Monica Sahoo lives in the heart of FE Block but wakes each morning to the cheerful chirping of birds. The credit goes to the two Lovebirds and two Cockatiels that have been part of her family since last year.

“The Cockatiel with the yellow tail is Jarvis, and the one with the white tail is Genius,” smiles Monica. “The Lovebirds are named Tom and Jerry, but they look so alike that we can never tell which is which!”

It all began when Monica’s two daughters asked for a dog. “But I knew all the work would fall on my shoulders and it would be like having another baby. So we settled for birds, thinking they would be easier to manage,” says Monica, recalling how she trekked to Hatibagan one Sunday morning in search of the pets.

“I was heartbroken to see the conditions the birds were kept in. The cages were tiny and lots of birds had been crammed together. My only criterion was that the birds should be healthy, but we had to walk up and down the street several times before we found any. And I had gone looking for a pair of Lovebirds, but I ended up bringing home Cockatiels as well.”

Now she finds the Cockatiels more interactive and mischievous. “They upturn their bowls of food, so we have to be tie them to the cage. If we talk to them, they look directly into our eyes as if trying to connect with us,” says the lady who works at an IT firm. “The Lovebirds are also adorable and energetic, always sticking together. The cage is spacious, yet they are never apart.”

Monica’s daughter Ira puts her hand into the cage and the birds come to play-bite her. Ira’s elder sister, Meghna, uses their moulted feathers to tickle them, and the birds playfully take them away. She also enjoys ranting to them when upset, and finds that they make surprisingly good listeners.

Once the Cockatiels worked together and managed to lift the cage door open just as Monica entered the room. “We saw each other and locked eyes. They knew they had been caught red-handed, but held my gaze. Finally, I took a step closer and they let the door fall and dashed back inside,” she laughs.

Another time, the Cockatiel cage was left open by mistake and the birds flew out. “Luckily, the doors and windows were shut and the fan was off. Even then, it took the domestic help and me two to three hours to catch them,” Monica says. “The birds have made our home lively and, as if these four were not enough, they even invite sparrows and pigeons to come and play with them on our balcony."