Helping Parrots

In mid-June, Phoenix Landing got a request from a public relations firm in MD to participate in a Caribbean themed event at TGI Friday’s.  TGI Friday’s was promoting their new summer menu called “Escape to Paradise – No Passport Necessary.”

When most people think of the Caribbean, they think of macaws.  After agreeing to participate, I had to think of parrots to take.  Most volunteers within Phoenix Landing have flighted parrots including me.  I asked several volunteers, but everyone’s macaws were flighted. I remembered that Lady Coconut Scarlet had an old wing injury and couldn’t fly, so I contacted Ruth, her adopter.  Ruth agreed to bring Lady S. to the event.

The PR firm published that there would be parrots there and Phoenix Landing even got mentioned on WPGC 95.5, a local radio station.  The Phoenix Landing logo was placed in the fliers for the event too.

The day of the event was beautiful!  You couldn’t have asked for better weather being that it was July 1^st in the Washington, DC area.  There was no humidity.  We sat up a table with information on it about Phoenix Landing and had Joey and Lady S. on PVC gyms around the back side of the table.

Bob, Joey, Lady S. and Ruth.

Most people didn’t realize that the parrots were real until they moved.  Music was playing from the radio station and both birds were dancing and having a good old time.  Joey was almost jumping of his perch while Lady S. was just bobbing her head to the beat.  One lady that stopped by fell in love with Joey because she would just start singing and dancing and he would join in too.  Every time she came back, he would dance with her.

Joey with his dancing partner and I.

Also at the event was Captain Morgan.  The good Captain was very interested in the birds and had his photo taken with Joey.

Captain Morgan and Joey

Many people stopped to ask questions about the birds and why we were there. Most of the people were amazed at them because they had never seen macaws or been that close to them.  It amazing how many times we got asked if they talked.  Lady S. would say on cue either “hello, bye-bye or cracker.”  Joey never made a peep except for a few grunts!

Ruth and Lady S.

Ruth talking to someone interested in parrots.

We handed out lots of information about Phoenix Landing, so hopefully at least one new home will be found for our many birds in need.  If you are interested in helping with outreach events in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia or North Carolina, please contact us at phoenixlanding@earthlink.net.

It all began for me on February 11, 2010, with an email from Phoenix Landing, telling me of 26 birds several volunteers had picked up from the Catawba County Animal Shelter in North Carolina.  They were what were “left over” from 142 that had been confiscated by Animal Control on December 16th, 2009. These two dozen plus birds had quite literally reached their last day, for if it had not been for the Herculean efforts of Teri Rand, Lannie Ellison and other Phoenix Landing volunteers, these innocent creatures might have faced euthanasia.

The majority of the group were Amazons, and on the spot I volunteered to foster a pair of Lilac Crowns that were on the list.  I was told that they still needed to be cleared medically. Of course, common sense, right? No problem, I just wanted to help, I’d be ready when they were. I packed a big box of toys and shipped them down for all the birds to share.

Then the photos came in. Have you fallen in love from a photo? Well here’s the one that did me in.

This little bird had not yet been named, so I suggested Winnie, and everyone agreed.  I couldn’t get this little face out of my mind, and asked if once cleared to move, could she come to live with me too? Yes, and she had a cage mate who had been named Eeyore, would I take that one as well? Could I really handle 4 new Amazons? Ooops, misunderstanding, Eeyore was one of the Lilacs, the other Lilac, Darlene was living with a Blue Front, Kittredge.  So, deep breath, I’d take Winnie & her friend Eeyore to foster,  just the 2. More toys and food heading south.

Then the sad news.  Of the original 142, a few of the birds had died soon after going to the shelter.  A stressful environment like that can really test a bird’s immune system, but there was some concern for disease as well.   However, once the birds came to Phoenix Landing under the care of Teri & Lannie, they began to thrive!   Focusing on medical care, quality nutrition, and lots of physical and mental enrichment, the birds rallied in body and spirit day by day.   However, given their checkered and negligent background, the search for foster homes with no other parrots began.  Phoenix Landing wanted to insure that other birds were not put at risk until we could insure that the shelter birds were in proven good health.  This meant that Winnie & Eeyore could not come to live with me.   Well that kind of a home, a parrot-less home in search of a parrot, is very hard to find.

