Lost Bird Returns To Original Owner More Than Year Later

ROSEVILLE (CBS13) - A local teacher thought his pet bird was lost forever, but as it turns out, it never really went that far.

This is the strange and odd tale of a little lost bird named Cosmo, and Kirby.

The story starts at the Adventure Club at Heritage Oak School in Roseville. A couple years ago, Shashi Patel, who takes care of the animals, decided to take the bird outside for some fresh air.

"I put him on my shoulder and the bird flew," said Patel.

No one saw the bird again for a long, long time, until one day.

"A substitute teacher had come to our school, and she put her foot out of her car, and the bird climbed up her leg, then up her arm," said Elinor McCormick, a teacher at the school.

McCormick felt sorry for the little scared thing. So she took it home and nursed it back to health.

"My daughter and I named it Kirby, and we kept it for over a year," said McCormick.

She asked around and couldn't find the owner, but Mr. Patel never quit looking.

Surprisingly, McCormick's room is right across from the Adventure Club building. Then one day a year and a half later, it finally clicked.

"A year, huh? Was it a speckled parakeet?" said McCormick, "I said, 'I think I have your bird.' "

"I couldn't believe it. He was still alive," said Patel. "I was really happy to see him."

Now the bird stays at the Adventure Club so both McCormack and Patel can visit.

So that's how Cosmo became Kirby, then Cosmo-Kirby.