Meet Skittles

Meet Skittles, a Fischers lovebird.  We don't have much history on him since he was a stray.

He does not know how to step up, but he is not aggressive.  He loves spending time wrapped in a towel, like above.  He also likes being in shirt pockets.

We believe that with some patience and training, he will learn to step up and be a great family pet.  If you're interested in meeting him, please stop by.  We currently have quite a few lovebirds up for adoption!

Molly Update

It's been over a year since our last update on Molly!

He's doing really well at CARE, but we'd love to place him in a home.  We are just a temporary stop for these birds, who need to find placement in a family.

Here's a video of Molly waving.

He has much love to give and if you've been thinking of adding a cockatoo to your life, please stop by and meet him.  It might just be a perfect match!

Alumni story: Mali

We like to post updates from parrots who have been placed through CARE.  One benefit of this is to show people that older, rehomed parrots can make great companions.

That's the case for Mali, a senegal parrot (named Penelope when she was at CARE.)  Unfortunately, we never featured her on the blog, so I can't link to that post, but we just received a wonderful update on her progress that we wanted to share!

From her new owner:

Mali is doing great! When we brought her home, we gave her a short tour of  the 1st floor of the house, and then we put her in her cage. She walked right in, checked it out side to side and top to bottom.

Within 2 days, she was saying Grami (probably because the kids say it so often). By the end of the week, she added a garbled version of Mali, and every time we ask her to "step up" out of the cage, she says "aww." She says Hi, Adri, K'mere (come here) every day. One day she said "I love you", clear as a bell! It was so perfect, I was shocked, because it sounded more like a 4 year old child than her normal Senegal voice, but I can't seem to get her to say it again.

We had 18 people here for Thanksgiving, and she was very sweet to anyone that wanted to hold or talk to her. I've had some sort of sinus thing for almost 3 weeks, so of course, she is copy-coughing. She gets really excited with her morning routine of cage cleaning, water & food.

I'm learning what she doesn't like so much, and also her favorites. Every day, the first thing she grabs from her bowl, is the Nutriberry. At dinner, she is a chatter box. Her cage is by my chair, and I share a bite of everything with her. 

I can't thank you enough for allowing us to adopt her! She is the perfect addition to our family, we all love her and I can't imagine life without her.

Sammy

Meet Sammy, a quaker parakeet, one of the many quakers who is currently living at CARE but looking for a permanent home.

We don't know much about Sammy, as he was dropped off at a humane society and then transfered to us.  The paperwork we received said he's about 5 years old.

Like many quakers, he can be a bit cage aggressive, but he loves being out of his cage and will happily step up on a hand covered by a towel.  Once out, he loves spending time with his favorite people!

He steps up nicely once he's out of his cage and will make a great companion!  We have heard him meow, so he must have lived with cats in his past.  However, there remains many of the joys of his personality to be discovered by his new owners.

If you've been thinking of adding a quaker to your home, we have many great birds available for adoption right now, including Sammy.

Meet Mya

Meet Mya, a teenage female blue and gold macaw.  Poor Mya has lived in several different car dealerships for her entire life until being surrendered to us.  That means she's not had a stable, predictible life.  Parrots love routine and knowing what's going to happen next.  They love interacting and bonding with their flock and not having many unknown people coming up to them, trying to touch them or make them speak.

As you can see, Mya directed her frustration with his previous life into feather destructive behaviors.  We've got her on a good diet and she's got tons of toys to play with and destroy, so we're hopeful that we can turn her life around.

In this picture, she's in the process of getting her head scratched -- notice how she's lifted her head feathers to give fingers easier access.

We're so happy that she now has an opportunity for a better, more routine life.  She's a very sweet girl who will make a great companion to the right person.

Meet Bailey

Meet Bailey, a young timneh African Grey parrot.  We don't have an accurate history on her, so we are learning about her personality through experience.  She is a very sweet parrot.  She gets very excited when she sees people she likes enter the room, and she runs to the front of her cage to come out.

