FOR MONTHS, the nice couple Tracy Bockenhauer waited on at her husband's restaurant complained about their pet bird.

Amos the African grey enjoys good health and a full set of feathers since his rehabilitation.

Amos, a 10-year-old African grey parrot, refused to talk or do tricks. Worse, he plucked out his own feathers. Disgusted by his appearance, the couple had tried without success to trade Amos in at the local pet shop for a scarlet macaw.

Bockenhauer, who lives in LaCrosse, Wis., with her husband, Ted, and 10-year-old daughter, Breanne, had an African grey of her own named Charlie, and a Quaker parakeet named Carlos. The more she heard about Amos, the more concerned she became.

She told her customers she would be glad to take Amos off their hands if they did not want him anymore. Finally, she convinced them to let her come to their house to see the bird for herself.

What Bockenhauer saw shocked her. Amos the African grey was almost completely bald, with only a few feathers left on his head and rump.

"I was instantly heartsick," she recalls. "He was a fright to look at."

Inspired to act
The couple accepted $100 for Amos and Bockenhauer drove him straight to her veterinarian, who diagnosed a bacterial infection.

Although afraid she might further traumatize the weak, spindly bird, Bockenhauer learned how to restrain him with a towel twice a day to administer an antibiotic.

Over the next year, she nursed Amos from a "Cornish game hen from the frozen food section" back to health, including a full set of feathers.

Amos, whom his previous owners claimed ate only sunflower seeds and corn, thrived on the pellets, vegetables and bread Bockenhauer provided. His favorite food was Lafeber's Nutri-Berries, which he gobbled at a rate of almost 20 pounds a month.

Five years have passed since Amos came to live with Bockenhauer. He still does not talk, unusual for an African grey, but his sad condition the day she rescued him spoke volumes to Bockenhauer about parrot care.

Figuring he wasn't the only pet bird suffering at the hands of misinformed owners, she resolved to do something about it.

"I made up my mind then that I had to help other parrots that were misunderstood and underestimated," says Bockenhauer, 44, a mother of seven.

Bockenhauer founded LaCrosse Avian Rescue, Rehab & Adoption Inc. in 1996 and turned her three-story home into a sanctuary for unwanted parrots of all kinds.

LARRA has become her full-time job, supported by income from her husband's bar and restaurant, Nutbush City Limits. (For more about LARRA, see this issue's Rescue Spotlight.)

A new kind of rescuer
No one knows exactly how many homeless birds or avian rescue groups there are.

In recent years, several associations have sprung up to accredit bird rescuers, including the Association of Avian Rescue Organizations the Avian Rescue Association and the World Parrot Welfare Alliance. However, none of these groups keep statistics.

Anecdotal evidence suggests parrot rehabilitation is a new type of grassroots animal rescue, and growing. A review of Web sites reveals approximately 80 organizations, here and abroad, most in existence for 10 years or less.

Most of the groups receive between 50 and 100 birds annually. The largest ones report accepting 300 or more. Most say they receive a greater number of birds each year. There may be many more small groups that lack an Internet presence or keep low profiles within bird clubs.

Growing pet bird population
If the number of homeless parrots is increasing, a steadily growing population of pet birds appears to be the culprit.

According to the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association, birds are the third most popular pet in U.S. households, with 18.6 million in 6.9 million homes last year, compared with 12.8 million in 5.6 million households in 1992, an increase of over 30 percent in less than a decade.

The American Veterinary Medical Association reports slightly lower numbers. In 1996, the last year the AVMA conducted a survey, it reported 12.6 million birds in 4 million households, compared with the APPMA's 13.5 million birds in 5.9 million homes.

Tracy Bockenhauer holds an almost featherless scarlet macaw she rescued at a breeder's going-out-of-business sale.

As for most popular pet, the APPMA says that honor goes to cats, with 73 million in U.S. households last year, followed closely by dogs, at 68 million.

Challenging care
Though there may be far more abandoned cats and dogs, unwanted parrots pose their own knotty problem.

The trouble begins when people underestimate what is required to properly care for a parrot.

Because of their intelligence, dietary requirements and tendency to bond with owners, parrots often need more attention than a dog or cat--and for a much longer time, given the 80-year lifespan of larger species.

Yet many people believe that birds are low-maintenance pets that can live in a cage on seed and water alone.

When the bird becomes ill, temperamental or neurotic due to neglect and a poor diet, disenchanted owners often quickly discard it.

The result is a physically and psychologically damaged animal that can be more difficult to rehabilitate than a four-legged one, say avian advocates.

Making matters worse is the fact that few mainstream humane society or SPCA shelters accept birds. If they do, they rarely have in place a formal adoption program.

In the absence of organized help, avian rescue groups have stepped in. Many are individuals who, like Tracy Bockenhauer, fill their own homes with parrots and devote their lives to rehabilitation and adoption.

A few, such as the Gabriel Foundation in Colorado, have become mini-conglomerates, with dedicated buildings, a paid staff, and annual conferences.

All have in common one thing: a deep and abiding concern for a pet many people consider dispensable.

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