Turning on the heat for the first time

[Buy A Paper Doll]

I'm in Florida where the heat doesn't run very frequently. But we're getting a bit of a cold snap. Poor Milo has picked a ring around his neck again, he was shivering. So the heater went on today for the first time in almost a year.

I try to tell him that he'd be warmer if he'd only leave his feathers alone, but he picks anyway. Fortunately he has the Lilybird to snuggle with to keep warm.

[dieflying]

poor guy! i feel bad for my bird in the cold, too. our house is too thin to keep warm properly, so she has to stay in our room (the only room we can afford to keep around 70) and only goes out in the living room when it's warm enough. maybe i need another bird to keep mine warm, too! :)

[HaleBoppPeachyluv]

it's been getting cooler here too... dropping into the low 60s, oh no!

Sunny gets a heatpad over her sleep spot at night & her thermo perch stays plugged in all day, in case.

[FuzzyAga]

I sympathize with you because Petey has a plucked back, and his feet are always cold when he lands on me. He's fine in the summer, but in winter, I can feel the chill through my shirt.

I also tell him he'd be warmer if he stopped plucking his poor back.

At night, I turn on the oil-filled space heater (Lakewood from Home Depot) for him and keep it about 20-inches from his cage. He tucks himself into the corner of the cage and his feet are on warm fleece, and he can snuggle his head under a feather "duster" if he wants. It's a cat toy with some tufts of down and feather, which dangles down from the top of his cage. If he moves over an inch or so, he can tuck his whole body under the feather "duster" and I know he can stay warm this way all through the night. It gets chilly at night in San Diego--sometimes down to 32-degrees.

[linda040899]

Both of my aviaries (remodeled garage and main) have senior citizens that don't tolerate cold, some not even cool so I use my oil filled radiant heaters anytime the temp in either one of those areas drops to below 62F. In my main aviary, I try to keep all my older birds in one area so I can locate the heater closer to where they are. Additionally, since my main aviary is not insulated like the other one, when the temps drop below 40F, I have a heater at each end so one heater doesn't have to work so hard and I can set the thermostats on both just a bit lower.

[Birkah]

We're turning on the heat for the first time tonight too (brrrr). At least it's easy to tell who the tourists are when it starts getting below 60 degrees - those of us who live here are bundled up for the Arctic, and vacationers are still wearing tank tops and flip flops! :rofl:

[linda040899]

it's easy to tell who the tourists are when it starts getting below 60 degrees - those of us who live here are bundled up for the Arctic, and vacationers are still wearing tank tops and flip flops!
You got that right!!!!! :lol

[NickyBeth]

We're turning on the heat for the first time tonight too (brrrr). At least it's easy to tell who the tourists are when it starts getting below 60 degrees - those of us who live here are bundled up for the Arctic, and vacationers are still wearing tank tops and flip flops! :rofl:

HAHA! I still wear tank tops and flips. No silly 60 degree weather is gonna get me to change my clothes!!

My guy is in the best spot at night when it gets chilly. I bring him to the upstairs hallway, and I normally run the dryer at night. He gets nice and toasty from the heat that generates in my laundry closet.

[Pips mom]

Ok you guys.....how about zero degree or below weather that we always get in January! The other day it was only 9 degrees out at around 11am. You guys in the south don't even know what cold is! The heat goes on here in Oct. and isn't shut off again until about May! We keep the house just above 70, maybe 72 or so, so my birds never really feel the cold. Poor people in eastern Mass. got a huge snow storm, and Conn. NY city.....the storm went right by us though and we missed out on that foot of snow! :nyah:

[FuzzyAga]

I know all about the New England winter! I lived near you for a long time (seemed that way!). One winter there was a 32" drift of snow near-by the back door and I had a hard time getting out.

I got tired of shoveling snow off my driveway and finally moved to San Diego. :rofl:

Glad that storm passed by you.

[linda040899]

I spent the first 40 years of my life in NJ and I've driven in snow more winters than I care to remember!!!! I was cold from the end of September through the middle of May and I don't miss that one bit!

In fact, most "Floridians" migrated here from somewhere else. We just have no desire to go back, or at least I don't! :)

[NickyBeth]

I spent my last 27 years in Pennsylvania, so I know well of the 6 degree January days. My husband had ulcerative colitis, so we moved to a warmer climate so that he didn't feel like crap all the time.

[Birkah]

I grew up in Indiana, but my hubby is a native Floridian and can't take the cold at all! We lived in Tennessee for several years, but he just couldn't stand the freezing temps, scraping windows, and lack of sun and salt.

