Hold the Pickles
By Karen Earles

The residents of Devereaux Children's Center receive regular visits from volunteers of the Animal League of Arlington, Virginia. Among the animals brought to the Center, Pickles, a greater Indian hill mynah bird, is especially favored. Pickles, who is owned by Jo Lozovina, also sings opera and is a favorite at church socials. The pet-assisted therapy program in which Pickles and Lozovina participate allows those who live in various institutions to enjoy the company of companion animals.

A Visit From Pickles

On the second Saturday of every month, the 24 boys and girls who live at the Devereaux Children's Center (DCC) near Georgetown, Washington, D.C., are on their best behavior. The DCC is a residential treatment center for children with behavioral disorders. The kids -- who range from ages 6 through 12 -- are expecting special visitors; furry and four-legged, winged and feathered.

Once a week volunteers from the Animal League of Arlington, Virginia, visit various institutions such as schools, nursing homes or the DCC with animals that participate in pet-assisted therapy. The volunteers bring either their own pets or animals from the shelter -- all of which have been given their shots and are known to be well behaved around people. Most of the animals that participate in the program are dogs and cats -- the occasional rabbit and guinea pig are introduced from time to time. However, the favorite among the children at the DCC is Pickles, a 2-year-old greater Indian hill mynah bird who talks to them and plays with their buttons or hairbows.

The iridescent black bird with the bright orange and yellow beak belongs to Jo Lozovina, a munitions licensing officer for the Office of Defense Trade Controls in Arlington. She is a volunteer with the Animal League.

"The kids are crazy about her," says Lozovina of her vocal feathered friend. "Sometimes they get so excited they have to be sent to another room where other pets are, and they don't want to leave her. They argue over who gets to hold their hand out first and have her jump on their arm. She'll jump on their heads, on their shoulders -- she lets them hold and pet her -- they really love her, because she's so affectionate.

"Mynahs have been embargoed in the United States for several years now," says Lozovina, "So many people, especially children, have never seen a mynah. People are shocked when they hear what good mimics mynahs are. I love them, because unlike many other talking birds, mynahs are real hams and will entertain at the drop of a hat."

Birds in Black

Pickles was bought as a replacement for Moe, Lozovina's greater Indian hill mynah that died in 1996 at the age of 6 from hemochromatosis -- too much iron stored in the liver. Lozovina prayed to St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals, to help her find another bird like Moe, who had been a great mimic.

Lozovina's prayer was answered when she saw an ad for a Florida breeder who was selling baby mynahs. The baby bird that Lozovina had shipped to her from Florida had been born on October 4, the feast day of St. Francis. The 3-week-old mynah went from an incubator to being fed by her new owner with a syringe. According to Lozovina, the sociable Pickles either thinks of herself as a human or thinks of her owner as a large bird.

Coworkers at Lozovina's office held a contest to decide the right name for the little black bird. The name Pickles won out over monikers such as Ralph, Kermit and Winston. (The contest took place before Pickles had hatched, so her gender at the time was unknown.) Lozovina's avian clan now consists of Pickles, Major, an 8-year-old greater Indian hill mynah, and Tweety Bird, a 5-year-old cockatiel.

Major joined Pickles at the DCC once. He proved to be too much of a distraction for Pickles, who is smitten with the older male bird. "It was a big hassle to bring both of them," says Lozovina. "I had to use a bigger cage and it was hard to carry. Pickles was preoccupied with playing with Major and wasn't as open with the kids as she normally is. Major's not a big talker, but he makes a lot of funny noises. I bring one bird at a time now because it's much easier. I usually bring Pickles because the kids are so fond of her." Tweety Bird has yet to participate as a pet therapist.

Star of the Show

Pickles enjoys the attention she receives from her adoring public. Lozovina was unsure of how her young bird would react to a crowd of excited children when she first took Pickles to the DCC on October 11, 1997. This was her debut in the pet-assisted therapy program. At first, Pickles was unsure of the new environment and the cluster of curious faces. But as soon as Lozovina removed her from her cage, the wordy bird went into her act and began entertaining the astonished children with her repertoire of words and phrases. Pickles is now used to being the center of attention and begins her act as soon as she arrives at the DCC.

"There are usually one or two kids who are afraid to come forward at first," says Lozovina, "Because they've never seen a mynah -- or even a bird -- up close. But when they hear this voice come out of her, they're kind of baffled at first. Then they can't get enough of her.

"They basically know what she can say because she comes every month. She says things like, 'Hello,' 'What are you doing?' 'Pickles is a bad girl,' 'Major take your bath.' The kids get the biggest kick out of hearing her mimic them. Even the adults who work at the center will come into the program sometimes and just be amazed because they've never seen a mynah bird either."

Pickles also delights in traveling. She loves to ride in the car with Lozovina and sing along with the radio. She is eclectic in her musical tastes, but is especially fond of opera -- particularly the male singers. Just after Easter of this year, Lozovina's church, St. Stephen Martyr in Washington, D.C., held a fund-raising dinner with an Italian theme to raise money for the choir. The program featured Italian foods and choir members singing arias from Italian operas. As soon as the choir director began singing "Santa Lucia," Pickles, who was sitting in her cage next to the piano player, began to sing along with him in her melodious, high-pitched voice. The opera-singing bird was a hit at the fund-raiser and was asked to entertain at the next fund-raising dinner in November.

Lozovina takes voice lessons and sings in the church choir. She practices opera at home where Pickles is always ready to sing a duet.

"Whenever I play the piano or play music on the stereo, she will try to sing along," says Lozovina. "She'll respond to any kind of music, but opera is her favorite. When she hears the men singing, she just goes crazy and starts to sing." Major and Tweety Bird usually don't join Pickles' songfests, but seem content to remain her ardent audience.

Plans for the Future

 Lozovina began volunteering with the Animal League a little over a year ago. Being heavily involved with her church, the 43-year-old munitions officer only has time to visit the DCC once a month with Pickles and Major. She has plans to expand her volunteer efforts with her birds to include the new nursing home that is being built in Arlington. Not one to shun her duties, Pickles performs occasionally at the St. Stephen Martyr Church where she celebrates her birthday in early October along with a "blessing of the animals" ceremony in honor of St. Francis' feastday.

"It's a lot of fun," says Lozovina of the pet assisted therapy program. "The therapy is actually for the patients and the people who live in the institutions where we visit. But you can tell the animals love it too."