Cockatoo Ranch - HEART

11/08/2025

Here Shami is showcasing another great product from the Rock Star Rescue Tour, this one donated by My Safe Bird Store, owned by the fabulous Kathie Hahn

08/08/2025

This has some wonderful information that I wish more breeders, as well as rescues would become familiar with, as it can really help with quality of life .
when we know better, we can do better.

The Early Parrot Education (EPE) & Weaning Program is designed to align with a young parrot's key developmental stages. This program provides essential lessons for a parrot's life as a companion animal, with initial stages implemented by breeders. Retailers and pet owners can continue the program wi...

05/08/2025

23/07/2025

Zephie is demonstrating a really cool example of contrafreeloading , that is when an animal chooses to work for the exact same food that is readily available to them.
In this case, she has a bowl of it up by her hanging play gym, instead she chose to fly over here, rip the bag open and yeah, you can see how it went from there, I’m just here to serve them 🤣

23/07/2025

This was shared in a private group, I felt it was important to share outside of that.
So many people are getting misinformation from vets and the internet about ABV. One hour in he talks about the fact you can have them in your flock without worrying.
Thankfully I have a knowledgeable vet, so I didn’t do that to them.

PDD (proventicular dilitation disease) has a new and better descriptive name - Avian Ganglioneuritis (AGN). AGN is often correlated with avian bornavirus - b...

19/05/2025

Happy Monday village, I have a huge announcement, while I understand it’s long, when you read it, you will understand why.

For those of you in the bird world, the name Juli Sands probably rings a bell. She’s the creator behind Circle of Life Avian Collars—a woman whose collars have literally saved countless birds’ lives. But more than that, she’s someone who built an incredible flock of her own and has spent years doing educational outreach and advocating for parrot welfare.

Years ago, Juli and I had a conversation: if the day ever came when she needed to start a new chapter, her flock would come to me. That was a long-standing understanding—not a sudden or impulsive decision.

Back in 2021, she reached out, her husband’s COPD was worsening, and she was trying to manage everything alone. At the time, I encouraged her to wait—I didn’t feel it was quite right yet, so agreeing with me, she made major changes to her home to try to make it possible to help her husband‘s lungs, as well as keep the birds lives enriched.

They moved them downstairs, purchased air purifiers, etc., and she continued loving and caring for her flock.

Then she blew out her knee, so the last two years or so, stairs have become a daily obstacle, and with her husband physically unable to help, spending real quality time with her birds—cleaning, caring, just being with them—became less and less sustainable.

Anyone who’s had even a couple of parrots knows: this isn’t a hobby. This is a full-time, physically demanding commitment. She didn’t make this decision lightly. She made it out of love, because she knew they deserved more than what she could give in this season of life.

There are too many heartbreaking cases where people cling to animals they can no longer care for, letting everyone—human and bird—suffer for it. Juli chose better. She chose what was right, not what was easy. And I have nothing but deep respect for that.

So now, her beloved flock is here.

Tango, the macaw, has gone to my rescue partner Megan—and it looks like she’s going to stay right there with her.
Angel, the male umbrella cockatoo I was admittedly nervous about having room for, is surprisingly bonding beautifully with Oswald. My heart is full watching them.
Zephie, an amazing female big pink, settled into the girls room as if she had been there forever. I thought Nick was going to stuff her in his shirt and run when he was here Saturday 🤣
Saquarra, a male Major Mitchell’s is bonded to Pegasus, so their transition was also easy as they have each other.
Pegasus, a handsome male Ducorp cockatoos is already showing his big personality.
Zoe, a female African Grey is a little nervous but steps up readily and likes to sit on the play gym on and off throughout the day.
I had told Juli I would keep them, and that remains the plan.
God had a hand in the timing of all this—recent adoptions made the space, although tight, doable.

My husband made the trip to Minnesota with an 16 foot trailer and brought them, and everything they came with, home safely. They arrived one week ago today.

Let me be crystal clear about this next part:

This was an act of love, not failure.

This was a commitment fulfilled, not a decision made overnight.

