Abstract
Of all the various species of psittacines I have kept, the genus Cacatua will probably always be my favorite. My very first cockatoo was purchased in 1981 from a pet shop, a beautiful citron hen. She was very tame and loving and I was hooked. I named her Aphrodite, as she appeared to me to be a goddess of love and beauty. Aphrodite just produced her first baby in May of 1988.This story is of my very first cockatoo baby; the traumas I went through as a novice, learning many things the hard way. I hope from this that others w i l l learn as I relate my experiences, both good and bad.