In addition to the their medical workups, the birds were also tested for the Bornavirus, thought by some to be a cause of PDD, a disease that has no sure cure.  Several of the shelter birds tested positive for Bornavirus.  Now I must diverge from the story in Hickory for a moment, to let you know a little about my experience with Bornavirus & PDD.  A couple of years ago, our macaw, Trixie, was exposed, second-hand, to PDD, which of course threw me into a panic.  I went frantically searching for everything I could find out about PDD, which honestly wasn’t much at the time, but it was thought to have a fairly short incubation period.  The best thing I could do for Trixie was to boost her immune system, because PDD seems to primarily strike birds who’s health is otherwise compromised.  Time goes by and Trixie is still just fine!

Then I was fostering Jesse, and with her initial intake blood work, my vet regularly runs a test for Bornavirus, as part of a research study her office is doing.  Jesse came back positive. Well, what did that mean exactly? Bornavirus is thought by some to be an indicator for PDD, in that to date all birds diagnosed with PDD are also positive for Bornavirus.  But that does not mean that all Bornavirus positive birds will get PDD.  Current estimates are that 40% of ALL parrots have Bornavirus, but less than 20% of those will ever show any symptoms of PDD, which can now be treated with anti-inflammatory drugs.  PDD has been found to be inflammation in the bird’s brain that causes loss of vision, digestive malfunction and other neurological disorders, so it should no longer be considered a fatal disease. But how do birds get Bornavirus? Still not sure, but there are several cases of pairs of birds (mates) with one being treated for active PDD, and it’s mate still tests negative for Bornavirus, so some acclaimed avian vets believe that birds with Bornavirus are actually born with it.  So I had Trixie and our Amazon, Ariel tested too. Ariel is negative, but Trixie is positive. So regardless of how the virus is transmitted, it’s in my home (and if you have more than 1 bird, probably in yours too).

Now back to Winnie & Eeyore, when I was told that they both tested positive for Bornavirus, for me it was a “been there, done that”, moment, no big deal, I could just do for them what I had done for Jesse and was still doing for Trixie, which means a diet high in immune system support, and anti- inflammatory foods.

After a couple of months of ever improving health, Ann (Founder of Phoenix Landing)  decided that the Catawba shelter birds could be fostered or adopted in homes that also had other parrots.  But, if I took Winnie & Eeyore, it was for adoption, not to foster. My husband and I discussed this, and agreed, that these two little girls had been through enough, and yes we would make the commitment together to do what was necessary to incorporate them into our family.

But I had one condition, Eeyore’s name needed to be changed, for that was not a name for a little bird who always looks like she’s smiling. She was renamed Ella. So preparations began to bring Winnie & Ella, the ‘WE’ girls as they came to be called, home.

I was already scheduled to teach a class in Asheville on April 15, so I made plans to go down a little early and let the girls get to know me, then bring them home with me at the end of the weekend.  My friend Beth Lindenau, a fantastic  and amazingly wonderful animal trainer, offered to make the drive down with me, and to observe the ‘WE’ girls and give me pointers on working on any behavior issues they might have. Beth had also been touched by the story of these Hickory birds, as I was, wanted to help them all out, so we packed my car full of baskets and toys and toys making supplies for the group, and drove 8 ½ hours south.

When Beth & I arrived  at the facility in Hickory what we saw truly amazed us.  It was a bright and cheerful room, with floor to ceiling windows, birds playing in cages with lots of well chewed toys, chattering back  to each other, even “peek-a-boo’s”  bouncing back and forth across the room. All but one, the shy Darlene, happily (and gently) took treats from us, total strangers. Their feathers glowed and eyes sparkled. Sandy, the Double Yellow Headed Amazon, even accepted a  scratch from Beth.

Beth & Sandy

These were happy engaged birds! Not what we were expecting for birds who had been so recently rescued for a truly horrid situation, and to think how close these precious creatures had come to death, nearly brought us to tears.

