European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 27, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse More and More people find Birds make Fine friends Alan Patu real Cox news service. Ancy Martin was wrapping gifts at her i Home a few Days before Christmas i. When a string of Christmas tree lights i 1 blinked out. She noticed with a Start that her cockatoo or. Magoo had chewed through the electric Cord. A thank god he did no to electrocute himself his beak is dry and must be Shockproof a says Martin. A computer consultant who has her hands full Tak ing care of a House full of Birds. Martin owns eight Birds ranging from a big Macaw to Petite lovebirds. And even though they cause mischief and Chew the furniture along with electrical cords she says they make excellent com a Anions. A .a. A v a five years ago i had a husband Here the Birds Are More fun a Martin says. A you done to have to put up with them All the after sharing Din net with her feathered friends plates of Chicken i done to Tell them they re eating relatives a vegetables and ice Cream she can shut them in. Their cages and go our Martin who lives in Lawrenceville ga., is part of a growing flock of americans who Are buying Birds for pets. Nationwide Bird sales Are up an average of 3 percent a year since 1985, according to the pet Industry joint advisory Council in Washington. A Why All the fuss a you done to have to walk a Bird. They re easier to care for a says Bob Kinsey owner of for Birds Only in Atlanta. The former business executive was a dog Lover until a Friend gave him a lovebird after a heart attack in 1974. Then he bought a Parrot and a Bird shop. Birds still have not replaced dogs and cats As americans most popular pets a Only 6 percent of . Households have pet Birds according to a Survey by the american pet product manufacturers association while 38 percent have dogs. 33 percent and 9 percent own fish. But Birds take up less space and time and thus Aro Ideal for Condo or apartment residents. They eat less. And they re generally More sociable. A Birds Are very soothing creatures they Mellow you out a says Kinsey while stroking baby a rare White moluccan cockatoo with a $2,500 Price lag. He has hand fed baby since she hatched seven months ago at the Nursery he established in peach tree City. Kinsey has Learned that hand feeding is the it Best Way to ensure a tame personable and loquacious Bird. The Chick Bonds w Ith the feeder As it would a Mother. A once in a while you get a real screwball but most Birds Are Sweet As sugar a says Dan Gunn of Stone Mountain a. He returned one Bird after two months because it gnawed his Antiques and hissed at his wife and 17-Ycar-old son. Now ins plucky Parrot Gracie delights customers when he takes her to his photography studio. She whistles says a hello i love you and a How a bout them she reaches out and Biles Gunny sarm a but not hard he says just testing to see if it s Safe to sit on. At night he rough houses with Grade on the floor while she flaps her wings and imitates a dog growl. A a it a like owning a big dog a he says. Another advantage is that big Birds such As parrots macaws and cockatoos have Over other pets is that they live longer. A when a dog Dies you re heartbroken a Gunn says. Pointing to his Parrot he adds a this sucker could live for 90 years a lot longer than i owners routinely mention their Birds in their wills. But when an owner Dies its the Bird who might be heartbroken. In fact Martin is so close to her Macaw Sonny she worries that he would die of loneliness if she went away. A a in be hand fed him so Long he a bonded to me a Parrot gives its owner a Friendly Peck. As a love object a she says. He gets so jealous of visitors that she has to Cage him or hell attack like a a while big Birds get More affectionate with their owners parakeets arc the most popular Avian pets accounting for 40 percent of sales. At $7 to $25 each they re also the least expensive. Lovebirds and cockatiels Small cockatoos Cost about $200, while exotic parrots and macaws can run $1,500 to $5,000. Camera shave their q a i have a Minolta Freedom dual compact camera. I recently took photos of a Squirrel in my backyard shot through the storm door. None of them came out. It Wasny to the fault of the camera because 1 also took a couple of pictures from outside and they were of. What did i do wrong. A a you did no to do anything wrong but have Learned something very important about modern technology. The new a Point and shoot cameras focus by Means of an infrared beam. It travels from the camera to the subject and Back again setting the exposure and proper Lens to subject distance. The Trade off for All this wonderful simplicity i photography that the infrared beam does no to work in some instances. Sometimes shooting though Glass distorts the beam and the automatics of the camera done to work. This is what happened in your Case. A . A. \ my son is taking a photography course and has developed a rash on his hands. He complains of itching from time to time but insists its nothing to hamper his lab work. Could the rash be caused by the Developer being used. I take your son to a doctor. This rash is not unusual. Often it affects people less Over the years apparently they develop an immunity to the chemistry that causes it. Usually people sensitive to photographic material can overcome it by simply wearing rubber gloves. If that a too cumbersome thin plastic surgeons gloves work Well. _ a every once in a while i see a batteries on Sale. Should i Stock up during these sales i use a lot of them since my Flash holds four and my camera two and i like to change batteries often. _ i a depending on How much you save and How Many you like to keep on hand it May be Best to go slowly. These batteries Are always available no matter where or when you travel. Besides they will move faster from your dealers shelves than from yours. Generally the batteries you buy on a Given Day arc fairly fresh and trustworthy. Reminder once you have started to use batteries in your Flash or camera they will continue to discharge. So if you Haven to used the equipment in some time he careful that the batteries Haven to worn Down. And if you done to. Plan to use your equipment for a while take the batteries out so that they done to corrode and ruin something. Washington Post a. January 27. 1991 sunday to plus Page 15
