Heartland Avian Rescue Project

04/24/2026

It’s true! This is why require a home visit!

29 likes, 7 comments. "Why Parrot Rescues Do Home Inspections"

04/15/2026

Dr. Shrader is our avian veterinarian, and this session should be very informative for parrot guardians as well as anyone who is interested in getting a parrot!

We are excited about this one!

You're definitely not going to want to miss this presentation from Dr. Shrader covering feather picking!

Reminder to RSVP to the event!
- Snacks & Drinks provided
- Questionnaire to follow

RSVP BELOW:
https://drtrentonshraderpresentat.rsvpify.com

04/02/2026

Hello parrot friends! We wanted to let you know of a partnership we have with Full Fledged Brewing Company in Council Bluffs, Iowa! Until June, their are donating a percent of the proceeds of their Award Winning Worthy Cause Amber to the parrots! Stop in and see our poster with some of our foster birds, and have a drink for a worthy cause- HARP!

Full Fledged has a lot for everyone, including beer, cocktails, and a lot of non-alcoholic options as well. They have a dog friendly patio, and are family friendly!

We will also have an event at the brewery- more details to come the closer we get to June. We would love you to support not only us, but a local small business!

03/24/2026

Sweet Missy, the female eclectus, is getting antsy waiting for her forever home! We thought we would remind everyone of all the great things about Missy -- and to sweeten the pot, we are lowering her adoption fee (which includes her cage) to $220! Interested? Visit the "Available Birds" page on our website at www.heartlandavianrescueproject.org today!

03/10/2026

PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE WATCHING THE VIDEO.

Today, March 10, is Parrot Crisis Awareness Day.

There are many facets of the parrot crisis. We are sharing this video as an educational tool; please understand that we are in no way shaming anyone who has purchased a bird from a pet store or a breeder. Nearly everyone who loves parrots has, including us! We do believe that when you know better, you can do better. It is in this spirit that we want to share.

WARNING: This video does show some very disturbing images, including birds in extreme distress and some in trash bins. Sadly, after years of undercover work, research and documentation, we know this is the rule rather than the exception in the captive parrot trade.

A new undercover investigation by World Animal Protection and Seed exposes the horrific reality behind birds sold in pet stores. Learn more at DontBuyBirds.org.

02/11/2026

We are very saddened by this unexpected news. Dr. Brad took excellent care of our Lincoln area foster birds. This loss is devastating to the bird community.

It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our friend, colleague, and mentor, Dr. Brad Gengenbach, who passed away unexpectedly this morning, February 10th. Dr. Brad was devoted to serving our clients and their beloved pets, and he was a true champion of animal care and education. His passion and dedication were evident in all he did. Our team at A‑4 Animal Hospital is deeply grieving his loss. Please be assured that we are here to support you and your pets.

02/10/2026

Hello and happy Tuesday! We have emailed quite a few people about applications for adopting and fostering, so please check your inboxes and spam folders. We know some of you prefer other ways of communication, but email is fastest for us right now. We appreciate your patience and flexibility!

Here is a picture of adoptable Kiwi for bird tax!

02/06/2026

Just because an item is marketed for birds or their owners does not make it safe. Bells are a prime example of this. (if the preview does not show up, this post shows a small parrot with a bell stuck to it's beak, and a vet removing it) https://www.instagram.com/reel/DUU_zwLE6i_/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

01/16/2026

Once again, we at HARP have some very difficult news to share: Brando, the beloved umbrella cockatoo in our foster program, passed away suddenly earlier this week.

While we grieve and take a moment to mourn the loss, there are a few things to keep in mind about Brando, our rescue, and parrots in general, that we want to share.

If you have an application in to adopt Brando, we will be clearing those out of our system in the next week. If there is another bird you are interested in (all available birds can be found on our website www.heartlandavianrescueproject.org) please message us through FaceBook or email us at [email protected] and note the parrot you would like to adopt.

Like most other cockatoos (and large birds in general), Brando had lived in several homes, with many different people and other birds over his lifetime. This is not only emotionally stressful (even for the most well-adjusted birds), it is also physically difficult on their bodies. Living in the same home with other birds (especially in the same part of the house) ramps up the possible exposure to various avian diseases, even when they show no signs of illness. In addition, most of our foster families only have one HARP parrot at a time. Occasionally, we have homes with two birds or bonded pairs, but this is somewhat rare.

One of the benefits of utilizing foster homes is that it minimizes risk for other HARP parrots. We advise our fosters to keep their foster parrot in a quarantine area for at least 30 days, — and we also advise our adopters to do this if they have additional birds at home.

We ask our fosters to be vigilant in observing their foster parrots daily — and they are. If they notice changes in appetite or water consumption, energy spikes or drastic drops, labored breathing, an unusual appearance to the droppings, and so forth, we have two great avian veterinarian clinics we use in Omaha and Lincoln whenever we have a sign of illness. They are also able to keep us informed as to what kind of trends or activity they are seeing in our local areas in terms of parrots (as an example, one year we learned that our risk for avian flu was relatively low but they had diagnosed multiple parrots with west Nile).

Sometimes, despite our best efforts, we sadly lose a bird. This is true in rescue, and it is true in private homes with parrots. We try to follow our own advice, and be gentle with hurting hearts.

01/11/2026

01/09/2026

In our mission statement, we describe our work as collaborative: as an organization, we collaborate with our foster families, our avian vets, trusted behaviorists, conservationists, and other parrot rescues and sanctuaries around the world, all to improve the lives of companion parrots. Last year, we made three trips to different parrot rescues and sanctuaries, transporting birds for a variety of reasons. We visited The Gabriel Foundation (in Colorado), and returned a bonded pair of birds, when their owners (who adopted the birds from TGF) could not keep them and could not make the trip to return them. We visited The Parrots Umbrella (Minneapolis), and they agreed to take on a couple of parrots who had medical, behavioral, and emotional wounds that needed long-term healing. We also visited The Oasis Sanctuary (AZ), as they agreed to take a pair of bonded birds who were not suitable for adoption and needed a place to live out their years amongst other parrots of their kind. With every visit, we have forged stronger partnerships and gained valuable insight, helping to improve our long-term visit for HARP and the care we provide for parrots and people.

The drive that took the longest was to The Oasis Sanctuary; these are just some of the pictures we took while there!