Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Chip

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Our little House Sparrow, Chip, died Monday morning. She was 10 years old.

For those of you that aren't familiar with the story of Chip, let me explain.

Years ago I was an aviary keeper for a public exhibit of lorikeets (that's a whole other story in itself) and I was responsible for the handfeeding and care of around 2 dozen parrots, which consisted of mostly lories and lorikeets as well as 3 macaws. I also did some work for the pet store where Gregg still works to this day, handfeeding and socializing baby parrots. I got a reputation at the "bird lady" around town and would often end up with orphaned wild birds to rescue and release.

One day, a friend of a friend found a nest of baby House Sparrows that had been blown to the ground after a storm. Only one of the babies was still alive. It didn't even have feathers yet. The guy heard about me from our mutual friend, and brought the bird to me for help.

I hand fed the little sparrow, as I had done dozens of times before, and got ready to release her, but there was a bit of a delay. Gregg and I were preparing to move that spring. I wanted to be available to offer her food for a few days once she started living outside. Oftentimes young newly released birds will hang around for a week or so, for security and food while they're learning to live in the big wide world.

Once we got to the new house, I started taking her out every day to fly around. She lived outdoors for about a week, but two nesting mockingbirds started to harass her. She would frantically land on our shoulder every time we came outside, so we starting bringing her back in to keep her safe. We thought that as soon as the mockingbirds finished nesting, she would happily adjust to life outdoors....but she didn't. She would fly around for a few minutes when we took her outside, but then would cheep and cry and every time we walked in the door she would land on our shoulders and hitch a ride back inside. After a while, it started to get cold outside....so we kept her inside where it was warm and safe. And after that first winter, we had a pet sparrow. She didn't know how to live in the wild and we didn't have the heart to try to force her.

A few years later, we moved into our current house, and Chip came with us. She had a whole bedroom to herself, with a large potted ficus tree and a window looking out onto our bird feeder. We often opened the window in the warm months, so she could have left at any time, but she never did. We didn't keep her in a cage. She lived in her ficus tree, and we kept newspaper down on the floor in her room to keep it clean.

We grew very attached to Chip over the years. (A coworker of mine named her for the sound she made as a baby.....in those first days I had to take her with me to work so that I could feed her every couple of hours). In addition to the fresh seeds and water that were always available to her, she loved bread. Every single morning for years, Gregg would take a tiny piece of bread in to her room and she would hop on his hand and nibble it. We noticed over the past couple of weeks that she was slow to wake up and get moving in the morning, and it would take her a few minutes to come around. She was extraordinarily old for a House Sparrow. And on Monday morning, when Gregg went in with her morning piece of bread, he found her little lifeless body underneath her ficus tree. We both cried.

Chip as a baby.

If you've ever wondered how my blog came to be named "Sparrow Tree Journal" now you know...it was a tribute to Chip and the tree where she lived.

We're going to miss that little bird.

26 comments:

  1. So sorry to hear of Chips passing, what a wonderful life you two gave her. I have a very similar history in bird rescue which is how I became known as Doc

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  2. Oh dear, I'm welling up as I am reading this and looking at Chip's baby photo! I'm really really soft when it comes to animals, while I have been called cold-blooded in connection with humans more than once.
    It is fantastic that you managed to raise Chip from when she didn't even have feathers yet, and that she lived so long! It is probably nearly impossible for house sparrows to get that old in the wild.
    Yes, now I know how your blog got its name. Thank you!

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  3. Sweet...and sad.....that photo is adorable.......If you look down my sidebar you will see Red the miracle quail who albert saved from the rubbish bin...... These little scraps of life do have the ability to move you constantly

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  4. There are people who have a strong connection to birds. You are one of them. My mother was one of them. If you find the time, I recommend "Birds & People" an amazing book by Mark Cocker. This is my favourite quote from it:

    "It is not just that we see birds as little versions of ourselves. It is also that, at the same time, they stand outside any moral process. They are utterly indifferent. This absolute oblivion on their part, this lack of sharing, is powerful."

    Good bye little Chip, you had a good life.

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  5. This is so beautiful. I think I would love to have a house sparrow as a pet but I could never bear to put one in a cage (nor any bird, actually) and so if one chose to live with me, I would feel so blessed.
    Wow. Just...wow. I'm sorry that Chip is gone but I know you will never forget her.

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  6. Oh Jennifer, what a lovely story. Rest easy, little bird.

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  7. Poor little Chip. I had no idea that sparrows could live to such an age.

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  8. Aw, you are such a sweetheart. God bless little Chip.

    Love,
    Janie

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  9. What a big and good heart you have.

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  10. Oh...I love this story. I'm sad she is gone.

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  11. So sorry you had to say good-bye to Chip after all these years. What an absolutely wonderful and sweet story!

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  12. Oh My Goodness. What a lovely story and I am glad to know you all had a happy life together. You were his Mum and Dad.
    I had a parakeet for years when I was young and I still miss him.

    cheers, parsnip

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  13. Awww, that was such a nice story and what a good life Chip had. You will miss her, and how interesting that it is how your blog was named.

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  14. Oh, I'm so sorry about Chip. What a lovely story this was. What a wonderful person you are!

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  15. I had no idea that a Sparrow would live to be 10.

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  16. You're a lovely person, Jennifer!
    Greetings Maria x

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  17. You're a lovely person, Jennifer!
    Greetings Maria x

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  18. What a lovely story. You made me cry too! That little bird was so lucky to have you.

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  19. You kept that one quiet Jennifer! I thought it was just you and Gregg, the two dogs and Marco. NoW we find you had another family member - Chip! May she rest in peace.

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  20. How sad to lose Chip. I think you could write a children's book about her, kids of all ages (that includes me) would enjoy hearing her story. And now I know how you came to name your blog.

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  21. Lovely post Jennifer. How wonderful that she lived in a potted ficus and not a cage.

    Alphie

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  22. Here from Sabine..... I agree with Terra H above, you should write a children's story about your sweet little Chip! Funny how such little creatures can add so much to our lives.

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  23. What a sad but beautiful post. So very sorry to hear about little Chip, losing her must be just as distressing as losing any pet. She had a very good life with you, and lived to a very old age - I wonder what that would be in human years?

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  24. This is one of the sweetest posts I have ever read. You and your husband are absolutely lovely souls. I'm so sorry for your loss but what a nice life you gave Chip.

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  25. I never knew sparrows lived that long. Sorry you guys lost her.

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