Dusty, the parrot with an attitude, gobbles homework, scares family members in the night by chirping like a smoke detector, regurgitates food when asked for a kiss and even draws blood.

Even so, his owners were heartbroken in September when the cocky Congo African grey flew the coop. Seven months later, they say he was found 2,000 miles away in Las Vegas and came home last week.

That’s a dream come true for the family who loves the 9-year-old oversized parrot with light gray feathers, a cherry red tail, “extra-long toes” and more than a few personality quirks, owner April Konopka said.

The odyssey began Sept. 17 on a return trip for treats at a local pet store. Konopka’s feathered friend got spooked and “once he was airborne, wouldn’t come down,” she said.

“I went into such a deep depression. I cried and cried,” said Konopka, 40, the mother of five. “It was like losing a child. I was on a quest to find him and wouldn’t be at peace until I did.”

A Web site for lost birds helped Konopka locate her bratty beauty, who was mimicking his usual Nextel cell phone alerts, spouting not-so-nice comments and siren-wailing in a Las Vegas animal hospital after being recovered April 21.

No one’s exactly sure what Dusty did in Vegas — after all, what happens there, stays there — but the bird’s wild adventure ended when he was spotted atop a building on Nellis Air Force Base in the Nevada city.

Steven Saunders coaxed the stubborn bird from the building and took it to his wife, Cassandra, an office manager at a Las Vegas pet hospital.

Cassandra Saunders said once inside the office, Dusty didn’t hesitate to toss food and dump his water bowl on unsuspecting puppies as they walked by and shriek in high pitches for about eight hours.

“He destroyed the office throwing stuff everywhere,” said Saunders, 25. “He bit me a couple times as a warning to leave him alone. He’s got a little bit of an attitude.”

Saunders, who owns three African greys, posted information about the bird on the Web site www.911parrotalert.com. Konopka visited the site frequently after losing Dusty.

By April, she had almost given up hope. But Saunders’ posting seemed like Dusty. She responded the next day, and a phone call was arranged.

“(Dusty) was listening (to Konopka’s voice) intently and getting excited,” Saunders said. “She knew about his favorite things and told him to ‘get down’ and he started dancing.”

Konopka’s husband, David, 44, has a spotty history with the bird, but didn’t hesitate to arrange for the homecoming of the $1,200 animal that was supposed to be his pet.

The director of quality for a Canton Township trucking company called a driver near Nevada to retrieve the bird for a reunion.

“I bought the bird he was supposed to love me. He attached to my wife and whenever I go near him he bites me,” he said, noting how Dusty latched onto his forearm, drawing blood, when he attempted to rebuild a swing the bird had dismantled.

“I love him to death, though,” he acknowledged.

His wife, eager for her pet’s return, couldn’t wait until the truck made it to Michigan.

Dusty and the Konopkas were reunited last week.

“The emptiness and worry are gone. Everybody is at peace,” April Konopka said.

Dusty is getting reacquainted with the family in his old cage packed with his favorite toys and treats — Doritos, strawberries, cantaloupe, carrots and French-style green beans.

The ending may be happy, but the mishap isn’t unusual for owners of the cagey birds, experts said.

“Birds can get out in a split second,” said Donna Powell of Baton Rouge, La., founder of the 911 Parrot Alert site that helped the Konopkas find Dusty.

Powell’s site facilitates postings of about 10,000 lost and found birds from the United States to Canada, England, Australia and New Zealand. It has aided in the reunion of more than 800 birds with their owners.

“Most people give up too soon,” Powell said. “The ones that have stayed at it have found their birds.”

Soon enough, the Konopkas said, Dusty will be back to his old tricks — throwing food for attention, tearing apart telephones, imitating garbage trucks and alarm sounds and getting down to the theme song from “Cops.”

“He won’t shut up, but it’s great to have noise back in the house,” David Konopka said.