A New Pet — Sort Of

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I’ve been heartbroken since I had to say good-bye to Olive, my daughter’s cat, who I adopted after she left for college. Olive was a highlight of my quiet life in Arizona. Since we said good-bye to her in November, I’ve noticed a Bird Buddy who is wiggling into my heart.

No, I’m not getting another cat or dog. My son has asthma and allergies. I wasn’t getting rid of Olive because our son seemed okay in our new house — until his last visit. I guess a few years’ worth of cat dander added up. I won’t subject him to a new cat or dog. If I did, he’d probably skip visiting us altogether.

So here’s my new pet. Like I said, sort of. He waits for me every morning to fill the feeder. He’s first to rush in for his fill of seeds. Then I hear him sing and flit around the yard for a few hours. He comes back at the end of the day. We spend time looking at each other. I find myself imitating his tilt of the head and he tilts back at me.

My husband asked what I was going to name him. I chose Ollie but my husband thinks it’s too close to Olive. Which was the point, I might add. His idea was Kramer due to the Cardinal’s hair do. I might settle on Cosmo, which was Kramer’s first name in Seinfeld. Or, I’ll stick to Ollie. Time will tell.

We used to have a Cardinal couple who frequented the bird feeder. The females are not as colorful is how you tell them apart. This Cardinal is alone all the time. I don’t know if he was part of the couple who used to stop by. Cardinals mate for life, so I sure hope he didn’t lose his wife.

Cardinals have a beautiful song and I always know when my new sort of pet is near.

Here’s a video from my Bird Buddy AI feeder:

What do you think of the choices of names for my new bird buddy?

What frequent visitors do you have from nature to enhance your lives?

43 thoughts on “A New Pet — Sort Of”

  1. These is so sweet EA! To be honest I have always thought of any of the Cardinals that end up on camera as Kramer given that pointed feather head but I think you should name your friend whatever you want! I talk to all the birds and squirrels and bunnies that feed in our yard so in some ways they have become “pets”. We aren’t allowed pets here so… I hope that it continues to be easier for you to remember Olive and some of the hurt is going away. My oldest just had to put one of her beloved dogs down last Friday. I have pics of Coco here (she came to their home around the same time my 12 yo granddaughter was born) and it hurts every time I pass by and see her. She was just the sweetest girl and she loved watching squirrels so it helps to remember her as I watch my squirrels frolicking around in the yard.

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    • I’m so sorry about your oldest having to say good-bye to their dog. It’s so painful. After we said good-bye to our yellow lab Angus, we realized we didn’t want to go through it again. I did have Olive at that time and I never thought how hard it would be to lose her. It hurts too much. I look forward to every morning seeing my Cardinal rush to the feeder. I always have a little bit of doubt if he’ll arrive, but so far he’s there every day.

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      • Birds and other wild things know when they have free food and will come back as long as you keep putting it out 🙂 Daughter and family still have Luca who is still in the teenage stage but she was very adamant that when he is gone there won’t be more pets. I’ve said much the same and actually since I can’t have pets here the decision has been made for me, but at times it’s so tempting to want the companionship of an animal. As I age I also think I wouldn’t want my pet to outlive me unless I knew that they would have a great home to go to.

      • Yes, it’s tempting to want the companionship of an animal. Since you can’t have pets that decision is made for you. Likewise, because of where we now live with bobcats, hawks, coyotes, etc. having a pet is more difficult. I babysat my daughter’s pug for a week and it’s a whole lot more work than letting him out in the backyard. He had to be on a leash every time he went outside, which was often! My dad turned 93 in January. He bought a cockatiel last year and said he knew I’d take care of when he passed away. 🙁

      • Yeah, I don’t want to be the parent who holds expectations that my kids will “take care” of anything that I leave behind…leads to stress no matter what.

  2. I’m sorry about Olive, but understand. Your bird friends seem to be filling the void. We used to have an outside squirrel, I named him Fuzzy, who showed up around our house. He didn’t cause structural damage, but had it in for anything planted in a pot. I had/have a tag for him on my blog so I could document his antics. He was popular. My point is: name the cardinal and make him a feature here.

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    • I do get attached to our birds. Especially the Cardinal because he stands out. Then I like our quail who live in the bushes outside our fence. I can’t wait for Spring and to see if they return to building nests in our planters like in previous years.

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    • Thank you, Brian. It’s so sad to lose our pet family members. Little things remind me of Olive and I swear I can feel her jump on our bed at night like she used to. Yes, I like both Ollie and Cosmo. I’m hoping my new friend brings a wife and builds a nest in our yard!

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  6. He’s so good-looking! I love that you and he are getting to know each other’s patterns. I like your names. How about Stan? It’s evocative of Ollie but not that close. 🙂

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  7. Losing a pet is always sad and painful. Seems like you now have a great substitute. Talk about ease of care. I love seeing a beautiful red cardinal against a green saguaro, and of course, their sound is harmonious.

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    • Thank you! Yes, it’s hard to lose a pet. Olive was 13 and I wasn’t expecting her to go so quickly. At least I don’t have to clean the litter box for this pet. The cardinal’s song is so beautiful!

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  11. Cosmo sounds good – Cosmo Cardinal! Our dog Hunter has been good at keeping a lot of critters at bay, but our birds don’t mind him. We cut down a tree that had a magpie nest they’d used a few times. They’re busy building a new one very close to the deck. They may or may not use it for breeding. Magpies will sometimes have more than one nest, for decoy purposes. It’s fun to watch them.

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    • I do like Cosmo, but I’ve called out to Ollie for a few mornings and he arrives. Maybe it’s just me and a bag of birdseed that he likes! We don’t have magpies. If we do, I’m not familiar with them. Sorry you had to cut down a tree with a nest.

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  12. I like the name Ollie. It seems to fit his little head tilts as well. Did you have to give Olive to another home? or did she go to the rainbow bridge.. either way, the void is palpable when a pet is no longer around.

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    • Thank you for your comment. I like Ollie too. I’ve called him that for a few days so it’s kind of hard to change. Olive quit eating and drinking in November. She had massive kidney and liver failure. So unexpected and it happened so fast, which makes it hard.

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  15. I gonna cast my vote for Cosmo.
    😜
    He’s so lovely and I too, hope he has a beautiful mate somewhere….maybe she’s taking a nap?
    I hear them quite a bit in our yard, but my favorite time to listen for them is after a rain, they make this happy, flitting sound. It’s quite unique.

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    • I’m hoping he wasn’t the Cardinal who visited last year with a wife and child. Maybe he’s the child? I’m now calling him Red. It seems to fit! Red is here when I wake up and go to bed. Maybe we’ll have cardinal family again.

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  17. I love this! What a special, unspoken relationship! I found an injured hummingbird a few years ago and bonded with him while waiting for a bird rescue/rehabilitation person to come get him. I named him Romeo because he stole my heart!

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