
I volunteered in the bird nursery at a wildlife rehabilitation center in WA state for two summers, where protocol dictated humane euthanasia for all wildlife (birds and mammals) that couldn't be released. Intellectually I accepted the premise that death was better than captivity, and I never had to make the decision, so I shed a few private tears and fed the next gaping beak.
I've fed this little parrot with a huge appetite - affectionately called Piggy Bird - for a week now. I've taken her to two vets (one an avian specialist in another city), and know that her broken wing can not be mended sufficiently for her to fly again. I've medicated her twice a day, and forgiven her for the bandage on my middle finger. And I've seen and heard a squawking flock of orange-fronted conures land in the trees around our house and call to her for the last seven days...as well as her excited answers.
Should I euthanize her because she can't survive in the wild? Or should I find a few others who can't be released and let them enjoy companionship, the possibility of reproduction (and offspring that CAN be released), a smorgasbord of fruit and vegetables, and fresh air...in a protected aviary?
I've named her Uno, because she's the first rescue actually from Magallanes to enter our Centro de Rescate de Vida Silvestre Magallanes. Now I need to contact other rehab centers and adopt Dos, Tres, and maybe Quatro.