Help Us Build Canada’s First Parrot Safety Net

Parrots are the third most popular companion animals in Canada, yet they are the only major pet group with no formal safety net, no coordinated care system, and no long-term infrastructure protecting them.

We are launching a three-year Safety Net Pilot to change that. It is the first national model designed to stabilize a collapsing sector and to generate evidence strong enough for provincial and federal funding.

The next three years will determine whether Canada finally builds the long-overdue infrastructure these birds need.

The Lay of the Land

• Parrots are the third most popular companion animals after cats and dogs, occupying the top eight spots within that category.

• They remain undomesticated and constitute the largest group of captive wildlife in the world.

• Their cognition rivals that of the great apes, creating needs far beyond typical pet-care systems.

• They are long lived, with lifespans from 20 to more than 70 years, outlasting most human care plans.

• As flock animals, they form deep social bonds and decline rapidly without stability and skilled support.

• They are psychologically and physiologically sensitive, making them vulnerable to stress, trauma, and environment-related illness.

• Canada has very few avian veterinarians, limited disease-testing capacity, and no vaccines or cures for most major avian diseases.

• Their maintenance and medical costs exceed what most “pet” systems are designed to handle.

• The patchwork of aging, home-based rescues is collapsing as Baby Boomers retire and exit the field. Most lack the tools, funds, or infrastructure for long-term care, and many unintentionally perpetuate disease outbreaks that endanger both parrot and human health.

• There is no formal safety net for parrots in Canada, unlike the robust systems built for cats and dogs.

Government Needs to See Public Support

As baby boomers retire, the rescue landscape they built is closing or buckling under financial and care demands. Canada is being left with no stable parrot-welfare infrastructure.

We must now approach all levels of government:

• municipal

• provincial

• federal

To secure their support, we need to show them that Canadians expect humane, structured care for parrots.

Your donation provides that signal. It shows that Canadians want parrots to have what dogs and cats already have:

• Structured, humane rehabilitation

• Evidence-based training and support

• A safe, coordinated rehoming system

Public support is the tipping point. Without it, government investment will not follow.

Who We Need: Grassroots Donors and Founding Partners

Success requires two forms of support, each equally important:

1. Grassroots donors

Modest gifts demonstrate broad public backing. Government agencies look for this before funding any new system. A wave of small donations shows Canadians care about humane, structured parrot care.

2. Founding partners

Large gifts underwrite the backbone of the pilot and ensure the infrastructure is built to last.

Two anonymous founding partners have already stepped forward:

• One couple, and their cockatoo Halifax, is providing approximately $70,000 per year in donated commercial space and building insurance.

• Another couple, and their Senegal parrot Max, are contributing $62,000 per year in monthly and annual giving and are offering a $25,000 matching challenge during this launch.

During this launch, all gifts are doubled up to $25,000 thanks to Max and his family.

Your contribution works twice as hard and strengthens the case for provincial and federal support.

Goals of the Safety Net Pilot

This three-year pilot replaces guesswork with evidence. It aims to prove:

The need is real and accelerating, driven by collapsing rescues and the extreme longevity of parrots.

Parrot welfare is inherently complex, requiring integrated medical, behavioral, legal, and long-term care systems rather than passion-driven improvisation.

A structured safety net can be financially sustainable, supported by data, standardized processes, and actuarial forecasting.

Government investment is the essential catalyst required to scale the model across Ontario and, ultimately, across Canada.

What the Pilot Will Build and Test

• Unified intake, data, and tracking framework for partner rescues

Standardizes disease testing, intake procedures, behavior assessments, and lifetime tracking so outcomes are measurable and risk is reduced.

• Sector-wide actuarial risk and cost model for parrots

Creates the first Canadian evidence base on mortality, return rates, system costs, placement probability, long-term care needs, and financial-reserve requirements.

• Shared biosecurity and disease-management protocols

Reduces the risk of cross-contamination and public health threats, strengthens CFIA and PAWS alignment, and stabilizes rescue operations.

• Outcome and cost tracking across multiple rescues and guardians

Produces the hard data needed for government funding decisions, including cost-of-inaction, demand forecasting, and comparative system savings.

The Outcome: A Proven, Scalable System

The Safety Net Pilot creates what Canada has never had: a structured, data-driven, humane safety net for parrots. It strengthens existing rescues with tools, processes, and actuarial insight while preserving their independence. It generates the evidence governments require to fund a provincial or national rollout.

With rescues collapsing and no formal infrastructure in place, now is the moment when your support makes a defining difference.

Your Gift Builds the Future

Whether you give a little or a lot, your donation sends the same message:

Canadians want parrots to have the same structured, humane protection already provided to cats and dogs.

And during this launch, your gift is matched up to $25,000.

Please help us build the safety net these birds should have had decades ago.