Once out, she revels in the attention.  Perhaps a little too much, as she has been known to pinch your finger if you're holding her and divert your attention to another bird or person!

So far, she has not shown a male/female preference -- she likes everyone!  Timnehs tend to be extremely intelligent and require lots of interesting toys and learning opportunities to keep them happy in captivity.

As with all of our parrots, if you'd like to meet Bailey, please stop by.  She is a special treasure who will thrive in a stable, loving, enriching environment!

Puzzle

Puzzle, one of the most adorable Weber's lories ever, was up to his tricks of entertaining us last week.

Nikki, a hybrid mini macaw, was being adopted.  When her new owner came to pick her up, she dropped off some tasty treats for the volunteers to eat, including some delicious and fancy sandwiches.

Puzzle, who'd been wandering around the front counter, decided that these sandwiches were fascinating:

Despite his best tapping efforts, they remained out of his reach:

Because Puzzle, as a lory, requires a specialized diet, and especially because he has suffered from health problems due to a poor diet in his previous home, we didn't let him eat any of the sandwiches.  Instead, after filming this video, we distracted him with something better -- attention!

Though we don't understand why, Puzzle has not yet been adopted.  He's hoping he'll find the right home soon.!

Durante video

Durante is an approximately 8 year old female greenwing macaw.  We introduced you to her here, over a year ago.  We really want to find her a home, as our purpose is mainly that of finding birds new homes -- not providing permanent sanctuary.

Durante needs an experienced macaw person and must choose her new family. She has definite likes and dislikes when it comes to people!  She is very social and will thrive in an environment with lots of activity.  She is very intelligent and quickly picks up on trick training. 

Here is a recent video where she showed off some of her tricks:

We are looking for a home that will continue working with her in order to stimulate her intelligence and keep her mind active.  She will be a great companion in the right home.  If you think that might be your home, please stop by to meet her!

Royal

We introduced you to Royal a few months ago, but since we've been discussing older birds recently, we thought we'd highlight her again.  Here is her introduction.

She's in her early 30s, though you wouldn't know it to look at her!  She received a clean bill of health from the vet, who was very impressed with her demeanor.

Royal is a bit hesitant to come out of her cage, but once she's out, she seeks affection.

She'd thrive in a home where things are low-key so she can acclimate at her own pace.  She will make a wonderful companion as she has a very gentle soul.

We'd love to have her in her new home by the end of the year!  If you'd like to meet her, please stop by!

Bongo

Like Snowball, at 25, Bongo isn't actually a senior parrot, as he very well could have decades yet to live.  However, since he's one of the older macaws that we currently have up for adoption, we're featuring him this month.

We first introduced you to Bongo last month.  As we've gotten to know him better, we're falling in love with him.  He will make a wonderful companion to the right person.  He is very in love with Sweet Pea, the amazon with whom he lived in his previous home.  However, Sweet Pea is quite indifferent toward Bongo.  While we'd love to find them a home together, they should do fine in separate homes.

Bongo really wants someone to bond with.  Severe macaws are known for their intense bonding and loyalty to one individual.  Hopefully we can find that person for him soon!

He loves being out of his cage, and as soon as you open his cage door, he puts his foot up to step up.  In the right home, we know he'll come out of his shell even more and find happiness.

Please stop by if you'd like to meet him!  We'd love for his last years to be his best.

Snowball

Snowball is an approximately 25 year old Eleanora Cockatoo.  He's been at CARE for about two years now -- maybe 2011 will end up being his lucky year!

Though 25 isn't really considered senior for a cockatoo, he's one of the oldest toos we currently have up for adoption.

He is a very sweet bird.  When he first steps out of his cage, he bites down really hard -- it appears as though he never learned proper beak pressure!  We just wrap a towel around our arm, so he bites down on that, and then he's fine.  He loves coming out of his cage and is just a bit too exuberant at first.