Over the past few weeks Winnie & Ella have settled into our home very well, craving as much attention as Matt & I can give them, verbally interacting with Ariel & Trixie, and growing more self confident daily. They passed their vet check with flying colors, Dr Ho was amazed at how healthy these girls are, especially considering their background.

I have absolutely not the tiniest doubt that adding them to our family was the right choice to make! The joy they have for life completely overflows out of the windows of our home!

As I entered the birdie barn at the Landing, the unmistakable, sweet mumbles of Issey the umbrella cockatoo greeted me, quickly joined by Juan the nanday conure’s screech and blue front Amazons Mona and Jake’s throaty trills. I was finally able to meet (and feed!) the current residents of the adoption center, and I couldn’t have been happier. While others may dream of days at the beach or poolside for their summer getaways, I would be getting the opportunity to care for these amazing and resilient birds as they wait to meet their next family.

The Landing is located outside of Asheville NC and the mountain views are glorious. Each morning, Mary, (Resource Coordinator and caretaker at the property) and I worked to feed, water, and clean up after the parrots, which also included a pair of friendly Meyer’s parrots named Mango and Cricket, two delightful Congo African greys Casey and Igor, the May 2010 calendar birds, Timneh African greys Argo and Cacique, as well as Bebe, the blue and gold macaw. These parrots come from diverse circumstances, and are all looking for placement through Phoenix Landing.

Highlights of the week included a few afternoon training sessions, where Cricket the Meyer’s showed that a parrot never forgets. He performed a turnaround perfectly that he had learned at the STEP UP three-day weekend seminar held at the Landing in late April. Argo, Cacique and Juan were all masters of targeting in short order.

We traveled to Hickory, NC one day where Teri Rand and Lannie Ellison have been caring daily for the group of parrots from the Catawba shelter. These 18 birds have a beautiful donated space in an office complex. The birds came from horrific conditions, and are all thriving thanks to the dedication of Teri, Lannie, and other volunteers in the area. The parrots, which range from Bourke’s parakeets to blue and gold macaws, have large cages, lots of toys, and fresh food daily. They are well socialized and will make wonderful companions for a lucky family. The effort to support these birds has been huge, and much appreciated. Laura Ford, our MD Education Coordinator, recently visited and shared tons of toys and toy-making supplies for these birds as well as three container gardens. The generosity of our volunteers never ceases to amaze me.

I was also fortunate enough to be in town when Dr. Susan Orosz, our speaker from last October, came to see the new facilities. She kindly helped with beak and nail trims, and shared her encyclopedic knowledge of avian veterinary and alternative medicine with us. One especially helpful recommendation is the use of the herb Melissa to treat papiloma, a virus that causes internal and external growths on the bird’s vent and cloaca, found most often in wild-caught macaws.

This action-packed visit gave me insight into the huge efforts made by the many dedicated volunteers such as Ann and Mary who make the lives of birds better every day. Many thanks go to Bobbie Kerns as well, for giving me a ride down and back! I won’t soon forget the joyful noise of the many happy birds in the adoption center, the enthusiastic enjoyment of the misting shower I gave to the Timnehs and blue fronts one afternoon, or the wonderful friends and gracious hosts who made my stay so much fun. I was glad to get home to my birds and husband, but I hope to return often to this special place in the mountains.

For a slide show of my trip, see:

Each year, the Richmond Animal League closes down a city block, invites a ton of dog rescue groups and dog-related vendors, and hosts a successful fundraiser they call-ever so cutely-Woofstock. Melissa Messick, Phoenix Landing Richmond coordinator, decided that an event attended by hundreds of pet owners and animal lovers might be a good place to set up a booth and try to get the word out about what we do. So, that’s just what we did!

We talked the talk all day with the help of some special Phoenix Landing parrots. Red Bird, a scarlet macaw, worked her magic to draw in the crowds with her bright feathers and cheerful macaw antics. Grayson, a Congo African grey, took in every detail with his wise, observant grey parrot demeanor. It was his first big outing since leaving an especially difficult previous situation, and he was a real champ. A little over a year ago, he was a plucked and defeated little soul; last Saturday he was a fully-feathered charmer in full glory. Tuke, a double yellow headed amazon, is an especially well-chosen ambassador for Phoenix Landing since he is nearly 40 years old. His more advanced age gave us opportunities to talk about the long life spans of these birds and the fact that all will need multiple homes throughout their lives.

