
Over the weekend, we decided to check out a parrot that we knew needed rescuing. We drove all the way to Mt. Belvieu to check on this parrot, and Tom said he knew the minute we walked in the door, that we were taking the parrot. She was kept in a dark corner, the house reeked of cigarette smoke, she was fed a seed only diet (big no-no), and wasn't paid any attention to. As usual, these were people that got a pet that they didn't know how to take care of (because their son wanted a bird) and after the novelty wore off, they didn't want her anymore. They should have gotten a parakeet. You don't get a parrot unless you know about them, are willing to devote time to them (they are very loving and intelligent), and will take responsibility for them. Really, just like any other pet that people get.
Her name is Maggie. I took her to the vet yesterday, and she is in pretty good shape considering the treatment that she received. She has such a sweet personality, and we are hoping that Rascal will accept her as his friend. She is also a blue-front Amazon, but they do not look alike. She is quite shabby right now, but the doctor said to take before and after photos (in at least 6 months) because he knows that we will give her the right treatment to get her back on her feet. She had some deficiencies, but was able to get a few injections to help with that. It has already made a tremendous amount of difference. She was singing and whistling on top of her cage today.
We didn't realize how shabby she was until we had her close to our bird. His feathers are smooth and shiny. His beak is solid and black. His eyes are clear. She is very alert and smart and I hope they will be friends. We have to keep them separated for at least two weeks, so her cage is on the opposite side of the room. I didn't even have to tell the vet that she had been around smoke--he guessed it the minute he saw her. He is hoping that her feathers will recover and says that part may take up to a year because they have to totally shed and regrow. We had to throw everything away in her cage and scrub it down to get the smell out.
They never covered her cage, so she was exposed to loud, late TV nights. I have never heard of anyone not covering a bird at night. It makes a total difference in them. She is sleeping in a very dark, covered cage now and I'm sure that helped improve her mood also. If they don't get the right amount of light and dark, they do not develop correctly. We aim to fix all of that. She is our wonderful, unexpected arrival this week.