AWOL parrot rescued from cat
A CAIRNS family is over the moon after a retiree rescued their beloved talking eclectus parrot, which went missing for a week, from the clutches of a hungry cat.
Shane McDonell, an amputee in a wheelchair, was devastated when Scamp flew the coop when he was home visiting family in Manoora from the Torres Strait last Tuesday.
Scamp has been part of Mr McDonell's recovery team since he lost half his leg, suffered short-term memory loss and spinal cord damage in a motorbike accident in Darwin in 1995.
Thankfully, Scamp didn't fly too far from their MacIlwraith St home.
Retiree Frank Sendra heard birds squawking madly in his front yard and when he investigated the commotion he found a cat "trying to make a meal" out of the $1500 bird on Thursday.
"I hunted that cat and grabbed the bird because his harness was caught on the branch," he said.
The McDonells, including Shane's daughter Sarah, were reunited with their feathered friend when Mr Sendra's wife Jean checked the lost advertisement’s in The Weekend Post.
Mr McDonell said he was so relieved Scamp had been found and was safe.
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Back in coop: Sarah McDonell, 15, with retiree Frank Sendra and the rescued talking parrot Scamp. Picture: NELLIE IRELAND
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