BATTLE CREEK, Mich. — The last month has been a busy one for Shannon Kramer and everyone else at Birds and Beaks Rescue.
Around Christmas time, Birds and Beaks took in around 300 of the more than 800 budgies, a type of parakeet, that were surrendered from a hoarding situation in the Detroit area. A man had been breeding the birds until his son realized the problem and turned to bird rescues for help.
"They were seriously and severely malnourished and literally starving to death when they arrived," said Kramer, who founded the organization.
Since the rescue, Birds and Beaks has been working to give the budgies the care they need. They've relied on donations to help pay for veterinary bills, and people from all over the world chipped in.
"I'm floored by the the global interest in the story," Kramer said, noting that a friend from Australia had seen the story on TV.
"It makes me happy because parakeets are very overlooked little pets. A parakeet actually holds the world record for most largest vocabulary right now. And he replaced another parakeet. People think that the big birds are the ones who speak the best and are the smartest, but but it's actually budgies."
Thirteen birds did not survive. However, most of the remaining budgies are doing well. Kramer has set up an "ICU cage" for the birds who still need extra care.
Healthy birds have been separated into male and female cages so they don't breed any further. They're going through a 30-day quarantine which has helped them develop healthy habits.
"They need to learn how to eat good foods, and we had to teach them a myriad of things. We had to teach them how to perch and how to stand, how to actually stand on branches and the perches we put in the cage, how to gather food, how to forage, how to drink, how to do all of the things that they're supposed to do as a normal birds in captivity. So that 30 days gives us the chance to do that," Kramer said.
The quarantine period ends on Wednesday, January 26, at which point the budgies will be available for adoption. They're already taking applications on their website.
Anyone who applies will be interviewed and must provide a walkthrough video of their home.
"We're going to ask you some basic husbandry questions to make sure you know what you're doing and make sure you've got an appropriate cage and the appropriate food and the things that they need," Kramer said.
"We're not even charging an adoption fee. All we're asking for for this is just a donation to the rescue."
Kramer said potential pet owners should know that birds are a lot smarter than people give them credit for.
"Birds are incredibly intelligent and sentient, but with that comes great responsibility. Those guys need time out of their cage. They need somebody to work with them. They need somebody to target train with them. Play with them. They need to be part of your everyday life."
Kramer also noted that because their metabolisms are higher, budgies can make more of a mess than larger birds.
"Most people don't take into account just how messy they are when they when they go to adopt them."
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