A number of people mentioned they’d heard of Phoenix Landing and said it was good to put faces to the name. Hopefully, thanks to Melissa’s good idea and efforts, we were able to connect with some folks who may be able to help us help parrots.

By: Debbie Russell, MD Adoption Coordinator and
Laura Ford, MD Education Coordinator

Excessive or chronic egg laying is when a hen (female parrot) is laying prolonged, excessive and larger than normal clutch sizes. There are lots of reasons for excessive egg laying. The presence of a perceived mate, be it another bird, a toy or you can be the cause of excessive egg laying. Limit the amount of physical interaction with your parrot. Touch only her head. Stroking the bird under its wings, down it back or under its tail near the vent is a no-no. You are making your parrot sexually frustrated which can also cause screaming, feather plucking and biting. An increase in daylight can bring on hormonal changes too. If your hen begins this chronic egg laying pattern, reduce the length of her day to 10-12 hours. Provide her a quiet, dark place to sleep for 12-14 hours. This may help to break her egg laying cycle. Diets rich in phytoestrogen such as soy & flax, and warm soft foods can bring on nesting behaviors. There may also be underlying physical issues that over stimulate hormone production that your vet can check for. Excessive or chronic egg laying can cause multiple health problems in parrots. They can become egg bound, develop osteoporosis, which eventually can lead to broken bones, lose weight and feathers and eventually become malnourished.

It is always wise to know the sex of your parrots. A simple DNA test can be performed by your avian vet when you take your parrot in for its annual exam and blood work. So, what is egg binding? Egg binding is the inability of a hen to pass or expel a developed or partially developed egg through the reproductive system at a normal rate. Eggs can be formed and laid without the presence of a male. If diagnosed and treated early, the outcome is usually very good. If left untreated, the parrot could die.

This is an actual Quaker egg.

What causes egg binding in pet parrots? Egg binding is very common in parrots with other health problems like obesity, lack of exercise and poor diet.

If you know your parrot is a female, here are signs of egg binding; however, these will vary depending upon the severity:

• Abdominal straining
• Wagging or bobbing of the tail
• Wings drooping
• Standing with a wide stance
• Lack of appetite
• Leg paralysis or lameness (the egg is putting pressure on the nerves going to the legs)
• Abdomen distended
• Dirty vent area
• Feathers fluffed
• Weakness
• Difficult breathing
• Sitting at the bottom of the cage
• Prolapse is possible
• Occasionally sudden death

How is egg binding diagnosed?

Your avian veterinarian will make the diagnosis based on history, clinical signs, physical examination, radiography (x-rays) and/or ultrasound. Sometimes it is necessary to stabilize your parrot before proceeding with extensive examinations. If you think your parrot is egg bound and your vet’s office is closed, contact the local emergency clinic to see if there is an avian vet on call. If there isn’t an avian vet on call, try the following until you can get your parrot to your avian vet early the next morning:

1. Give liquid Calcium directly into the bird’s beak with an eyedropper. Liquid calcium is rapidly adsorbed and can revitalize nerves and muscles that allow the hen to push the egg out.

2. Keep you parrot warm. Place you parrot in a smaller cage or travel carrier, and sit the cage/carrier on a heating pad. DO NOT put the heating pad inside the cage/carrier. Try to get the temperature between 85 -90 degrees Fahrenheit.

3. Moisture is also very important. Humidity should be around 80%. Steam from a shower will help, but don’t give your parrot a bath. Place the small cage/carrier in a small bathroom, shut the door and turn on the shower, running very hot water to make steam.

4. Try to get your parrot to eat her favorite food and drink a little water or Gatorade. Also, water with aloe vera juice might help get the egg moving. Aloe vera juice acts as an internal lubricant.

