Rescue Report

by Shauna Roberts
Autumn 2002

Interview with Julie Murad |Rescue Story | Giving Back | Sinclair |
Tip for Your Bird's Future |

Interview with Julie Murad of The Gabriel Foundation
Written or Transcribed by Shauna Roberts

This is an interview with Julie Murad who founded The Gabriel Foundation in 1995, through love, with a large focus on education.

Her story started with a hyacinth macaw named Gabriel. Julie had lived with parrots for 20 years, when she adopted this special blue guy in 1993, and they had an extremely special bond. She could not have known the day she met that blue feathered baby just how much he would change her life.

Gabriel died at the young age of 22 months and Julie still feels that heartbreak. When he was born it was common practice for breeders to prophylactically dose large birds they were hand feeding with antibiotics and antifungal medications. Sadly this was detrimental to Gabriel, creating a type of super bacteria several weeks later, and he lost his life.

Julie was heartbroken but decided others could learn from what happened to Gabriel. With her educational background and passion for parrots she founded The Gabriel Foundation and began to educate all that would listen about the plight of parrots. Also birds like Poncho, (please read)
http://www.thegabrielfoundation.org/HTML/birdofthemonth
one of the many birds to enter The Gabriel Foundation that have had a huge influence, adding even more determination to educate all who will listen.

The foundation has a group of extremely dedicated people who work in the aviary as well as those in the office. Where the facility is located there is a language barrier, much of the community speaking Spanish. There are 2 aviary managers who speak English. They work different days but overlap one day. Also there are 3 full time cage cleaners. About 1-3 volunteers a week, not many, come in to help and range in age from 12-14 years old to adults who help with a variety of things. There is always a minimum of 4 people at the aviary, and sometimes 5, depending on tours or busy holidays.

Also the BirdBrain Staff, a foundation support store, has 2 to 3 people except for Monday and Friday, when there are usually one to two. The reason they are mentioned is that when phone lines become busy, if they can, the BirdBrain staff will also help with incoming calls to the Foundation.

Do you adopt out birds or are you strictly a sanctuary?

The Gabriel Foundation has several programs and if the intake bird committee feels a bird has a good chance of a successful rehoming situation in an adoptive or long term foster situation which are two different programs, we want to have the option to place that bird. Every decision is based on a "bird first" decision. There are a number of birds who have suffered enough or endured enough, or due to chronic health problems are not appropriate to place in a home, due to the amount of care or the cost of medical care they need. Those birds are in sanctuary and we also have some sanctuary birds that are used for education who visit a variety of people and ages and situations and are marvelous ambassadors. Again every situation is based on a "bird first" approach. Our feeling is that Sanctuary is a tremendous commitment for the lifetime of that bird. Adoption is a tremendous commitment too, either way, because of the follow up that is entailed for each bird. However we feel there are birds that are deserving and would thrive far better in a "home" situation with an educated care giver, rather than just being with a limited staff and in a larger flock situation, but again it's a bird first decision".

What is your criteria for adoption and do you charge an adoption fee?

Rather than a criteria we have a protocol and that's on our website. We hand it out to anyone who is interested in adopting a bird. Yes, we do charge a fee and what we hope when we charge a fee is not to become a choice for people to get a new bird or used bird as in a car situation, but to make it so that the fees charged for those birds help to offset the care of the subsequent incoming bird. Most birds are with us an average of 2.5 years. It's a lengthy period of time to invest in a bird and we do it willingly but we also want people to understand that just because we love and care for birds, that doesn't mean they get to have one for free. Generally someone who has no money to go to vets, who is on disability on SSI or other situations, can be a more difficult situation unless they have a really good support system. This is because our concern is what happens in the event of a bird emergency, or trauma or acquiring the other appropriate items that a bird needs to have in its life? So criteria vary.

What we've tried to set up with our adoption process is that, an adoption process is not dependent upon any one person to make the decision. However, if one person has a very strong or even a limited objection, that must be followed out completely because the adoption committee has to be unanimous. If the adoption committee is not unanimous on the potential adoptive home for that bird, it does not go. At least two people are assigned to any adoption, generally three. We check references thoroughly, and with our network we try and do on site visits or we liaison with that persons veterinarian if they have birds or had birds previously. We also conduct reference reviews, and have a detailed questionnaire, that evaluates or requests information on the persons expectations for adopting a particular bird or a species, or what they're looking for from a new bird in their life.