We adopted Snowball out about 9 years ago.  For the first four years, things were really great and Snowball was a loved member of the family.  However, the last three years he spent in that house, he was never allowed out of his cage, which is terrible for such a gregarious flock animal.  They realized they weren't giving him what he needed, so he was returned to us.  He's spent the last two years with us, and we're hoping to find him a new home soon where he can spend the rest of his life.

Despite what he's been through, this resilient parrot has lots of love to give.  If you've been thinking about adding a cockatoo to your home, Snowball may be the fellow for you!

RIP, Pepper

We're taking a break from talking about our senior pets to talk about one who recently died before reaching that senior age -- all due to poor care and bad nutrition in his previous home.  This is really inexcusable as there is so much correct information out there, that with a little bit of research, Pepper could still be a happy, living parrot.

We introduced you to Pepper, an approximately 16 year old red lory, back in August.  His previous owner fed him fruit loops (yes, the sugar-laden breakfast cereal) as his main diet, supplemented only with grapes.  Lories require a specialized diet, and neither sugary breakfast cereals nor grapes are proper food for them to eat.

We'd taken Pepper to the vet on several occasions and were working to get his liver working properly again.  We were able to do this, but he was obviously not feeling well -- sitting puffed up in his cage and not playing with toys or interacting with people.  We took him to the vet again yesterday.  His abdomen was quite distended, and the vet removed quite a bit of fluid from it.  Ultimately, given his poor physical condition, the tough decision was made to euthanize him and end his suffering.

We had a necropsy performed immediately, and it confirmed our suspicions: Pepper suffered from iron storage disease.  There is no way to combat this.  Only prevention, which would have happened had he been fed a proper diet.  He was so young and this should not have happened.

CARE gets many birds in who are suffering from malnutrition due to poor care in their previous homes.  Many times we are able to reverse the damage once we get them on a good diet.  Unfortunately for Pepper, his diet was so poor for so long that we were unable to save him.

RIP, Pepper.  You were loved and we miss you.

Scarlet

November is adopt a senior pet month, so we will be focusing on some of our older adoptables in the near future.

First up is Scarlet, who we believe is currently our oldest bird.  She's around 40.  Scarlet obviously suffered through some extremely poor care earlier in her life.

One concrete example is that her toenails started growing at odd angles -- most likely the result of not having perches.  She also has some minor medical issues and will require maintenance medication for the rest of her life.

Scarlet is very sweet and loves verbally interacting with people.  She would do well in a home that doesn't have a lot of expectations for her.  A home that will open her door and let her choose when to come out, for example.

We're not sure how much time Scarlet has left, and we'd really love to get her into a home where she can enjoy her last years as part of a loving family.  Please stop by if you have room in your home and heart for such a wonderful bird!

Reminder: Rummage Sale this Saturday, November 5

Just a reminder about the rummage sale and bake sale to be held this Saturday, November 5 at CARE from 10:00 am - 4:00 pm.  We have tons of stuff that's been donated.  Some of them are parrot-related:

And others are not; just typical rummage items:

 As always, all money raised goes directly back into CARE, to help the birds.  We'd love for you to join us!

Another day, another hoarding situation

For the fourth time in 2011, CARE is dealing with the aftermath of a hoarding situation. Last week, we had five birds surrendered to us -- a macaw, cockatoo, two amazons, and a finch. They had been living with an animal hoarder (she had dozens of very sick cats and dogs as well as the parrots.)

They were in bad shape physically, and we've already incurred over $1,000 in (discounted) vet costs caring for these birds. Some require medication, and all will need follow-up appointments, which will run the bills up even more. We're very hopeful that all will fully recover under our care, once they have a good diet, proper caging, plenty of interesting toys, and needed companionship, though this is likely to take time.

We're asking for monetary help in caring for these birds. You can use the paypal button above to donate, or send a check directly to CARE at 3053 Beechwood Industrial Court, Ste 1, Hubertus, WI 53033. You can also make a payment directly to our vet hospital, Brook-Falls, on CARE's behalf.

We thank you in advance for your help. It is heartbreaking to see these amazing beings in such squalor; however, we know that parrots are extremely resilient and these birds will pull through once they receive proper treatment.