If anyone feels entitled to criticize her, question her, or gossip about this move, please understand you will get no grace from me, just my teeth.

If you truly care about birds, then you know this was the kind of choice we need more people to be brave enough to make.

She is a perfect example of our mission statement,

We are responsible for what we have captured, and when we know better, we should do better.

Juli will continue to make her Circle of Life Avian Collars—so she will continue to be involved in the avian community.

08/05/2025

Look village, after waiting for so long !!!!


Dive into the fascinating tale of a woman raised in a cult whose journey of healing through teaching her parrot, Ellie, to read has reshaped our understanding of interspecies communication. Parrot Kindergarten is a captivating documentary that delves into the groundbreaking research of Jen, a resili...

11/03/2025

I always try share things that benefit animals, or parrots, regardless of where the information comes from, except for one person .
Those of you that personally know me know that I, on a personal level, have NO respect for Pamela Clark, and even though some of her material is good, I had stopped sharing it because she literally makes me want to vomit and cry every time I think about her.
So please understand how important I feel this article is, that I am willing to share it.
It breaks my heart when I see these people throwing 2, 3, 4 blankets over their birds cages, because they were told they were supposed to be blacked out for 12 hours… they show up here like that and well I might do it the first night or two, but that’s it, they don’t want it.
I had one who needed a little Blankey to sleep with at the bottom of his cage, but not having it covered.
Parrots get up and eat, play with toys, etc., all throughout the night. People want to believe that because it makes it OK to do this injustice to them.
I tell people if you really believe that is needed then you should lock yourself, or your child in a closet with no light, no stimulation, etc., for the same amount of time and see how that works out for you .


Companion parrots do not need 12 hours of uninterrupted sleep each night. They do not require total darkness, sleep cages, blackout curtains, or lighting designed to mimic gradual sunrise and sunse…

08/03/2025

 There are so many videos out there showing all of the fun, amazing things that cockatoos do … I want to show you the other side of what they do, when we don’t provide for them as we should. I have had Coco here for over a year, and spite of cold laser, medications, enrichment, better diet etc she still wants to mutilate her chest.
She has been doing it for years, so there might be permanent nerve damage, only time will tell .
 There is another lady on Facebook, who is dealing with the same thing with a male M-2 named Dino.
She knows what it’s like to wake up in the middle of the night and check on the cameras, to make sure your bird hasn’t gotten out of their vest and is self harming, the expense, the constant repairs to have that torn apart faster than you can fix, so then you resort to duct tape .
Dino’s owner is one of my heroes, because I know firsthand what she is going through .

25/01/2025

Join us!! 🥰

Parrot Kindergarten premieres February 5, 2025 as a Feature Film at Santa Barbara International Film Festival 🥹

Tickets: https://sbiff.org/

From wherever you are, it would be an absolute honor to have you come join and celebrate with us! 🤗

Her premiere will be on the Big Screen - with a second showing Friday, February 7, too! (In a giant (giant!) theater again!)

I know it might be a bit of a distance - if you'd like to come (from near or far), message me! We've got a busy WhatsApp chat group planning all the fun things we'll be doing, matching Ellie t-shirts, hats, planning hotels...!!!!

Come party and celebrate--

And most of all, please share far and wide with all your friends! We'd love to let the world know how very much we love and value animal sentience!

Now we begin film sales.. :)

With a little luck (and a big splash) Netflix might be next 😍

I would love soooooo much to see you and celebrate our girl together!

AND DON'T FORGET - message me if you're coming and I'll add you to the WhatsApp chat for planning and fun!!

31/12/2024

Here is Dr. O explaining Red Roses radiographs, not good news 😞
I have been negligent on posting things on the rescue page, so I’m going to be working on that.
This gorgeous girl is the same age as me, so I’m going to share my birthday with her since, we don’t know her exact hatch date…. I think we’re both gonna be eligible for free coffee this year lol if that still starts at 55. 


03/12/2024

Happy Tuesday village, I am sharing the link to our PayPal, any money donated today is automatically part of giving Tuesday 😎
Your support is always appreciated . 


Help support Holliday s exotic avian rescue team by donating or sharing with your friends.