Our fees vary. Any lovebird, budgie or cockatiel is $50 and that $50 really just goes to the client adoption fee and basic membership fee for a year. The other birds vary from $100-$150 on up to about $650, and that can depend on the species of bird involved. It often times is based on the birds medical history, but not always, as you can see with lovebirds, cockatiels and budgies because their medical care and testing is far more than the $50. If this is truly a hardship case where charging a fee would preclude a really wonderful home from having a bird, the committee can make a decision to long-term foster that bird in that situation. We do not accept payments. We tried that previously and generally there was not a successful result for either the foundation or the potential adopter, so our fees do vary. We provide comprehensive medical testing at least one time per year but it's performed on an evaluated basis when a bird comes in to us and also an exit exam is scheduled when a bird leaves us. Most birds are micro chipped, and nearly every bird when it leaves goes with a months supply of food as well as all the toys and a complete history that a bird has acquired during its time with us.

What is the average cost of medical testing for birds entering the Foundation?

The individual cost of birds "entering" The Gabriel Foundation will vary per bird depending on its background, medical history, and chronic or acute medical problems. Average cost is about $200_$250 per bird, but that generally does not include any further medical testing if indicated, treatments as needed , etc. Exams are done not only for the good of birds entering the foundation, but also because of the responsibility we feel to those birds already in our care. The adoption fees charged do not cover all
expenses and that's why it's always critical to have sponsors and financial support from others. Any adoption fee charged only helps to offset total costs.

Have you ever shipped birds to their new adoptive homes?

Yes we have shipped birds to people, after they've come to visit. We require people to come out to visit and to meet the bird and see which bird picks them. However there have been a couple of occasions when we have been able to serve a range of blind adoptions between someone that the foundation knows really well and the adoption committee feels strongly the bird would thrive in that particular home. Our adoptions have been really successful.

How many birds have come through your facility since its inception?

We have had birds come to us directly and we've had birds that have been referred indirectly to homes or to other groups through us, and that number right now is close to 950 birds. Some have gone to other organizations without having to first come to us as it was considered most appropriate to do that, being in that birds best interest. Also we don't always have room with quarantine the way it's established and structured. 900-950 is a fair estimate. There have been other birds that have been helped without coming in by helping the person further develop their bird relationship and understand some of the reasons that are causing the bird to act out problematically, as well as the reason for the people wanting to give up the bird in the first place. So we've intervened on behalf of far more birds than have actually come to us. Then there are those people who resent the fact that they are asked to give some support to their birds that they are relinquishing and they do not like that. We ask people to help offset the medical care of that bird and to underwrite its care if they possibly can, in any way, shape or form. We're very proud of the birds and the procedures we've adopted for birds coming to us.

Do you have a breakdown of specific species?

We've had everything from large macaws, a variety of amazons, greys, eclectus, great bills, cockatoos, budgies, finches, conures and have even placed a palm cockatoo from CA with a person in NC, that was in the best interest of that cockatoo. We're not sizest or elitist with any of the birds.

Currently in our rehab program we have 4 Cockatoos, 10 Lovebirds, 8 Conures, 17 Cockatiels, 4 Amazons, 10 Macaws, 2 Caiques, 1 Quaker, and 2 African Greys.

We have the following birds in Sanctuary: 5 Macaws, 10 Cockatoos, 4 Conures, 7 Amazons, 3 African Greys, 1 Eclectus, 1 Hawkhead.

There are always a number of birds in our quarantine or waiting to enter quarantine, which lasts 90-120 days.

Is there one species more that another that you feel is more difficult to rehome or if you don't adopt is there one species you see more frequently?

I think there are some species that more difficult to rehome than others due to peoples expectations of those birds, or a particular individual quality of the birds. In many ways that's the cockatoo because their behavior can be so mischievous or so very different and less overt than other bird behavior. Not all people are prepared to openly see and understand a lot about cockatoo behavior. Also macaws are difficult to find homes for because they're large. They take up a tremendous amount of room, have a great exercise quotient needed in their life and it can be difficult.

Amazons probably make the most successful rehome; however, people often don't find them attractive because they're just another one of those green birds. With conures one of the problems we have with placement, especially the Aratinga sub-species, is that they can be extremely vocal. Other people tend to completely dismiss a budgie, lovebirds, or a cockatiel because they think they're just crummy little pet store birds. So every bird carries a label with it. Obviously we would have far more requests for palm cockatoos, scarlet macaws, hyacinth macaws and greenwing macaws, than any other birds we possibly have. When someone asks for one of those birds particularly it is always a really big red flag to us.

