Home > Help Us > Gimme Shelter! > Issue 5: October 2005 > Jake: It Ain't Easy Being Green

Jake: It Ain't Easy Being Green

Jake is a Cherry-headed Conure with a fuzzy grey breast and a huge personality in a little green body; he is full of sugar and spice and lots of strong opinions about who he does and does not like. Jake was placed with MAARS in when his guardian became pregnant; he became very protective and possessive of her and made it clear that her husband had become an unwelcome interloper.

When Marisa started volunteering at The Landing during Spring 2005, it was love at first sight for Jake — Marisa took a little more time before declaring her love for this feisty little guy. Last week she had this update for us on how things are going now that Jake has moved in with her:

He still gets nippy, but I have come to recognize the signs of over-excitement. He will start hissing and rubbing his beak on whatever he is sitting on. Then I find the perch ASAP and get him to a quieter place. When I do get nipped, I calmly tell him that biting is not allowed and put him in his cage to calm down. After 5–10 minutes he's ready to come out and join me again.

He is definitely making steps in the right direction. He's starting to learn how nice it feels to get his head scritched and that there are real advantages to being a good boy. Jakey will occasionally lay on his back in my hand and let me rub his cheeks. He loves to sit on the shower door and talk to me while I'm in the shower. As soon as I turn the water on, he looks at me and yells, "I'm up! I'm up!" He also yells, "Goodbye!" when I leave the house. He's a big preener, and loves to preen my hair; he gets quite upset when it's time to stop. I have a cardboard box with paper inside in his cage for him to root around and generally go crazy in. You should see him tearing the heck out of the paper and growling. He looks like a bear mauling something!! He used to like to make his nest under my bed. This was a problem because that's where the bunnies like to hang out. I would hear Jakey growling and then see a bunny shoot out from underneath the bed.

Sounds like a match to us!

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The MAARS Annual Membership Program gives you and our other loyal MAARS Supporting Flock Members the opportunity to help MAARS on an ongoing, sustaining basis. Your annual financial contribution will allow us to continue to provide and expand our valuable rescue, intake, care, veterinary and behavioral evaluation and treatment, adoption, sanctuary, outreach, and educational services for the displaced captive birds who we meet and the people whose lives they touch.

With so little, you can do so much to change the lives of birds like Jake. On average, it takes $1.00 per day to care for each MAARS bird. Every small donation makes a big difference, and big donations help even more. Your participation in the MAARS Annual Membership Program will help save and improve the lives of hundreds of parrots and other displaced captive birds.

Please join MAARS today! Give them shelter! Ease their pain! Stop the cycle! And know that you made one corner of the world a better place for another living creature!

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Mail a check or money order made out to "MAARS" to: MAARS, 1360 University Ave W #347, St. Paul, MN 55104.

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Midwest Avian Adoption & Rescue Services, Inc., is recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization (Federal ID# 41-1944074) and is registered with the Office of the Secretary of State and the Office of the Attorney General of Minnesota as a charitable organization. All donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.

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