Heart & Soul: The MickaCoo Pigeon & Dove Foster Network
MickaCoo Pigeon & Dove Rescue could not save the lives of so many birds (more than 500 since 2007) without the incredible care that the foster volunteers provide, 24/7, 365 days a year. They are the heart and soul of MickaCoo. Currently we have 11 volunteer foster sites (stretching from Santa Cruz to Novato) that range in capacity from 1 bird cared for indoors to 20 outside and, all together, we have high-quality, uncrowded foster space for 104 birds (and currently a list of 9 waiting to come in).
This post introduces many (but not all) of our foster volunteers.
Clare and her husband Bob rescued a very lucky baby pigeon named Peggy Sue back in 2007 and have since adopted two more (Claudette- pictured with Clare- and Dupree) and they also opened their hearts and homes to a very special (and very challenging) foster aviary- The Old Lady Pigeons' Retirement Home. It is a hospice and sanctuary for rescued pigeons that need a quiet refuge (like the late and much missed Dee Dee Detroit).
Marsha of Santa Cruz has adopted 4 doves, 13 pigeons and fosters another 12 pigeons. She also volunteers at adoption events and is coordinating the solicitation of donations for MickaCoo's participation in Mickaboo's Holiday Party & Silent Auction.
Janelle of Oakland is our newest foster. On 7/16, she found a ringneck dove (now named Tutti) standing lost, hungry and helpless on the sidewalk near her home and now, not only is she fostering him but she is fostering another dove found similarly (in Marin County) and she and her partner are setting up a donated foster aviary for special needs pigeons in their backyard!
In the fall of 2008, Cheryl rescued a stray king pigeon that was trying to survive on the scraps he could beg from patrons of Cheer's Bar in Pacifica. She reached out to MickaCoo for help and of course- we were full (even back then)! I told her that we didn't have an open foster spot for Dovee at the moment but that we could help her learn to care for him. Cheryl not only rose to the challenge of caring for Dovee (whom she has since adopted and who I call SUPER DOVEE!), she has become a HUGE source of support to MickaCoo and to me. Cheryl has fostered countless pigeons and doves, both indoors and outside and has built a big, wonderful aviary that houses her now 6 pet pigeons and up to 14 fosters. Cheryl also contributes many hours every week assisting with rescues like that of 10 homing pigeons from Cal State Hayward and the 216 Persian High Flyers, transporting pigeons and doves timed out of shelters and introducing hundreds of people to MickaCoo at adoption fairs from San Jose to Sacramento and everywhere in between.
Mickaboo volunteer Sherri of Union City also opens her home and heart to foster sick, baby pigeons including the famous Peppermint and most recently an emaciated baby homing pigeon named Robin.
Cathy of San Jose has been helping Mickaboo Companion Bird Rescue to rescue pigeons and doves since before MickaCoo was even created. Cathy is one of our most experienced and knowledgeable volunteers and someone to whom we often turn for help with our toughest cases. She's also our dove expert (assisted by her little friend Emily as seen below).
In January 2010, I was contacted by Suzanne and her family because they wanted to build an aviary to foster rescued king pigeons. My reply was, "Pinch me because I must be dreaming!" and let me tell you, dreams do come true because in May 2010, we moved the first incredibly lucky birds into this gorgeous, custom-built king pigeon aviary in Newark. They have saved many, many lives by providing a wonderful, caring foster home to birds that would have otherwise been euthanized.
One of our newest foster volunteers, Russ of Gilroy, enabled us to save the lives of 216 (!!!) rescued Persian High Flyers by expertly caring for the entire flock until while we found homes for them all (with which he also helped). Russ is moving and downsizing and so MickaCoo no longer has this incredible foster resource but his loft and wonderful generosity was there just in time when we needed it and saved the whole flock.
This year we partnered with the SF SPCA's Humane Education Program and, as a result, added foster capacity for 6 pigeons, introduced more than 600 Summer Animal Campers to the plight of homeless birds (making a lot of new friends for pigeons) and, to date, have received more than $600 in donated funds.
In October of 2010, Jaclyn and Roderick found more than 25 king pigeons that had been dumped in the Our Lady of Peace Church parking lot in San Jose and, after many hours spent, were able to rescue 16 of them. All but one of the birds they rescued, despite the terrible condition they were in, survived and most have been adopted. Jaclyn still fosters for MickaCoo.
Clare and her husband Bob rescued a very lucky baby pigeon named Peggy Sue back in 2007 and have since adopted two more (Claudette- pictured with Clare- and Dupree) and they also opened their hearts and homes to a very special (and very challenging) foster aviary- The Old Lady Pigeons' Retirement Home. It is a hospice and sanctuary for rescued pigeons that need a quiet refuge (like the late and much missed Dee Dee Detroit).
