This colorful little fella belongs to Katelyn Newman of Burnette Insurance. Skittles, named because of his brightly colored feathers, is an 11-year-old Green Cheek Conure Parrot. Interestingly, this species is known to be highly affectionate and tend to love their owners intensely. They can live up to 25 years or more with proper care.
Nothing Better than a Little Taylor Swift and Ginger Ale
According to Katelyn, Skittles loves to play with ropes, balls with bells and, ummm, the vacuum cleaner. He will chase it around the house and snuggle with it. “He is a very curious and independent animal and will fly wherever he wants in our house,” wrote Katelyn. “He loves ginger ale, singing to Taylor Swift and the Christmas song Sleigh Ride. We have trained him to give kisses (tap his beak) to ask for things he wants (like ginger ale) and sometimes he will give us kisses to just be sweet!”
He can be a bit moody at times but he still likes to sit on Katelyn’s shoulder while she paints or cooks. “He is our little buddy and just likes to be where the family is.”
Never a Dull Moment
Skittles keeps life interesting at the Newman household entertaining the family with the antics of a toddler. She tells of a recent time when Skittles discovered that a tissue box actually has more than one tissue. “He was having the time of his life pulling all the tissues out of the box and onto the floor! He must have pulled at least 30 tissues from the box and joyfully looked at us as if he had done nothing wrong. Now we have to cover the box. He brings us so much laughter.”