That Time a Customer's Parrot Tried to 'Help' with the Deadbolt Install

KeyMaster7

·1mo·15 replies·16 participants

KeyMaster7⚒️ JourneymanOP1mo

So I'm out on a rekey job, standard Schlage deadbolt on a front door, and this lady's got a big green parrot in the living room that's squawking up a storm. I'm drilling the pilot hole, minding my own business, when the damn bird flies over and starts pecking at my Kwikset key blanks on the floor like it's trying to pick one himself. Had me and the apprentice cracking up so hard we almost dropped the tension wrench. Took twice as long as it shoulda cuz we kept pausing to shoo the feathered assistant away. Moral of the story: always ask about pets before starting, especially the chatty ones. NGL, it was the funniest callout I've had in months.

FloorFitter⚒️ Journeyman1mo

damn birds are the worst, had one crap all over my tools during a flooring gig last week and it took forever to clean up.

CanvasKing6⚒️ Journeyman1mo

man, pets on job sites are the worst. had a dog once that kept trying to hump my leg while i was pinning the hinge on a garage door, couldnt get anything done without laughing my ass off. took us an extra hour just to finish the install cuz we had to lock the mutt in the yard. birds are next level though, never dealt with one stealing my tools.

TrimQueen⚒️ Journeyman1mo

had a job once where a customer's ferret stole my entire set of lock picks and hid 'em under the couch... took us an hour to retrieve the little bastard before we could finish the install 😂

DustBunnyHunter5⚒️ Journeyman1mo

had a damn cat try to 'help' with a rekey once by batting the pins all over the floor, turned a 20-minute job into an hour of chasing shiny bullshit.

DuctDoctor9⚒️ Journeyman1mo

man i feel that, had a customers dog try to 'help' with my wiring job last week by chewing on the romex scraps all over the floor. took forever to keep the damn thing away without gettin bit. pets on job sites are always a crapshoot lol.

FixItFelix6⚒️ Journeyman1mo

had a damn cat try to 'help' with my rekey job last week, knocked over the whole tray of blanks and made me start over, these pets are gonna be the death of me.

DrainDemon2⚒️ Journeyman1mo

goddamn homeowners and their zoo animals, always turning a quick job into a three-ring circus. last week i had a cat batting at my lock picks like it was playing fetch, wasted 20 minutes chasing the furball. these people think 'pet friendly' means we come equipped with a net and treats. if they mentioned the damn parrot upfront, we'd have charged extra for the entertainment fee.

DeckBuilderDan⭐ Expert1mo

had a job once where a customer's ferret stole my lock pins and ran off with 'em like it was on a heist, had to chase the little bastard around the basement for 20 minutes 😂

EaveEater3⚒️ Journeyman1mo

god i hate when homeowners spring their zoo on us mid-job, like warn a guy before your damn parrot turns my tools into a snack bar. took me an extra hour last week chasing off a cat that thought my drill bit was a toy.

WireWizardWill⚒️ Journeyman1mo

had a dog once that wouldn't stop humping my leg while i was trying to thread that damn schlage cylinder, pissed me off so bad i nearly kicked it across the room. customers act like their pets are part of the job site crew, but they just screw everything up and add an extra hour to the clock. should've billed her double for the feathered distraction. next time i'm charging a pet surcharge upfront.

WeedWarrior⚒️ Journeyman1mo

man, pets always turn a simple job into a circus. had a dog once that kept trying to hump my leg while i was under the sink fixing a leak, couldnt get a damn thing done without laughing. birds are even worse though, they just dont quit. been there, and it always slows you down twice over.

CanvasCowboy⚒️ Journeyman1mo

damn birds, had a job once where a customers cockatiel dive bombed my tools while i was swapping out a mortise lock. took forever cuz i was laughin too hard to focus.

BoltBrain⚒️ Journeyman1mo

damn homeowners and their wild pets always turning a simple job into a circus, like that one time a dog chewed through my cord on a lock install and i had to redo the whole thing.

CastIronCurser⚒️ Journeyman1mo

Haha, sounds like a riot. I've had dogs steal pins from my lock kits mid-job, but a bird? That's next level chaos.

BoltBreaker2⚒️ Journeyman1mo

For real, birds are sneaky. Once had a cockatiel chew through my impressioning foil while I was working a safe deposit box. Had to improvise with some spare ribbon from the van.