Thursday, September 30, 2010

Meet Bugsy and Jay

Bugsy (cockatiel) and Jay (quaker) are two adult birds looking for a home. Several years ago, they decided that they'd rather share a cage than live separately, so their owners acquiesced to this demand!They have not been handled much recently, but with consistent gentle handling, they will revert to the sweet birds they were before their owners got ill.

If you'd like to meet them, please stop by the Center.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Meet Murphy

Murphy is an adult male Nanday Conure. He was very loved in his previous home; however, both of his owners came down with serious debilitating diseases and have been unable to provide him proper care for several years. His basic needs were being met, but he wasn't getting out of his cage as much as he was used to.With a little bit of work, he will revert to the tame, sweet bird he was a few years ago.

Nanday Conures have a loud call, so we cannot adopt one to someone who lives in an apartment. If you'd like to meet Murphy, please stop by!

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Exercise!!!

Did you get your exercise today? Because Kodak did:
And then some preening as a reward:

Monday, September 27, 2010

Tammy Update

The last time we updated you on Tammy was about a month and a half ago. Since then, we've had quite the interesting development -- another elderly, plucked, special-needs nanday conure was surrendered to us!

That's Rocky up top and Tammy down below:These two are each in their mid-to-late 20s. Late in life, they found friendship. They will most likely stay with us for the rest of their lives, unless a suitable hospice home is found for them.

They've both made improvements since they've been placed together -- they think it was worth the wait for love!

Friday, September 24, 2010

Peanut Update

We've introduced you to Peanut before. She's an approximately 8 year old Nanday Conure who's missing a foot after an accident with a macaw.Earlier this year, we'd found her a home, but things ended up not working out, so she came back to us.

Peanut is a great bird, though like many conures, can be quite loud!

We're once again looking for a home; hopefully this time it will be a permanent one. Peanut is very resilient and has adapted amazingly well to her disability. She does not require any special accommodation!

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Budgies!

We frequently post that we have a lot of budgies up for adoption; that's the case again! The difference this time is that we have a lot of tame/semi-tame budgies! Many of these budgies were tame at one point, but hadn't recently been receiving human attention. With some patience and work, they will easily tame down again as they do not bite and aren't aggressive.But why are budgies listed in an Adopt A Less Adoptable Pet Week post? Because far too frequently, these little gems are overlooked. Many people underestimate the intelligence of these little guys, and how much joy they can bring to a home.
The majority of people who come to the Center looking to adopt a bird gravitate towards the larger birds, possibly thinking that bigger is better. But those people are missing out on the joy and treasure that is the budgie!

If you've been thinking about adding a tame budgie to your house, there may never be a better time! We'd love to find these guys homes as they require frequent human interaction to stay tame. We do the best we can here, but our attention can't match what they'd get in a good home.

As always, stop by if you'd like to meet these budgies!

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Meet Lola

Lola is an female adult umbrella cockatoo. She is one of the parrots that has been with us the longest, looking for a home: almost four years! We've mentioned her before, but never featured her in her own entry.
Lola was confiscated by animal control and transferred to us. As such, we do not know much about her history; not even how old she is.

During the time she's been with us, most of our volunteers have fallen in love with her. She loves attention, and draws you in with the sweetest "Hello" you've ever heard.
It is hard for us to place cockatoos in general. They do not make good pets as they have complex needs that are difficult to meet in a captive environment. It's even harder for us to place cockatoos with severe plucking issues, as many people have a hard time looking past the bird's exterior.

If anyone is considering adding a cockatoo to their home, please thoroughly read mytoos.

We know someday the perfect home will arrive for Lola, and she'll have a family that sees through to the wonderful bird inside. Until that time comes, she has a place at the Center.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Tango Update

Tango is another one of our hard to adopt parrots. He's been featured several times on this blog; most recently, here.

