2017 Year-End Matching Gift Opportunity: Fourth Annual Quita Memorial Challenge Grant!
Final update!
The last of the donation numbers are in - we raised $20,748! Many thanks, again and always, for those of you who gave your hard-earned monies to help us achieve this goal.
As we head into 2018, please remember that regardless of how tax laws are written, these magnificent creatures will continue to need YOUR assistance to heal and find loving permanent homes. Thank you for joining with us as we move forward into the future.
Update: December 31, 11:50 pm
We are excited to report we have raised just over $19 thousand dollars, an amount that will pay for about half a month's veterinary costs. The appreciation we have for the many, Many, MANY of you who gave is beyond words - so we will try expressing it in feelings.
The Quita Memorial Challenge Grant was inspired by one man's love for his parrotlet friend, Quita. That same special relationship between human and bird that all of us at Mickaboo (and all of you who support us) feel, has kept the Mickaboo miracle alive these past 20+ years, and will keep us pushing forward into the future, to continue helping these marvelous, intelligent, beautiful creatures.
Thank you again, to all of you, for making our work possible.
Update: December 30, 11:30 pm
Woohoo - we have collected nearly $14.6K in donations, about enough to pay for 11 days of our veterinary expenses. THANK YOU to the many generous people who have given so far! That said, there is still over $5,000 in Quita Challenge Grant funds left - and the countdown is on to the end of the year when it's GONE.
Please give now in any of these ways, and get your 2017 tax deduction:
- online through PayPal
- at Mickaboo's FaceBook page
- using Mickaboo's website - with either of the "donate" buttons in the left margin
Your funds help birds like Jolie, a gorgeous and smart gray Indian Ringneck. She became part of Mickaboo's rescue flock in 2013 after she landed in a schoolyard and no owner came forward to claim her. Today she lives in a Mickaboo foster home. Jolie happily whistles, loves to fly and take baths, is trained to reliably step up on a perch, and has learned several tricks. And she's a Facebook phenomenon! Learn more about her and how to adopt her at this page.
Give before the year ends to help us continue to help birds like Jolie. Any donation will be appreciated and makes a difference!
Update: December 29, 11:00 pm.jpg)
We have raised $8,000 thanks to the generosity of many of you. There's still $7300 in Quita Challenge Grant funds left - and only two days to use them. Take this opportunity to amplify the impact of your gift - you may give now:
- online through PayPal
- at Mickaboo's FaceBook page
- using Mickaboo's website - with either of the "donate" buttons in the left margin
- via check to Mickaboo, PO Box 697, San Jose, CA 95106
Marshmallow is one of the birds you help through your gifts. He is a Greater Sulphur Crested Cockatoo whose owner died unexpectedly, Noone cared for her birds for some time after her passing. Alerted by and with permission from a friend of the family, Mickaboo stepped in to help and cut the padlocked cage open to rescue him.
Marshmallow has fully recuperated from his ordeal. He is beautiful, fully feathered with a lovely yellow crest. Unlike most cockatoos, he is a very quiet bird and still fears people, but loves to play peek-a-boo and will mimic his humans' movements. He'll come out and sit on top of a cage with other birds in the household. His foster parents can tell him to go home and he will fly to his cage. He is looking for someone who can give him the love and attention he deserves. You may read more about him and express your interest in adopting him here.
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Take action now to help us continue to work with Marshmallow and others like him - the birds and volunteers will appreciate it!
Update: December 28, 10:30 pm.jpg)
We have raised just under $5900, meaning there is $8000 of matching funds left! There's only three days left to use the Quita Challenge Grant funds *and* get a 2017 tax deduction to boot. Take a moment to make a lasting impact by giving now -
- online through PayPal
- Mickaboo's FaceBook page
- Mickaboo's website - use either of the "donate" buttons in the left margin
- via check to Mickaboo, PO Box 697, San Jose, CA 95106
Your financial support enables us to help birds like Baby, a sweet and energetic lady Greenwing Macaw who came to Mickaboo in 2011. Her true age is unknown, but she is probably 10-15 years old - young for a macaw. She was dropped off at a shelter because her owner got sick and could care for her no longer. She was as naked as she is now; a full vet exam determined her to be healthy, albeit naked. Unfortunately many of her feather follicles had been permanently damaged from excessive plucking.
