I wave to Samuel Thomas as he joins my video call. “It’s good to see you today, thank you for meeting with me!”
“No problem,” replies Samuel. “This sounds like fun.”
“I hope it will be. Well, let’s get started. Could you first tell me what kinds of pets you have? And what are their names?”
“My brother and I have an aviary with a pair of Zebra Finches, seven Laughing doves, and four African doves.”
“Wow, that’s a lot of birds,” I remark.
“Oh, I’m not done yet,” Samuel laughs. “I also have separate smaller cages with a pair of Diamond doves and two pairs of Budgies. Then there are the domestic-bred show pigeons, about thirty of them. And my family has twelve chicken hens that we keep for eggs. We haven’t named any of the birds, there are too many for that. But they each have their own personalities and temperaments, and I’ve gotten to know them all. Besides all of the birds, we have a Canaan dog that we found in his den and raised. His name is Oliver. My little sister has a rabbit named Percy, and finally, my older sister and I have two Syrian hamsters named Bright Eyes and Helen. Their parents died of old age, sadly. Helen has been blind since birth, which is where her name came from—Helen Keller. It doesn’t hinder her too much, honestly, because hamsters can’t see very well even if they’re not blind.”
After this, I just stare at him in shock. “How in the world do you keep track of all those animals?”
“Well, I have a routine established by now. In the morning, I go outside to feed the birds their grain. The doves, chickens, and pigeons all eat the same kind, so that’s pretty easy. The budgies and finches have their own mix. I let the chickens out of their coop to run around and eat things like grass and bugs. During the day, I mostly just have to spend time with the birds and watch them. My sister is usually the one to feed the hamsters every night before bed, and my brothers take care of Percy and Oliver.”
“I guess you’re right; that doesn’t sound too hard. Splitting the responsibilities is helpful; thank goodness for siblings. Do the animals like to play? I’m assuming the birds mostly stay in their cages.”
“Yeah, the birds don’t really like to be touched or bothered. Oliver likes to play and run around, and we put the hamsters in their exercise balls every day.”
I nod. “That sounds fun. What do they like to eat for fun?”
“Oliver really enjoys fruit,” Samuel tells me. “Apples and pears and bananas are his favorites. The birds mostly just eat their grain, but the budgies like spinach and lettuce.”
“Very healthy,” I reply. “How long have you had them all for?”
“We found Oliver about five months ago. We’ve had the chickens for about a year and a half, and the first pigeons are from almost three years ago. The rest of the birds are more recent, and my sister got Percy the rabbit for her birthday back in December. We bought the hamsters two years ago.”
“An interesting variety. Do they typically get along well with each other?”
“The male pigeons can be territorial, so they get into fights sometimes. They don’t get injured, and it’s mostly just pecking and wing-slapping. Oliver is really playful and can get carried away easily, so I think he’d probably injure or kill any other pet he came across.”
“Oof, that sounds hard. Are there any other difficulties that come with having pets?”
Samuel thinks for a minute. “Like I just said, Oliver can get too playful with us since he’s only a puppy. He bites at my family and I, and it hurts. Many times after training him, I come inside with holes in my hands from his teeth. It’s a common problem with puppies, but we’re really hoping he’ll grow out of it.”
“I get that; I’ve had that trouble with my dogs too. What would you say is your favorite part about animals?”
“I would say that the most interesting part is getting to watch the different types of birds as they breed and raise their chicks. They’re fascinating.”
“That does sound pretty cool,” I agree. “Thank you again for joining me today, it was a pleasure to learn about your many pets!”
“It was indeed fun,” Samuel assures me. “See you around!”
Cover image: Diamond doves