Do you have any advice or helpful hints you can share with other welfare organizations or people starting their own facility?

We do a tremendous amount of work and anyone thinking about a facility needs to know the job is 24/7 and they need to be ready and willing to incorporate that into their life. We did prepare a booklet. It is $25 and it's about setting up 501c3 tax-exempt tax organization and thoughts to consider when setting up a parrot welfare organization. We do ask money because it took years worth of information and knowledge to put that booklet together, and I think it has a really good self evaluative questionnaire that people can take and go through to see if they're truly prepared to understand the commitment that is taken in this. Once you take on a group of birds, legally, morally and ethically those birds are under your care forever. And you don't generally just have an option to quit without going through a tremendous amount of rigmarole. And also it's not a simple solution dealing with the people; it is extremely labor intensive. Questions to think about: How do you manage to be an organization accepting public funding from the public at large and yet remain closed? Or do you remain receptive to being open to public visitation? How do you keep your philosophies and goals with the mission statement created for your 501c3 organization?
You do not have to be tax exempt to be able to operate a parrot welfare organization or sanctuary, however, in order to create a desire for people to be able to donate money to that organization, people generally want something for their donation. They may want the fame or glory they also might like the tax break that they get from the IRS when contributing to a tax-exempt charitable organization.

Please tell our readers what they can do to help your organization.

One of our philosophies is that it's not up to one person or one organization to do all the work. Our job as we see it is to set up an educational resource to help educate your readers. People out there need to understand the plights of parrots, both in captivity, the plights that companion parrots face in their life, and the challenge that people have living with them, as well as the plight of parrots in the wild. It's a very, very broad approach and people can help enormously.

First of all, they can learn the very best they can about how to care for their parrot so that should something befall them or the parrot human relationship become jeopardized in any way shape or form, that bird will successfully transition into a new home. Also people can make provisions for their bird in their estate planning. That doesn't mean you have to have a multitude of dollars to do it. You can do it with a very limited amount of money, but you must set up something. A living will is not the same thing as setting up a trust or an agreement by which your bird is protected should something happen to you when you are no longer able to care for your bird. Having a designated beneficiary followed by the executor of your estate, your attorney, your veterinarian, your tax planner, or your best friend, is extremely helpful. It legally documents what you want to have happen to your bird, should something happen to your bird and you are not there to provide for your bird. Different states have different rules regarding estate or tax planning and including pets, so it's up to you to speak to a really qualified state planning professional. Again, this does not mean that you have to have a lot of money to do this. This just means taking the time and the expense to accurately and adequately provide for your pets needs. There are tremendous resources available, and we have brochures on this which we're happy to send out to people.

Make a video of your bird and its life with you. Make a journal; create a history so if something should happen to you, your bird wishes or your wishes on behalf of your bird will be able to be observed and supported so that someone will know. I think that those are critically important. That's one of the most obvious things that any reader can do on behalf of their bird that ultimately benefits The Gabriel Foundation or any other parrot welfare organization.

The Gabriel Foundation needs to have public support and it cannot be dependent by the nature of a 501c3 organization for the contributions from one or two people. That's not how the government sets up the rules and regulations for a non profit organization to succeed. A minimum 30% of our funds must be raised from the public, so if an organization has a larger budget, 30% of that budget must come from public support. This is extremely important.

Some ways in which people can support the foundation are they can have their memberships and they can make donations. They can set up a program with their place of employment if their employment has a matching gift program, and they can give gift memberships to family members instead of birthday gifts or anniversary gifts. People can underwrite the care of a bird in the sanctuary through our sponsorship program, doing a virtual underwrite of a bird in the aviary and help offset the cost of that bird. People can hold garage sales, they can hold bake sales, and they can hold car washes. They can hold birthday dinners and ask for a support to be given to the organization instead of bringing gifts. There are a tremendous amount of things that people can do simply and easily. Some of our members have had wonderful picnics where all kinds of items have been donated by the community and the picnics been done and games have been played, and its absolutely wonderful. I think sharing the knowledge that you've acquired and gained on behalf of your birds, and saying how the foundation has helped you is really important.

Many of the birds that come to us come with absolutely no financial support. From the moment those birds come to us they have to be provided for from our different incoming bird funds. Its also extremely important for us to support the birds in the wild and we think that each one of us that has a companion bird should find some sort of conservation program to support and also should make an educated decision about those programs. Also the concept of a parrot welfare sanctuary and rescue is a huge one, and I urge any of your readers that they must make a decision based on solid, accurate, pragmatic, and documented information on the kind of facility that they select for their birds future should anything happen to that person.

