Billy Joel’s ‘Uptown Woman’ helps misplaced cockatiel discover its method dwelling

The “Piano Man” performed an uncommon position within the rescue of a pet hen in South Carolina.

Final month Christine Iturrino was loading groceries into her Myrtle Seaside dwelling when Joel, the pet cockatiel she had adopted from a hen rescue group 18 months in the past, flew out of the door.

“In a panic, I attempted to seize him, which you’re not alleged to do with birds,” Iturrino, 58, told the Washington Post. “That freaked him out and he flew away towards the ocean, screaming all the way in which. I used to be heartsick.”

Iturrino, a bus driver, mentioned her flying good friend favored to take heed to Eighties pop music and had free rein in her dwelling, solely staying in his cage at evening.

In a Fb publish in regards to the lacking hen, she wrote that he notably favored “Uptown Woman” by Billy Joel, which she assumes impressed his title.

After Joel received unfastened, a devastated Iturrino printed up “Parrot Alert” fliers providing a reward and tacked them up throughout her neighborhood.

“He’s very individuals pleasant, so I had loads of hope. However I used to be nonetheless fairly upset, particularly as extra time handed. I started to fret I’d by no means see him once more,” she mentioned.

However after “the longest time” — or 9 days later to be precise –Iturrino obtained a textual content whereas at work.

“I work on the seaside — I believe we discovered your hen,” it mentioned.

The message was from an worker of Sky Wheel Myrtle Beach, 200-foot Ferris wheel with 42 enclosed gondolas.

The worker, Theresa Glazer, despatched an image of Joel perched on her shoulder contained in the SkyWheel ticket sales space.

Throughout a morning security examine on the wheel, worker Gavin Scire, who’s also known as Spider-Man for his climbing prowess, was about 100 toes up on a ladder when he heard chirping.

He regarded over and noticed Joel hopping on one of many bars.

The hen, who was too afraid to fly to the bottom, made its method to Scire, who then nestled him in his hoodie.

The cockatiel wouldn’t go right into a pet service however discovered consolation on Glazer’s shoulder. When Glazer advised her mom in regards to the hen, her mom talked about the story to a neighbor.

“The neighbor had seen the ‘lacking hen’ notices about Joel and remembered the truth that he favored Billy Joel music,” mentioned the park’s advertising and marketing supervisor, Sean Bailey. “Theresa was then in a position to get Christine’s cellphone quantity from the discover and textual content her.”

Once they noticed the publish about his affinity for Billy Joel, they began taking part in some Piano Man tunes to see if it was certainly Joel.

“When he began bobbing his head up and down, that’s when everybody knew this was undoubtedly Christine’s hen,” Bailey mentioned.

Joel isn’t the one cockatiel to like “Uptown Woman.”

9 months in the past, a Reddit user posted an adorable video of their pet Moe whistling along to Billy Joel’s 1983 hit.

As for Joel, he was reunited along with his distraught proprietor.

“He squawked at me, then flew over to my shoulder. I saved telling him how a lot I’d missed him, and what a courageous boy he was. It actually was a collection of miracles that introduced him dwelling,” mentioned Iturrino, who took her feathered companion to the vet.

The hen was pronounced wholesome, save for having misplaced a little bit of weight.

“I’m so joyful to have him again — Joel is such a giant a part of my life,” Iturrino mentioned. “I noticed that each day whereas he was gone.”