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Page 2 NORTHWEST HERALD S«ctlonB Tutxfy, Sepftmbr 10,1985 Advice A bird in hand is fun, worthy pet By Lois McAkxxt Herald Newt Service If you don't own a parrot yet, let me give you some advice -- get one; they're great fun. 1 bought one a few months ago and, so far, I haven't regretted it one single bit. After much deliberation, I chose a Blue Front Amazon, or more cor- Petpourri rectly, he chose me. My somewhat special in that he has "only one leg due to an accident in quaren- tine. I felt he needed a little TLC because of his handicap, but he real­ ly doesn't notice his missing limb. He uses his beak much of the time for climbing and other tasks. And, outside of a little balance problem, he's fine In the short time I've owned him, I really feel he's taught me a great deal about bird behavior. And I'm growing steadily fonder of him day by day. If you're also considering a . parrot for a pet, here are a few things you may want to take into consideration: •They're a bit on the expensive side -- expect to pay upwards of $300. Hand-raised birds, that is birds born in captivity and fed by humans, will run considerably more. But be­ cause they can live a good 30-plus years, they're nearly economical. •They're noisy. This is true to a certain extent. Nigel, by Blue Front, is really a pretty quiet bird. He generally only does his squalking when we run the vacuum cleaner or when I play my Stevie Wonder tapes. I tranche likes ol' Stevie. Other than that, he's pretty quiet. I understand, however, that he is the exception when it comes to Ama­ zons. I've also heard it said that African Grays are a bit quieter and I know for a fact that Conures can break the sound barrier with their shrieking. •They talk. This I can prove as in the short time I've owned him, Nigel can say "hello" quite clearly. This he does while I fix his breakfast. I understand that Amazons are very good talkers and have an uncanny knack for saying just the right thing at the right time. This can be a tremendous source of delight and/or embarrassment. Basically, a bird can be taught to talk by spending Just five or so minutes twice a day repeating the words you want the bird to say. < •They're affectionate. Finally Ni­ gel is becoming tame. He was young when I bought him but pretty wild. He not only didn't enjoy being touched, he retaliated by biting se- verly. I thought I would end up with bloody stumps. But I didn't give up, and now he not only enjoys having his head scratched, he's actually playful and affectionate. /This ac­ complishment took only a couple of months. He still bites occasionally, but only when he frightened or teel- ing anti-social and in a bad moodM~~ must admit, I now have new respect for Macaw-sized beaks. I think tam­ ing is best accomplished by building the bird's trust with food rewards. doesn't seem to be any way around this. Birds don't have hands, so they have a tendency to drop a lot of their food. I usually put old newspapers under where he drops his food and other objects, and I end up vacuum­ ing a lot. I try to make sure I keep his dishes and cage clean by wash­ ing them with bleach water. Some people use corn-cob bedding. The only reason I don't like it is because I can't see the consistency of his droppings, a sign of the state of his health. And I believe he scatters the bedding around worse than the seed hulls. And besides being great read­ ing, "Petpourri" is very absorbent, too (tisk, tisk). •They're fun. I love watching Ni­ gel lay upside down playing with his toys. He does it just like a puppy. So why not just get a puppy? I already have a puppy -- seven of them, in fact. I love them all, but Nigel's fun in his own way and just as loving, too, So, if you would like a captivating pet who is beautiful, unusual and fun, consider a parrot. If you're wor­ ried about losing a finger, you might want to start out with something a bit SQ|aller, say a parakeet. At any rate, Dirds make great pets. Most are not hard to tame, and there are lots of bird breeders in the area who sell healthy, beautiful pets as well as many local pet shops, some of which specialize in winged-type buddies. Weekdays No Bargain Show GHOSTBUSTER'S Fri. Only 5:25,7:30,9:40 •Sun. 1:15,3:20,5:25, 7:30,9:40 flon.-Thurs. 6.8:15 W DAY OF THE DEAD Fri. 5:45,7:50,10 Sat.-Sun. 1:45,3:45,5:45, 7:50,10 Moff.-Thurs. 6:30.8:30 EUROPEAN VACATION fri. 1,10; Sit. S««. 