If any good can be said to come out of this situation, we have strengthened our relationship with law enforcement in that community. Officers will be visiting CARE to learn about birds' needs and how to determine if parrots are in danger. Most officers know what to look for with regards to dogs and cats, but birds are more of a mystery. With any luck, this will lead to earlier intervention with neglected and suffering parrots in that community.

Join us Saturday November 5 for a garage and bake sale!

Please join us next Saturday, November 5, 2011, from 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM for a garage and bake sale!

This event will take place at CARE - 3053 Beechwood Industrial Court, Hubertus, WI 53033.

The garage sale will include used cages, stands, and other parrot-related items, as well as non-parrot-related items.  The bake sale will include many delicious treats.

Of course, all proceeds go directly back into CARE to help the birds.

We really hope to see you there!

Puzzle Update

We last talked about Puzzle here, when he was featured as one of our less adoptable pets. He's still up for adoption. The only reason he's listed as less adoptable is that, due to poor care in his previous home, he will likely always need milk thistle supplementation added to his diet.

This is a miniscule amount of extra work compared to the joy that Puzzle brings!

He's definitely going to have to pick his person, as he can be choosy about who he does and doesn't like. And when he's in love, it's amazing to see.

If we can't find him a home, I suppose we could consider hiring him out to do administrative work:


Of course we are joking about that :) He just has the adorable habit of standing up tall and saying "hello!" when he hears the phone ring.

Please stop by if you're interested in Puzzle as we need to make sure his new family understands the importance of feeding him a proper diet, including his necessary supplementation.

Holly Update

Even though our last Holly update was just earlier this month, we took a video of her that we wanted to share. Also, she is so adorable -- how hasn't she found a home yet?

When Holly sees people she likes, she hangs from the top of her cage -- it's her way of begging to come out.

When she comes out of her cage, she is so excited to come out that she throws herself at the arm -- there is nothing delicate about this action! She is so full of happiness and life that it always puts a smile on our faces.



We put a towel over our arm to have her step up. This is to help her grip when she comes flying out -- to prevent her from falling if she over- or under-shoots in her excitement. Sometimes she throws herself at the towel when it's even further away. She appears to have been a bit camera-shy here :)

Holly is still looking for a home. She'd love to be in place with a new family by the end of the year! Although she does have a disability in her dislocated hip, we were able to discontinue all pain killers once her health improved under our care. She currently requires no special care, though will need an observant owner and may possibly require pain killers at some point in the future.

Meet Max

Meet Max, an approximately 8 year old tame quaker. His previous owner died, so he made his way to us. He can be a bit cage aggressive, but is extremely sweet outside of his cage.
We frequently hear him ask, "want some water?" He loves being the center of attention and involved in the activities of the house.

We currently have a lot of quakers up for adoption, so if you've been thinking about adding a quaker to your house, we can help you find the right one. Maybe it will be Max!

Meet Sweet Pea

Meet Sweet Pea, an approximately 11 year old Double Yellow Headed Amazon. He came in with Bongo.He's lived his entire life with one owner, and with Bongo for company. Sweet Pea and Bongo had their own room, so they were rarely caged as they had free reign of the room. However, once his owner had a human baby, she determined that she no longer had time for her parrots. This is one of the top reasons why parrots lose their homes.

Sweet Pea is tame and friendly, though he hasn't had much human interaction recently. He is bonded to Bongo, and we'd love for the two of them to be adopted into the same home. They don't physically interact much, but they enjoy each other's company as they've been roommates for over a decade.

As always, please stop by if you'd like to meet him!

Meet Bongo

Meet Bongo, an approximately 25 year old severe macaw. We suspect she's female, but don't have her DNA sexing back yet. For the past 15 years, she lived in the same home, along with Sweet Pea, who we'll introduce tomorrow.
Bongo is very tame and sweet. She used to go everywhere with her previous owner and was very social. However, once her owner had a human baby, she no longer had time for Bongo, who found her way to us. As such, she hasn't had much human interaction lately, but she did have her parrot friend, Sweet Pea, for companionship.
Bongo and Sweet Pea get along very well, though they don't physically interact much. We'd love to adopt them into the same home, though they will require separate cages.

