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!

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 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.

Meet Kiwi

Meet Kiwi, a lovebird who was hatched on 9/23/10. Not even 7 months old, and she's already lost her home! Kiwi was surrendered to us because her owner's roommate didn't like her, and would cover Kiwi during the day. Her owner realized this was not fair to Kiwi and wanted her to have a better life. Kiwi is a bit jumpy, but has not shown any aggression. She will calm down as she becomes accustomed to being around friendly people.Kiwi and Janet were both out exploring together:Please stop by if you'd like to meet Kiwi or Janet!

Meet Janet

Meet Janet, a young lovebird. She's probably around 6 months old. She was dumped at our table after a bird fair -- her breeder couldn't sell her and didn't want to pay to keep feeding her.Janet does not appear to have had proper socialization as a youngster, so she is a bit jumpy; however, she has not shown aggression. We are working with her on learning to step up. She apparently wants to start with advanced topics, like accounting, but we're going to start with the basics! Please stop by if you'd like to meet Janet!

Meet Frosty

Meet Frosty, a lovebird who had to have one of the most terrible experiences for a tropical bird, followed by great luck. Frosty was found outside on a snowy day (hence his name). We're not sure if he was intentionally released outside or if he escaped, but attempts to find his former owners were unsuccessful.Given the way he was found, we don't know anything about Frosty's history -- age, favorite toys, favorite foods, etc. All we know is that he is very tame, his toes have healed as much as can be expected, and he is ready to go to a new home that will keep him safe.

Because of the trauma to his feet, it's important that Frosty have lots of comfortable perches in his cage.

If you have an interest in meeting Frosty, please stop by. He's hoping 2011 will turn out to be better for him than 2010 was!

Meet Pickle

Meet Pickle, a lovebird. She was found outside; a stray. She was taken to a veterinarian and it was discovered that she had a broken leg! The vet bandaged her up, and she eventually made her way to CARE.
We, of course, immediately took her to see our vet. The top part of her leg was healing well, but the bottom part wasn't, partly due to the way her leg had been bandaged. We rebandaged her leg with a different type of cast, and our vet feels confident that she will make a full recovery! She goes in for another check-up next week.

Pickle is currently on medical hold, so not yet up for adoption. However, she is one of the sweetest, friendliest lovebirds we have ever seen. Once she's up for adoption, she should find a home quickly.

She's currently living in a plexiglass enclosure, in order to provide her with flat surfaces which will help with her healing. Once she's healed, she will move into a regular cage.

A trip to the vet school

Last week, Lori went with Dr. Bloss to the University of Wisconsin - Madison School of Veterinary Medicine to discuss with vet students how vets and rescues can work together, and also to go over some interesting cases that Dr. Bloss has worked on.

CARE is very lucky to have an amazing resource in Dr. Bloss. She is very competent and efficient when dealing with the many well-bird exams she does for us, as well as cutting-edge and inventive when dealing with some of the more challenging medical cases we bring her.

Along for this talk were three case studies: Rocky and Tammy:And Chip:These pictures were taken as they returned to the Center.

Everyone had a great time! The parrots enjoyed getting out and meeting new people, Lori and Dr. Bloss enjoyed talking about some of what they've been able to accomplish with some of our sickest surrendered birds, and hopefully the vet students gained some insight into working with these amazing creatures!

We hope to work more with the vet students in the future!

Vet Updates

We introduced you to Molly last month. We recently got the test results back from his biopsy, and it is not cancer! Therefore, Molly is now up for adoption.

And, in even more good news, we also got the pathology results back on Chip, whose latest update is here. Chip also does not have cancer! He will soon be cleared to go to his new home.

What a week of good news we've had!

Baby lovebirds

We currently have three baby lovebirds up for adoption. Someone had two lovebirds at home. They assumed that they were the same gender and therefore could not reproduce. Imagine their surprise when they realized some chicks had hatched!They surrendered the babies to CARE and are taking steps to make sure that their lovebirds do not reproduce again, contributing to the parrot overpopulation problem.

These babies are all very sweet, as most babies are. They will grow up and develop adult personalities, so it's important for their new families to develop a loving relationship now so they can overcome any issues that arise later.

Please stop by if you'd like to meet them!

Chip Update

Chip, who we introduced you to here, had his surgery, and in now in recovery. You can see the wound where the tumor used to be:

We are still waiting for the results of the pathology/culture from his tumor.

We have a potential adopter for Chip! He'll be able to go home as soon as we get the all-clear from his vet.

Meet Chip

Meet Chip, one of the most loving, adorable lovebirds we have ever seen. He really lives up to the name "lovebird"! When you approach his cage, he is so excited to see you, and he instantly puts his foot up to step up. He will be a great companion for some lucky person! Chip is approximately 13 years old.As you can see, Chip has a tumor. His previous owners told us they took him to the vet and were told the vet couldn't figure out what was causing the tumor. It apparently will sometimes fall off and then grow back! Chip is not yet up for adoption, as we want to have him in to our vet for a second opinion.

