"Thirty-one hook-billed, brightly feathered macaws make a big noise in the blue house as a plethora of parrots parrot the calls from the aviary that looks suspiciously like a converted garage.

From the birdhouse that serves as office and aviary to a dozen outdoor pens, the screech, creak and caw of exotic birds abandoned, surrendered and confiscated echoes across the grounds.

It may not be a jungle at the Central Virginia Parrot Sanctuary, but with 31 macaws, 40 cockatiels, 10 parakeets, 20 African grays, 20 conures, eight Quaker parrots and one quail, it sure sounds like one.

“It can get pretty loud,” laughed Matt Smith, the man behind the mission. “It’s hard to believe that people will buy some of these birds and try to keep them in an apartment. They can be very vocal.”

Smith, 30, is the mind behind Project Perry, the organization that created the bird sanctuary outside of Louisa. Approved by national organizations that monitor rescue missions, the sanctuary provides a permanent home for exotic birds.

Still wild

“People see the birds and they’re cute and they’re pretty and some can talk and so they buy them,” Smith said. “But these birds aren’t like dogs or cats. They’re still very much wild animals.

Some of them are 30 years old and were actually taken from the jungles of South America. The birds grow up and can become neurotic — sometimes very neurotic — and they act like birds in the wild. That causes problems.”

Smith didn’t grow up with birds but a move to New Hampshire and a trip to a pet store changed that.

“I bought a conure named Perry from a store because the store said it made a great pet. I was naive. I figured if they said it made a great pet, they must be telling the truth. They wouldn’t just sell them for profit,” Smith recalled. “Perry got sick and died very young from a disease that I believe came from breeding. That led me to visit a sanctuary in Massachusetts and got me on the rescue track.”

Smith worked with various bird rescue groups in New England. When his family bought land near Louisa, he built the home as a birdhouse with a bedroom and office space. What would normally be a garage or family room are breed-specific aviaries. The outdoor enclosures make room for more birds and several others are planned, including a large, free-flight aviary.

“It’s the birds’ house. They just let me have a room,” he laughed.

The sanctuary has accepted birds given up by owners. He’s also received birds from breeding mills and hoarders who lock birds in cages with little human contact.

Most of the sanctuary’s African grays arrived from a breeder who surrendered a dozen of the birds and three of another species. The 31 macaws were seized recently by Orange County officials from breeders who kept the birds locked in cages and under tarps. Those breeders have been charged with cruelty and neglect.

Keeping 31 birds in locked cages specifically for breeding is not illegal, Smith said.

“There are laws that limit the number of dogs but there are no laws that restrict how many birds you can have and no regulations on breeding,” Smith said. “Some of these macaws are 20 or 30 years old and have lived their whole lives locked in a cage and used for breeding. They aren’t birds that you can adopt. They’ll be here for years.”

Smith said owners often turn in their birds because of fowl traits. He said birds mate for life and imprint to a person as a mate. Other people or animals that infringe on that relationship, including spouses and babies, are subject to punishment through aggressive behavior or “vocalization.” Locking the birds in a cage only makes it worse.

Plus, birds may live to be as old as 80 and often no other family members are interested in the pets.

“It’s very hard to adopt birds out because good homes for birds are few and far between,” Smith said. “Birds need free-flight capability and a lot of attention. Birds that have not been handled are not suitable for adopting and our first concern is for the birds.”

People who’ve adopted agree. Peggy Kenworthy nabbed a parrot from a friend and, two years later, convinced it she was trustworthy. When the bird died, she turned to Project Perry for a replacement. Gus, a surly, surrendered African gray, adopted her.

Hello there

“I walked in the room and Gus said, ‘Hello.’ I said hello back, put my hand in his cage because the door was wide open and Gus walked up my arm to my shoulder. We walked into the sunroom and he talked and sang to me for a long while. When we came back into the room where Matt was, Matt said, ‘Gus just adopted you.’ I learned that before meeting me, Gus would not let anybody handle him. Matt said Gus hated him.”

Because bird ownership can be tricky, if not a bit onerous, the sanctuary is careful about who it lets adopt birds. In fact, adopters are expected to volunteer at the sanctuary to get to know the bird and make sure bird and owner bond.

“We want the adoption to be successful, but if a bird doesn’t like the owner, it’s not going to be a happy combination,” Smith said. “Unfortunately, that often happens. That’s why we’re here.”" (Bryan McKenzie, The Daily Progress, May 26, 2008)