Last year I was given three young female Zebra Finches, Allie, Pumpernickle, and Takari. Takari passed away a few months later but Allie and Pumpernickle are doing fine. Allie always seemed the calmer one. She usually let you get pretty close when she was flying around in my room, landed on my head many times, and so on.

One day Pumpernickle and Allie were let out of their cage for a little exercise (the cage was small, but I got a bigger one now). I was on the top part of my bunk beds watching them explore when my mother's shih tzu, Riley, waddles in. He went straight for the corner of my room. I noticed he was staring, wagging his tail, and not moving. When I looked over, he had Allie cornered on the floor! She was scared. I jumped of my bed as quickly as I could and picked up Riley to put him in the other room. When I picked him up Allie must of thought "Now is my chance to fly away." So she did and Riley, still in my arms, caught her in his mouth! I had to pry his jaws open and he eventually spit her out.

I put him in another room and went back to get Allie. She was alive, shaking and missing some feathers. She wasn't bleeding and I checked out her wings and legs, they didnt seem to be broken. I put her back in her cage with Pumpernickle and hoped she didn't die of shock. Time went by and she was still alive and being a normal bird so I relaxed.

Though she still can't fly, she's just like a perfect normal finch. She'll even prech on my finger now and jump off when shes ready. They still fly around my room but I make sure there's no dogs.

Article © Sarah 2004