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Wednesday, November 02, 2005
Blue and Gold
We got a package from Kevin McKinley today that contained a copy of a National Geographic that featured Blue and Gold Macaws on the cover. Kevin is Debra's doctor and a friend. Little did he know that we had quite an adventure involving Blue and Golds during Hurricane Katrina....
About 10 days after the storm when we were still in heavy survival mode we got a call from a friend. Her dad was the caretaker for a 125 acre farm outside of Picayune, MS. She and her family had evacuated to Savannah, GA and she came back to check on her dad's home and belongings. Her dad stayed in Georgia.
The owner of the farm had 12 breeder parrots including seven Blue and Gold Macaws. The birds were housed in tiny cages that prevented them from even spreading their wings. They had not been given food and water for two weeks and she was afraid that they would die before her dad or the owner returned. She asked us to "do something".
We decided to go over and rescue the birds the next day. So, we packed up the truck with 12 pet carriers and a pair of bolt cutters and drove 70 miles into Mississippi. We climbed over fallen trees and got to the bird barn to find the birds in poor condition. Our friend had left them with food and water so they weren't in immediate danger but it was clear that they were significantly undernourished and poorly housed.
Thirty minutes later we were on the road with seven Blue and Golds, two Blue Crown Conures, one Indian Ringneck, one Nanday Conure, and one Mitred Conure. One of our friends had given us several large cages but housing all of these birds, in quarantine, was a real challenge. Two days later we had Dr. Maxwell stop by to give them all physicals and run tests. They all had E-Coli infections from unsanitary conditions but none had any of the major bird diseases. All were treated with a two week course of Vetasulid and have recovered.
We still have them two months later. The owner has agreed to sell them to us and we have had two cages made to properly house them. The story of how this all came to pass is the subject of future blogs but it involves the police, the SPCA, and a lot of threats and sabre rattling. If you come to the Chateau (and you know you are all welcome at any time) we'll crack a bottle of wine and tell you all about it.
- posted by J-Birds @ 9:07 PM |
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