An Australian magpie was rescued after its owner failed to let it befriend his two dogs. The bird was named Potato after one of the rescuers, who noted that it followed the story of Molly and Peggy. Unfortunately, its owner could not keep it as it could not fly away.
He was reluctant to give the bird away as he thought it was fine. Twenty-five magpies were rescued over the weekend.
Potato is one of these birds and is currently being trained to become a wild bird at a shelter.
Since taking birds from the wild can be emotionally charged, Yahoo has decided not to publicize the identities of the volunteers and shelter who look after him.
According to the shelter’s owner, it is not clear why people are taking these birds from the wild.
However, she noted that there has been a lot of cases of people trying to make the birds into pets.
She said that it is sad to see these birds being mutilated to prevent them from escaping. The Perth shelter that is caring for Potato specializes in rehabilitating birds.
The shelter is afraid that the recent rise in popularity of magpies might lead to a spike in people thinking that it is okay to take these birds away from the wild. Its volunteers were compelled to act after admissions spiked following the release of Naomi Watts’ film, “Penguin Bloom.”
The movie, which is about an injured woman who saved a magpie, has been receiving positive reviews.
The Harry Potter series led to a spike in the number of owls being seized from the wild in Indonesia and sold into the pet trade. Also, the release of the Pixar film “Finding Nemo” caused a short-lived craze for clown fish. Molly, the bird that was taken from a park and introduced to its owner’s dogs, built a social network and was able to secure a book deal.
According to authorities, the bird was humanized and could not fly or properly feed itself. However, the couple maintained that Molly was allowed to live as a free bird and not kept as a pet. The incident caused an international outcry and prompted Queensland Premier Steven Miles to intervene.
The bird was returned to its owners after they agreed to stop selling it and encourage others to properly care for native wildlife. The bird, which was underweight when it was surrendered, had apparently been clipped by its neighbor who wanted to keep it as a pet.
The owner thought that the bird would be a good companion for his dogs. However, the other dogs did not like it. The shelter’s owner said that it was lucky that the bird was not badly injured. Potato is currently paired with Mildred, a female Magpie that was found by a concerned homeowner.
The bird had suffered from malnutrition and broken wings and tail feathers. The shelter’s owner said that it was not clear who was keeping it. She noted that the local magpies might have been displeased with the bird’s presence. It took the bird about 12 months to grow its feathers back to full strength and regain its flight.
Magpies are territorial birds, which means that rescues have to slowly reintroduce them to their release site to prevent them from being attacked by other birds. While they rehabilitate them, some of them display dangerous behavior and need to be put down.
If they were brought into a flock, they would most likely kill the other birds that they encounter.