The world is a complicated place to live in right now, and I think that people need to be responsible for checking out any organization in its entirety before relegating their bird to a life there, and that puts the responsibility on the person, not on the organization. The organization also has a tremendous responsibility in providing for your bird, for the remainder of its life, honoring your wishes and showing that they are responsible and accountable to the charitable status they were given by the IRS. Those organizations should make their appropriate IRS information available to you, and you should be able to know what kind of programs those organizations operate, the budgets for those organizations, and how moneys are accounted for within those organizations. When in doubt, check it out.

To contact Julie, staff or learn more about The Gabriel Foundation go to:
http://www.thegabrielfoundation.org

Rescue story

By Julie Murad
Transcribed by Shauna Roberts

This is the story of Quasi, a female African Grey parrot who is extremely small, stunted, with severe splay leg; she also had curvature of the spine and hunchback. Quasi came to us from a situation with 48+ other psittacine birds from a breeding facility outside Houston TX. The owner had passed away and the family was quick to unload the undesirable birds that nobody wanted. They were kind enough at least to want to save them their lives. In retrospect it was probably less expensive than having them all euthanized, but none of these birds had ever been treated according to our medical procedure.

Quasi came to us when she was about 2.5 yrs old and she was amazing in her ability to get around and not really focus on her physical challenges. Her legs are permanently affixed above and to the sides of her head so she can't lower them.

We had a long time member of the foundation who was a physical therapist who had been working for a number of years with physically challenged children. When she met Quasi she fell in love with this special little bird and it was decided that Maureen would adopt Quasi. She could physically work with her, help strengthen her muscles, and Quasi would have a wonderful, caring, and loving supportive nurturing home with good attention to her medical needs, great diet and a wonderful ambience. Maureen worked with Quasi and Quasi just thrived.

Ruby a female Solomon Island Eclectus came to the Foundation about a year later. Ruby also had similar problems as Quasi, however, she wasn't quite as stunted nor did she have the severe splay leg, but she also had scoliosis and hunchback. Ruby had a very difficult time walking; she was about 9 months old. She had been housed in an aquarium along with her three siblings and a little sun conure on a substrate of corncob bedding. Without appropriate substrate they really didn't learn how to walk appropriately and their muscles didn't develop correctly.

Ruby was a cranky, cantankerous, unhappy, and a very obsessively hungry female eclectus. Maureen made the decision she was willing to take on the challenge of this little bird also. After a 3-month period of review, it was approved for Maureen to be able to take Ruby home to live with Quasi. She did, and ruby continued to thrive. She molted into exquisitely beautiful feathers, she gained weight, she got strong and robust, she learned how to fly, and she was a beautiful bird. These two little Old World parrots thrived under the care of Maureen and her very connected kindred animal spirit.

Then about 3 years ago I received a call from my sister who happened to live in the same area as Maureen. She called me because Maureen also had some hybrid wolves and she had horses, which she boarded, at my sister's barn. No one had seen Maureen and they wondered if I had seen her because they knew how much care Maureen had lavished upon her animals. I hadn't seen her and I didn't know Maureen was missing. We all started to look for her, but the fear was that Maureen had gone to feed her hybrid wolves and something had happened and the wolves attacked her. Gingerly people went into the huge 5-acre wolf enclosure that she had but they didn't find Maureen. Also her vehicle was missing. She hadn't shown up at the barn, she had just disappeared and no one had found her for about 3 days.

During that time because Maureen with our adoption protocol had filled out her designation of beneficiary which was me, and concluded all the appropriate paperwork that is part of out adoption procedure, I went up to the house with the sheriff. I was able to remove Ruby and Quasi in addition to Kobuck, her little pied cockatiel and Pavorotti, her little canary. Those birds hadn't been fed for about 2 days but they were still doing well, as there was plenty of food in their dish, but they obviously wondered what had happened to their mom. The birds came back with me to my home into a separate quarantine area. On the third day we got a call from the sheriff that Maureen had been found dead in her vehicle at a grocery store parking lock. She had died of an apparent heart attack and was only 46 yrs old.

The joy of this adoption story is that both birds found a wonderful companion to care for them for nearly 2 years. The heartbreak was that they lost their companion, but because of the adoption procedure and Maureen's willingness to do right by these birds, all the birds in that household were protected. The wolves and the horses weren't so lucky. The family decided they didn't want to spend anymore money on them and there was no legal documentation providing for them in Maureen's estate plan. They were all put to sleep.

