Helping Our Exotic Feathered Friends

When improperly cared for, parrots can suffer physical and emotional repercussions. This extremely talkative Yellow-naped Amazon parrot was unable to walk because of a fusion that occurred in its legs when it was kept in too small of a cage and not provided with the proper sized perches. She sure made us laugh, though, with her impressive sounds and vocabulary!   

This past Saturday, September 20th, Junior Audubon had the unique opportunity to visit Michigan's premier parrot sanctuary, Feathered Friends of Michigan (FFM). Feathered Friends is located just outside of Lansing in the small, quiet city of Milan and has been actively trying to educate folks on the responsibilities of caring for exotic parrots since 2008. Marie Crowley, the founder and current Executive Director of Feathered Friends, was delighted to speak to our group about a variety of topics that included the geographic origins of her parrots, how people trap them, why people want them in their homes, and what people oftentimes don't know about taking care of exotic parrots. She was an amazing guide and is an incredibly knowledgeable individual when it comes to parrots and their behaviors. Click here to view PBS's incredible documentary titled "Parrot Confidential," a bird's eye view into the complicated and often tragic life of parrots in captivity. Marie is featured along with her work with Feathered Friends!

Stepping down into Marie's sanctuary (which is inside of her home), we were greeted excitedly by the loud calls of a variety of parrots; Blue and Gold Macaws, Sun Conures, and many other smaller parrots that many of us had never seen before. They paced anxiously about in their large cages and were only calmed after 10 or so minutes of adjusting to us being in their territory. As Marie began telling us their stories, it became very obvious that these birds were never meant for life in captivity. Their vocals, which oftentimes irritate their owners because of their incredible decibel level, are meant to carry across miles of territory. The decibel levels of one single cockatoo are equivalent to that of a 747 passenger jet taking off. It's impossible to contain that level of noise in the small enclosures that we provide. Not only their vocals, but the intimate bonds that these birds have the abilities to form with one another (in the wild) are also a reason as to why they don't make suitable pets in our homes. When we purchase a single bird, that bird imprints on us and can undergo emotional devastation when something happens to us. We could see evidence of emotional damage on some of Marie's birds by observing their missing feathers, which were self-plucked due to stress, or by noticing that some wore special collars to prevent them from extracting their feathers and causing themselves pain. One such distressed bird was Fagan. Click here to read about Fagan's tragic past and inspiring recovery.

Lorenzo B. making friends with our Australian buddy after the toy-making workshop.

Our toy-making workshop! We got to put together strings of wood, beads, foam and other knick knacks for parrots to chew on and entertain themselves - so cool! 

Mother Deb and daughter Lucy enjoying the company of our docile feathered friend.

We ended our visit with a toy-making workshop that delighted our kids and promised Marie's parrots some new chewing material. We had a blast! Marie explained that it's important for parrots to have a diverse amount of materials to chew on so that they don't get bored and become tempted to pluck their feathers. She even allowed her Bourke's Parakeet to fly around and land on our kids' shoulders and heads - what a treat!

We're so thankful for all of the work that Marie does for Michigan's abused and neglected parrots and thank her immensely for the time that she spent with us. Click here to find out more about Feathered Friends and how you can make a donation to their work.