She loves to dance and be sung to. She is also a master of toy destruction! Wood toys are her favorite, but she likes anything she can take apart. Baby will probably always will be a bit feather-less, but she more than makes up for it with her lively personality. As you can tell from her pictures, being naked doesn’t bother her in the least!
Baby had some egg-laying problems this past year, laying four eggs in six weeks, at times becoming egg-bound enough to require emergency veterinary help. A hormone implant placed under her skin has stopped her egg-laying for the last six months.
Baby is available for adoption. If not already adopted, she will be at Mickaboo's Adoption Fair in Carmichael on March 25. She is in a safe and healthy foster home, but she deserves a permanent home where she can be the center of attention. She gets along with men or women and she has no problems being around dogs, cats and human kids. If Baby decides she likes you, you couldn’t ask for a more loyal and loving companion. She is the type that will follow you around the house and she will even help you with washing dishes and folding laundry.
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Won't you take a moment now to save a bird (or more)? Any amount will help and will change the life of a bird for the better. Thank you for considering!
Update: December 27, 10:45 pm
We have collectively raised a tad under $5300 - about 3 days' worth of veterinary expenses to keep our rescue flock healthy. There are thousands of dollars left in the Quita Challenge Grant matching funds! Give online through PayPal, Mickaboo's FaceBook page, or at Mickaboo's website - use either of the "donate" buttons in the left margin - or send a check to Mickaboo, PO Box 697, San Jose, CA 95106.
Your generosity helps birds like Fuzzball, the cockatiel pictured at right. Fuzzball was surrendered with his companion after their owner applied insecticide to their feet, thinking the insecticide would alleviate a suspected scaly mite problem. Instead, the insecticide caused both to start plucking their feathers and to become sick. The owner could not afford the veterinary help the birds needed, and so the birds were surrendered to a local shelter, which then called Mickaboo.
Fuzzball was malnourished when we received him, and has deformed legs and hips which prevent him from standing or walking - but enjoys a good quality of life nonetheless. Fuzzball has recovered to the point where he has started flying himself around!
Over our twenty years of existence, Mickaboo has helped thousands of birds like Fuzzball - help us continue for the next 20 years! Our many birds, now and to come, and the volunteers who serve them, will appreciate you.
Update: December 26, 11 pm
We have raised just shy of $1500 so far, about what we pay for a typical day's worth of our vet bills. There's plenty of matching funds left - help us use it up!
Your gift will help birds like QT. QT is a female Senegal parrot, ~21 years old. This little girl was literally at death's door when she was surrendered to an avian vet, and from there to Mickaboo. She survived, and after a couple of weeks of intensive care she was recovering and thriving at her foster home. She is curious, loves attention and toys and music. And she's a dancer! She has started clicker training and is a very, very fast learner. She was not well-socialized and is learning to step up consistently. She does best with women and her primary caregiver should be female. Interested in learning more about QT? Write to her adoption specialist!
Thank you for enabling us to serve these magnificant creatures.
The volunteers and the 650+ birds they care for at Mickaboo Companion Bird Rescue wish all of you a peaceful holiday season and a Happy New Year!
In the spirit of the season, a generous supporter has created the Fourth Annual Quita Memorial Challenge Grant to honor his beloved parrotlet. For every $3 donated between now and December 31, midnight PT, the Challenge Grant will contribute $1 until the $10,000 in matching funds is used up. Give online through PayPal, or at Mickaboo's website - use either of the "donate" buttons in the left margin.
Because of your generosity, this year Mickaboo was able to take in over 220 birds (most notably during July's epic aviary rescue), find permanent homes for more than 230, and are now caring for 650+ companion birds of all types, from finches to macaws. Our foster parents provide a warm and loving environment for each of these beautiful, intelligent beings while other volunteers find suitable adopters. Consider starting your new year by opening your home to one of our special birds!
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One of these special birds is Peetie, a gorgeous lorikeet. Her former owners had had her for 15 years, and were forced to surrender her due to their own health challenges. Peetie imitates many sounds - so far her foster family has heard: Peetie girl, Take a bath, Hey!, What are you doing, Pretty bird, Night night, Bye bye, Are you being bad, OK, and Hello. She also imitates perfectly a woman's sneeze, and whistles like she's calling a dog.
Help us help birds like Peetie during this Challenge Grant; doing so now makes your gift go further – while allowing you a valuable year-end tax deduction.
Watch this space for news about some of the other birds you help, and our fundraising progress, during this Challenge Grant!