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        Baby & Paul

This is one of our best success stories ever.  Baby was a wonderful Blue & Gold Macaw that came to us in pretty bad shape.  She was severely plucked, malnourished, vitamin deficiency, cataracts in both eyes, both wings previously broken (one in two  places) and never treated and some behavioral issues that needed tending to.   She was one of those special birds we figured we would never be able to place and would keep as a shelter bird for the remainder of her life.  We were content with this but knew if we could ever find the perfect forever loving home she would be even happier.  Of course, with all of her problems we felt we were fighting  losing battle because it would really take someone pretty darn special to take in a bird like this and provide her with all of the love and care that she deserved. 

Well, don't ever think that miracles do not happen because when we received Paul and Candy's application to adopt Baby we could not believe our eyes.   We checked their references and then looked at their home and bird set up.  They had an excellent avian vet.  We interviewed them several times and then Candy came to visit Baby.  It was a match made in birdie heaven!  I don't think we could have found a more perfect match for Baby.  Candy already had 5 or 6 birds she had adopted from some pretty severe cases and was used to the trauma, expense, and dedication these special birds required.  Baby really preferred men though and took to Paul with the quickness.  That was fine with Candy as she said all of the other birds were really "hers" so it was about time for Paul to get one of his own.  Baby loves Candy too, but only when Paul is not around.  When Paul is home Baby is all over him.  So congratulations Paul on adopting a gorgeous companion bird and thanks Candy for finally letting Paul get "his" own bird.  LOL  Thank you both for giving Baby the best home possible. 

    Priscilla & Aquilla

My husband Mike and I decided a few months ago that we were ready to adopt a lovebird or a pair of lovebirds into our household. We've been keeping budgies for years, but only recently did we feel ready to branch out to lovebirds, a species both of us are very fond of. We thought initially of buying from a breeder, but decided to look at rescues first. We believe very strongly in rescues, having worked with a cat rescue program, and having adopted our cat and many of our budgies through rescues and shelters. My first stop was Petfinder.com, although I wasn't too hopeful, since we live in a fairly small town.

One of the first pictures we saw in our lovebird search was of Priscilla and Aquilla, two cremino peachface lovebird siblings from the HealthiPet Network rescue in Indiana. I fell in love almost as soon as I saw their picture. Though they were special needs, with splayed legs that made walking and flying difficult, their happy attitudes seemed to come right through the computer screen. Because of our experience with birds, we decided that we'd be able to handle the special care and attention these little guys would require. I sent an email to Tim at HealthiPet Network to get more information. We found out that these two lovebirds had been rescued from a negligent owner, and that while their legs would never get better, they were otherwise healthy and ready for adventure in a new home.

Working with Tim and HealthiPet was a great experience. We could tell right away how much he cared about Priscilla and Aquilla, and how important it was to him to find them a great home. Even though it was almost a two-hour drive, which made a getting-to-know-you visit difficult, I got to know so much about the birds through my discussions with Tim. I also really appreciated how easy and painless he made the application process. I've gotten run-around before with rescues who, for one reason or another, hardly ever return emails promptly, and don't get to know birds or adopters personally. Throughout the entire adoption process with HealthiPet, I really felt like the birds' interests came first, but that the rescue cared about communicating with us as well. It made me feel good about working with them. When we did come to the shelter to finalize the adoption, we were treated to a visit with all the shelter's birds, who were all happy and well taken care of. The whole house was filled with the sound of cheerful birds of all varieties!

We've had Priscilla and Aquilla in our home for a month and a half now, and things have really worked out well. They've settled in great and love their new cage. We've set it up specially to allow them to climb, swing, dangle, and do all the things that they can do even with their leg problems. They love to be let out and sit on the edge of the cage, or fly over and perch on top of my laptop when I'm working. We've kept up by email with Tim and HealthiPet Network, sending pictures and updates as the birds settle in. I truly feel that Priscilla and Aquilla were very lucky to come to HealthiPet Network, and that we were very lucky to be able to work with them.
Cori and Mike, Champaign, Illinois
 

            Stevie & Bailey

Stevie came to us when it was discovered that his parront had passed away.  We're not sure how long she had been gone before we were notified and found him.  He was with another companion bird and we had to get bolt cutters to cut through a padlock that was keeping the cage locked and nobody knew where the key was at.  The former parront had obviously been in poor health for a while and had not been able to properly care for the birds for quite some time.  It appears that there were fed and watered, but the conditions of their cage and living conditions  were pretty bad. 

Bailey turned out to be the perfect person to adopt Stevie.  She is a young college student form Ohio and has many years of life ahead of here, so Stevie should never have to be rehomed again or go through losing his parront.  Bailey loves all animals but unfortunately is badly allergic to most.  When she found out that she could have birds she began studying up on them and their care and learned alot in her studies.  I gave her an A+ since she was able to correctly answer every question I posed to her.  Thank you Bailey for taking good care of our little buddy Stevie and giving him the forever loving home he so deserves.

                  Quincy & Peggy Sue

Quincy is a quaker parrot that we took in when his parront passed away.  That left his wife with the kids, dogs, and birds all unexpectedly.  He was young guy and his untimely death was not anticipated.  It really put her in a bad situation and she had to get rid of the birds as she could not take care of them nor did she really know how. 

Peggy Sue is a housewife that loves birds.  All of her children have now grown and are out on their own.  That leaves her with plenty of time to devote to her 5 birds, 2 finches, 2 tiels, and Quincy.  Her husband works second shift so she spends most of her days caring for and playing with the birds.  She recently had family visiting and her nephew fell in love with Quincy and didn't want to go home.  I guess that just goes to show what a sweetheart Quincy turned out to be.  Thank you Peggy Sue and Willis for giving him such a wonderful loving home.

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Last modified: 11/28/07