thepawandfeatherplan

 On March 19th, 2022 we drove Sweet Pea 5 hours and 22 minutes away, to a small, rural town called Potosi, MO., to be adopted.  Sweet Pea enjoying the ride     I had envisioned something very different for her.  When we took her in (Dec.), I was set on eventually finding her a home in sunny S. Florida.  -She's an exotic bird, and I would envision her in a grand outdoor aviary, under a large fruit tree, in a tropical paradise of a yard.  -This is what I had most-wanted for her.       And I did request help promoting her for adoption with some of my S. Florida friends, in hopes of making my vision for her a reality. Image of parrot in nice, outdoor area, image from https://flvetbehavior.com     H owever, no one reached out about her from that strategic networking.  -There was one woman in Port St. Lucie, Fl. that wanted her, however upon some basic examination of her life (via social media), I discovered she was a busy mother to a few kids, an owner of 6 Rottweilers, and apparently

  " What makes you think she's egg-bound?" asked Michelle, an avian vet tech at Shively Animal Hospital.     "She's been lethargic, she's grunting, straining, pushing off and on, has had diarrhea, been constipated, and her lower belly is hard and swollen," I answered, holding back tears. Sweet Pea and me last week     I knew this was serious, potentially fatal, to the macaw the rescue took in just 6 weeks prior.     "Dr. Mary Jane wants to know what you guys have been doing at home that could make her want to lay an egg, and become egg-bound," was Michelle's next question.  Sweet Pea on top of her cage, last week     The question could've surprised, and even offended me, had I not already asked myself that very same thing.       Upon suspecting Sweet Pea was egg bound, I quickly took to (reliable sources) on the internet, and reviewed symptoms, causes and treatment for the condition.  I rapidly confirmed she had virtually every symptom

Sweet Pea is doing well.  She loves having company over and meeting new people!     This week (after all of our quarantine stuff was finally over!) my mother, grandmother and sister came over for our son's birthday.  She was the life of the party, and insisted on hanging out on my mother's arm for a while!      She also met a family of puppy adopters, and one of the PAFP fosters, Elizabeth (she sat on her arm too!).      I am delighted that she takes so well to new people.  Birds have a reputation for being very loyal to just one person (my lovebird certainly is that way)...     but all birds are different, and Sweet Pea's proving to be a social butterfly- this should help her when she needs to transition to an adopter's home.  Party Animal, Sweet Pea!      She didn't go to the vet for her injection this past week because Dr. Mary Jane was at a conference all week.  We plan to take her to Shively tomorrow.  During the visit I hope to ask, 'what's next?'

 Sweet Pea continues to interact more with her enrichment items and toys.      Her 1st week or so here she wouldn't even sit on the other perches we had bought her, and would only use the 2 that came with her cage.  She didn't interact with her bird toys, or sit on her rope swing.  She wasn't used to having items in her cage, and this 'stuff to do.'  Sweet Pea stepping out!     This is likely one reason she began plucking at some point- a bird will 'go to its body' to have something to do, with which to interact, to feel they have a job/purpose, when they don't have a lot of enrichment options.  -This is what we've learned from bird behaviorist videos and writings.        T he idea is for Sweet Pea to start interacting with, and enjoying, her environment more, and ideally: plucking less to not at all.  Sweet Pea hanging out on her rope swing     So it's a huge deal that she's playing with her toys... grabbing them, biting them, moving them, d

  We received the call early last week that Sweet Pea does in fact have some sort of bacterial infection.       We took her back to Shively vet for her 1st of 3 antibiotic injections on Wednesday the 29th.  She handled it well enough, but was very tired all evening afterwards.  Receipt from her 'injection visit' at Shively      She ventured out of her cage for the the 1st time on Christmas Eve, this was very exciting and emotional for the family.  We were all smiling ear to ear, just shortly before heading to my aunt's for round 1 of Christmas celebrations.      Unfortunately this is where I picked up covid-19 (yes, we are vaccinated!).  -I fell ill on Sunday night, and am almost 100% well now... and it's the following Monday.      -Christmas break, and being home sick has offered us an ideal time to bond with Sweet Pea.  For better or for worse, she's gotten used to us being here all of the time now due to the quarantine.   Sweet Pea getting some head scratches   

We heard about Sweet Pea while we were still on vacation, in late November.      Her owners had been tragically killed in a car crash on Thanksgiving Day.  The woman had bought Sweet Pea as a baby Macaw from a breeder in central Ky. 25 years ago.       When I spoke with the adult daughter of Sweet Pea's owners, naturally I asked lots of questions.      I found out that Sweet Pea's owner, we'll call her Debbie, had bottle-fed Sweet Pea as a baby macaw.  -Just an interesting tidbit.        Sweet Pea has chronically plucked her feathers for 20 + years.  Sweet Pea's first 'portrait' in our home, 4-5 days after her arrival        When we   found this out from Debbie's adult daughter, we were nervous.  -Could we take this on?       Yes, I do love birds, but the rescue has never had an exotic, large bird, and much-less one with a neurotic-plucking disorder.  I thought on it for a couple of days.  And the same question kept coming up: if we don't take her, who