Indeed.
Joel has 14 birds (African Greys, Hyacinth Macaw, Major Mitchell – "considered the prettiest of all cockatoos because of their color" – and Citron-crested, cockatoos), two tortoises (Star and Sulcata), fish (two arowanas, and a Flower Horn) and a Boxer, Shadow.
Joel’s first encounter of the bird kind came when he had a Mallard duck, when he was about 7. So attached was he to that duck that he did not obey his dad who told him that the duck had to be left in their old house when they moved to Dasmariñas Village. "We left the duck behind that day. But I did not stop crying. The next day, I went back for the duck and he came to live in our new house," laughs Joel as he recalls the incident.
Joel grew up with all sorts of pets from dogs to rabbits, to guinea pigs, to hamsters. It came to a point where his dad told him that their house was not the Manila Zoo. Joel left his pets behind when he went to college abroad.
But in 1990, while completing his master’s degree at the Asian Institute of Management, the desire to own another bird came a-calling. Joel shares that one of the requirements of his course was to pick a project. He chose one where he had to bring a carabao to the Batac tribe of Palawan whom he, together with the Haribon Foundation, was trying to convince to switch from being hunters to becoming farmers. Passing through the forest on a six-hour walk (back and forth) to take the carabao to the tribe, he saw African Greys of all shapes, sizes and colors that he knew he just had to have one. Shortly after that, Joel’s aviary started to become a reality.
In 1990, Joel completed his master’s degree, got married and bought his first African Grey. "We moved to the States in 1991 and I took Little Joe(the African Grey) with us," shares Joel. His family had suggested that he just get another bird, but he would not hear of it.
Little Joe shared a room with Joel and his wife Gidget. "He would be with us inside our room and he would hear everything. That is how he learned to talk," says a proud Joel. "He is a talker and not just a mimicker. This is because African Greys can process data."
Joel even recalls a time when Little Joe, who knew the name of the dog (Riot), would call him and the dog would come running each time. Then, when Riot would come, Little Joe would throw him a treat from his food and Riot would gobble it up with gusto. Or there was another time when Joel thought his mom was in the room because he could hear someone answer "uhum" when he called out to her. He was surprised to find that she was actually somewhere else, in the kitchen to be exact. It was Little Joe who was answering him, of course.
But when Joel and his family came back to the Philippines for good, Joel opted to leave Little Joe in his house in the US where he has help who can care for him. "The laws here for bringing in the bird are so strict," sighs Joel. "Maybe on my next trip I will finally be able to take Little Joe back with me."
Today, Joel starts his day with a trip around his house where he greets all the animals in his home. He starts with the birds, then checks out his fish, then moves outside to the tortoises and finally spends a few minutes to rough it up with Shadow.
"My pets are able to help me de-stress. They are the best
de-stressors in the world," shares Joel. Just watching the birds fly freely in their habitat that he has so carefully built for them is a source of joy for him. Even the seven-foot aquarium where his two arowanas swim were specially built by Joel together with his carpenters.
"I used to have lights where the birds stay so that I could see them at night when I get home but I have taken them out because I do not want to disturb them," Joel says. He explains that the birds wake up at about 5 or 6 in the morning and sleep at about 5 or 6 in the evening. "It is as if they wake up to greet the day and end their day by bidding the sun farewell," adds Joel.
But yes, Joel tells us, the birds can get pretty noisy. That is why, he quips, he is glad that his next-door neighbors are his parents. "My wife Gidget used to complain a lot about the noise the birds would make. So I had to have the windows in our room permanently shut. My dad says that when he walks in the mornings he can hear the birds up to the corner," says an amused Joel. "But this does not mean I have been asked to get rid of any of my birds. They all understand the love I have for these animals."
Every so often, Joel clips the wings of Gabby, one of his African Greys, so she won’t fly away. No, it is not cruel to the animal, he says, because it is just like cutting their hair. But he points out that although clipping the wings of Gabby is okay with her, it is not the same with his Major Mitchell bird who has become mailap with him because of the wing-clipping he has done.
The reason Joel clips the wings of his tame birds? When Joel was starting off with his bird collection, he was carrying one of the birds when his sister came in and the bird flew away. He has built a habitat for his untamed birds and enjoys watching them as they fly inside the habitat.
On Saturdays, Joel goes to the market where he buys fruits and vegetables for his birds. This does not stop him, however, from importing 50-pound bags of walnuts twice a year for the birds "because this is what they eat." Sometimes Joel buys pellets for his birds here or he might also have them shipped from abroad because the cost of bird feed here can be so expensive. He also gets them carrots, bananas, singkamas and gabi from the market as supplements to their regular fare.
After all these years there is still one project on Joel’s mind – getting his birds to breed. "My Hyacinths have given me eggs but there’s no bird yet. I get so excited when my birds lay eggs but 30 days later, there is nothing. When I put their eggs to the candle I find out it is clean," says Joel. "But this does not mean that I have given up. I was told that this is the reason they are called exotic birds because it is hard to breed them. But I am still hopeful."
Joel has had the Hyacinths for about 10 years now, and it is only at this age that they start breeding. This is why during the bird’s breeding season, he makes sure that they are allowed to be left alone so they can breed. "I even bought an incubator to keep the egg in when it is laid. But so far nothing yet. I plan to have the birds checked by my vet to see if there is anything wrong with either of them," he shares.
Yes, Joel’s bird collection did not come cheap – he can only say that they cost as much as two family vacations for a family of five. "But I did not buy all the birds I have. The two Hyacinths were given to me in exchange for projects I did for Antonio de Dios," he adds.
All this bird talk might have you thinking that Joel does not care for the rest of his animals as much as he does for his birds. That is farthest from the truth. Each pet that Joel has is given the same attention that the birds have. It is just that the birds really need a lot of care, says Joel.
"We built the best aquarium for the arowanas. The tortoises are fed kangkong because they are vegetarians and, now that Shadow is here he will get the best we can give him, too," he adds.
"I have all the pets that I possibly can care for now. I don’t think I can have anymore pets without my wife throwing me out and keeping the pets," Joel laughs.
Shadow, the Boxer, was something that Joel and his son Jaime conned his wife into agreeing that they get. "We did it when she was in a very good mood," he chuckles.
For Joel, life has come full circle because as a child, his family was into breeding Boxers. "I want my kids to experience seeing a dog give birth, care for puppies and selling puppies so that they can have extra pocket money for themselves," shares Joel.
It is the child in Joel that one catches a glimpse of when he talks about his pets, so much so that one cannot help but want to go out and get a pet, too. But Joel has these words for wanna-be pet owners: "Do research and make sure you get a pet that you can see yourself living with for many years. Pets are living things and they need to be cared for. You cannot just get them and then tire of them because they are no longer interesting to you."
"I chose my pets and this means I am committed to give them the best life that I possibly can," Joel reiterates. "I have to make sure that I am able to give them the best food, habitat, training and whatever else it takes to keep them happy and fulfilled as pets that I possibly can."