A dog trainer from Loudon is asking people to keep their eyes and ears open – especially within 2 miles of Mudgett Hill Road – for her lost parrot, Falcon, who sometimes makes a high-pitched noise akin to a smoke alarm.
The 7-year-old dusky pionus is about the size of a 20-ounce soda bottle and is friendly with people, although likely to be spooked if approached too abruptly.
Helen Nicholls asks that anyone who thinks they’ve seen or heard Falcon call her at 856-7509 and she’ll be there “like lightning.”
This is a critical time, she said, when the bird may become so hungry that it casts away its inhibitions toward approaching strangers. Nicholls is seeking to inform the public, in case Falcon approaches someone in search of food, perhaps at the nearby Shell gas station on Route 106, the Loudon Country Club or the New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Even parrots that are more adept at flying than Falcon typically stay within 5 miles of their home when they’re lost, Nicholls said, and more commonly within 2 miles.
Nicholls is spreading updates about the search on the Facebook page of her business, No Monkey Business Dog Training. More than 1,000 people have shared her messages with their social networks.
She’s been out searching each day at dawn and dusk, driving around with her car’s windows and sunroof down playing Falcon’s call. Small groups of bird lovers have also joined her in scouring the woods near her home.
“It’s really now down to the community, just keeping eyes and ears open,” she said. “The chances are at this point she’s just going to go to somebody.”
Falcon is about 11 inches tall, with gray, purple and bluish coloring, Nicholls said. She’s been without food for two days.
Falcon responds to and says her nickname, “pretty bird,” along with her call, which is similar to a smoke alarm or a truck beeping as it backs up, Nicholls said. She’s relatively quiet and doesn’t repeat her call over and over like some other parrots, she said, but may announce it when she sees someone.
Falcon can also mimic the noises of R2-D2, the loveable droid from Star Wars.
She got loose Tuesday after a landscaper unexpectedly opened the front door and startled her, Nicholls said. Initially, she flew to a tree across from the house and stayed in sight.
“The first thing we did is order pizza and sat below the tree eating, because she knows, ‘If they’re eating, I can get a bite,’ ” Nicholls said.
Falcon moved to fly back down, but became spooked and flew back up into the trees, she said.
Nicholls noted that birds are territorial, which may mean that the native species have driven Falcon away. This may also discourage Falcon from speaking up, unless she’s trying to get the attention of a person, she said.
Nicholls said she’ll be staying on high alert for the next few days, which she believes is the time that Falcon will be most likely to approach a human.
“The success stories truly come from the people who never stop looking in those first few days, the people who let everybody know,” she said. “Everywhere I look, I’m looking up.”
Nicholls can be contacted at 856-7509, helen234@aol.com or through her Facebook page at facebook.com/No-Monkey-Business-Dog-Training-94262479940.
(Nick Reid can be reached at 369-3325, nreid@cmonitor.com or on Twitter at @NickBReid.)