1:50.6,10 Moa.-Thwi 6 FRIGHT NIGHT Fn. 7:40; Sat,S»a. 3:50,7:40 Hoi TtyivS w -d EVERYBODY READS'EM! Young and old our readers know the bargains are in the classifieds. You reach thousands of potential customers every day when you use the classifieds PEE WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE Fn. 6:10,8.9:45 Sit. Sun. 2:30,4:20,6;10,8,9:45 Mon.Thurs. 6:10,8 •r RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD Fri. 6:20,8:15,10:10 S»t.Sun. 2:30,4:30,6:20,8:15,10:10 Mon.Thurs. 6:20.8:15 1? AMERICAN NINJA Fn. 5:15,7:15,9:30 Sat. Sun. 1:30,3:15 Mon.Thurs. 6:20, cIo"" MF30E TRACTOR LOADER •45SAEneth.p. •Perkins 152.7 CI D Diesel • Many other tractor-loaders and backhoes are here! GREAT FINANCING CALL OR VISIT WITH MIKE FOR DETAILS A VA,LABLC! THIS WEEK'S FEATURED USED TRACTORS FORD SOOO SERIES DIESEL TLB *6800 FORD 3000 SERIES GAS TLB *5800 (4) FORD TL'S, 3 PT; P.T.O. GAS *2500 to *5500 (2) MF 50-C TLB with CAB 6 h.p. DIESEL *18,500 (1) CLARK DIESEL FORKUFT with JIB 6 cyl. _ . , PERKINS DIESEL .̂ 11,000 ( TMCTOM LOUfRS coanwaiis lOAOiD MCKJtOfS mtnEannts NEW/USED FINANCING AVAHJkBLI DEARABBY m And always taking him away from his cage to work with him. Birds, being territorial, will defend their nests, in this case their cage. Birds are extremely intelligent and don't respond well to physical discipline. Taming takes lots of patience as they simply can't be rushed. •They're messy. True, Nigel is messy with a capital M. There By Abigail Van Buren Graduate voted most likely to be rude DEAR ABBY: Reading your column dally ten to mail it. Durine the two and a half vears rcoi DEAR ABBY: Reading your column daily has taught me a lot about the brashness of some people, but nothing I had read prepared me for the following: A woman I'm not well ac­ quainted with (we chat when we see each other at the grocery store, which is seldom) ap­ peared at my door last May. I had buried my mother the previous day and was feeling very tired, so I was still in bed at noon. When I went to the door, this woman chided me for still being in my bathrobe. I ex­ plained the situation, thinking she would apologize for intruding and leave. Instead, she went on to tell me in great detail about her own mother's death, which had occurred years ago. Then she thrust an invitation to her daughter's high school graduation in my hand and left. (I didn't even know this woman had a daughter.) It's now September. Yesterday my phone rang and the caller identified herself 9s so-and- so's daughter. I Jiad no idea who she was talk­ ing about until she explained that her mother had given me an invitation to her graduation. She said that since she had not received a graduation gift from me, she figured I had pro­ bably put money in an envelope and had forgot­ ten to mail it. I told her as tactfully as I could that I had done neither. Then she said, "That's all right, Just put some money in an envelope and I'll come right over and get it because I'm going shopping today and wanted to buy a few things," I was so angry 1 told her I was in no position to give her any money, then I hung up. Abby, is there a classification for people like this? If so, what is it? Also, how would you have handled the situation? FLABftERG ASTED DEAR FLABBERGASTED: Such people can be classified as ignorant, nervy, grasping and totally lacking in Judgment and sensitivity. But before you Judge, please consider that both the girl and her mother could be mentally defi­ cient. And I would have handled the situation Just as you did. • • * DEAR ABBY: I have a very perplexing pro­ blem. How should in-laws be addressed? been married to their daughter for four months and so far I have avoided calling them/1 anything. - \ Tap dancers set record c During the two and a half years Fcourted "Barbara," I've called her parents Mr. and Mrs. Jones (not their real names, but after the wedding, it didn't seem right, so I asked them what they wanted me to call them, and they said, "Call us anything you feel comfortable with." Well, to be honest, I feel comfortable calling them Mr. and Mrs. Jones because it shows respect, and I've never called them anything else. ; Barbara has no trouble calling my parents "Mom and Dad," which is what she calls her parents, but I'd feel awkward calling anyone except my own parents by those names. Using their first names seems disrespectful. What do other newly weds do? ram open