In Loving Memory

“Those we have held in our arms for a little while, we hold in our hearts forever.”

-Khalil Gibran

 Most parrots who come to call Free Flight "home" join our flock in the midst of their middle-age to senior years, having lived with and loved their previous humans throughout most of their lives. It's an incredible gift to assist them in this huge transition, get to know their unique personalities and preferences, and ultimately support them in either finding a fantastic new adoptive family or enjoying permanent sanctuary with us throughout the remainder of their life. Here, we give thanks and share fond memories of beloved residents who’ve crossed the rainbow bridge.

Ziggy

Born in the early 1950's, Ziggy and his best friend/ 'seeing-eye bird' (a blue and gold macaw named "Lapis") joined our resident flock in April 2015. (Ziggy had a long history of cataracts and was deemed fully blind in 2018). Despite their advanced age, Ziggy and Lapis were full of energy - constantly getting up to mischief together and amusing our staff with their antics! Lapis was rather protective of Ziggy, and Ziggy in turn, was happy to spend his afternoons preening and cuddling with him. Sadly, Lapis passed away in late 2019, so Ziggy turned to his most trusted members of our staff for comfort and company. (In the right mood, he'd lean in for a scritch, preen their hair, and occasionally let out a soft chuckle!)

In his later years, Ziggy often preferred his own company. His favorite daily activities became sunbathing on his favorite outdoor perch, taking afternoon naps (or baths in his water bowl) in the sun, enjoying gentle scritches from his favorite humans, and capturing the hearts of our visitors as he searched carefully through their bowls with his beak to find tasty treats.

Ziggy was also something of a local celebrity! Over the last 10 years, he inspired countless artists of all mediums with his sweet personality and uniquely clouded eyes. Artwork inspired by Ziggy was even displayed at an art show in New York City!

Our staff are so grateful for the decade he shared with us - and for the thousands of lives he impacted as he helped us demonstrate the importance of considering parrot lifespans and the unique needs parrots may face as they age before adopting a feathered friend.

Red

Red came to Free Flight in December 2014 and quickly gained a reputation as the “friendliest” macaw in the flock!

As a 14 year old greenwing, his calm yet playful manner was truly a delight to experience. Red would greet staff first thing in the morning in his deep voice by calling out “Hi Red!” and then imitate the sound of the supply cart’s squeaky wheels moving as though indicating he knew our morning husbandry chores were about to begin.

During the day, Red charmed visitors with his curious personality, goofy dance moves, and joyous response to bath time. ( Seriously, we’ve yet to meet another macaw that loves bath time as much as Red!). At each day’s end, Red joined in with the flock’s cacophonous exclamations of joy at the sight of their evening meal. Depending on the day, his vocal contributions might include calls of “Red Bird!, Red Red!” or imitations of a car alarm.

We will always be grateful for the nearly 9 years Red shared with us and our community. He taught so many people that parrots are amazing and worthy of our love, respect, and protection!

Kiki

As our most frequent boarder, Kiki was an honorary member of the Free Flight flock for thirty two years!

Kiki came to Free Flight each morning when her mom went to work and served as our unofficial greeter! As new arrivals came to the gate, she’d make her presence in the entryway aviary known with calls of “Hi Kiki! Kiki Bird! What are you doing?” and various other sweet phrases. Then, at the end of the day, she’d calmly climb off her perch, walk out of her aviary, and step straight into her carrier, ready for the car ride home.

While Kiki adored everyone, her absolute favorite visitors were babies! Whenever a stroller approached, you’d see her crest feathers rise as she bounced happily and began vocalizing to attract the adult’s attention in hopes they’d bring their child closer for her to see.

Kiki was also an incredible example of avian resilience. After undergoing treatment for a brain tumor, she not-only far outlived her predicted life-expectancy, but did so with daily exuberance and joie de vivre.

Peanut

Moluccan Cockatoo, Peanut, was relinquished to Free Flight in 2014 with her sister ( a blind moluccan cockatoo) , Malcolm. Having permanently damaged her skin follicles in one of her previous homes, Peanut proudly lived every day in her birthday suit! She had a wide vocabulary, including “Hi, Hello, Hi Peanut, Hi girl, Step up, and I love you!” She also loved to blow kisses and dance while people clapped and chanted “peanut, peanut, peanut!”

Peanut loved visitors of all ages, and was happy to spend all day outside if the weather was nice. But, if there was so much as a gentle breeze, she’d start imitating the sound of chattering teeth! (Sometimes, she’d also jump off her perch and start running inside on her own, too!). If she was inside, Peanut could often be found swinging upside down from the top of her enclosure, using her long legs and agile toes to steal food from her downstairs neighbor’s food bowl, or destroying wood toys at the speed of light!

We loved every minute of the 10 years Peanut shared with us at Free Flight!

Pluto

Pluto’s early history is a bit of a mystery. He was relinquished to Free Flight as an elderly parrot in 2009 with little information - not even his age or an estimated hatch date! Throughout his years at Free Flight, however, Pluto’s medical records quickly came to include documentation (and removal) of a lipoma on his chest, a ping-pong ball-sized cyst-like growth on his underside, arthritis in his feet, early signs of fatty liver disease, and notable vision and hearing loss with age.

Pluto was known to be rather ornery most of the time…. well, except for when his best friend, yellow-naped amazon “Seymour” was around to chat to! When placed on neighboring perches outside in the sun, the pair would chatter and whistle away all day long!

After Seymour’s passing, Pluto still preferred avian company over human interaction, but he suddenly developed a new habit. Instead of eating his evening meal when he came inside at the end of each day, Pluto started waiting until the humans (Free Flight staff) arrived the next morning. Then, he’d chirp excitedly and dive straight in! In his own way, he’d come to identify us (the humans) as his ‘flock’ instead of the other parrots! He was waiting for us to join him for breakfast!

After residing in sanctuary with us for 14 years, we sure miss our daily breakfast dates with this grumpy guy!

Icarus

Congo African Grey, Icarus, was well known (and loved) by our staff long before he became a full-time resident. He’d been a loyal boarding client for years ahead of time! So, although he was only a resident of our sanctuary for a little over a year, he holds a special place in our hearts! At the age of 29, and with a previous history of seizures, we welcomed Icarus to our permanent resident flock in June 2023;

Like most greys, Icarus was an introvert at heart. He loved being out in the sunshine around our other resident greys - but he still preferred to maintain a “personal space bubble,” where the other greys were located on nearby perches (so he could observe them, without getting too close).

He also had adept musical talents! Icarus often demonstrated his knowledge of wild bird songs (especially sparrow, house finch, and crow) while enjoying the sunshine outside. In the comfort of his private indoor space, he’d join trusted staff in dancing and singing along to music, too!

As an older grey (29!), it came as no surprise when, over time, Icarus began to show symptoms of additional age-related challenges. Gradually, he became fully Deaf and Blind. (Somehow, though, he still had no trouble identifying his favorite people or picking out his favorite treats (oranges!) from his produce bowl each day). Age never stopped him from enjoying a sunny day, a tasty snack, a gentle scritch, or an afternoon nap. In such a short time, he reminded us all to enjoy the small things.