Last week, Tango got a new, larger cage. We also moved him over a few feet. Tango was not happy with this relocation! He was so agitated that we moved him back to his corner:
The reason Tango likes it so much here? It turns out he's quite the nosy fellow! He loves to be able to see in the back room. He watches the volunteers do laundry, chop up vegetables for the parrots, and perform other tasks.Tango has been with us, looking for a home, for over a year. He is very delightful, but also very demanding. He thinks he should be the center of attention, and will scream if he thinks he's being overlooked.

He also has a scissor beak. In the year that he's been with us, his beak has made significant progress, and we have hope that at some point in the future, he will no longer require beak trims. At the moment, however, he requires to have his beak trimmed approximately every six weeks -- this is something we can do at the Center or your vet can do it.

Tango is very loyal. He has a great sense of humor and is fun to be around. He is also very intense.

He's been looking for over a year for a home; if you think you might be able to provide one for him, stop by and meet him. Like most severe macaws, Tango has definite ideas of who he likes and who he doesn't (and there isn't much reason for his choices), so this is a case where he will need to pick his person!

Monday, September 20, 2010

Adopt a Less Adoptable Pet Week; Olive Update

According to petfinder, today starts Adopt a Less Adoptable Pet Week. In honor of that, we'll feature some of our less adoptable parrots: those that have been with us a long time, or require special care.

Today's featured hard to adopt pet: Olive
We first introduced you to Olive earlier this year. Olive is now off of medical hold and searching for her forever home!

It does not appear as though Olive will have any long-term effects from her former mutilation; however, it's important that Olive's new home provide her with the best living situation, including annual vet checks, to make sure she stays in optimal health.

She can be a bit nippy, but once she has the stability of a permanent family, she will settle down quickly. We'd love for Olive to finally be able to live the life she deserves. If you have room for her, please stop by to meet her!

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Goodsearch

We have something new and exciting we'd like to share with you! It's the new Center for Avian Rehabilitation and Education toolbar - once added to Internet Explorer or Firefox, each time you shop at more than 1,300 stores (from Amazon to Zazzle!) a percentage of your purchase will automatically be donated to Center for Avian Rehabilitation and Education - at no cost to you (and you may even save money as the toolbar provides coupons and deals as well!). The toolbar also has a search box and each time you search the Internet, about a penny is donated to Center for Avian Rehabilitation and Education. http://www.goodsearch.com/toolbar/center-for-avian-rehabilitation-and-education

And please pass this along to all of your friends. The two minutes it takes to add this toolbar to your browser can make a lifetime of difference!

Get the toolbar NOW! http://www.goodsearch.com/toolbar/center-for-avian-rehabilitation-and-education

Friday, September 17, 2010

Bo and Durante greet each other

Here is a video of Bo and Durante, two macaws that came from the same house. They were very well loved and taken care of, but their owners were unable to continue caring for them due to financial reasons.


They do enjoy each other's company, though they are not bonded. They love to greet and wave at each other!

Based on experiences with Bo and Durante, we believe that they would do well in multi-macaw homes where they can form a flock with others of their own kind. They do need to live in a flock of same-sex macaws (Bo's a male; Durante's a female), so if you already have macaws, we will need to see proof of their gender (we can help you with sexing if you don't know.) This will help to reduce aggression and eliminate the possibility of accidental babies as there are way too many macaws in captivity currently and there are no safe spay/neuter procedures for parrots.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Gizmo Update

It's been awhile since our last update on Gizmo. She is doing incredibly well and is all ready to go to a new home!As she's gotten healthy again, it's been wonderful to watch her transformation -- she put on some much needed weight, shed her skin, revealing a brilliant green color, and perked up her personality.

What a pleasure it has been having her with us; hopefully she will soon be in a loving family!

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Michael Update

We introduced you to Michael a few months ago; he's still up for adoption.

He continues to entertain us and is a volunteer favorite. Here he is on video making some of his amazon noises and saying "Hello!"

Michael is one of the loudest and most vocal birds we have at the Center. He definitely could never live in an apartment!

Michael is still looking for his home. If you like noise and want to meet this gentle soul, stop by!