fay suggestions. TONGUE-TIED DEAR TONGUE-TIED: Some in-laws are called "Mother Betty" and "Father Paul," or Just plain Mom and Dad Jones. Or, Just plain Momma and Papa, or whatever one's spouse calls them. It may be a bit awkward at first, but It gets easier with time. Most inlaws don't care what their kids call them, as long as they call them NEW YORK (UPI) - The United States has kept a leg up on the land Down Under with the help of thou­ sands of people whose determined heel-clicking and toe-tapping set a world record for tap dancing. A total of 3,565 men, women and children shuffled and tapped their way across 34th Street Sunday to claim the record for the largest as­ semblage of tap dancers. Macy's, the world's largest store, assembled the group to beat the record set last year by another Macy's assemblage of 3,450 hoofers, firmly maintaining its claim over Australian competitors. The rivalry between Macy's and Australia tfas been going on for sev­ eral years. When the store heard rumors Australia was after the re­ cord again, it called on all available legs, a spokeswoman for Macy's said. "After all, they've got the Ameri­ ca's Cup (for yachting)," said the spokeswoman, who asked not to be identified. LOOKING FOR SOMETHING? CHECK THE CLASSIFIEDS FIRST! . . " 1 SOFT WATER --1 RENTAL 975p.rm. • •NO installation charge • NEW fully automatic softeners * •TWO year option to buy with • FULL rental fee deducted •ONE phone call can answer f J?nt 7 any questions r softN 312-259-3393 • • ARLINGTON SOFT WATit CO. * PLAY EDITION ADDITION w GRAND PRIZE! ------- A Fabulous trip for 2 8 Days/7 Nites in HAWAI WEEKLY PRIZES: *100.00 SWEEPSTAKES QUESTIONS: Tuesday, September 10 1. In what year did a kilter tornado sweep through western portions of McHenry County? 2. In what year did Crystal Lake celebrate its centennial! 3. Who won the Arlington Million? 4. Who is the Illinois Secretary of Statl? 5. In what year was the McHenry County Farm Bureau founded? ENTER WEEKLY! Official Entry Blank questions & answers in Saturdays Northwest HERALD! stipn NTE CONTEST MILES Every publishing day Monday through Saturday, during the months of September and October, five questions will be published in an Edition Addition Sweepstakes Ad. Each Saturday the full week's questions will appear with all the answers printed in random order on an official Edition Addition Sweepstakes E ntry Form. Entry forms are also available at all Northwest Herald offices. Answer all the questions and send them to Sweepstakes, Northwest Newspapers, P.O. Box 250, Crystal Lake, IL, 60014, or drop them off at your local Northwest Herald office, The Crystal Lake Herald, 7803 Pyott Rd., Crystal Lake; Cardunal Free Press, 250 Williams Rd., Carpentersvillle; Daily Sentinel, 109 So. Jefferson, Woodstock; McHenry Plaindealer, 3812 W. Elm, McHenry. All entries should be submitted no later than 5 p.m. ^ Wednesday following the Saturday publication. One entry per person per week. All correcf enntries for the previous week will be inluded in the weekly drawing. Weekly $100.00 . 1 winners will be chosen every Thursday. All correct entries will be eligible for the grand prize 1 drawing to be held during the first week of November. Entry in the contest is determined by filling out and sending in entry forms. Copies of papers are available for inspection at all Northwest Herald offices and at area public libraries. No purchase necessary. E ntrantsln the Sweepstakes consent to the use of their name and/or photograph in the Northwest Herald. Entrants must be over the age of 18. E mployees of the Northwest Herald, Northwest Newspapers, and the BF Shaw Printing Company and their families are not eligible for prizes. 1' The Grand Prize drawing will be held the first week ̂ of November 1985, and the results will be published that week. Odds are determined by the number of entrants. Decisions of the judges are final. No substitution of prizes. All Federal, State and local laws and regulations apply. The grand prize is a Hawaiian vacation for two. Conditions of trip are regulated and governed by tour operators and their agents. Trip m ust be taken by July 31st, 1986. Northwest Newspapers assumes no explicit otymplied liability. Taxes for winnings, if any, are the sole responsibility of the winners. Northwest Newspapers reserves the right to amend the rules and contest requirements as circumstances dictate. ORTHWEST % I s %