Cockatiel named Romeo escapes Queens home, abandons jilted partner Sunshine — and leaves owners devastated

It was a cockeyed scheme of Shakespearean proportions.

A pet cockatiel named Romeo flew his Queens coop to look for his Juliet — leaving his jilted partner in their Queens cage distraught, silent and refusing to preen and play.

Romeo’s owners are also devastated, going on a wild goose chase searching for the medium-sized parrot in their Kew Gardens Hills neighborhood by using auditory cues and posting “missing” posters.

Owner Leah Normatova said 5-month-old Romeo, a white bird with orange cheek patches and a yellow crest, flew out the open door on July 25 — then disappeared.

Once 1-year-old Sunshine realized her pal wasn’t around, she became despondent.

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“She started yelling out a few times I guess hoping to find out if he is around, but got no response,” Normatova, a mother of three, said.

Then Sunshine’s personality shifted.

“She would sit, puffed up, not playing with her toys as if she is sick,” Normatova said. “Her eyes seemed sad and lonely. She wanted my company because she couldn’t figure out what happened to Romeo.”

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Normally, Sunshine sits on top of the liquor cabinet and chews on flowers, or bathes in the interior water fountain.

It wasn’t until Tuesday when Normatova got another male cockatiel that Sunshine started to lighten up, though she’s still not her old self.

The family’s youngest child, Leora, 7, hasn’t recovered either.

She is “still in tears now,” Normatova said. “She’s like, ‘I wish it was Sunshine that flew away, not Romeo.'”

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Her other kids — Talia, 10, and Israel, 9 — aren’t faring much better. Talia feels “guilty” as she was the one who left the front door open when Romeo escaped, Normatova said.

And Israel, Normatova said, is “trying to hold his feelings to himself, but I can tell he is hurting inside about the situation.”

Normatova continues to search for Romeo, posting notices in Facebook groups, remaining hopeful Romeo could make his way home.

Her husband, Ariel, thinks the bird is a goner.

“It’s heartbreaking,” said Normatova, who has been a bird lover since childhood. “And I feel somewhat guilty that they go through all of this because I have the love for animals.”

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