Visit Seymour's Bird Rescue for National Bird Day
Before you make the dive into bird handling, make sure you know what you're getting yourself into.
WHO CAN TALK. YEAH, THAT’S SO NICE. SHOULDER. YEAH. SO CUTE. WAIT, WE SHOULD CHECK IN WITH THEM. YEAH. LET’S SEE WHAT HE THINKS. I, I COULD SEE JACOB HAVING A PET BIRD. YEAH. WHAT DO YOU THINK? LET’S SEE. YEAH. OKAY. LET’S FIND OUT. WELL, TODAY IS NATIONAL BIRD DAY, AND WHILE OWNING A FLYING PET MAY NOT BE FOR EVERYONE, IF YOU DO PLAN ON GETTING ONE, CONSIDER ADOPTING INSTEAD OF SHOPPING. JACOB MURPHY IS LIVE AT SEYMOUR’S BIRD REFUGE IN CUMBERLAND TO TELL US WHAT IT TAKES TO MAKE A NEW AVIAN FRIEND. AND JACOB, VICTORIA AND I WERE JUST TALKING. I’M NOT SURE IF YOU COULD HEAR US, BUT WOULD YOU ADOPT A BIRD? I COULD KIND OF SEE THIS FOR YOU. OH, YEAH. I WAS TOTALLY LISTENING TO YOU GUYS. I’M WORKING ON MY BIRD HANDLING SKILLS AS WE SPEAK. I’VE GOT LITTLE RANDALL HERE ON MY SHOULDER. I THINK HE LIKES MY MICROPHONE. MAYBE. MAYBE NOT. BUT HE’S VERY NICE, VERY GENTLE. HE’S JUST BEEN RELAXING ON MY SHOULDER. AND THEN I HAVE LITTLE SWEETIE OVER HERE WHO’S. OH, JUST GAVE ME A LITTLE NIBBLE. BUT MAYBE SHE DOESN’T LIKE THAT. BUT THEY’RE SO SWEET. AND SO WE’LL SEE IF THEY STAY ON MY SHOULDER FOR THIS INTERVIEW. I’M NOT REALLY SURE, BUT WE’RE JOINED BY THE OWNER HERE AT SEYMOUR’S BIRD RESCUE TO TALK TO US. KIND OF LIKE WHAT GOES INTO THE PROCESS OF TAKING CARE OF BIRDS. AND SO WE’VE BEEN SHOWING OFF A LOT OF CUTE BIRDS. AND WE TALKED ABOUT IT EARLIER THIS MORNING. BUT FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE JUST JOINING US, TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT ALL THE CARE THAT GOES INTO TAKING CARE OF THEM. SO BIRDS ARE MORNING FEEDERS BY NATURE, SO IT’S IMPORTANT THAT THEY HAVE A CLEAN CAGE EVERY DAY. SO THEY GET THEIR PAPERS CHANGED, WIPED DOWN ANY POOP THAT MIGHT BE ON THEIR PERCHES OR ANYTHING. FRESH FOOD, FRESH WATER. EVERY DAY YOU GOT TO WATCH THE WATER BECAUSE SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO DO IT 4 OR 5 TIMES A DAY BECAUSE THEY THINK THEY HAVE INDOOR PLUMBING. THEY NEED TIME OUT OF THE CAGE. BUT SOMETIMES YOU DO HAVE TO MONITOR THEM BECAUSE THEY ARE WOOD. CHEWERS. YEAH. SO AS LONG AS THEY HAVE ENOUGH TOYS IN THEIR CAGE TO STIMULATE THEM, THEY WON’T GO AFTER YOUR WOODWORK QUITE AS MUCH. BUT YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE THEY’RE THERE IN THE MAIN PART OF YOUR HOME, NOT TUCKED AWAY IN A SPARE BEDROOM SOMEWHERE WHERE THEY’RE NOT SEEN OR HEARD. AND MAYBE YOU, AS SOMEONE WHO’S DEALT WITH A LOT OF BIRDS PERSONALLY FOR A LONG TIME, CAN KIND OF SPEAK TO THIS, BUT WHY DO BIRDS MAKE SUCH GOOD COMPANIONS AS WELL? FOR PEOPLE, THEY’RE EXTREMELY LOYAL. YOU DON’T HAVE TO WALK THEM IN A SNOWSTORM OR IN THE RAIN, BUT THEY ARE A LOT OF CARE AND PEOPLE DON’T REALIZE THAT. YES, THERE’S COOKED FOODS ON THE MARKET FOR THEM THAT ARE VERY NUTRITIOUS. THEY LOVE NICE, WARM FOOD BECAUSE THEY WOULD BE REGURGITATING FOR THEIR PARTNER, WHICH IS WARM FOOD. OBVIOUSLY, I’M NOT GOING TO DO THAT FOR THEM, BUT I WILL COOK UP SOME FOOD. BIRD STREET BISTRO IS AN AWESOME SOURCE OF THAT COOKED FOOD, AND THEY HAVE A LARGE VARIETY OF DIFFERENT ONES. THEY EVEN HAVE A LARGE VARIETY OF BIRD FRIENDLY TEAS TO GIVE THEM BECAUSE BIRDS LIKE WARM LIQUIDS TO DRINK TOO. YEAH, SO OBVIOUSLY YOU DON’T WANT TO GIVE THEM COFFEE BECAUSE THEY SHOULDN’T HAVE THEIR CAFFEINE. YEAH, BUT THEY THEY WILL PUT HOLES IN YOUR CLOTHING. THEY WILL CHEW ON IT IF THEY FEEL COMFORTABLE ENOUGH. SO YOU DEFINITELY DON’T WANT TO WEAR A LOT OF EXPENSIVE CLOTHING AROUND THEM. YEAH. OKAY. SO YOU KNOW, IN MIND WITH MY SWEATER ON RIGHT NOW. YEAH. SO, YOU KNOW, GOING TO SALVATION ARMY GOODWILL BUYING T SHIRTS JUST SO YOU CAN THROW THEM