The other side of the story is that Quasi has been placed in permanent sanctuary. Although she does live in my home she does that because I take her so many places and its easy to take her out and take her in without having to disrupt or upset some of the other birds in sanctuary. Ruby is doing wonderfully and has been back at the aviary. We've not been able to find the right home for her. She needs to be in a wonderful home situation. She's beautiful, she's wonderful, she's talkative, she can fly and is outgoing. She would make someone a wonderful companion.


Giving Back

By Shauna Roberts

Living with a parrot entails many responsibilities and one of those, if you can, should be to support other birds besides our own by contributing to projects that help those parrots still in the wild as well as those in welfare facilities. Whether we choose to assist welfare facilities or parrot conservation, helping is of overall importance as it does make a difference.

It is always important however to do your homework, asking questions about how donations are distributed and what proportion of your donation goes to the cause. If considering a welfare facility, you should also know how birds are housed, and something about their general environment and the organizations policies. If you decide to donate to a welfare facility, it never hurts to visit them if you can.

What to look for was discussed in a previous article: "Considerations for Selecting a Rescue or Sanctuary Facility" If you live too far away, maybe a friend could visit for you and send you pictures of the organization under consideration to give you an unbiased look for your consideration.

Conservation and studies of parrots in the wild are another excellent way of "giving back". Again, some organizations may have more prominent names than others but ask each one what percentage of donations actually go to the birds and how much goes to administrative costs. The breakdowns of what percentage of donated money actually goes to research and conservation may be of a surprise. You can also look for projects that are of most interest to you. Here are two organizations that put 100% of your donation to work for the parrots.

Parrot Fund International is based in the UK with a US representative and has three main categories they contribute to:

Loro Parque, based in Spain, is another possible choice. Look for projects that can be contributed to in the US, if making your donation tax deductible is a concern. Some of their current principal projects are:

They also have two projects that are aimed at filling the knowledge gaps that remain, and to identify and support leading parrot research. Currently, these two are:

Maybe you would rather do something more hands on, so why not have a fund raiser for a welfare organization? These can be as simple or as complex as you want to make them. From asking friends to brown bag for a week and donate their lunch money to holding a large event with raffle and silent auction items. Whatever idea you may come up with, a fund raiser can be a lot of fun and very rewarding for all involved especially the parrots.

You could also hold a garage sale, and send part of the proceeds to an organization. And don't forget if you live near an organization they are always glad to get volunteer help and/or donations or some things they are always looking for such as old sheets, towels, stainless steel bowls, measuring spoons, wood blocks, food, or anything you might find handy or offer to your own birds.

With the holiday season just around the corner, start thinking now about making or sending a toy to your favorite parrot charity. A parrot will silently thank you with a happy glean in its eyes, while it plays with its new toy given with caring and love.

Sinclair

By Charise Mixa

It was August of 1995, when we met Sinclair, the eight-month old Congo African Grey parrot. His owner was unhappy with the mess that Sinclair made and was giving him up. Condemned to the basement with the dogs, in a dog-crate type collapsible wire cage, Sinclair's only toy was three large, acrylic rings. Feed corn and peanuts were his only staple because he wouldn't eat anything else, and sometimes the owner's son would feed him chocolate, but this child also teased him relentlessly.

Outwardly, Sinclair seemed good-natured, but I fretted terribly over his emotional and physical health, with no mental stimulus, no toys, no love, and an extremely deficient diet. His feathers were tattered, and his keel bone protruded prominently from a breast that should have been well fleshed. His intelligent, sensitive eyes were still gray, and hadn't finished turning the light yellow of the adult African Grey Parrot, and watched us with the cautious curiosity of his species. But my heart ached to give this little guy a chance at a good life.

Why does this happen, that people acquire parrots on a whim and then no longer want them? Many times people see a parrot displayed in the pet store and marvel at its beauty and exotic origins. But sometimes these people do not receive the proper education and instruction from the store or individual from which the parrot was purchased.

They aren't told that, yes, parrots are messy. They molt twice a year and have powdery feather dust (varying depending upon the species). They love to taste food and drop the rest, but this doesn't mean that they dislike their food. They also love to fling pieces of sticky food from their beaks, which will eventually be plastered to the furniture or wall.

