Become A Mickaboo Angel
"Give of yourself as the Angels do and wonderful things will come to you."
- Ramadan
Mickaboo currently has over 500 birds in foster care. Our first commitment is to these birds and their ongoing care. Mickaboo's generous supporters (our Angels!), have enabled us to take in over 650 birds since April 2009. These are birds we would not have been able to help without your financial help.
Why Become an Angel to a Mickaboo Bird?
Unfortunately, many of the birds that come into Mickaboo's care have been injured, abused, or neglected, or are very ill. As a result, they need medical attention, behavioral training and extra love and nurturing before we can place them in adoptive homes. These birds are often considered unadoptable at shelters and by society in general. We believe that every bird deserves a second chance. We allow each and every one of our birds as much time as they need to find that special adopter who is willing to care for them. As Mickaboo has grown, and we have taken in more birds, our monthly vet bills have increased significantly, averaging $30,000 per month.
We understand that not everyone can foster or adopt a Mickaboo bird, but would still like to help. Becoming an Angel to a bird in need is the perfect way to do that! You can help us take in birds from shelters or from private surrenderers who are in a financial crisis. Your donations to Mickaboo can be directed to care for a particular bird or birds, to help defray the cost of their sometimes astronomical vet bills while they wait for forever homes.
Angel Species
When you become a Mickaboo Angel, you are helping us fulfill our commitment to keeping our doors open to ill, injured, abused, neglected and unwanted companion birds in Northern California and beyond. We invite you to become the species of Mickaboo Angel that suits you best
- Angel: Our goal is to have an "endowment" of at least $200 before taking in a new bird. This will help us ensure that we always have sufficient funds to provide basic medical care for the birds already in our care, as well as for new birds we take in. As an Angel you will receive recognition on our website. If a bird is adopted without using your Angel money we will shift the money to the next needy bird and let you know which additional bird you have helped.
- Archangel: Archangels commit to covering the full vet costs required for a new bird to be healthy enough to adopt. As an Archangel you will receive recognition on our website and regular email updates on his/her progress.
Every Bird Gets An Equal Chance
That's the underlying principle of Mickaboo. Once a bird is in our care, we provide all the medical care s/he requires. We do not "triage" birds or spend more money on large species than small. We only euthanize a bird when s/he is suffering without the possibility of recovery. We provide hospice care for terminally ill birds who are not suffering. Since we do not have paid employees, you can be sure that your donation goes directly to the birds. Donations are 100% tax deductible. A receipt will be mailed to all donors.
How To Sponsor a Bird
You may donate online via Network for Good or PayPal. If you prefer to mail a check or money order you may mail it to: P.O. Box 697, San Jose, CA 95106-0697. Please specify that you want your donation to be an Angel donation, which bird you would like to sponsor and how you would like to be acknowledged on the website: full name, first name only, first name and last initial, etc. If you do not want to specify a particular bird to support, you may also ask us to pick one for you. You may also have the Angel donation be in honor of someone (human or pet). Please email angels@mickaboo.org if you have questions.
