in Fawlty Towers! haha 🙂

[Kevin1322]

we got a positive review for our greyhounds.  

Two are blue, one is blue and white.

Guest thought we only had two.  He never saw all three of them awake at the same time!

[Helga0]

Hi @Lizzie, 

my sister's cat, when we had a student's apartment together, looked just like Jonny. But when she left him at her mother-in-law's country house, he grew quite a bit and became a great hunter, bringing home even a full grown hare. Your sleepy kitty has potential to change 😉

I have a parrot, very active, always on watch, either at the window to watch the neighbors and the gardian or at the inner door, to watch the guest. He squeezes himself between the red curtain and the door and climbs around to see the guest as close as possible. Most guests like it to be greeted at home coming and talk to him. If they don't, he tries to get attention, even to take the window frames out. If there is still no reaction, he is bored and seems to tell me: "Can we change guests?" If we don't, he bites me. 

The pictures are taken from the guest side of the room, one with a fellow host staying with me. They contemplae each other. Auguste thinks "I'd like to bite you" and the lady thinks: "I don't fall for your charming appearance, I know you'd lik to bite me." 

I had other parrots before, therefore I was very surprised that Auguste is so jealous of guests. But as long as there is a door between them or he is in a cage or held in my hand, he is a safe attraction, mentioned in reviews. 

[Robin4]

@Helga0 

For their size birds are sooo smart Helga, and they realise a lot more than we sometimes give them credit for.

Does your Auguste talk Helga? 

I have a friend that I work with in the Meals on Wheels kitchen and he has a mountain parrot that not only has a remarkable voice, he also has a sense of humour! 

David, (the friend)  was telling me last week ...(and he swears this is true, and I would believe it because he records the parrot talking an delights in playing it back to all of us). He had gone to bed for the night, the lights were out and all was quite for about three minutes, and suddenly Jacki (the parrot) said from his cage....."Davo", and David said..."Yes Jacki".... and Jacki said..."Goodnight Davo" 

I would love to have been a fly on the wall to hear that but, if David says it's true, it's true....

Cheers.....Rob

[Helga0]

@Robin4, 

parrots want to be greeted, as most pets. Auguste says "Bonjour Auguste", when French people enter. Otherwise he speaks mostly German and some parrot language. After family visits. He tells me. What my mother told him, with her voice. The rest of the year, it's mostly my intonation - if he is chiding someone, me modtly, that's like having a mirror presented. 

[Lizzie]

This is hilarious @Helga0, Auguste clearly knows who's boss! 🙂 Who needs a watch dog when you can have a watch parrot? 

Have you always had parrots? 

[Helga0]

@Lizzie, I bought the first bigger bird, not yet a parrot, with money I earned in a holiday job in a hotel. My father was not pleased at all, but I thought if I can work very long hours, I will spend the salary as I like. The bird loved my father best - they choose their favourite human. 

After that, I had other birds, Auguste is the 3rd parrot and he could grow old, 40 to 45 years. 

when the neighbor in Sète sold his apartment, he had a lots of visits, as he asked for a ridiculous price. I whispered to Auguste to keep quiet, as I wanted to listen to the negotiations directly before my door. (Bothered anyway, at least have fun from it).

to get a parrot quiet, ywhispering works, as he tries to mirror such a strange behaviour. 

Now, he sits before the window in Paris and watches the courtyard. If someone new passes, he tells me. If the person walks where he should not, like between the bushes before the neighbour's doors, he alerts me and I send them on their way - mostly to a doctor in the opposite building. 

Once, he came to me, whilst I worked on my computer, told me something and flew back on his tree. No alert, but something was going on. He insisted, so I had a look: a young neighbor practicing tai-chi or something and falling between some flower pots. Definitely a sight worth getting up from the desk 😉

[Lizzie]

I never knew parrots could live for quite so long, @Helga0. 

Auguste clearly has a great character and sense of humour, he sounds almost human! 🙂 I feel like Auguste should write a book...hehe

[Helga0]

Haha, he writes mostly empty letters to the editor on the phone app, when I'm reading news. The touch screen reacts to his tongue 😉

I had a guest drop off luggage and not react to Augsute behind the door - not smiling at me either -, so Auguste was vey interested in the luggage, when she was gone. He was banned to my room during lunch, as it gets too stressful to climb the loft stairs after evry second bite, to chase the flying monster. When I rushed back into the room, in urgency, as some havier things started falling, I found the mouse hanging down, wire a bit peeled off and 8 keys missing. The number 1 was hidden really well. 

Next time, I'll have to open a text page, so he can have a start at writing 😉

@Robin4, better to use alcohol than amoniak to clean sensite electronics 😉 I have had half eaten dripping orange slices falling from the ceiling onto documents ready to be posted...

[David-and-Fiona0]

Meet Fido

[Robin4]

@David-and-Fiona0 

Well at least Fido wouldn't have a massive appetite, Has he any endearing habits that guests relish? He looks like a giant version of the geckos we get here in the summer time.

Cheers.....Rob 

[Helga0]

Funny guy! Does he leap, when you turn your back? 

[Karen-and-Brian0]

Great topic @Lizzie! Our Airbnb rental is our recreational property so our pets aren't exactly "co-hosts" but I feature them in our photos to give a "heads up" to guests who may have allergies to dogs or cats. We have 3 very spoiled Cavalier King Charles spaniels, and they are most definitely allowed on the furniture. One is a rescue from an American puppy mill. She had been kept in a small cage since birth, had litter after litter of puppies & when finally rescued, was in bad shape - she was completely shut down and had such weak back legs/dislocated kneecaps, she could hardly walk. We named her "Pippa Middleton" & after lots of TLC, surgeries & physio she is happy, healthy and now has a spectacular "hind end" just like her namesake. 😄 Here are our 3 little munchkins, Pippa is on the right.  She is the most loving, friendliest little dog - and she loves people, even after all she's been through. This is their Christmas photo - they're good sports, although the one on the left looks like he's going to extract revenge later.

 

Our daughter has 2 cats - the first time she took them out to the cabin, the adventurous one, Juno, jumped from the top of the stairway onto the beam above the fireplace, made herself comfortable there & feel asleep. She looked so happy & content, I just had to include the photo on our listing.

This gives perspective as to where she jumped from:

Pets give us so much joy! Where would we be without them? 

[Kirstie]

Aww @Karen-and-Brian0 your three King Charles Spaniels are adorable! Love the antlers - it's true that the one on the left is giving quite a sideways look though... I hope he didn't exact revenge afterwards!

We also named one of our pets after Pippa Middleton! Our cat Pippa also has a lovely behind and likes to think of herself as quite a princess (although she's not). She's a big bundle of fluff and loves nothing more than cosying up on our laps.

And on the same theme of dogs in fancy dress, here's our working cocker spaniel Jenga ready for Christmas:

She could spend her whole life chasing hares and pheasants around a field - I'm fairly sure she does it in her sleep (if the twitches and yelps are anything to go by)!

Kirstie

[Karen-and-Brian0]

Your Pippa is the kitty version of our Pippa @Kirstie - what a beautiful cat! Your dog is a beauty too, I love her reindeer antlers.