RIP Elsa

We found Elsa dead last night.  I didn't write much about the lizards, as their lives were nowhere near as interesting as the parrots'; here are the last pictures I had taken of her.

She'd recently had a well-lizard exam and had been declared healthy, with the exception of some worms.

We have no idea how old she was as she was an adult when we got her.  She'd had very poor treatment prior to coming to us.  In a way, it's a relief as though I tried to do my best with her, she never seemed very happy.  My vet assured me she was as happy as a captive lizard could be, but who knows. 

Andreas is still going strong.  I wonder if he can somehow sense that he's now our only lizard?

Worms, part 2

The lizards had their annual vet visit last week; they had worms, again  Luckily (for me), just the microscopic pinworms and not the giant, visible tapeworms they had last time.

They're going to a new vet (their old vet moved out of state), and he was fantastic!  I was very impressed with his lizard handling and knowledge.  The lizards were impressed with his efficiency and speed as they were back in their warm tanks quickly (their previous vet was very good, but very, very slow.)


In order to get rid of the worms, both lizards need 10 days of medication:

In an interesting development, Rocky, who has always been a parrot protector, is also now a lizard protector.  As Thomas medicates the lizards, I can hear him saying "Rocky, please stop biting me!  I am helping the lizards!" etc.  It is fake biting, but Rocky is letting him know his feelings on the subject.

I wanted to try to get a picture of Thomas medicating Elsa (the above two pictures were Andreas), but Rocky didn't want me to get too close. 

He takes his protection responsibilities seriously.  Almost as seriously as his wood-chipping and paper-tearing responsibilities, of which you can see the evidence behind him.

The lizards are still alive

Doing a recent search, I realized that it's been almost a year since my last update on the lizards.  They certainly don't provide the entertainment and photo ops that the parrots do!

In any case, as was the case last year, they are loving summer.  During the winter, I can go weeks without seeing them, but now, I see them every day.

They are reaping the benefit of our CSA as they are getting a wider variety of healthy greens than can be found at a grocery store.  They especially love anything that has yellow flowers on it (though I suspect dandelions are still their favorite.)

Here's, Elsa, thinking about trying these new greens out:

And, in mid-chomp:

They don't like their regular food to eat it out of my hand, so I make sure to feed them special treats like this at every opportunity.

Since they've been out of their hides more, Rocky has renewed his interest in Elsa, as her cage is at his level when he's walking on the floor.  Pretty much every day this week, he's gone up to her, greeted her, and then fake ate her (making chomping and chewing sounds and motions in her direction.)  She is oblivious to this, and he gives up after a few seconds.  I'd love to get it on video, but since it happens so quickly, this is unlikely.

Quick post

I brought the wrong camera with me today, so the posts I had planned for today will have to wait until tomorrow.  Here are a few random pictures instead:

Basil loves eating his greens every day!

This iguana was confiscated by animal control; I just happened to be wearing a green shirt when I met him.  Isn't he adorable?  Don't worry; my rational side prevailed and we won't be taking him home, even if we do match.

A picture of the sweetest macaw I've met in quite some time.  I am in love!  But I don't have room, so she will not be coming to live with us, either.  She gets so excited when she sees me or hears my voice, so the feeling is mutual.  She's been at the shelter a long time, but we think we're close to finding her a home.

I just love the 25+ year old blue and gold macaws.  I've threatened to stick Rocky in her cage during the night and take her home with me instead, but they'd immediately know it was me and they know where I live, so Rocky is safe.  Maybe he'll calm down a bit once he turns 25?  Only one more year to find out...