Macaws suffering from virus

Two of the Macaws rescued from the home of Richard Prince. Photo: BRYAN KELSENThe flock of tropical birds confiscated from an East Side home Wednesday will be transferred out of Pueblo for treatment of an infectious virus.

  The 43 macaw parrots, confiscated from a house at 507 E. 12th St., will be turned over today to the Gabriel Foundation, a Colorado-based nonprofit, which cares for tropical birds that are unwanted, neglected or abandoned.

  The colorful birds have papillomatosis, according to Rick Ellison, director of operations for the foundation. Symptoms, depending on the case and kind of bird, can cause breathing and swallowing problems, to vomiting and loss of appetite.

  The foundation has about 500 birds in its facilities in Elizabeth, Denver and Florida, but because of this flock's illness, the birds will have to be quarantined elsewhere.

  "We're frantically trying to obtain temporary housing," Ellison said Thursday. "(The birds) will stay together, but ultimately we'll try and rent a small warehouse facility nearby one of ours so our staff can care for these birds."

   The homeowner is Richard Prince, according to the Pueblo County Assessor's Web site.

  Donna Straub, director of the Pueblo Animal Shelter, didn't identify the bird's owner but said he's an 85-year-old man whose family built the house in the 1920s. The man reportedly has raised birds for years.

"Neighbors said he's even had ostriches over there," Straub said. "Back (when the house was built) there was no zoning, so he was grandfathered in. That tells you how long he's been there."

  Although the birds were malnourished and neglected, Straub said there likely won't be any charges filed.

  "There was certainly neglect, but I don't know if it was intentional neglect."

  Three birds died before the rest could be rescued. The home in which the flock was living has been condemned by the health department and had no heat. Neighbors were unsure whether anyone lived there.

  "Some people thought he lived there, others said he didn't, some said he came and went," Straub said.

  More than 100 pigeons and some dogs and cats live on the property and will be cared for by family members.

  News of the birds' rescue has garnered attention across the nation. People from as far away as Alabama and Florida have contacted The Pueblo Chieftain about possibly adopting the birds.

  Straub said the birds’ fate is unknown.

  "They'll be held to get the care they need and until a decision is made by the court or the family."

  Ellison said the Gabriel Foundation has received and rescued as many as 111 exotic birds at once and are needing donations right now to help care for the birds from Pueblo.

  Donations can be made at www.thegabrielfoundation.org/