[Pips mom]

Well.....I guess it's just me! but I could never move from here. To me it seems like other places in the country have other issues to make up for the lack of snow and cold, like hurricanes, tornados, earthquakes and wildfires! I'll take the cold and snow over those anyday! Plus all of my family is here, sisters, brother, nieces, nephews, and parents! I could never move away from my family. Also.....winter gives us a break from some of the severe thunderstorms we get in summer.....I am terrified of lightning! :omg:I don't think it could ever really feel like christmas to me without some snow and cold!

[linda040899]

Gotta admit that 70 degree weather and Poinsettias just don't go together in my mind and I don't think they ever will. What Floridians lack in snow, we make up for (or try to make up for) with lights! Not quite the same but I'll live with it.

Florida is known as the lightning capital of the world but I've learned to live with what I can't change. Some of our electrical storms can be truly terrifying.

Not sure what it is about the Tampa Bay Area but we haven't had any major hurricanes come through here in at least 60 yrs. We get the effects of most of the ones that come up the West coast but we haven't taken a direct hit. Hurricane Charlie was supposed to make landfall at the mouth of Tampa Bay but took an unexpected right hand turn at Punta Gorda. They got hit very hard because it was unexpected and they had no time to evacuate. Things have been basically very quiet since 2004. Nothing major since then, at least not in this area. I'm not gonna complain.......... :) :)

[NickyBeth]

Yeah, Hurricane Wilma came though our area. My townhome was built in 2001, and withstands up to a Category 5 hurricane due to the fact that I am in a block of 8 and we are all concrete block walls (or cinder block walls) and the only thing that happened to us in the last hurricane was we lost two lights outside the house and my plants got blown away. We didn't have electricity for 3.5 days, it wasn't that bad...like camping. The hot water runs out at day number 2. We grilled when we wanted to eat, ate snacks, all that junk.

We do make up for the lack of snow with the amount of lights we put out!! That's because it's plenty warm to hang them down here. I still don't have a problem with the cold, when I have to go to another state for any reason, I just put on the jeans & the leather jacket and go along with the weather. I have my in-laws down here at least, so I do have SOME family...although it is hard to find a babysitter when all I have is one set of people to rely on.

[FuzzyAga]

I've found that life is like a coin; it has two faces. We pick our poison that is on one side and we count our blessings that is on the other side, a most appropriate thing to do at this time of the year.

PipsMom, you have the best reason for loving and choosing to be where you are.

(Was that an earthquake, just now?--joking! :) ) Now, I am being an imp; I shall stop. :)

[Pips mom]

I've found that life is like a coin; it has two faces. We pick our poison that is on one side and we count our blessings that is on the other side, a most appropriate thing to do at this time of the year.

PipsMom, you have the best reason for loving and choosing to be where you are.

(Was that an earthquake, just now?--joking! :) ) Now, I am being an imp; I shall stop. :)

Hahaha.....you guys are too funny! :rofl: I've actually experienced some smaller earthquakes......two were from when I was young, a teenager and were from earthquakes that happened in Conn. and one in blue mountain Lake in northern NY. so they do happen around here. The last one was bad, it was in Plattsburgh NY(around 2001) and we could feel it at about 6am I was shaken out of bed! really rough shaking! and I have even heard that rumble sound too! Same with tornadoes......we had a big one once in the same area when I lived over in NY which is not far from where I am now in Mass. I do realize that alot of these things happen anywhere, but the chances are much slimmer. the lightning really scares me alot and also the thought of those wild fires in Cali, I don't think I could live with that!
That's great though that there are lots of christmas lights down there! Everyone loves to go out at night and see all the lights here! it's really beautiful. This year the weather kept us from getting all of ours up :( so yeah, it must be alot more fun putting them up in the nicer weather!

[FuzzyAga]

There's nothing that can quite compare to hearing the Voice of Doom, as I call the sounds that come from the earth and from the air when a particular earthquake happens.

I've even heard the sharp, loud crack, which in my mind is worse than the rumble. Around here, the rumble is almost at the edge of human hearing, but that cracking sound is right in one's face, and it gives me an icy cold feeling in the pit of the stomach.

This cold feeling isn't something that happens in fiction--it's a real response to something terrifying--and in an instant, I'm transported back into the cave, huddled around the fire--that's how intense it is for me. Civilization doesn't mean a thing when it's pitted against the awesome power of nature. Keep smiling, I guess. :)