Severe macaws can live 40+ years, so there's a lot of life and love left in Bongo. If you'd like to meet her, please stop by!

Meet Glory

Meet Glory, an approximately 5 year old dove. We think he's a male, but it doesn't really matter, as he does not get along with other doves and must be an only dove. He was loved, but had to be given up due to his previous owner's health problems.He is very tame and sweet. I had set him on the counter in order to take his picture, and he came over to jump up on my arm. He definitely wants human companionship and to be part of a family!
If you'd like to make Glory part of your family, please fill out an Adoption Application on our website, or stop by to meet him!

Meet Norman

Meet Norman, a grey in his mid-teens. He hasn't been with us long, but he's already charming us! Norman has been basically happy and well-cared for, but his owners recently have had less time for him and felt it wasn't fair to Norman, so they wanted to find him a new home.
He's yet another example of a bird who loses a home through no fault of his own. His owners just no longer had enough time for him.

Norman may bite on occasion when he is overexcited or when unknown people try to force him to do things he doesn't want to do, like step up on a scary stranger! However, once his new owner learns his body language, this will not be an issue.Norman does talk a bit, including some German, according to his former owner. We haven't heard much here, but he's still getting accustomed to life at the Center.

We know this playful, friendly grey will make a great companion for a family that is willing to commit to him. We really hope he finds that home soon!

Snickers Update

We introduced you to Snickers here. He was going to be one of the birds featured last week because we couldn't understand why he took so long to find a home. He'd probably tell you it's because sometimes good things are worth the wait!

Thank you to his new owners for giving him such a wonderful home. We look forward to hearing about his exploits in his new home!



He's been in his new home for over a month now, and doing really well! Here is a recent picture, along with an update:

From his new family:

In less than 3 weeks, Snickers has blossomed into an unexpected delight. Having 3 Senegals, I wanted a bigger bird that talked more and was easily trick trainable. When I went out to CARE to get a few supplies, I was not specifically looking to adopt. I wanted to see the greys Lori had.

Well, Snickers kind of attached himself to me. He talks all the time, some things we can't understand. Others come out as though a person was speaking, like "Better call a lawyer", hmmmmm.

Last night he said, something and "shoot me". He is becoming very gentle. I am absolutely thrilled to have him. He is very happy here, I can tell. Lori and the gang at CARE do a wonderful job rehabbing these precious creatures to be adoptable. I call Snickers my new used bird and always get a chuckle. Thank you.

Join us tonight at Rainforest Night at the Domes

We apologize for the late posting of this entry, but we'd love for you to join us tonight at the Domes for Rainforest Night!

This takes place tonight from 6 - 9:30 pm. Bring a flashlight for a special Tropical Dome tour and enjoy free samples of rainforest treats -- make your own tropical sundae!

Normal Domes entrace fees apply ($6.50/adult, $5/child, free for Friends of the Domes members and children under age 5.)

Many of our volunteers will be there with their own birds as well as some shelter birds who love doing events and meeting the public.

We've been attending this for several years now, and it's a great opportunity for us to educate people about the plight of captive parrots in an enjoyable way.

We hope to see you there!

Meet Fletcher

Meet Fletcher, a young, tame lovebird. Our original plan was to use Fletcher for education purposes, so she's been living at CARE for over a year. However, as she's matured, we realized that this isn't the best environment for her.She gets a little too stimulated and hormonal here; we're hoping that this behavior might decrease in a home, where there would be fewer bird hormones flying around to get her excited!

Fletcher steps up, though her favorite place to be is on your shoulder. She loves being part of the action and will hang on her cage door begging for attention when she sees her favorite people.

It will be really tough to see Fletcher go, as she's stolen the hearts of our volunteers, but we realize we must do what's best for her. We hope to find her a home soon so she can celebrate the new year with a new family!

