A mum ‘pushed to the edge’ after a shrill ‘faulty fire alarm’ sounded non-stop for seven days was stunned to discover the source of the racket was – a PARROT in her garden.
Shanna Sexton, 25, was driven to distraction by the re-occuring high-pitched tone and even called in workmen to try and locate the problem.
But Shanna was staggered to spot an African Grey Congo parrot perched on a water butt as she hung out washing in the garden.
The noisy parrot, called Sammi, had escaped from neighbour Louise Ledger’s house a week earlier and spent seven days in the garden mimicking a smoke alarm.
Shanna, from Torquay, Devon, said: ”I’d been hearing the noise for ages. I looked around the house checking everything. I even pulled out the washing machine.
”In the end a workman said it sounded like it may be my smoke alarm. We had problems with our smoke alarm before and I thought ‘here we go again’.
”It was driving me mad but I just could not find out where it was coming from.”
But the mystery was solved once Shanna spotted Sammi in the garden – as she had seen the ‘Missing Parrot’ posters stuck up around the neighbourhood.
Three-year-old Sammi flew out of front door as owner Louise Ledger returned home from a shopping trip.
Louise, 38, was distraught and spent hours searching for her beloved pet before she plastered the neighbourhood with missing posters appealing for Sammi’s return.
Vocal Sammi, who has lived with Louise and her two children for two years, is known for reprimanding the family’s dog, saying ”good morning” and telling Louise he ”loves” her.
Relieved Louise, 38, said: ”Sammi is now home safe and sound and he has not stopped yapping since.
”I am over the moon. I am going to give Shanna a huge bunch of flowers. When I found out where he has I could not have got there any faster.
”He is always picking up funny noises from anywhere and everywhere. I think he must have heard me burning the toast once as he does mimic the smoke alarm noise.
”He is a very intelligent bird. He can make all sorts of noises. He copies my three cats makes a ‘miaow’ noise and he barks at the dog. He also calls the dog into the room and then says ‘good girl’.
”Sammi is now home safe and sound, and he has not stopped yapping since. I came down the stairs the first morning he was back and he said ‘Morning’ and I thought ‘Oh, I missed that’.”
