Saffron

Since I live with so many cool beings, I thought I would highlight one of them from time to time.  My goal is to do so once a week, but since I'm still really struggling with time management/keeping up with my responsibilities, I can't make any promises.

I wanted to start with Saffron, because she's lived with us longer than any of the others.  We're not sure how hold she is.  She was an adult of unknown age when she came to live with us. A former colleague had a sister who no longer wanted to keep Saffron, so she came to live with us almost 16 years ago.  She's an Indian Ringneck dove.


She has a very sweet disposition, and a call that sounds like she's laughing.  You can't help but to smile when you hear her "laugh".  She enjoys spending time with her other dove friends, Cypress (mourning dove) and Valentino (white dove).  She gets along with all of the birds, guinea pigs, and rabbits, who she shares the room with.

She's a very messy eater (as are the other doves), and uses her head and feet to throw seeds out of the dish.  A good portion of her food ends up on the ground or the bottom of whichever cage she eats in.  She likes her nightly fruit/veggies, but will toss those around also. If you notice the walls in any of the pictures taken in their room, you can always see little dots/splatters, which occur when they pick up a juicy morsel and shake it, causing juice/small bits to fly off and stick to the walls. These pieces tend to stick like glue, so I periodically steam clean the walls (which of course only stay clean for about 20 minutes or so).

She's definitely slowing down, and I can see the signs of aging. She no longer holds her wings sleekly and firmly at her side--they sag a bit and are a bit rough at the feather tips. She doesn't fly as much as she used to, though she does still fly.  She has never been ill or had to see a vet, and she's still quite healthy at her advanced age. She spends more of her time on lower surfaces than she used to, which is understandable, and her new favorite spots are both within a couple of inches of a feeding station, which allows her to starting throwing food around and making a mess the minute I put the full dishes down.


She has also always been very intrigued by the green light on my camera. Some of the animals notice it and some do not, but she always notices it and watches it. 

She is such a sweet bird and so integral to our family that I get a little panicky sometimes when I think about her age. Their average lifespan is 15-20 years, and my fingers are crossed that she will make 30.