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.

Meet Shiloh

Meet Shiloh, a young female quaker. Although she was much wanted in the beginning of her life, her family soon grew bored by her. They put her in a cage in the back room and basically ignored her for at least two years. Finally, they decided they didn't want her anymore, so she came to us.

Although a bit cage aggressive, which is typical of quakers, she is incredibly sweet. And that's after having basically no human companionship for two years! Imagine what she'll be like once she gets back in the swing of things!
Here she is, enjoying some head scratches from a volunteer:
Shiloh is looking for a home that wants a companion and is willing to make her part of the family. If that sounds like what you'd like as well, please stop by to meet her. She's a real joy!

Meet Pickles

Meet Pickles, an approximately 6 year old senegal. He was owned by an elderly man who had to have invasive surgery. We offered to long-term board Pickles, but his owner thought that it wouldn't be fair to Pickles, so he surrendered him instead.Pickles was fed a great diet and is incredibly tame and sweet -- unless he's on his favorite swing, from which he is very aggressive. That's an easy fix -- just wait until he's elsewhere in his cage when you ask him to step up!

Please stop by if you'd like to meet Pickles.

Meet Royal

Meet Royal, an approximately 32 year old female Mexican Red Headed Amazon. She lived her entire life with one owner, and was surrendered to us when her new owner's significant other developed allergies. At least that's what we were told.

Royal's name has been Roy for the past 32 years, but since she is female, we changed it. What are the chances that both of the Mexican Red Headed Amazons we have up for adoption are named Roy?
Unfortunately, Royal spent her life in a cage with no toys. She is quite timid, but we're hoping that in time she will find her boisterous amazon personality. It will take time and patience, but we know it will come out!

We're hoping that the next half of her life will be filled with more fun and love than the first half. Please stop by to meet her if you'd like to be part of that process!

Meet Pepper

Meet Pepper, an amazon who's about 5-6 years old. She was surrendered to us because her owners were terrified of her and they realized they weren't giving her the life she deserved.

She is tame, though never learned to step up. We are working with her on that important skill!

Pepper is very animated and loves to interact with people. If you stop by her cage for a quick chat, she runs over, pins her eyes, and excitedly vocalizes. She will make a fantastic addition to a home that understands amazons. Also, she has that wonderful amazon musky scent. Irresistible!

As always, please stop by if you'd like to meet her.

Meet Bones

Meet Bones, an adult male iguana. Like Barley, he was found outside as a stray, so we don't have any information on him. We are getting to know his personality as he recovers his strength with us.

Bones definitely requires an experienced iguana keeper. We'd love to find him a new home soon, due to caging concerns that will happen once it gets cooler outside. We'll be able to make it work for him, but it would be much better if he can just go into a home before needing to be moved again.

Please contact us if you'd like to meet Bones. This gorgeous fellow is looking for someone committed who won't just release him when the going gets rough!

Meet Squirt

Squirt is an approximately 2 year old cinnamon green cheek conure. He was surrendered because he only liked his male owner. However, with us, he has been incredibly sweet and tame to everyone. We feel confident that with the right guidance, he will remain tame to everyone once he finds a new home.
He loves meeting new people and getting attention. He's quickly become a favorite among the volunteers!
Please stop by if you'd like to meet this little treasure. We can't imagine that he'll be looking for a new home for long!

Meet Coco

Meet Coco, an approximately 10 year old blue-front amazon. Her owner died, which is why she found her way to us. We are waiting DNA sexing on Coco.She is an extraordinarily gorgeous amazon! She is very social and loves to be around people. However, she can be picky about who she likes, so she will definitely have to pick her new owner.

As always, please stop by if you'd like to meet Coco, or any of the other birds that we have up for adoption. Maybe that certain chemistry will be present!

Meet Barley

Meet Barley, an iguana that we have up for adoption. She was a stray that was found outside, so we don't have a lot of information on her background. Or any information, actually!Animal control had her, and she was to be euthanized if we wouldn't take her, so she's here and looking for a good home.

She is young, and is handleable, though not super tame. It follows that someone who would let her go outside probably wasn't handling her enough to keep her tame, though she's made good progress while with us.

Please stop by if you'd like to meet Barley, or the other iguana we have up for adoption (we'll introduce you to him in the next few days.)

Iguanas are not easy pets to keep -- they grow quite large and have important dietary and lighting needs! If you're new to iguanas, and think it would be fun to have one, please read through this site first. If you have any care questions after reading that, please contact us and we can help you to decide if Barley might be the right companion for you!

Meet finches

We currently have about 12 zebra finches up for adoption. They were brought to us by a hoarder, but are in shockingly good shape!
If you've been thinking about adding zebra finches to your life, now is the perfect time to do so!
Please stop by if you'd like to add some joy to your home in the guise of these little treasures!

Meet Tiki

Meet Tiki, an adult bare-eyed cockatoo. We think she's around 10 years old, and we are waiting to receive her DNA-sexing results. In her last home, Tiki bit her owner, who threw her to the ground. Prior to this incident, Tiki was a friendly and happy bird, but that scared her and she has become relatively phobic.

We are looking for a patient, experienced cockatoo home for Tiki. We believe that in the right home, with time and understanding, she will regain trust and her carefree attitude again. It just has to be done on her time.

Please stop by if you'd like to meet Tiki. She deserves a happy captive life, and we're hoping we can find one for her soon, as she will make more progress in a private home than at the Center.

Meet Charlee

Meet Charlee, an approximately 3 year old female black-headed caique.She is tame, but can be quite nippy. She's still young and needs to learn how to channel her energy toward more productive endeavors. She needs a home that will work with her in things like clicker training, trick training, or other opportunities to harness her intelligence and energy toward positive outlets.

Caiques are not the bird for beginner bird-owners. Their small stature is deceptive. They tend to be quite beaky, and Charlee is no exception. She is still learning acceptable beak pressure.

Caiques tend to be aggressive against other animals, including other birds, in the house. They need to be supervised very carefully to make sure tragedies are averted. They are very expressive and her owner will need to develop a good grasp of her body language.
Charlee can make a wonderful companion for someone who is willing to put in the time. She's already stealing hearts here at the Center!