HOUSTON – About four dozen parakeets are safe after they were rescued from a park in west Harris County.
Kati Speer Krouse with Bears Etc., a local rescue group, found the parakeets roosting in the trees at Fiorenza Park in the Alief area around 1 p.m. Wednesday.
According to Krouse’s original Facebook post showing the multitude of birds, she suspected that the animals might have been dumped by a pet store or distributor.
She and other rescuers worked to capture as many as they could, but at least five were attacked by a falcon that was roaming the area while they worked, according to an update Krouse shared on Facebook.
Local authorities got involved in the case and after further investigation, they were able to confirm the suspicion that the birds had been dumped.
We have all that we could find. As I was leaving the police officer stopped me and introduced me to one of the citizens...
Posted by Kati Speer Krouse on Wednesday, February 19, 2020
Krouse shared another post on Facebook showing images of boxes used to transport live birds and said someone had found the boxes next to a trash can at the park on Tuesday morning. Krouse is working with authorities to recover the shipping addresses for the boxes.
Dumping animals is illegal, but Krouse said it is more than just a cruel act.
“This is detrimental to both these birds and our native species of birds,” Krouse said. “One, these birds – as we arrived here today – were being picked off by falcons because they don’t know that that’s a predator to them. Two, if these birds are sick at all, they can spread disease to our native birds or our migrating birds. We are in migratory season.”
Krouse said she rescued between 35 to 50 birds at the park and took them home. She has not been able to count them yet because they are decompressing in a dark room and recovering from the stress of being chased by falcons and rescuers.
The birds will be quarantined for 30 days before they get put up for adoption, Krouse said.
Krouse said right now, the rescue is in need of donations of parakeet food, cages and other supplies for the birds.
To donate, you can go to the Bears Etc. website or the Bears Etc. Facebook page.