Meet Pretty

Meet Pretty, a young adult quaker. She hasn't been with us very long, but all of the other blue quakers we've had surrendered to us were adopted out during the first few days they were with us. Therefore, she makes it on to our underappreciated list.
She was surrendered because her previous owner has tinnitus and he claimed that her noise irritated him.

Pretty is tame and looking for a home where she can live out the rest of her days. She'd love to be an active part of a family -- joining you for showers, meals, etc.

If you have room in your home and heart for her, please stop by!

Meet Pistachio

Pistachio is an approximately 5 year old Nanday Conure. He's been with us for several months now, and we don't understand why he hasn't yet found a home! He is incredibly sweet. When we walk by his cage, he pushes his head into the cage bars so we'll scratch him.
Pistachio loves being with people and requires a home where he will be part of the family. Nandays do have loud calls, so we can't adopt them to people in apartments.

Look at that face! How is he still looking for a home?
As always, please stop by if you'd like to meet him!

Holly Update

This week, we're going to feature birds that we can't understand why they are still with us. Instead of "Adopt-a-less-adoptable-pet-week," it's "Adopt-a-super-adoptable-but-under-appreciated-pet-week." I know, it doesn't exactly roll off the tongue. But these are the Susan Luccis of CARE.

Many people think of rescue birds as damaged in some way, but we've learned time and time again that's not the case. Unfortunately, far too many people who are not equipped to own parrots purchase them, and then the birds suffer. True, there are some birds who, due to their innate personality or past experiences with humans, are difficult, and many of those birds find their way to rescue.

However, the majority of birds find their way to us because they outlived their owner, or their owner has a major life change and is unwilling or unable to include the bird in that change. Additionally, there are parrots owned by people who didn't do their research on what living what one of these intelligent creatures involves, so they are unprepared for the noise, mess, and cost of living with one.

Luckily, parrots are extremely resilient and the vast majority of them will quickly integrate into a new home.

We've talked a few times about Holly, an adult severe macaw. Here is the last time she was featured. Holly came from an animal hoarder, so we have no information on her. When she first came to us, we suspected that she was in her 30s, due to her condition. Holly, a few weeks after surrender:

However, she has made such amazing progress since being with us that we think we may have prematurely aged her. She might be a spritely teenager! Can you believe this is the same bird?

Holly is an incredible joy to be around. When she sees her favorite people, she starts swinging from the top of her cage and begging to come out. She leaps on their arm and is one happy lady.

She will always have a dislocated hip, but since being on a good diet at CARE, her arthritis has disappeared, so she is no longer on any kind of pain medication. Her dislocated hip does not impede her in any way -- she has a normal cage, with normal perches, and normal toys.

We don't understand why she's been here for nearly a year. She isn't aggressive at all, and is quite charming. She is relatively undemanding and just wants to spend time out of her cage with people.

In a home environment, where she'll receive more one-on-one attention, we suspect that she'll reveal many more delightful surprises. She is quite the treasure, and we hope that she will soon have a home of her own. We're just not sure why she doesn't have one already!

Meet Horton

Meet Horton, an Indian Ringneck Parakeet. He was owned by an items-hoarder (not an animal hoarder.) What we found was just heartbreaking.

Here is a picture of where Horton has spent the past years:

Among other things, notice the lack of appropriate food, toys, perches, and light. Piles of junk were stacked so high around him that we couldn't even get his cage out -- the pathway was too narrow.

Horton is safe now, but he has clearly been damaged by his past experiences. It is likely that he will never be tame, though with love and patience, you never know.

Here he is now; this picture was taken the day after he was rescued:

He is now on a good diet and is getting used to light, toys, and a clean cage at CARE.

We're looking for a special home for Horton. This home needs to be very understanding and have low expectations -- that way, all progress will be a bonus. They will love him for who he is and not expect him to ever be tame. It's very likely that he will develop some sort of bond with a caretaker, but it's likely to be a long process. On the plus, side, unlike many parrots, he will not be demanding of your time!

