Burt is a goffin's cockatoo that was surrendered to CARE last year. Although his previous owners loved him, cockatoos do not make good pets for most people as they are wild animals that sometimes have trouble adapting to live in captivity. Realizing they couldn't provide Burt what he needed, they surrendered him to us.

Burt's luck took an amazing turn when he met and fell in love with the woman who eventually adopted him. Luckily for him, the feeling was mutual and she took him home to live out his days as a cherished member of her family.



Burt loves doing a somersaults! You can see that he does a little jump for joy at the end -- he is so proud of himself. This is something that Burt and his owner do to strengthen their bond and to keep his mind active.

It's so great to see these success stories!

Pepsi and Sprite are two quakers that were found as strays. We are working on socializing them with humans and getting them on a great diet. During the time they have been with us, they are starting to trust people more and will make great companions for whoever is lucky enough to adopt them!

Quakers are illegal in some states, as they can escape and be considered agricultural pests. Two of our volunteers unexpectedly ran into a feral flock of quakers while on vacation in Barcelona, Spain! A quick Internet search unfortunately shows that Spain is planning on offing these cute guys.

If you are interested in adopting Pepsi, Sprite, or any of the other parrots we have up for adoption, please fill out a Bird Wanted Questionnaire!

Have a great weekend!

Elvira and Elvis are cockatiels that were recently surrendered to CARE. They have not been handled in a long time, so we are working with them to show them that humans can be fun! They are both plucked a little bit, but their feathering has improved during the time they've been with us, and we believe that most of their feathers will grow back. Not that that's important, as some of the birds with the best personalities have feather destruction issues!

On a different topic, you may have seen a video of Snowball, the dancing cockatoo that has taken the Internet by storm! Snowball was surrendered to Birdlovers Only Rescue. CARE volunteers and Birdlovers Only Rescue volunteers have been working together over the past year to share knowledge and to help place birds into appropriate homes. Tonight, Snowball will be appearing on The Late Show with David Letterman! Best of luck to Irena and Snowball!

Sorry for not updating more frequently. We've been very busy! Lots of releases, a few adoptions. If you're looking to add a new bird to your household, we have many available, from tiny budgies to large macaws!

I was walking past our large aviary (cage donated by Cages by Design) where the budgies and a few other birds live. I saw this adorable budgie hanging out on the figure 8 rope swing, and I had to take a picture! Many birds love swings -- perhaps it triggers some kind of innate response due to being outside on branches moving in the wind?

Swinging can be great exercise for birds who enjoy it! Some birds will flap away on a swing as you give it a push -- much like a young child on a swing at the park. Of course, you have to make sure that you're not moving too quickly for the bird's comfort zone!

In less than two months, Hector (severe macaw) has gone from this: to this:
It might be a little difficult to see in this picture, but we wanted to emphasize his playfulness! He came to us a sad, scared macaw that didn't have perches or toys. He didn't know how to perch on perches in his new cage with us, or on people's arms. He'd just hang off of the side of his cage. And even though that's what he's doing in the above picture, he has learned how to perch and does it often!

His feathering has greatly improved from his new diet, and he is keeping his beak trim by playing with toys. Look at all of the wood that he has been chipping!
Here he is, eating some apple. I have not yet met a severe macaw that didn't love to eat red apples!

As we've come to get to know Hector over the past few months, his personality is really starting to shine through. Can you tell that I absolutely love this guy since I keep writing about him? Anyway, we are looking for that perfect forever home for him. He needs a lot of individual attention and an understanding owner since severe macaws tend to be beaky and difficult to live with. He hasn't had the best background, which will take patience and understanding to overcome. But, that special person will be rewarded with fierce loyalty and the devotion of an intelligent, humorous being that is searching for routine and stability in his life.

Rio is an approximately 22 year old Mexican Red Head Amazon that is looking for that perfect home. He was cagebound and not handled for most of his life. However, he has the stereotypical amazon love of life! He is very handleable (despite his past!) and craves human interaction. When I walk by his cage, he immediately starts pinning his eyes and begging for attention -- how can you resist!

Amazons are very intelligent. They thrive in a home that will work on keeping them mentally and physically stimulated! Because they have a tendency to become obese perch potatoes, it is important to feed them a healthy diet and incorporate a fun exercise program into their daily routine!

Stop by if you'd like to meet Rio or any of the other birds that we have up for adoption!

CARE still has quite a few lovebirds up for adoption. As I was walking past Robin's cage the other day, I noticed her hanging out in one if her swings. She is just so adorable! Robin can get a bit nippy, though, so we recommend that she go to a home without young children. She is a great toy player and needs to find a home with people who will frequently interact with her and give her lots of new toys! Connie and Scooter were surrendered to us in a cage that was caked with cigarette smoke. The cage they were in supposedly was white, but it looked yellow from years of smoke (needless to say, we could not adequately remove years of debris and had to throw away this cage). During the couple of weeks that they have been with us on an improved diet, more toys, and smoke-free environment, they have really blossomed! Connie is a bit plucked, but is looking so much better it's hard to believe she's the same bird! Connie and Scooter don't like to have a lot of human interaction at this point, so we're looking for a home that will move slowly with them and allow them to be birds -- after all, they have each other!
Curry is a young lovebird who is very friendly. Some well-meaning grandchildren bought him as a gift for their grandmother from a pet store. Unfortunately, she was afraid of him, and realizing that she couldn't provide him the home he deserved, she surrendered him to us. With the holiday season coming up, please reconsider buying live animals as pets. While it occasionally works out, so many times, it doesn't and the animal suffers. Instead, you can create a gift basket for that person with accessories for the animal and then go with them to a shelter to find an animal that chooses them. That way, everyone wins!!!