Am I going gaga? Lady Gaga seems to think so….

Lady Gaga visits me every morning. She always wears the same outfit – all pink and white feathers. Mostly she is pretty aloof but sometimes she will pause to acknowledge my presence before demolishing as much as she can of the repast spread out for her.

She used to come by herself but then she started to bring Sir Gaga who seems to be short on patience. She would sit politely waiting for those loveable little bullies Max and Maxine to have their fill but when Sir Gaga began to accompany her, he would use his considerable bulk to shoo away the pair of lorikeets who usually expect to have first pick.

The past two mornings I have been delighted to welcome, along with Sir and Lady Gaga, little Baby Gaga. As I watch them interacting with each other I am drawn in by their human like behaviour. Lady Gaga picks up some seed and pushes into her squawking infant’s mouth and Sir Gaga gets very irritated and pushes the baby out of the way. He seems jealous of all the attention the little brat is getting.

My deck is like a three ringed circus for a short time in the morning. The hierarchy appears to have changed somewhat as some of the smaller birds that have been coming for a long period of time become quite indignant with the newcomers.

One example is Dotty – a little speckled dove who has visited for the past five years. She came with her partner until he was devoured by a greedy cat that I was looking after. We were heartbroken and it was always so sad to see Dotty coming alone. She never has taken up with anyone else. They mate for life and when I lost my husband I would tell her I knew how she felt. She used to be quite timid, but her continued widowhood has made her stronger and now she has become rather aggressive and succeeds and frightening some of the bigger birds away.

JJ – Jack Junior – is the biggest visitor, being a currawong, but he is also a gentle giant and exhibits quite gentleman like behaviour. We had an old currawong that we named Jack that visited for years and we watched him grow old and frail. We missed him when he no longer visited so Jack Junior is a welcome replacement. Who says that birds don’t have personalities? What wondrous creatures they are.

So am I going gaga? I’m sure my neighbours think I am, but I feel so happy to have these amazing creatures visit me every day. Each of them mirrors behaviour I witness in the work that I do and the people I meet. I meet a number of Sir Gagas – mainly all bluff and bad manners, but when I get to know them I find such a façade, often hiding a great deal of insecurity which they are at pains to disguise.

There are certainly plenty of Max and Maxines who work hard to overcome their small stature by bullying their peers but it only takes a Dotty to stand up to them to send them scurrying for cover.

I admire the JJs that I work with. The strong silent types who are so comfortable in their own skin they have nothing to prove. They are the real gems in our world.

Oh I have to go! Pamela the piebald python is just wending her way up onto the deck. She is lovely to look at but the birds are very wary of her motivation.

Mmm I wonder where she fits into my metaphor. It’s a dog eat dog existence!

What pets do you have? Do you talk to them? What do you say? Tell us below.

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