Georgie, a Congo African grey parrot, was handed into Birdline when her owner passed away. She had spent her whole life -30 years- with the same owner. When she was handed in Georgie had only 3 perches and a mirror in her cage. She was in VERY poor condition. She had plucked out all of her feathers on her chest and legs and some from her back and wing tips. The feathers she did have were dull and dry. She couldn’t flap her wings because they were so stiff. Her feet couldn’t grip strongly. She was a depressed old lady. She didn’t really even make any noise. In her new cage she sat on the floor at the back shaking. We didn’t know how much contact, if any, she had had with anyone except the previous owner. She was now in a house with other birds, 2 teenagers, dogs, cats and general household noise. She quietly sat and watched. We gave her supplements to help her stiff wings and improve her health along with good quality seed, fruit and vegetables. We had to adapt her cage so she could comfortably and safely learn to climb around it. We gave her toys to stimulate her.

Slowly over a few weeks she began to climb all around her cage and to come out. She even allowed us to stroke her. Her health began to improve and she started to move her wings. She will never fly and can’t really even flap her wings so will always need a cage adapted to help her climb around it. But she is now happy; she whistles with the other birds and calls for attention. She has also re-grown most of her feathers as you can see. All this took was a good diet, a proper size cage with time out of it, a stimulating environment and loads of time and TLC.

Early part of this year I decided to adopt an Orange Winged Amazon to keep my female "Alfie" company. I searched on the internet and found Birdline. They were most helpful and after my checks called me to say I had been accepted as foster home. I was told that I had been chosen to house "Harvey". Not knowing much about him apart from the fact he came from an old couple I was very happy that not only I could give him a good home but my Alfie would have company.

On Wednesday 8th April this year I made the long journey to Briton to collect him. He was in a Safe House with other birds and was told that he wont come out of his cage, he can bite! His speech was limited but he does say "hello", "what are you doing" & he quacks like a duck! He also has a distress noise - a fire alarm! After a short introduction we made the journey home, he talked all the way!

For the first few weeks he did the "fire alarm" every time my fiance or a stranger came in! We decided that he didn't really know how to play, didn't know what toys were and he had plenty in the cage but just walked round them! With encouragement he now plays, shreds box's, rings his bell when he wants attention!, The fire alarm noise has 99% gone. He comes out of his cage all the time and has to be bribed to go back in! He's very affectionate and loves a tickle, he evens steps up & shakes your hand. He now eats a staple diet not just a seed mix, with his main diet being a pellets. He'll eat any fruit & veg. He now barks like my dogs (have 4 labs that he lives with!) he says "shhhh", blows kisses & laughs when people laugh! He loves going outside in his cage with Alfie in the sunshine for a bath & a chat to the neighbours! He still has a long way to go but he's a star and I wouldn't swap him! The next stage is to get him in the same cage as Alfie.

We have been fostering Sam the Orange Winged Amazon for about 18 months, not knowing how old she was, where she'd lived, what she'd been through and even if she was really a he!  She was grumpy to begin with and a bit stroppy and we could not pick her up without getting bitten (scars to prove it!) but we gave her lots of time and patience to get used to us, after all we we complete strangers in a totally new environment.  We guessed that she's aged between 20 and 30 so we also made allowances for her age! 

It took about 9 months before Sam would step up, but now we have to move her around every where (these old girls have to conserve their energy somehow!). She eats all her fruit and veg every day and plays endlessly with toys, pine cones, corks, sticks and she's even been known to go up into the curtains to pinch the curtain hooks to play with ! 

She loves to sit and look out of the window for hours and when she's fed up of that she will sit and look at herself in the mirror or anything else she can see a reflection in (at Christmas we found her in the tree looking at herself in a bauble!  She loves a shower and the occasional tickle.  She will never be a 'cuddly' parrot, so we don't expect her to be so, we just let her get on with whatever makes her the happiest!

She's sweet, funny, cheeky and mischievous, she's very entertaining and got a great personality and we couldnt be without her, she's an important member of our family and we wouldn't change her for anything.