Save Sick, Injured, & Orphaned Birds - California

Relinquishing a bird or any pet is often due to an emergency or tragic situation. Unfortunately, it is more often a situation that never should have happened. We are contacted every single day by people wanting to “donate” their bird to us. Donate is a completely inappropriate word for this circumstance. What they are really asking us to do is to take responsibility for their bird, potentially, for the rest of the bird’s life. This is hardly a donation. It's an enormous responsibility.

It’s important for people who have birds to try to make plans for the care of their birds should they become unable to provide proper care. For some, this is easily handled if financial resources exist to provide funds for the ongoing care of the birds in their will or trust or if they have family or friends to take on the responsibility of caring for the birds. Sadly, in many cases, things get to the point where relinquishment is the only option. We always try to assist in the cases, but we encourage all bird owners to try to provide for their birds before something catastrophic happens.

Many relinquishments fall into what we think of as “convenience” relinquishments. It’s convenient for the owner. Not so convenient for the birds or for the rescue being asked to take the birds. Here are some of the common reasons we are given by people wanting to do convenience relinquishments:

• We decided to have a baby.
• We got a dog/cat with a high prey drive
• My significant other/roommate hates birds
• I’m moving to a place that doesn’t allow pets
• I’m allergic to birds or someone in my household is
• I’m moving out of state or out of the country
• I don’t have time for the bird anymore
• My bird doesn't talk like the birds you see on social media
• My bird is mean, and we're afraid of it
• My bird is sick/injured. I don’t have the money for veterinary care
• My birds had babies. Now I have too many of them
• I got another bird. My old bird hates the new bird
• I made an impulse buy. I have no idea what I’m doing (honest person here)

So, the moral to this sad story is to plan ahead for the well-being of your birds and any pets that you have, and think before you act. The life of a bird may depend on you having done your research and making informed decisions. There are simply too many birds needing homes and too few rescues to be able to handle the demand for rehoming.

We thank all of our supporters for sticking with us through thick and thin. We are grateful for your support and are looking forward to you supporting us again on Giving Tuesday here on GlobalGiving. Please watch for all the details on our social media posts.