How to treat egg binding:

Treatment will depend on lots of things such as the condition of the bird, the severity of the signs, where the egg is located, the length of time the bird has been egg bound and if the egg has passed either whole or partially. Your avian vet will know what to do for your parrot. She might need to stay at your vets in an incubator for a few days.

Things to prevent your parrot from becoming egg bound:

1. Feed a high quality diet of fresh fruits and veggies including lots of dark greens, like turnip greens, arugula, kale, collards, mustard greens, dandelions, chicory, cabbage, pak choi/bok choy, sprouted grains, legumes, and sprouted seed. Peppermint, spearmint and basil have surprisingly high amounts of calcium. Celery seed, dill seed, fennel seed, unhulled sesame seed, cumin and coriander seeds are an excellent source of calcium too. Stay away from spinach, Swiss chard and beet greens as they prevent the absorption of calcium. Cuttle bone and crushed oyster shell are NOT good sources of calcium, as they are indigestible by birds.

2. Ask your vet to recommend a calcium supplement. A good one is Calciboost. This is a liquid that provides the needed calcium, magnesium and D3 in an easily absorbed form. You add it to water or place on soft food. http://www.allbirdproducts.com/newproductpages/calciboost.html

3. Cut out all soy and flax from her diet, as they are phytoestrogen items and will stimulate excessive egg laying.

4. Begin an exercise routine for your “couch potato” hen, to strengthen her muscles.

If your parrot is laying eggs and you don’t have a male parrot, the eggs are not fertile. Let your parrot keep the eggs until she has no interest in them. If they break, try substituting plastic eggs, golf balls or small wooden balls. Another good idea is to place a beach towel on the crate of the cage and over with newspaper, so the next egg doesn’t break and you can also make sure the whole egg was expelled. Parrots usually lay eggs every other day until they have a small clutch of about 3-4 eggs. If you have a male, the eggs should be considered fertile. Poke a small hole in them with a needle or place in the freezer, or hard boil them.

Trixie, Blue and Gold macaw sitting on her wooden eggs.

Also, your vet might suggest Lupron injections. They are expensive and don’t always work, but it’s worth trying.

Even when your bird lays eggs with seemingly no difficulties, their health can still be at risk. During the process of forming an egg, calcium is robbed from other areas of the body, such as the bones, muscles and nervous system, and can result in a condition known as hypocalcaemia. Some of the symptoms of hypocalcaemia are muscle weakness, difficulty climbing, gripping a perch, and loss of balance. The symptoms can progress into neurological issues such as twitching, spasms, toe tapping (often seen in Eclectus parrots), or the more serious seizures of an epileptic nature. These birds are also at a much higher risk of bone breakage or bent bones, known as rickets. Low calcium may even be at the root of many behavioral problems such as excessive fearfulness, aggressiveness, feather plucking or self mutilation. (It should be noted that parrots of both sexes who have a poor diet history can be susceptible to hypocalcaemia.)

As with anything related to a healthy diet, there is a synergy or balance of multiple items to be considered. Such is the case with calcium. You can feed your parrot the most calcium rich diet possible, but if there is a lack of vitamin D, calcium cannot be absorbed and metabolized. The best and safest source of vitamin D is natural sunlight. Full spectrum lighting can be used at times when the weather will not allow you to get your parrot out into the sunshine. Vitamin D supplements can be used in cases of extreme deficiency, but use caution as too much can cause renal failure.

Isn’t it ironic that we bring these wonderful parrots into our homes, give them tons of love, security, environmental enrichment, and great diets thinking we are doing “all the right things.” Then suddenly we’re faced with nesting and egg laying behaviors which can sometimes be life threatening. It’s especially ironic when for many years some of these parrots were thought to be male!

Like most people I know, I have been a little more stressed and busy lately than I would prefer to be.  Things are finally getting back to normal for me, but I’ve realized that the relatively high level of enrichment my parrots usually enjoy has probably decreased a bit as a consequence.  I had the great pleasure of attending parrot enrichment guru Kris Porter’s class for Phoenix Landing in Northern Virginia last weekend, and let me tell you…I was INSPIRED!  If you’re not already a fan and user of her website and enrichment booklets, I certainly encourage you to check it out online at http://www.parrotenrichment.com .  Kris has the gift of seemingly endless creativity, and anyone (I mean anyone) who keeps parrots can get some ideas from her.

