Parrot treated for depression

It became a real nuisance and an embarrassment when his pet parrot, Roy, a Congo African Grey, started shouting his dead wife's name in front of his new partner. It became so unbearable that Roy was locked in a garage for three years.

Roy was so traumatised by his imprisonment he plucked out almost all his feathers.

The 26-year-old parrot is now on Prozac for his depression.

Roy is being nursed back to health after being rescued by the UK's only parrot ‘psychologist’, Elaine Henley, who has prescribed Prozac for the depressed bird. The vet has helped owners of stressed parrots across the world deal with their pets’ swearing, squawking and self-harming. Elaine from Glasgow said: “I cover all kinds of problematic behaviour with parrots from swearing, to biting to feather-plucking which is essentially the birds self harming.

“They're incredibly human-like and have really quite complex needs. It's all about socialising and the right diet which when lacking can cause some really erratic behaviour in them.”

The 44-year-old recently helped rescue Roy from an undisclosed location. She said parrot was very attached to his owner's wife, Sarah, and was in the habit of shouting her name.

Roy kept shouting Sarah's name even after she died and carried on when the owner's new partner moved in. Clinical animal behaviourist Elaine admitted: “Roy takes Prozac because he's so traumatised from his years in the garage which he will never get over. Elaine, who has another pet parrot called Milo, said things are looking up for Roy and he is settling into his new life - even picking up the local accent.

She said: “Recently I heard Roy and Milo, having a conversation in the kitchen and they didn't think I was around. “Milo was making a right racket so Roy turned around and uttered a filthy word in a proper Glaswegian accent, which he has recently picked up, “They then started fighting over me with Roy saying ‘my Elaine'. They're much smarter than people think and can genuinely be quite childlike at times.” Elaine, who charges £125 for an all-in consultation, said parrot owners from as far afield as Australia and America had used her services.

Dining with the dead

How would you like to dine with the dead?

If you have such a weird preference there is an ideal place in India. The New Lucky Restaurant in Ahmadabad is letting customers dine with the dead as the café was built in an old graveyard.

The owner of the eatery with full confidence says graves are great for business. The New Lucky Restaurant features tables scattered around real coffins which date back to an ancient Muslim cemetery.

Owner Krishan Kutti decided to preserve the graves rather than ripping them out to make way for his restaurant. But despite the ghoulish interior, the restaurant has become a popular hang-out. Kutti said: “The graveyard brings good luck. Our business has been flourishing because of these graves. It gives people a unique experience.

“We have maintained the graves as they were. Our customers don't seem to mind.” Around a dozen graves lay inside the restaurant, and have been sealed off by iron grills. Every morning, when the shutters of the restaurant are pulled up, waiters spend some time wiping the gravestones and decorating them with fresh flowers.

“We begin our day by paying respects to the graves. We wipe them and cover them with cloth and also shower flowers on them. It is important to respect the dead,” said Kutti. Customers, on the other hand, don't seem too concerned about the presence of the dead. They just come to relish tea and butter rolls.

Making a Queen's guard smile?

Queen's Guards are iconic figures whose façade s are stern and stony. No Smile! Not even a chuckle!

Many have tried and most have failed in tempting the Queen's Guards to break from their no nonsense look.

It is just that they are not allowed to smile or move their heads. Bur American tourist identified as Yankel - a comedian in his own right, and always willing to take up a challenge said:” I'll make him smile.” His friends told him: You can stand near him but don't touch him”.

Dressed in the uniform of the Household Cavalry Regiment, the soldier stares impassively ahead as the man, identified by his friends as Yankel, stands next to him and starts talking to the camera.

As Yankel pretends to reminisce about their school days together, the soldier remains unmoved, but encouraged by his friends off-camera the comedian continues.

Speaking about how he's known the soldier for ‘30 years’ since they were at school in ‘Kensington’ together, Yankel says: ‘He was never talkative...

He would sit in the corner reading and answer questions with his head.’ As the soldier struggles to contain his smile, and urged on by his fellow American tourists - Yankel goes on to talk about how the soldier was picked up from school every day by his mum, until he was 20.

Finally the soldiers cracks a grin, which is greeted with whoops of joy from Yankel and his friends - who start to dance in celebration.