No need for a second opinion on his personality, though. Chip is such a delight!

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!

Meet Badger and Royal

Badger and Royal are lovebirds that were recently surrendered to us. They are relatively tame, but also bonded to each other, so they don't require as much one-on-one attention as the average single lovebird.
Can you see both of them? They were being a little shy for the camera! Badger is up on top and Royal is in the ball.

They are about 3-4 years old, and both males. Badger needs some work to be considered tame; he prefers the company of Royal. Royal, on the other hand, loves people and Badger equally (but don't tell Badger that, or it might hurt his feelings!)

Stop by if you'd like to meet them! They need to go together, as they are bonded to each other.

Meet Morgan and Rikki

Meet Morgan and Rikki, two young lovebirds that are up for adoption. They are up for adoption separately, but we're mentioning them both in the same entry since their story is the same.

They were for sale at a bird fair, but didn't sell. Their owner didn't want to take them back with them, so they asked us if we would take them instead.
They were handfed, but not handled much, which means that they do not bite, but they are still a bit afraid of people and handling.In the right home, with patience and love, they will make wonderful pets. Stop by if you'd like to meet them!

Meet Peaches

Meet Peaches, an approximately 10 year old lovebird. Peaches is extremely tame and loves people!She was surrendered because her owners lived in an apartment and she was too loud. They were told they either had to rehome Peaches or they would be evicted.

She is missing a few feathers on her face from rubbing against favorite toys.She steps up easily and is looking for a home where she will be loved and be an important member of the family!

Meet Trixie & Peachie

Trixie and Peachie are parrots who lived in the same house, along with another parrot. They were all caged separately. Things were going fairly well, until their owner bought a puppy. She decided that she didn't have enough time for three parrots and a puppy, so she decided to get rid of these two parrots, who had spent years with her. While surrendering them, she actually said that she's got rid of these two because "they were disposable." Now, they are looking for homes where they will be loved and treated as the unique creatures they are, and not equated with garbage.

Trixie is a green cheeked conure. He's about four years old. He can be cage aggressive, but stepped up immediately on a towel-covered hand. He wasn't handled much recently in his last home, so we suspect he will be less nippy as he settles down into a loving environment. He has a lot of energy and keeps us laughing with the dancing he does.Peachie is about three years old. She is a bit flighty, but we suspect she will calm down once she is around loving people again. She loves playing with toys!These two parrots are now looking for homes. If you've been thinking about adding a lovebird or conure to your house, you'll want to meet these guys!

Meet Rainbow & Skittles

Rainbow and Skittles are a bonded pair of black masked lovebirds looking for a home. They are very playful! They love playing with each other, but also enjoy being around humans.They hadn't been handled much in their previous home, so aren't always the greatest at stepping up, but once they're out, they love hanging out on humans.
Aren't they just adorable? So many time, when people think "parrot rescue," they think of the larger birds -- cockatoos, macaws, etc. We certainly have those, but we also have many smaller guys who can bring just as much joy to your life!

Little birds

Mention "parrot rescue" to someone, and they usually think of cockatoos, macaws, amazons, and other large parrots. Most people don't realize the large number of smaller birds that are available for adoption! Every year, we have dozens of lovebirds, parrotlets, cockatiels, and budgies up for adoption.Those of us who are lucky enough to have had a wonderful relationship with one of these magnificent tiny creatures knows what I'm talking about! These little gems might be the best-kept parrot secret around.

They can really pack a punch of personality and energy in their little bodies. Plus, their smaller size means that generally they are less messy and noisy than their larger counterparts. Often overlooked, they rarely have the opportunity to reach their full potential.

If you've been thinking about adding a pocket-sized friend to your house, stop by and we'll see if we can find the right match for you!

Lovebird Extravaganza!

OK, not really, but we do suddenly find ourselves with 11 lovebirds needing good homes. Aren't they just so beautiful?
Some, like Chico here, are very tame:He grew most of his feathers in when he was in foster care, but plucked them out when that fosterer returned him to a different rescue. They sent him, along with some of the other lovebirds, to us in hopes that we might be able to place them.

Others, like Chiffon, are not tame, but can be worked with in order to develop their full potential:

Horace and Hecate are a former breeding pair. They're hoping to find a home where they will be loved and pampered and where they will never produce another chick.Lovebirds can make great pets. They have tons of personality and are great fun to watch playing with their toys. It's hard to stay in a bad mood when one of these little jewels is around!If you've been thinking about adding a lovebird to your home, now might be the perfect time since we have so many; you're sure to find your perfect match! Just fill in a Bird Wanted Questionnaire (the link is in our sidebar) and someone will contact you. We can help you out with any questions and help you to set up a fantastic and fun environment for your new companion!