I received a heartbreaking phone call from Tracey on November 19, 2003. Precious had passed away suddenly and unexpectedly with no signs of distress or illness. He was only 3-1/2 months old. Even with great sorrow and a deep sense of loss, Tracey and I decided that the story about Precious be featured anyway. We hope it will touch the hearts of all bird owners, reminding them to cherish their birds every, single day of their life and to always treat their birds with patience, love, kindness and respect. Our babies need more than a clean cage, fresh water, a healthy diet and medical care. They need our time, companionship, love and commitment.

Tracey was shocked and surprised when her cockatiels, Baby and Jezzabel, decided to breed. Jezzabel was sitting on the cage floor huddled in a corner and laid an egg. Tracey immediately put up a nesting box to make Jezzabel more comfortable. In July 2003, the eggs began to hatch. Three wonderful and beautiful babies were born, Primo, Peanut and Precious. Primo and Peanut looked normal but Tracy noticed that there was something different about one of Precious' little legs. It was not tucked in close to his body like his other leg. This one was sticking out sideways like the wing of an airplane. She soon learned that Precious had a condition known as Splayed Legs. Splayed Legs is not an uncommon problem with babies and in most cases it's correctable with treatment. If you look closely at this photo, you can see the little splint on Precious' leg and see how he is covering his head with his tiny wing. Some of the causes of Splayed Legs include a skeletal deformity, the parents nesting too tight on the clutch of babies, slippery nesting material that doesn't allow the baby's toes to get a good grip on the floor and nutritional deficiencies. 

Tracey took Precious to an avian vet when he was  2 weeks old and the splint pictured above was put on his leg. With great disappointment, Tracey learned that the splint didn't work and Precious would require surgery to place a pin in his hip. Precious was only 7 weeks old. After the surgery, Precious had his leg in a little blue cast for 4 weeks. When the cast was finally removed, Tracey and her avian vet had to wait for the swelling to go down in Precious' leg. With great hope, Precious was expected to be able to stand and perch. One week later, Tracey learned that the surgery had not been successful. Precious would never be able to perch, stand, walk or fly like other birds.