A mother from Ipswich is desperate to be reunited with her family’s beloved pet parrot who flew off the day before she underwent surgery for mouth cancer.
Rachel Prime, 41, said Hiccup, who they hand-reared as a chick, fled the family home in Landseer Road on Thursday, May 11, after becoming startled while being fed.
The next day Rachel underwent surgery at Ipswich Hospital to remove lymph nodes from her mouth and neck having been previously diagnosed with cancer of the tongue so was unable to go out and search for him.
Rachel said Hiccup, who is a Red-Lored Amazon parrot, is one of the family.
“He is three and a half years old but we have had him since he was a chick,” said Rachel.
“We hand reared him.
“He is called Hiccup because it was the noise he made when we were feeding him as a baby.
“He is really close to our daughter Evie who is 14, they were always with each other.
“She has had an awful lot to cope with recently.
“Hiccup went missing the night before I had to go into surgery and when I got home I couldn’t go out shouting for him.
“It is a bit overwhelming for Evie with Hiccup going missing and my operation.
“They are very sweet together - I don’t think people think of birds as being cuddly but Hiccup is.
“It has been an awful month, it’s the last thing we needed.”
Rachel is now on the mend after her surgery and has been told operation was a complete success.
A number of sightings have been reported of Hiccup - at Landseer Park, Riverside Road and at Christchurch Park just last weekend - but the colourful bird remains on the loose.
Rachel has been putting up posters around town in the hope it will jog someone’s memory.
Hiccup is a green coloured bird with a distinctive red patch on his head.
Rachel said he is a very sociable bird and particularly likes talking to children.
“If someone sees him it is best to ring me,” she said.
You can talk to him to keep him amused but can be a bit suspicious of men.
“He absolutely adores unsalted pistachios and loves the word as well so that may keep him occupied.”
If spot Hiccup or have seen him in the last few days, call Rachel on 07810 014808.
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