Nursing Home Visits

[davefv92c]

first off the wife works at a nursing home and I have spent some time over the last year chatting with some of the folks who come out when I'm there to pick her up. also noticed an assortment of critters coming and going to visit the residents. heck last week I was sitting in the car and I glance up and a gal is coming out with a mini horse cool as heck. I told her I needed one for my Parrots to ride around the yard on. that was when the light came on why not set up a couple of times a month to take a couple of the birds over along with cages set them up in their courtyard and let the folks come out and visit them if they like. I would think that any kind of enrichment you could bring these folks would be great. who knows they have an Elvis impersonator who does 4 shows a year for them maybe I could get Sammy together with him for a show. lol

so what I'm wondering is there one here who may have done, or still does do anything like this that may be able to give me some tips on what I'm looking at from a position of experience.
also welcome to input from all others on this, as I would like to be ready by April to get started and some ideas may help me figure things out.
if there is any legal people here, could I be opening myself up to any problems?

Why you may ask, just wanting to give something back:57:


All help welcome
thanks

 

[SailBoat]

first off the wife works at a nursing home and I have spent some time over the last year chatting with some of the folks who come out when I'm there to pick her up. also noticed an assortment of critters coming and going to visit the residents. heck last week I was sitting in the car and I glance up and a gal is coming out with a mini horse cool as heck. I told her I needed one for my Parrots to ride around the yard on. that was when the light came on why not set up a couple of times a month to take a couple of the birds over along with cages set them up in their courtyard and let the folks come out and visit them if they like. I would think that any kind of enrichment you could bring these folks would be great. who knows they have an Elvis impersonator who does 4 shows a year for them maybe I could get Sammy together with him for a show. lol

so what I'm wondering is there one here who may have done, or still does do anything like this that may be able to give me some tips on what I'm looking at from a position of experience.
also welcome to input from all others on this, as I would like to be ready by April to get started and some ideas may help me figure things out.
if there is any legal people here, could I be opening myself up to any problems?

Why you may ask, just wanting to give something back:57:


All help welcome
thanks

My Mother is in a Memory Unit and I quarterly take our DYH Amazon to visit his' 'Grandmother' and her friends. And she really looks forward to his visits because of all the comments she gets from her friends.

I limit my visits to interior visits only due mainly to the heavy population of Red Tail Hawks in our area. In addition, I can fly him, better stated, he flies to the joy of my Mother and her friends. I can tell that he thinks its pretty cool by the expression in his eyes after he completes a couple of circles of the room.

Preparation:
Talk to the 'Entertainment Staff.' They set-up the visits and commonly are overly happy to invite you. By setting this up, they can control who will attend and thus limit an problems (individual's with fear issues).

Have a small presentation ready and answers to 'general' questions. Also, be ready to deal with outright stupid questions by addressing them with grace and style. Know what is a 'current' recommended diet and what they would eat in their natural range. Be ready to suggest that Parrots may not be for everyone and cover some of the problems faced with Parrot ownership.

NOTE:
It is not uncommon for guests and family members to be there once the word gets out. Hence the likelihood of the questions above.

Reality, there will be individuals there that had to give-up their beloved Parrot to come to this facility. They may want your Parrot to Step-up on their hand or arm (I only do arms). See below!!!

Know your Parrots!!! Some will open-up and truly enjoy this kind of activity, where others will sink to the bottom of their cage. Remove or cover any Parrot that is showing signs of stress.

Enjoy!!!

 

[Scott]

Your idea is awesome and ought to be encouraged by the staff! Parrots are fairly rare as pets, so they probably get a nice parade of cats and dogs.

I would imagine the larger concerns would be noise and biting. You'll find out pretty soon how well suited they are for visiting.

 

[davefv92c]

this has started them darn marbles rolling around in my noggin again.lol
the noise is not a problem they have a nice outdoor area that could be used
none of my flock are really biters as I have worked with them all on finger beak touching
and I also can notice uppity body language that could lead to a bite. I will not be inciting a lot of handling of my birds as we all know the older you get the thinner your skin gets leading to easy cuts and tears. I'm also going to figure out a way to get my Aviary involved after all we are just like a big bird family and who knows maybe some other local's may want to join in.

should be a fun thing

 

[GaleriaGila]

What a wonderful idea!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'd think about taking the Rb but he'd just scare everybody.
I can't wait to see/hear how this developes.