Mickaboo's Volunteer Director of Fundraising & Outreach, Pam Lee (pictured in conversation with rescued king pigeon Rocky), doesn't foster birds for MickaCoo but her tireless efforts coordinating outreach and fundraisers that MickaCoo tags along for are such a tremendous support that it can be said that Pam fosters MickaCoo!
Marsha of Santa Cruz has adopted 4 doves, 13 pigeons and fosters another 12 pigeons. She also volunteers at adoption events and is coordinating the solicitation of donations for MickaCoo's participation in Mickaboo's Holiday Party & Silent Auction.
MickaCoo and the unreleasable pigeons of the Bay Area are extremely fortunate to have the ongoing support of the Marin Humane Society. MHS has frequently served as a life-saving, emergency foster home for healthy, strong but homeless pigeons that MickaCoo is too full to save from the shelters where they are timing out. Their large barn-loft aviary with indoor and outdoor access provides top-notch quality of shelter life for birds, allowing them to live as a flock (instead of isolated in the small kennels available at other shelters) and giving them access to fresh air, sunshine, rain and lots of room to stretch out and be birds.
Janelle of Oakland is our newest foster. On 7/16, she found a ringneck dove (now named Tutti) standing lost, hungry and helpless on the sidewalk near her home and now, not only is she fostering him but she is fostering another dove found similarly (in Marin County) and she and her partner are setting up a donated foster aviary for special needs pigeons in their backyard!
In the fall of 2008, Cheryl rescued a stray king pigeon that was trying to survive on the scraps he could beg from patrons of Cheer's Bar in Pacifica. She reached out to MickaCoo for help and of course- we were full (even back then)! I told her that we didn't have an open foster spot for Dovee at the moment but that we could help her learn to care for him. Cheryl not only rose to the challenge of caring for Dovee (whom she has since adopted and who I call SUPER DOVEE!), she has become a HUGE source of support to MickaCoo and to me. Cheryl has fostered countless pigeons and doves, both indoors and outside and has built a big, wonderful aviary that houses her now 6 pet pigeons and up to 14 fosters. Cheryl also contributes many hours every week assisting with rescues like that of 10 homing pigeons from Cal State Hayward and the 216 Persian High Flyers, transporting pigeons and doves timed out of shelters and introducing hundreds of people to MickaCoo at adoption fairs from San Jose to Sacramento and everywhere in between.
The Wulf Family of Berkeley refurbished this big, wonderful aviary specifically to provide a foster home to rescued king pigeons. MickaCoo has a policy of always striving to place birds in forever homes that are as good or better than their foster home and the Wulf Aviary makes that quite a challenge!
In 2009, Lucy Tolmach, Director of Horticulture at the Filoli Estate in Woodside reached out to MickaCoo (after a volunteer saw an article about us in the SF Chronicle) and adopted some extremely lucky king pigeons (all the animals at Filoli are rescues) and has been an incredibly supportive partner to MickaCoo ever since, including fostering as many as 14 doves at a time.
Mickaboo volunteer Sherri of Union City also opens her home and heart to foster sick, baby pigeons including the famous Peppermint and most recently an emaciated baby homing pigeon named Robin.
Shae of Fairfax rescued a king pigeon that she named Luna and loved and cared for for 13 years and recently has joined MickaCoo as an adopter (of Quince & Yuzu), volunteer and foster provider.
Alice is a long-time pigeon rescuer who has cared for many (long before MickaCoo began) including a rescued baby feral pigeon named Bee Bee whose broken back left her unable to use her legs but, in many ways, didn't slow her down at all. Alice recently adopted her special needs foster, Francis and is one of MickaCoo's go-to volunteer for meeting the special needs of birds in our care.
Mickaboo volunteer and licensed avian vet technician of Hayward Louisa has fostered some of MickaCoo's most at-risk rescues including Tina & Tony.
And I foster some MickaCoo birds, too (a couple hundred since I started doing this in 2007). I have a backyard coop that houses 5 of my pet pigeons and anywhere from 10-18 foster pigeons and an indoor triple flight cage for special needs and recovering fosters and an outdoor "day cage" for special needs birds to get sun and fog and fresh air even if they're not ready for the fast lane of life in the coop.
And there are so many domestic and unreleasable pigeons and doves at risk of euthanasia in Bay Area shelters that, even with all this, we STILL need more fosters and adopters to meet the demand. As I type this, we have 5 birds on our waiting list. It's easy and fun to help save the lives of these lovely birds and these links can help you to get involved-
posted by Elizabeth at
5:46 PM
4 Comments:
Cheers to all the wonderful people who keep MickaCoo running. :)
I live in an apt complex in San Jose The apt across from mine are two does that are kept in a very small bird cage They have no room to move about I think they are crying for help It is sad to see them in that small cage Who can I call to get them help?
Thank you for noticing their plight and advocating for them. Can you please uake some photos and send them to me at AdoptKings at gmail dot com?
This comment has been removed by the author.
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home