ON WHEN YOU’RE HOLDING THE BIRD. SOMETHING THAT YOU REALLY DON’T CARE A LOT ABOUT. IF IT IS SOMETHING THAT YOU CARE ABOUT, YOU KNOW, TAKE A FLEECE BLANKET AND MAKE LIKE A SCARF THAT GOES OVER YOUR SHOULDERS TO PROTECT YOUR CLOTHING. YEAH, AND BIRDS DON’T ALWAYS WATCH WHERE THEY’RE GOING TO THE BATHROOM, SO DON’T BE SURPRISED IF THEY. BUT I COULD VERY WELL GET A SURPRISE ON MY SHOULDER AFTER THIS. BUT I KIND OF WENT INTO IT EXPECTING THAT. YEAH. SO THEY THEY LITERALLY WILL SQUAT DOWN, LEAN BACK SO YOU CAN FEEL THE BODY WEIGHT CHANGING. AND SO AT THAT POINT YOU JUST LEAN BACK WITH THEM. SO IT GOES ON THE FLOOR INSTEAD OF ON YOU. THAT’S SMART. SO DON’T EVEN THINK OF THAT. WELL, I HAVEN’T BEEN PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION TO THEIR WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION. BUT THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TALKING WITH US. AND, YOU KNOW, SHARING THESE TIPS FOR PEOPLE WHO MIGHT WANT TO ADOPT BIRDS. DO YOU GUYS WANT TO SAY BYE? DO YOU WANT TO SAY BYE? RANDALL. OH GOOD JOB. WHAT ABOUT YOU, SWEETIE? OH, SWEETIE IS A LITTLE SHY. WELL, IF YOU GUYS ARE INTERESTED, YOU CAN COME ON DOWN TO SEYMOUR’S BIRD RESCUE. AND WE TALKED ABOUT REASONS WHY YOU MIGHT WANT TO ADOPT. BUT IF THAT’S COMPLETELY OFF YOUR RADAR, THEY DO STILL ACCEPT DONATIONS. IF YOU’RE INTERESTED IN SUPPORTING THEM, AS YOU KNOW, THEY DO RESCUE AND TAKE CARE OF THESE BIRDS WHO’VE LOST THEIR HOMES, LIVE IN CUMBERLAND. I’M JACOB MURPHY FROM MAINE’S TOTAL COVERAGE. JACOB, THOSE BIRDS LOVE YOU ESPECIALLY. SWEETI
Visit Seymour's Bird Rescue for National Bird Day
Before you make the dive into bird handling, make sure you know what you're getting yourself into.
Updated: 11:14 AM EST Jan 5, 2025
Owning a pet bird is not for everyone, but if you are on the market, consider adopting at Seymour's Bird Rescue.Jacob Murphy spoke with Andrea Tims, the owner of the shelter, about what it takes to care for a bird. Tims says a lot of families don't know the amount of work a bird takes, and end up surrendering it to places like hers.“Just a couple of months ago I had two cockatiels come and it was a case where the father bought them for the son, but the son ended up going to live with the mother and the father didn't want to deal with them,” she said.If you are interested in adopting a bird, Tims says it's usually better to adopt than shop.“ you get a parakeet from a pet store, you’re lucky if they last six to eight years,” she said. “Forty, 50 years ago you got a bird from a local, reputable breeder where the birds weren’t siblings, so they had a longer healthier life.”Seymour's Bird Rescue is always looking for volunteers and donations. You can find more information on their website.
Owning a pet bird is not for everyone, but if you are on the market, consider adopting at Seymour's Bird Rescue.
Jacob Murphy spoke with Andrea Tims, the owner of the shelter, about what it takes to care for a bird. Tims says a lot of families don't know the amount of work a bird takes, and end up surrendering it to places like hers.
“Just a couple of months ago I had two cockatiels come and it was a case where the father bought them for the son, but the son ended up going to live with the mother and the father didn't want to deal with them,” she said.
If you are interested in adopting a bird, Tims says it's usually better to adopt than shop.
“[If] you get a parakeet from a pet store, you’re lucky if they last six to eight years,” she said. “Forty, 50 years ago you got a bird from a local, reputable breeder where the birds weren’t siblings, so they had a longer healthier life.”
Seymour's Bird Rescue is always looking for volunteers and donations. You can find more information on their website.
