Animal Humane Society giving away birds this weekend

Article by: BILL WARD , Star Tribune
Updated: August 27, 2010 - 3:56 PM

Those who come to one of the five local facilities can bring home a cockatiel, parakeet or finch merely by singing or whistling a snippet of a bird-themed song. Or by performing a bird call, or reasonable facsimile thereof. And handing over $1.

Photo: Feed Loader, Animal Humane Society

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This weekend, the Animal Humane Society is pretty much giving away birds for a song.

Those who come to one of the five local facilities (see www.animalhumanesociety.org or call 763-522-4325 for locations) can bring home a cockatiel, parakeet or finch merely by singing or whistling a snippet of a bird-themed song. Or by performing a bird call, or reasonable facsimile thereof.

Oh, and handing over one thin dollar, a pretty nifty bargain considering that cockatiels generally go for $75 and parakeets for $25 at these facilities.

The society recently found itself with a bevy of birds, including 234 cockatiels and parakeets from a home in the Brainerd area and 21 finches from another owner.

"These were people with a passion for birds who took in birds that other people didn't want," said Verlynn Pinkney, site manager at the Golden Valley location. "They just didn't know how to say no.

"The birds were well taken care of, but the owners just got overwhelmed. It happens more than people know."

So a Humane Society committee came up with the tweeting promotion. Which raises a pretty obvious question.

"Yes, I'm on Twitter, as is the Animal Humane Society," said Pinkney. "But this will be my first time to tweet about birds."