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Eight-year-old Karlie Reith, of Dresden, is happy to be reunited with her pet bird Shadow. (Kathy Onorato photo) |
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By Kathy Onorato
When Shadow, a 1-year-old cockatiel, flew away on Father’s Day, a Dresden family doubted the bird would return. The family held on to hope, however, and with the help of social media, the story has a happy ending.
Shadow, the pet of 8-year-old Karlie Reith, generally gets his exercise by flying around the Reith home on Route 27 in Dresden. On Father’s Day, June 15, Karlie’s dad, Jay, instructed his daughter to open Shadow’s cage to let him out.
After a few hours of not seeing Shadow around their house, they noticed the front door was open and realized the bird must have flown outside.
Shadow had been spotted on the Reith property throughout most of the day June 15. The family was communicating with Shadow and even tried to get the bird from the tree, but Shadow was too frightened to come to them.
By dusk that day, Shadow stopped communicating with the family and was no longer in sight. The Reiths feared the worse – Shadow was gone forever.
The Reiths said a hawk near their home has taken some of their chickens and they were worried it may have taken Shadow.
Karlie’s mom, Hesper, said she told Karlie and her two younger brothers the bird probably would not return and the family began the mourning process.
“I felt very sad,” Karlie said.
The following day, when Hesper went to work at Woolwich Center School, she told her co-worker Darcy Emerson the sad story of Shadow’s departure.
On Wednesday, June 18, Emerson notice a friend had posted a photo on Facebook of her son with a bird perched on his shoulder. Emerson told her friend, Carol Hopkins, she knew who the bird belonged to, and Hopkins contacted the Reiths.
Shadow had made his way from his home on Route 27, near the Wiscasset town line, to the home of Carol Hopkins, who lives off Call’s Hill Road in Dresden. Hopkins estimated the distance to be 2 miles.
Hopkins said Shadow was standing in her driveway when her sons noticed the bird, who was chirping away. Shadow hopped right into the hands of one of Hopkins’ sons.
The boys fell in love with the bird, wanted to keep it, and even renamed it Dotty.
“Some members of my family wanted to keep the bird, but I really wanted to find its owner,” Hopkins said.
When the bird was reunited with Karlie, it nestled itself under Karlie’s neck and began to almost purr, Hesper said.
“I was very happy,” Karlie said.
Coincidentally, Shadow first came to the Reith home because his photo was on Facebook. Last June, after several months of Karlie asking for a bird, her dad found a photo of the bird posted on the Maine Buy Swap & Sell Facebook page.
“It was very unusual to see a bird posted there,” Jay said. “Therefore, I figured it was the right time.”
Since last June, Karlie said she has been responsible for the bird’s feeding, cleaning the cage, making sure he has water, and spending time cuddling with the bird.
One thing Karlie said she has learned through this experience is to make sure Shadow’s wings get cut. Trimming the flight feathers limits the bird’s ability to fly, and Shadow’s feathers had not been trimmed for some time, Jay said.
“I have been trying to teach Karlie to believe,” Jay said. “This experience reinforced it.”