Personally, my biggest take-away from the class was that I want to begin making some toys that include food items.  I had seen various forms of this idea on Kris’s website and books before, but it never fully dawned on me how useful it could be until I heard Kris describe it and saw her related slides.   I don’t think I’ll be using pretzels, etc, because my silly carb-loving African greys, I’m sure, would never want to eat another vegetable!  (I have to be particularly careful with what food items I allow them to have because-smarties that they are-they’ll constantly hold out for something ‘better’.)  But, I love the idea of baking birdie bread in mini muffin cups with a hole pushed in with a wooden spoon prior to baking.  (Refer to Phoenix Landing’s Nourish to Flourish cookbook for a detailed description of the process.)  The mini muffins can then be strung along with shreddable non-food items to make an interesting and irresistible toy.  The idea being that once the delectable food is gone, the parrot will remain interested in the toy and proceed to work on all the non-food items.  I’m excited to try this concept with my Franco in particular because sometimes I have difficulty convincing him to chew up his toys.

Well, I haven’t had time to bake a new batch of stringable pumpkin bread just yet, but I did come up with a simple idea that my guys are crazy about.   Maybe your parrots will enjoy a goodie bag race as much as Pepper and Franco do!  I start with a small paper bag for each bird.  (I use the brown paper ‘lunch’ bags available in almost any grocery store.) Then I place chunks of birdie bread or other treats in small paper cups and fold the tops of the cups over.  (I use 2 – 3 cups per goodie bag.) Waxless bathroom cups like Dixie cups are perfect.  I put the loaded cups into the bags and fold the top of the bag over once for added strength.  I poke a hole in each bag and attach the bags to the birds’ foraging tree with plastic links used to attach babies’ toys to their carseats, etc.  Or, a big quick link would work just as well.  Add parrots, and the race is on!  Many of my Pepper’s friends know her to be a very accomplished forager.  However, sweet Franco’s technique for this particular job is impeccable.  He can beat Pepper every time.  If you watch the video, note the frustration Pepper (on the right) shows when she realizes Franco is into his bag already.  Of course this activity would be almost as much fun if it weren’t a race, but my greys seem to relish some good old-fashioned sibling rivalry now and then.  (Hmm…I wonder if that’s why the Model/Rival teaching technique works so wonderfully for African greys?)  If you give this a try, please let me know what your parrots think.

Earlier in April, there was a fire in a historic three-story apartment building in Emmitsburg, MD.  All the families were displaced.  One of the residents was a small breeder.  Luckily, they were able to get all 3 cages of birds out of the fire.  There were a lot of cockatiels and finches.  Since the owner was displaced and didn’t have anywhere to live, the owner relinquished the birds to a local animal shelter.  Like most shelters, they didn’t have the resources to care for all the birds and turned to Phoenix Landing for help.

I received word mid-afternoon on Thursday, April 8^th that they would like us to help with most of the birds.  I started e-mailing my Maryland foster volunteers and within hours I had homes for most of the birds.  On Friday, April 9^th, my son Tyler and I made the trip to the shelter to pick up the birds.  There was one large flight cage with a nest box in it still.  Inside the nest box were two baby cockatiels.  They were so cute!! Volunteers at the shelter did a great job separating the male and female cockatiels into 2 cages.  I picked up a total of 23 finches and 22 cockatiels including the 2 babies.

By Friday evening, all the finches were in their new foster homes and most the cockatiels were too.  By Saturday, all birds were in their new foster homes thanks to the wonderful volunteers that took them in and for those that transported them.  Thank You Maryland and Virginia volunteers!!  You guys ROCK!

If you are interested in fostering or adopting either some finches or cockatiels, please let us know.  The cockatiels really seem friendly and with a little work, I think will make great pets.

