Lost Cockatiel found in PI
PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Though Donna Riley of Presque Isle loves birds, she’s hoping to return one to its rightful owner.
On Aug. 5, Riley received a telephone call from a friend whose son found a gray Cockatiel — part of the parrot family — in the gravel parking lot of an apartment complex between Griffeth Ford and the University of Maine at Presque Isle.
“The bird had flown from the peak of the apartment to the man’s feet. He called his mom who called me thinking I’d be able to help,” said Riley, “so I went to the apartment complex. They had put a clear storage box over the bird. I knew that Cockatiels absolutely would sell their souls for a sprig of millet, so I brought one with me. Usually you can get them to do anything for you if you get that out because it’s a treat, not an everyday food.
“I lifted the box and at first the bird came over to the millet. I gave it a chance to get used to it. The bird was very hungry. I tried to get it to go on my hand, but it wouldn’t,” she said. “I put the sprig of millet in my hand and that was a different story. The bird climbed right on my hand, and I put my other hand in and put it over the top of it. The bird was so hungry that it didn’t realize the other hand was coming in to get it.”
Riley thanked the person who found the bird and said she would try to find the owner.
“I then put the bird in my car and put the millet in a hat and he sat on the hat and ate the millet all the way home,” she said. Riley has since notified the Central Aroostook Humane Society and the Presque Isle Police Department; however, no one has reported a lost or missing Cockatiel.
Riley, who owns three lovebirds and used to have Cockatiels, has nicknamed the bird Robin after Robinson Crusoe, who was stranded on a deserted island. She said she’s afraid the bird may have belonged to a college student who lived off-campus and let the bird go once school ended in May. Another possibility, she said, is the owner felt overwhelmed by the noise the bird makes, as well as the care and cleaning involved.
“I don’t have any idea how old Robin is, but it’s full grown,” she said. “Males usually have a bright yellow head with a bright orange patch on each cheek, so I’m thinking it’s either female or it could be a full-grown juvenile that hasn’t molted yet.
“Robin is very loving, and loves to get out of the cage and fly around which I allow it to do,” said Riley. “It doesn’t like to go back in the cage though; we have to bribe Robin with millet. Robin really likes my husband, John. I’m happy to keep the bird, but if the owner is out there, I’d like to return it if possible.”
Riley encourages pet owners who feel overwhelmed and unable to continue to care for a bird — or other animal — to not let it out in the wild.
“Please don’t turn them out into the wild because they’re not made to survive up here and they would definitely die,” she said. “They can’t deal with the cold weather.”
Arrangements to return the bird can be made by calling the humane society at 764-3441.
