By Lyonel Doherty, Times Chronicle

Whenever police officers in Oliver need to de-escalate their stress level, they just turn to Billy and Snitch for the goods.

No, they aren’t high level informants, but merely two little parakeets in a cage.

Granted, it would be nice if Snitch “talked” sometimes, but you can’t have everything. 

The blue and yellow budgies flit around and chirp like there’s no tomorrow, bringing calm to the office, particularly during stressful times.

“As the detachment commander here in Oliver, it’s very important for me that my staff are healthy and well, physically and mentally, and be ready for anything that can happen,” said Sgt. Don Wrigglesworth.

The commander said he has seen where animals bring down blood pressure and act as a calming influence. 

“People have pets for a reason; it brings them joy and relaxation.”

Wrigglesworth said he thought about getting a cat for the office, but some people are allergic to felines. Same goes for dogs.

Then he thought about getting a couple of birds since he always liked birds; he had a couple when he was a kid.

The commander canvassed the office and asked the ladies if they wouldn’t mind. Well, their eyes just lit up, he said.

“Big concern was allergies. Was anyone allergic? But we didn’t come across that problem.”

Wrigglesworth said he reached out to a news outlet to run an advertisement for a parrot. 

“We didn’t want to say what it was for or anything else. We didn’t want to get some sort of spy parrot that may take away our secrets, eh?” he laughed.

Unfortunately, there was no response to the ad, so local resident Jack Bennest purchased a couple of budgies and donated them to the detachment. One of the members bought a five-dollar cage from the Kiwanis Market and then upgraded from there.

Wrigglesworth said none of the expenses come from the taxpayer; it’s all from their own pockets.

The name “Billy” is the name of a police officer who used to work at the detachment, and the other’s name came from a female staffer who liked the name “Snitch.”

“Sometimes they have to be moved because they can be a little too much. But when I come around the corner and there’s a constable sitting there talking to them and laughing, I just know that it brings down the stress,” the commander said.

Wrigglesworth said some individuals have thanked him for getting the birds because of the effect they have on people.

“Everyone is taking them on. On night shift there are little signs on the door, ‘don’t forget the birds.’”

Every night they are covered up with a blanket, and on weekends they have a radio that pumps out music for them.

“I heard that somebody put a . . . what was it? A Def Leppard concert tour on their cell phone right beside the cage. The birds were dancing and squawking for an hour and a half.”

Wrigglesworth said the birds just add a sense of “home” and a relaxed atmosphere in the detachment.

The budgies also affect the public at the front counter in a positive way, he noted. 

“Even the crusty person that’s having a bad morning . . . they say, ‘shut up, birds,’ but they say it with a laugh and a smile.”

The commander said having these feathered friends has worked way beyond what he imagined. 

“Someone said, ‘does the RCMP allow you to have a pet?’ I don’t know, why not?”

Wrigglesworth said other detachments have had pets, such as a gerbil or hamster that ran around the Vernon office. And the Penticton RCMP has Calypso, a therapy dog used by victim services. Some officers even take him for a walk.

In Oliver, the birds really react to Cpl. Paul Symons’ (Jimmy Stewart) voice in how he tells a story.

“The birds react to his voice more than anyone else. They start squawking and dancing and doing their thing. It’s pretty hilarious.”

 who won’t keep quiet sometimes.