Birds Waiting for an Angel
 Cumulus Umbrella Cockatoo 11/16/19 |
Cumulus is a male umbrella cockatoo who loves to dance and talk. When Mickaboo took him in from an animal shelter, he was critically ill with a massive prolapse. In addition, medical tests found gravel in his digestive tract. Cumulus has been fighting an uphill battle, but so far has prevailed and after a long hospital stay, has been placed in a foster home. Cumulus' hospital stay and continued medical care is very expensive, please consider becoming his angel! |
  Elvis Cockatiel 10/26/19 |
Elvis was surrendered because of an infected eye. This poor little guy has an ulcer on his cornea and faces a long road to recovery. It will take a lot of love and time for him to heal. Please consider donating to help him! UPDATE: 12/14/19 Angels for Elvis |
 Leo Orange-Winged Amazon 2/11/18 |
Leo is about 33 years old and has been a Mickaboo foster since 2013. She/he had been diagnosed with early stage congestive heart failure. Her prognosis is good. Leo's enlarged heart is smaller now that he/she started intravenous medications. Once Leo starts oral medications, she can go home. |
 Paco Red-Lored Amazon 11/8/17 |
Paco is a 40+ year old red-lored amazon parrot. He came to Mickaboo about five years ago, when his owner died and no one from the family was able to take care of him. Paco is almost blind - he can recognize dark and light, but not much more. He has arthritis and a light heart issue (he takes medicine on a cracker twice a day). Also, his airsacks are leaking air and his cheeks are "puffed". Recently (November 2017), he had a thorough health check (after about 3 years), which included xrays and an ultrasound, plus a removal of a feather cyst developed on his neck which resulted in a bill of over $1,000. |
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Ike recently injested some of his calcium perch rather than spitting it out. As a result, pieces of calcium built up in his digestive system. He was uncomfortable and drank an increasing amount of water. When his entire bowl of water disappeared in one day, his foster mom knew something wasn't right. She took him to the vet and they noticed how subdued his personality was. Ike was admitted to the hospital and was given a pain reliever while testing was underway. The radiographs (x-rays) showed a trail of minerals in his digestive system. When the vet asked where was the source of the minerals could be coming from, Ike's foster mom realized that the calcium perch in his cage had lost more than an inch in length but there was no calcium powder on the floor. When she reported that information to the vet, Ike was put on an antibiotic as well as the pain reliever. The radiographs also identified severe arthritis in one knee. With the addition of an anti-inflammatory medication, Ike felt much better. He was able to return home to recover in a cage with soft perches. Please consider helping to cover the costs of Ike's unfortunate vet visit. UPDATE: Angels for Ike |
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Snowy is a 22-year-old umbrella cockatoo who has been with Mickaboo for a few years. His original owner (who got him as a hand-raised baby) had to go into a nursing home, at which point, he went to his first foster home at Mickaboo. His foster father unfortunately began suffering from health problems, so Snowy moved to his second Mickaboo foster home where he currently resides (since August 2016). As of February 2017, Snowy began exhibiting unusual behavior and not eating as much as usual. He was brought to the vet, and it was found that he was very underweight and anemic. He stayed in the vet hospital for about 10 days, where he received antibiotics and multiple tests were ran. The cause of Snowy's health problems are still uncertain. He is currently under follow-up care with the vet and receiving oral medications at home. He is also under a heat lamp 24 hours per day, and he remains underweight (although eating better/more). More tests continue to be run to determine the cause of the health issues. Prior to getting ill, Snowy was really flourishing with his clicker training, and he had multiple potential adopters interested in him!. We sincerely hope he gets back to 100% soon and back ready to meet new friends. Please consider being one of Snowy's angels! Angels for Snowy |
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Sasha was rescued along with four cockatiels from an elderly person. Unfortunately their cages were horribly dirty and devoid of toys and foraging material! This is most likely why Sasha started plucking. When he gets nervous, he tends to mutilate his feet and cause them to bleed. Poor guy.
Sasha also has a big enlargement of the aorta – it could be arteriosclerosis, an aneurysm, or possibly a birth defect. Either way, he cannot start medication until the issues are better understood (with an expensive CT scan). His heart is significantly bigger and much lower-positioned than other Sulfur Crested Cockatoos which may be a factor.
In addition, he has BB bullet in his wing (elbow) and a small piece of metal somewhere in his intestines. Fortunately, these two things are not of immediate concern according to the vet.
Even with all of his health issues, Sasha is a total sweetheart (albeit a bit loud). He says “hello" with very sweet little voice and could spend all day getting his head scratched. He is also great eater, foraging well and otherwise just an amazing bird.
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 Charlie Amazon 7/20/15 |
UPDATE: Sept 8th, 2016 UPDATE: Oct 30th, 2015 --------- Charlie is so cute with his big amazon eyes that look up at you very sweetly. Despite his size, he is able to climb around his cage. He is afraid of hands but he steps up and allows head scratches when approached slowly. He loves to climb up your arm. Charlie talks very appropriately. He has said “Go away, go right now!” and calls for “Don”. He is eating a healthy diet of pellets and vegetables. Now Charlie looks a lot bigger than he is. He has air sacs under his skin that are not releasing air like they are supposed to. This can be caused by trauma. A thorough veterinary work up was done. There aren’t any underlying causes for the air sacs other than trauma. The air sacs were drained but they filled back up. The next step in treatment might place a stent between the air sacs so the air has a way to be released internally. We will know in the next few weeks. Angels for Charlie |
