For reasons far too complicated to go into, we have a new addition to our household. His name is Boggle. Boggle is a cockatiel. He arrived by pet courier from England a couple of weeks ago. We had expected him to be a little subdued after his overland trip, but he seemed to be perfectly content and settled from the moment he arrived.

He is very good at whistling, and because of this, he is very good at confusing Poppy. Boggle whistles. Poppy, being an obedient dog, trots over to his cage and awaits instructions. Boggle ignores her. It’s a shame, but until she realises that she is being teased, her peaceful existence will be regularly disturbed.

Boggle’s cage is HUGE by Spanish standards. We have often commented upon the tiny, shoe-box size cages in which the Spanish keep their birds. When we put Boggle’s cage together and set it up on the Juliet balcony, we didn’t anticipate the levels of interest it generated. The thinking goes something like this: “My cage (30cm x 20cm x 20cm) houses my two love birds. That cage (90cm x 60cm x 120cm) must contain a vulture.”

Sitting in the living room as I type, I can hear people walking past in the street. Many of them whistle to Boggle as they go, and from time to time they stop to have a conversation with him. Only the other day, an elderly neighbour leaned against the house opposite – village streets really are that narrow – and had a long chat with him. I expect him to be fluent in Spanish by the time the weather gets cold enough to bring him inside.