Guidelines For Good Care                                                                                                               

 

In Need of a New Roost
 

jeff hodson/metro vancouver

 

Jenny Tamas kisses Koko, a blue-and-gold macaw, at her Tsawwassen house yesterday.


A Lower Mainland bird sanctuary is in desperate need of a new roost after the donated building that it had called home for years was pegged for other uses.

The Greyhaven Exotic Bird Sanctuary has taken 160 exotic birds into its care this year, rehabilitating the animals and arranging for their adoption into good homes.

But in March, the non-profit lost its sanctuary space, forcing volunteers to foster the birds in their own homes.

"I took four days off, about a month ago, and it was wonderful," said Greyhaven’s adoption coordinator Jenny Tamas, who fosters 30 birds at her Tsawwassen home.

"Anyone who has lived with a bird knows it’s a tremendously wonderful feeling. They’re so smart, they’re like children."

The birds at her house —some of whom can live up to 75 years — range in size from tiny yellow canaries, scarcely larger than a thumb, to a large blue-and-gold pecan-crunching macaw named Koko.

One colourful resident, an elderly African grey parrot named Cody, has a tendency to mimic sneezes and likes to offer people beer.

The sanctuary runs pet therapy classes with seniors and tries to educate people about the responsibility and care associated with buying an exotic bird.

jeff hodson/Metro Vancouver                                                              jeff.hodson@metronews.ca

 

 

 

Safe and Sound Perch

Greyhaven is looking for a donated sanctuary space somewhere in the Lower Mainland, preferably

about 1,500 square feet and easily accessible by bus.

 

For more information visit www.greyhaven.bc.ca

 

 

E-mail: info@greyhaven.bc.ca