If you're that special home that's got a place where Horton can be safe and loved, and will provide him with time to heal, please contact us. We know the right situation is out there for him. In the meantime, we'll update you on his progress with us.

Meet Pepper

Meet Pepper, an approximatey 17 year old male African Grey. Pepper was in a very loving home, fed good food, and had tons of toys to play with. However, his family decided that they no longer had enough time to spend with him, and they wanted to give him the chance to get what he needs in a different home.
We're still getting to know him here; greys tend to take a little longer to come out of their shell than other species, but what we've seen so far is making us quickly fall in love with him.

He loves to be out of his cage, and begs to come out when he sees someone. In his previous home, he spent a lot of time out on a playstand.

Greys are very intelligent, and Pepper needs someone that will help to keep his curious mind busy. This may involve learning tricks, foraging for food, and being involved in all aspects of family life.

As with all of our birds, please stop by if you'd like to meet him.

Meet Cassanova

Cassanova is a gorgeous lovebird. This picture doesn't do his interesting coloring justice. We don't know anything about him, as he was a stray and no one came forward to claim him.
He has a great base personality and is not aggressive -- he doesn't bite. He also doesn't know how to step up (we're working on that with him), though he loves to perch on your shoulder or hang out in your pocket.

We don't understand how someone wasn't searching high and low to be reunited with this special guy, but their loss will be someone else's gain.

Rocky Update

Rocky is an adorable white-fronted amazon we introduced to you here. He's eating well with us, and his personality has really blossomed. He loves being part of the action and relishes attention. He will make a wonderful addition to the right home.
He is ready for that new home! White-fronts are the smallest of the amazons; he's closer in size to a caique or poicephalus than a blue-fronted amazon. It's been fun watching his personality shine through. He knows he's safe now, and whoever adopts him will have years of joy ahead of them.

Last year's less adoptable pets

This concludes our "adopt a less adoptable pet week" series. Let's hope it helps some of our less adoptable birds find new homes. They are safe at CARE, but are used to living in a home environment, and most of them would prefer to be in a home, where they can get more attention.

I thought it would be interesting to revisit last year's less adoptable birds, to see where they are now.

2010's less adoptable birds:

• Olive, a quaker, was adopted. Yay!


• Tango, a severe macaw, was adopted into an amazing home. He is thriving and very much loved. Yay!


• Lola, an umbrella cockatoo, is still up for adoption.


• Budgies, though these particular budgies have been adopted, we always have many budgies looking for homes!


• Peanut, a nanday conure, is still up for adoption

Meet Lou

Meet Lou, an approximately 20 year old male blue and gold macaw. He's featured on our adopt a less adoptable pet week because he is a very challenging bird. He is very picky about what people he likes, and if he doesn't like you, he tries to intimidate you and threatens to attack. Most people are unable to properly address such behavior issues in such a large bird. We need to make sure he'll be adopted into a home where he will be a loved member of the family, and not stuck in a back bedroom due to his aggression.
Lou's been with us almost a year now, and no one has seriously thought about adopting him. Like many birds, he chooses the people he likes. When he likes someone, he is incredibly sweet and friendly; when he doesn't like someone, he tries to intimidate them by showing how big and scary he is and by threatening to bite. However, while in his cage, he will sing and dance with those he doesn't want to be around, so there is hope that in a home, with understanding people and lots of patience, we may seem him warming up to more people.
Lou needs an experienced macaw owner to adopt him. We feel confident that he will blossom in the right home; the trick is finding that home for him.

Meet Biggsie

Meet Biggsie, a blue-front amazon who's in his late teenage years. Biggsie is considered less adoptable as he is very picky about who he likes and who he doesn't like. This is definitely the occasion where the bird picks its human, rather than the other way around!

He doesn't really like to be handled much. He'd do well in a home that would let him out to hang out on top of his cage, and who wants to verbally interact with him, but who wouldn't insist on physically interacting with him.