If you would like to help in other ways, our wish list for these birds are:

• Finch and cockatiels seed
• Harrison’s mesh or fine pellets
• Small perches and toys and
• Appropriate sized cages

Items and checks can be sent via the Postal Service to:

Phoenix Landing
PO Box 1233
Asheville, NC 28802

Donations can also be made via our PayPal link at phoenixlanding.org

Let no one think that Phoenix Landing cares any less for the welfare of the smallest birds.  The little ones have every bit as much personality as the larger birds; and their need for enrichment, food and health are just as important. In addition, parakeets, cockatiels and lovebirds have long lives too (15-25 years is no small number)!

Meet Louise, Huey and Dewey, Bourkes parakeets. They are part of the group that recently came from the Catawba County NC shelter, which were confiscated due to a horrendous hoarding situation.

And we named this little cockatiel Raindrop. She is the only cockatiel in the Catawba shelter group that came to us, although we understand there were quite a few cockatiels in the larger group initially. Perhaps she has been separated from her friends? She may be a bit sad and lonely now, but we are determined to give her a future life filled with health and fulfilling social activities!

To date, Phoenix Landing has re-homed 359 parakeets, 125 lovebirds, and 330 cockatiels — 51% of the birds that we have had the pleasure to help so far. In addition, Phoenix Landing assists many shelters as our capabilities allow. Over the last 8 years, we have 229 re-homed birds from shelters (13.5%). Birds end up at shelters for many reasons, however, the ones from Catawba certainly represent one of the worst possible reasons….

Just over one week ago,

26 feathers,

began their journey

A new last name;
They would share

Phoenix Landing

like all those feathers before
and the feathers to follow

warm,
safe,
empowered…

soft voices to surround them
an encouraging whisper to their souls

The  dull  lifeless light of frantic fear
will dim in their eyes
ever fading grey
and

The fire of trust will begin to simmer
as the zest for life
rekindles

They will find strength…
these 26 feathers

in heart,
mind.
and soul.

And here are thoughts from Lannie Ellison, who was there the day these birds came under our protective umbrella (February 10th), and who continues to spend hours each and every day caring for them.  She simply cannot be thanked enough, but the birds certainly let her know how appreciative they are, as their health and welfare continue to improve daily.

Thursday was a new beginning for 26 parrots from tiny doves to macaws. What a delight to see them safe and secure with bowls filled with food and clean water. To get to this point required a great deal of work and organizing from Teri, Ann, Mary and Luke. Arrangements for temporary housing, cages, perches, toys, food, bowls and lots of nuts were gathered  and transported. A few extra volunteers helped at the site to set up cages and dress them out for the new occupants. From the animal shelter in carriers and coaxed into new homes one cage at a time with a cheer for each transfer.

Just as special was sharing this with human friends who feel the same passion for our parrots. We understand why tears come to our eyes as we watch a Macaw enjoy every tiny crumb of a walnut and a little Nanday hold a prize Nutriberry in his toes. These birds are safe now and will know kindness, plenty of food and clean water and toys in their cages and hopefully soon to a new family to love them. I’m so thankful I got to be a  part of this day.   Lannie

My name is QUINN, and I’m a blue & gold macaw.  As you can see, I don’t have many feathers right now but am really enjoying plenty of walnuts.  My wish list is another big, BIG box of walnuts so I can continue to get the benefit of all those wonderful essential fatty acids that I so terribly need.

Would it be too much to ask for some of those foraging toys too (plastic, stainless steel or wood)?  They tell me I was the most traumatized bird Phoenix Landing has ever seen.  My wings were bruised and bleeding because I was flapping around the cage all the time, trying to get the heck out of that place.  I was also pretty sad since my cage mate died while we were still at the shelter.  The Phoenix Landing volunteers put my travel carrier in the cage so I would have a place to hide and feel safe.  The first time I peeked out and saw a human, I said “Uh Oh!” and dashed back inside, so my first name was “Uh‐Oh Fred.”  Now I’m brave enough to sit on my perch and eat my yummy walnuts, and they have given me a new and very dignified name of Quinn. Think I’ll keep it!

I am living in the very first cage that greenwing macaw Phoenix (the founder of Phoenix Landing) had 15 years ago.  I must be extra special!  Someday, however, I hope to find a home that will provide me with my very own extra large cage and playgyms, and a family to call my own.