Animal Job Australia

The time when I had to deal with a crime to do with Parrots!
By Peter Crawley

I came to Australia to do some extra work to get some free accommodation and it was a great way to see the country. I would go to each different city and offer my services in many different roles, and one of my most memorable times was my time as a parrot carer in Brisbane.

I stayed with this lovely elderly lady who had many parrots and needed help to properly look after them. When I arrived she was very helpful and had written out for me all the jobs that I needed to do during my stay. My main jobs were caring for the birds and feeding them, as well as cleaning their cages out. The lady was a breeder of some very expensive birds and had recently fallen ill and needed a large amount of help. The stay though wasn't without its problems!

The first such problem was that to do with snakes. She had told me that only recently had she noticed snakes coming on to the property and finding their way into the bed enclosure. This was bad as the snakes could eat the eggs of the birds and sometimes even the birds themselves should they get to them. I had to help her find a way to get rid of the snakes.

I did a bit of research online and found some great available snake repellent products which I soon went and purchased. We tried these for a few weeks and they seemed to work for the most part. We also made sure we 'snake proofed' the house by getting rid of all the dark shaded areas and ensuring all small cracks and holes were covered to prevent any snakes from getting in. This worked, and we soon didn't have a snake problem.

The next problem though was a little more serious and scary. One night I awoke to hear some glass being broken and found out that somebody had broken into her house! I carefully went downstairs and watched the person go through the place, only to go into the backyard and attempt to steal the birds! I got on the phone and called the police, but I had knocked something over on the stairs while I did. This caused the burglar to panic and they sprinted off down the street. Luckily for the elderly lady they didn't manage to steal anything, although she was quite clearly very shaken after the incident.

I guess you could say I had quite an eventful time during my stay in Brisbane! It was very memorable and despite the issues I still did have a very fun time. It's a great way to experience a place by doing some work when overseas and the fact you get free accommodation is also a bonus. Have a look around at your options and you could find yourself staying in Australia for free next time you head there.