Biggsie has an old, improperly-healed wing injury. This does not affect his day-to-day life.

We were told that Biggsie's owner suffered through a house fire last year, and the other bird who used to live with him died in that fire. However, Biggsie survived. Now, he's hoping to thrive, in an understanding home that will let him decide how long to truly come out of his shell.

Please stop by if you'd like to learn more about Biggsie.

Mork Update

We've posted about Mork on this blog before: here and here. We don't understand how a bird with Mork's personality can possibly still be looking for a home, several months after being surrendered. The reasons he's included in our week of less adoptable pets is due to his age (30, around the life span of a conure) and the fact that he is extremely plucked.
We're really hoping that we can find Mork a retirement home, where he can live out his last months or (hopefully) years. He is an incredible delight to be around and there are many volunteers who would snap him up if they had room in their homes.We know the right home for Mork is out there; the challenge is finding it before it's too late!

Puzzle Update

We introduced you to Puzzle a few months back, here. He's still with us, and still looking for a home. It appears as though we never updated the blog on the health problems Puzzle faced during the intervening months.

Lories require a special diet, but we've found that most people who surrender their lories to us are not feeding this. That was the case for Puzzle. As a result, he was very sick for a while. However, under our care and the supervision of his vet, he has mostly bounced back.

For a while, our vet thought that Puzzle might have permanent damage to his liver due to malnutrition. However, this does not appear to be the case. He does have to eat milk thistle a couple of times a day to help with his liver function, which is why we're including him in our week of less adoptable pets.

This isn't a huge deal as you just squirt it on his food and he eats it. And, Puzzle has such a charming personality that it's more than worth it!

Puzzle loves coming out and being with people. He chirps, sings, and whistles around his favorite people. He loves to play with toys, and has a joie-de-vivre that is quite infectious!

He's been through a lot in his young life, and we'd like to ensure his happiness in the future, in a home that understands the special dietary restrictions lories and lorikeets have. We can help educate you on this subject.

If you think Puzzle might be the bird for you, please stop by to meet him!

Lucky Update

It's been a while since we've talked about Lucky; the last time was here, in March 2010. His original story was posted here.

In 2007, when we introduced you to Lucky, we mentioned that he was the adoptable bird who had been looking for a home for the longest time. Four years later, he still is looking for a home.We still don't understand why so many cockatoos have been adopted out during the time that Lucky's been here, while he hasn't been. For that reason, he makes an appearance during the week when we are featuring our hard to adopt birds. It's a mystery why he's on this list, but the fact that he's been waiting so long is enough.

He's about 17 years old now. He tends to prefer women, as he was physically abused by a man in his past. He loves playing with toys, and we are constantly giving him new wood to play with. He is incredibly smart and quickly learns tricks.

Although he has settled in to life at the Center, he is hoping for a home of his own, where he can receive more attention than we can provide here. The last time we wrote about him, we'd hoped that 2010 would be the year that he found this. That didn't come to pass, but maybe 2011 will be the magic year when Lucky's life lives up to his name.

Meet Rudy

Petfinder has declared this "Adopt a less adoptable pet week" and, like last year, CARE is participating! This week, we will feature some of our special-needs birds; those that are having a tougher time finding a home. Perhaps one of these beauties may find their perfect home this week -- we can only hope!

Meet Rudy, an approximately 19 year old maroon-bellied conure. Rudy was owned by an elderly couple who became sick. The wife died a few years back, leaving Rudy with the husband, who Rudy didn't like very much. As a result, he hasn't been out of his cage very much recently.

He's a bit nippy here, due to recent lack of companionship, but once he's out and with someone he likes, he's very sweet. Part of the reason Rudy is considered less adoptable is because he's plucked his chest so much, to the point where the feather follicles have been damaged and it is unlikely he will regrow feathers.
Rudy hopes that people realize that feathers don't make the bird, and that there's a special someone out there willing to overlook outside appearances. That person will be rewarded with a loving companion.
As always, stop by CARE if you'd like to meet Rudy.