It’s finally above 65 degrees in Denver again, which means Phoebe got to go outside.

We’ve lived in our current building for six years, but for the first few years I didn’t take him out. I was afraid he would get scared and fall to the ground. Eventually, I brought him to the small park that’s next to the building. There are evergreen trees that have low enough branches for him to perch on. He also enjoys picking the ants off of the tree trunks like a predator.

For about a year now, I’ve walked him to the next block to Rosebud Cafe. It has outdoor seating where he can watch everybody and, more importantly, he’s allowed inside. I’ll write more about that in the future, but going to see our friends at Rosebud is one of the highlights of our day.

After Rosebud, I took him to the bird store to get more food and toys. I’m going out of town for 10 whole days, and there isn’t a babysitter who can replicate his entire routine. So he needs ample toys to distract him.

We drove to a new bird store in Southeast Denver. I called ahead to make sure I could walk in with Phoebe on my shoulder. It had some different (and cheaper) toys than our usual bird store. There weren’t too many shreddable toys, although apparently they are getting new merchandise soon. I would love for Phoebe to play with toys that require him to use his mind to solve a puzzle, but I haven’t found one that he’ll stick with.

I also took him to our regular bird store in Englewood for more toys. I got him a total of four wood/cardboard shreddables. There were other parrots in the stores, but Phoebe isn’t too impressed with other birds. I’m sure he saw plenty during his time in the shelter, and he much prefers interacting with humans.

The shopping trip for him wasn’t cheap, but when I’m home to play with him and keep him occupied, he doesn’t require many store-bought toys. A small cardboard container with a peanut inside will keep him occupied.

Oh, and how does Phoebe do in the car? He loves it. He is very chill on my shoulder and either watches the road, grooms himself, or tries to sleep. I’ve taken a 20+ hour road trip with him before and he was just happy to be there.

When we got home from the bird stores, he immediately took a nap on his cage. It was a busy afternoon.