Meet The Angels Of Flight

I am lovingly owned by four beautiful angels…a Blue and Gold Macaw named Kacey, a Moluccan Cockatoo named Chloe, an African Grey named Sophie and our recent added family member Zazu, a baby Blue and Gold Macaw.  When I say I am “lovingly owned” I can assure you that it was not always the case in the early onset of my infatuation with parrots.  At a very young age, I was actually attacked by an Umbrella Cockatoo which made me deathly afraid of birds!!  Then as an adult I had the chance to work at one of the highest rated pet stores in the US…lucky me, they put me in charge of the Bird Department!!  During that time my fear of birds subsided and I started learning their behavior and little quirks.  This was so fascinating to me I started to research on the web anything I could about parrots.  I purchased a cockatiel from the store and hand tamed it (Sydney was a parent raised wild little thing that couldn’t be touched).  After about 6 months, I started getting an itch for something bigger (maybe a conure).  Well, the call came in and I suddenly found myself driving an hour and a half to go see a Blue and Gold Macaw that I had no idea about!!

Kacey

Here is Kacey’s Story:

In the Winter of 2007 I had the honor of meeting “Sue”.  A breeder of exotic birds and a woman with a big heart.  Not only did Sue breed exotic birds but she also rescued them from time to time from homes that are not so worthy of owning such birds.  She had mentioned to a mutual friend that she had a 10 year old Blue and Gold Macaw that she needed to find a good home for.  She had known the bird for quite some time and it had been shuffled from one neglection home to another over the course of 7 years.  Some abuse had taken place and it was time to find a reputable home that was going to take care of “Kacey”.

On December 22, 2007 Kacey became part of my family…9 months later she became my best friend…

The first time I met Kacey was at Sue’s aviary.  She was extremely untrustworthy and had issues that stemmed from the neglection and abuse she had received from her previous owners.  She ran across the floor at me and attempted to attack.  Thank goodness for Sue being there.  At the time I didn’t know that much about Macaws, let alone being the possible owner of a rescue.  I took Kacey home that night not knowing where this would all lead for me and the relationship I was going to have with a huge bird that had a huge beak!  One that could easily snap my hand off my wrist!  I didn’t trust Kacey and she didn’t trust me.  Music seemed to soothe her anxiety so I would sing “My Girl” by the Temptations…she would swing back and forth in her cage on her swing.  After a week of this she was stepping up without snapping at me.  That was the beginning of her rehabilitation as well as mine.  She never pushed me and I never pushed her…it was always mutual ground.  When she was ready and willing I would take it to the next level.  9 months later I was taking a nap and had left her out on my bed.  I woke up to a big beak making kissing noises on my nose and snuggling in the sheets with me…we were now inseparable.  2 weeks later she flipped over on her back and started kissing me again.  This was her thank you to me as well as her acceptance of me…we were now the best of friends.

Every night before bedtime, Kacey kisses me goodnight.  When I come home from work late at night and it’s dark in the house she says with a whisper, “Shhh, mommy’s home”.  She talks to me all day and we seem to understand what each other is saying.  The reward of having Kacey after 9 months of rehabilitation on both our parts is an emotion that can’t be explained.  It has been the biggest, greatest adventure of my life.  Kacey has the ability to outlive me and she will be my best friend and the biggest accomplishment of my life until the day I take my last breath…

After Kacey, the flock just started growing.  Kacey was the first and she always will be…she is a very strong part of who I am today.  She knew me when I wasn’t sure of myself and where I was going…but she stuck with me and accepted me no matter what!

The following  are excerpts from my website that explains how we acquired Chloe and Sophie…all my birds were rescued and rehabilitated…until Zazu entered my life…

Chloe

Here is Chloe’s Story:

In April of 2008 we had the pleasure of meeting Chloe, a Moluccan Cockatoo that was by far the most comical bird we had ever seen.  After spending many years in a home full of smoke she was covered in nicotine.  Once again, “Sue” our trust worthy aviary owner had rescued this beautiful little girl from an unfit home.  Chloe had issues of not so much plucking her wing feathers, but shredding them.  Her anxiety level was sky high.  Thinking that maybe she should have a mate, Sue’s male Moluccan Cockatoo was looking for a girlfriend.  6 months later, Chloe was part of our family.

We had been talking about adding another bird to our home and it only felt right to bring in another rescue.  We made the phone call to Sue and asked how Chloe was doing in the breeding program.  We were happy to find out that she wasn’t.  Again, trusting our husbandry and the lives of her rescue birds with us, Sue gave us our second rescue girl…Chloe.

Chloe is now the main character in our presentations showing off her many talents like hanging from her beak and flapping her wings from her coop cup on her perch and telling the audience how pretty she is.  Her feather shredding may always be an issue as she has separation anxiety.  With a lot of cuddle time and kisses, she is a bright, comical, spastic little girl that we have tons of fun with.

Sophie

Here’s Sophie’s Story:

This Congo African Grey was an unexpected surprise.  Left at a foreclosed home, in a cage, on the back porch with no food or water Sophie came into our lives and quickly adapted in a matter of weeks.  She was the baby of the family (before Zazu) and acts rightly so.  She was about a year old when we found her.  She loves her food and lets us know when it’s breakfast time and dinner time.  The African Grey is by far one of the most intelligent companion birds.  Sophie picks up on everything that Kacey and Chloe say.  Her favorite words are, “Peek-a-boo” and “Chloe is a pretty girl”.  We are still learning about Sophie on a daily basis.  She is an amazing little bird and despite her beginning in life…she has become a major part of a good home…she is the ultimate Cinderella story.

Zazu

Zazu is “THE BABY” of the flock!  She hasn’t been DNA’d yet but we will call her a she until tests confirm otherwise!!

Zazu is a “Special” bird for me!  After rehabilitating Kacey, one of my dreams was to raise a Blue and Gold Macaw baby and name him/her Zazu (the name of the bird from Disney’s The Lion King).  That dream came true on June 7, 2009.  Zazu was born at my friend Sue’s house.  She was found in the nest after hatching.  The parents of Zazu were first time parents and had bit three of her toes off.  Zazu was compromised from the start.  After attending the Orlando bird show and helping Sue at her booth, all the birds sold except for Zazu.  No one wanted her because of her feet.  She seemed to perch fine and had no problems.  She has no idea that she is handicapped.  Sue wasn’t expecting to go home with any birds that day except for the ones that she was going to purchase…the question came…”Do you want her?”  Well, I ask you, handicapped or not…who wouldn’t take a free 13 week old baby Blue and Gold Macaw home to raise as your own?

Zazu has now become very comfortable in her surroundings…she even flies to me when I’m mixing her formula!  You can bet more blogs about Zazu will be coming as she progresses into a beautiful flighted angel with the help of Dave and Jamie Womach.  They’ve been helping me online with getting Kacey flighted…but that’s another blog for a different day.

I am so excited that they have asked me to write about my experiences with my fids (kids with feathers).  Some of the amazing rescue stories are heartbreaking as well as inspirational!  As for me, I love every minute of it…By the way, my name is Christina Giordano and these are my Angels Of Flight!!!