Parrots also need a varied and healthy diet of whole foods, rich in vitamins and nutrients. And being highly social creatures, parrots need to be a part of, and interact with their flock. They need to have positive role models.

In the wild, young parrots stay with their parents long after they have weaned, and when not with their parents, they are with the larger flock, learning social guidelines and behavior-the rules of being a parrot. In captivity, even after these baby parrots are weaned, we, as their mentors, need to act as role models by using positive reinforcement, setting guidelines, and interacting with our parrots in a way that builds trust and confidence.

Unfortunately, if you look in the classified ads of any larger city, you will see just how many parrots need new homes, and I'll be willing to bet that a good majority of these parrots have some underlying emotional or health related problem due to the lack of education the owner received when purchasing this "pet".

Sinclair looked a fright when we he embarked on his new life with us. Though he passed his blood chemistry panels with flying colors, he was diagnosed with a severe case of round worms for which he was given Ivermectin-quickly remedied-but he was also severely malnourished, and had vitamin A deficiency which manifested in an impacted preen gland. In Sinclair's case, the oils produced by his uropygial (preen) gland had lost their lubricating quality, becoming thick and chunky and creating a blockage. When Sinclair preened, he was no longer able to extract the oil from his preen gland and smooth it over his feathers. For this the veterinarian suggested a warm compress applied to the preen gland to loosen the blockage.

Vitamin A is needed for good vision, bone development and the maintenance of healthy skin. Sometimes vitamin A deficiencies will create respiratory or digestive problems, since both of these internal systems are lined with a form of skin. We also had to change Sinclair's diet if we wanted his long-term prognosis to improve. This meant feeding Sinclair a variety of foods rich in vitamin A, like sweet potatoes, carrots, endive, pumpkin, mustard greens, beets, winter squash, apricots, papaya, and cantaloupe, along with whole grains, beans, sprouts, and a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Calcium is also very important for parrots, especially African Greys, who are prone to calcium deficiencies, so we also feed whole foods rich in calcium, like Kale, broccoli, small amounts of hard cheese and yogurt. Though he has never had a huge appetite, we were fortunate that Sinclair was not as picky an eater as his former owner had said. He readily took to Harrison's pellets, and although he can be a bit fussy at times, is generally accepting of all on his plate.

When Sinclair came here, all his primary and secondary flight feathers had been kept short, nearly clipped to the wing. When a parrot is allowed to properly fledge and learn to fly, they also learn a great amount of balance and coordination. Because Sinclair's feathers had always been so short, he never properly learned this balance and coordination, easily falling and damaging more feathers, and on 2 occasions, breaking the tip of his beak off in poor landings.

It was a vicious circle--the more he fell and hurt himself, the more withdrawn he became, moving cautiously and refusing to play. We tried differing variations of wing clippings in an effort to improve Sinclair's balance and self-confidence, but eventually we came to realize that the best morale booster for Sinclair was no wing clipping at all. This is a very serious decision to consider. The safety of the parrot must be paramount, and every effort must be made to ensure the parrot will not be allowed outside without being properly housed or restrained. But the rewards have been ten-fold for Sinclair. By no means has Sinclair mastered the art of flight-as a matter of fact, he prefers not to fly-but he is more confident and self-assured, and if he does fall, at least he can make a satisfactory landing without harming himself.

Sinclair wasn't in need of immediate "rescue" from his prior home, but I know that his future was uncertain. It's hard to say what would have happened if we hadn't taken Sinclair into our flock. Maybe he would have eventually found his way into a good, loving home. Maybe he would have found a not-so loving home and existed, but not thrived. Maybe, he would have eventually succumbed to some illness caused by his severe malnourishment, where his body hadn't the resources to fight off even the simplest of infection. All I know is that he is now in a secure, loving environment. I believe in fate, and that everything happens for a reason.

Fate brought Sinclair's path and ours together. He did not come here to enrich our lives-no, just the opposite. He came here so that we could enrich his, and in the process, he has brought us a tremendous amount of joy.


Tip for Your Bird's Future

from Shauna Roberts

Take a moment to look at your bird objectively. Is it well mannered? Could easily fit into someone else's home? Or have you spoiled it in a way that it would be hard for your bird to adjust or be accepted into a different home?

Be kind to your bird, set guidelines, and through your unselfish love teach it to be the best bird in the world. This way if something should ever happen to you, it can easily find a home if that need arises.

lways keep your birds future in mind, just in case it's a future with someone else. This can one of the greatest gifts you can offer your bird, to help keep it from facing a future of being passed from home to home.