DEE THOMPSON of Savage is passionate about parrots - so much so that she is bringing about a half-dozen exquisite birds to the Savage library next week for a presentation.
But her mission won't be to persuade folks to flock to the pet shop to purchase a parrot. In fact, Thompson plans to do just the opposite. She is hoping to convince children, and their parents, that birds belong in the wild, not in the home.
Forget "Polly wants a cracker." Polly really wants to fly for miles every day, surrounded by avian creatures of her own ilk.
"There's nothing natural about a bird in a cage," said Thompson, 57, founder of Parrot Rescue Maryland. "They must be raised with other birds so they learn how to be a bird."
Thompson used to spend a lot of time in the skies herself - she was a flight attendant for 21 years before joining the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center as a caretaker working with endangered birds.
She started Parrot Rescue at her home in 1986, when she took in 15 needy exotic birds for care and rehabilitation. Her flock has since grown into a full-time - and overtime - endeavor.
She handles upward of 200 feathered clients each year and conducts educational outreach seminars throughout the region to enlighten people about the realities of bird care.
"People don't know what to expect from a bird," Thompson said. "People think the bird will sit there and be quiet and pretty."
Judging by the hundreds of castoffs she has cared for, what people come to learn firsthand about coping with a cockatiel or managing a macaw is less than pleasant.
For starters, birds are downright wild. "They won't act wild; they are wild," Thompson said. "We can't turn something that is truly wild into a domesticated pet."
Unlike exuberant puppies and mischievous kittens, birds do not settle down with age and acquiesce to the human lifestyle. In fact, they may become more unruly as they approach adolescence, Thompson said.
"We isolate them in these little cages where they can hardly flap their wings," she said. "If you put a bird in a cage and ignore it, you're going to have problems." These problems include excessive noisiness, self-mutilation and a host of other disorders.
Then there is the longevity issue. Thompson says that some species of parrots can live to be 35 years old. "People don't have the patience to care for something for decades," she said. "They outlive people's interest."
