Bird Meet Hamster

In earlier days, my family had quite a menagerie of pets (just not more than two at a time.  When we moved to town when I was the tender ago of 6 months, we got MY dog, Buffy from the wonderful friends who sold us the house.  I loved my poodle a lot.  The summer after I completed the 4th grade, Buffy had to be put to sleep.  She was really ill.  Arthritis had set in so badly, that she could not walk upon or down the porch steps.  The poor girl would not eat and shivered all the time.  So one day, my parents took her to the vet, unbeknownst to me.

In addition to Buffy, we had a total of three cats (not all at once, but one in particular that I know I have posted about).  The poodle would go crazy when approached by the felines.  I don’t think it was the stereotypical dog vs. cat scenario but more like playful chasing around the house.

The Christmas after Buffy was put down, we received a blue parakeet from our “grandparents”.  We named her Corky after “Grandma” Margaret.  One summer while on break from college, my brother brought home Skippy the hamster whom he “saved.”  The parakeet must have become jealous because he would imitate the hamster by walking around on the floor and following it.  I remember going so far as to put the bird inside the hamster’s ball and seeing her attempt to roll it.

Jamy Shaffer