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Bo Update

We introduced you to Bo last month. The more time this clownish beauty spends here, the more we fall in love with him (though that's true for every bird who spends time here!) He's very smart, so is quickly learning the rules, such as the fact that he's no longer allowed on shoulders -- not that he doesn't try to pull a fast one occasionally and scamper up there!
Here he is, showing off a bit:He is so intelligent and funny! Bo needs a home that will continue to work with him on tricks to help keep his mind active. I think he's a perfect candidate for learning to play basketball or roller skate!

Monday, September 13, 2010

Thirsty

Beautiful Blue put her toy right in her water dish.She wasn't thinking ahead as her water is now blocked! (Don't worry, we gave her fresh water after taking this picture!)

Friday, September 10, 2010

It's that time of year...

The macaws are busy destroying everything they can get their beaks on.

A medium-sized mess...for a medium-sized macaw:
And a large mess:
...for a large macaw:

Thursday, September 09, 2010

Meet Durante

Meet Durante, an approximately 7 year old greenwing macaw. She came from the same situation as Bo. She was very well loved and well cared for, but when her family lost their house to foreclosure, they could no longer take care of her.
She's really settling in during the weeks that she's been at the Center. She is very intelligent, and loves to learn and perform tricks.

She will require a home that will help her to develop her intelligence. It can be very boring for these magnificent wild animals to live in captivity, so to try to offset that, Durante would love for her new family to teach her tricks and make her work for her food.

Stop by if you'd like to meet this gorgeous girl!

Wednesday, September 08, 2010

New cockatiel enclosure

If you visit the Center, you will notice that we've made a few changes. We're in the process of installing a better floor, for example. But, more exciting, the cockatiels have a new enclosure!We still have many cockatiels up for adoption! We'd really like to get these guys into good homes; many have spent quite a few months with us, and they'd like a new family.
Stop by if you'd like to add one to your flock!

Tuesday, September 07, 2010

Meet Greenbean

Meet Greenbean, one of the loudest and most entertaining parrotlets we have ever seen! He is extremely noisy, so he needs to find a family that doesn't live in an apartment. It's incredible how much noise can come out of such a little body.

What's wrong with his head?
Nothing, he's just playing!Since he has so much energy, and we always need volunteers to keep the Center running smoothly, we decided to put him to work. He tried out a lot of different jobs such as...

Fundraising:
Working the cash register:
Accountant:
And presentation-giver:
But he decided that he didn't really want a job; he's looking for a family that will take care of him. In exchange for good food, toys, and tons of interaction, he'll provide you with much joy, including one of the cutest "ta-weet" sounds ever.

Stop by if you'd like to meet Greenbean, but be forewarned that he'll probably steal your heart!

Friday, September 03, 2010

Waiting list

We currently have 28 birds on our waiting list. Due to space and other resource limitations, we need to adopt some birds out before we can take any more in.

If you've been contemplating adding another bird to your flock, it might be the right time! We have many very tame birds of all sizes currently looking for homes.

Thursday, September 02, 2010

Lovebirds

We currently have quite a few lovebirds up for adoption. Some are single, others are in pairs. Some are extremely tame and friendly, others need some work to regain trust in humans, and others prefer to have minimal human contact.

These four lovebirds currently fall into the latter category. They are former breeders, so their life until now has not been the happiest.

However, they are responding well to an improved diet and cage full of toys.Given their history, it's likely that they'll always prefer the company of their mate to that of humans.
We're looking for a retirement home for them that will let them enjoy their lives as part of a family. Please stop by if you'd like to meet them!

Wednesday, September 01, 2010

Meet Snowball

Meet Snowball, an approximately 23 year old medium sulfur crested cockatoo. We adopted him out 7 years ago, to what appeared to be a great situation. And it was for the first four years. He was out almost constantly and received a lot of attention.We were told several different stories about what happened next, but apparently he was not let out of his cage at all for the next three years. His family finally decided to return him, and now we're hoping to find him the right forever home.

He is tame and friendly, though does tend to prefer women. Cockatoos can be very challenging to keep in captivity, and we recommend that anyone considering bringing a cockatoo into their house first spend some time at mytoos.