Story Bird: Romeo & Juliet

After all the holiday cooking I did between October and December,I used the self cleaning oven feature on my 6-month old gas oven for the first time one January night about 11pm.  The instructions mentioned that some birds are sensitive to oven fumes but since I had used an electric self cleaning oven in a previous 1930s built home and the birds were in the opposite end of our new home I assumed they would be fine.  My husband came downstairs thinking the house was on fire because the burning smell had risen upstairs.  I knew the smell was from the oven but didn't realize how awful it was.  He said it was worse than the "burned popcorn in the microwave" smell.  Romeo and Juliet were in the living room with the lights out (it was 11pm)  so if they made any noises I didn't hear them. The oven cleaned up beautifully and we all went to bed.  Saturday morning was hectic with three kids running in different directions.  We had to run out early in the morning, and when I was not greeted by Romeo and Juliet immediately after walking in the door Saturday around noon I went to the living room to check on them.  They were both lying on the bottom of their cage.