July 30, 2009 Northwest Bird Rescue & Parrott 911 Alert Collaborate to help Reunite Escaped Bird.

July 30, 2009 Northwest Bird Rescue & Parrott 911 Alert Collaborate to help Reunite Escaped Bird.

Source; The Lake Oswego Review,

July 30, 2009

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Errant parrot captured after six days on the lam The Lake Oswego Review, Jul 30, 2009, Updated Jul 30, 2009 SUBMITTED PHOTO SHEILA HORNOCKER

Source; The Lake Oswego Review, July 30, 2009

http://www.lakeoswegoreview.com/news/story.php?story_id=124890304058578200

Errant parrot captured after six days on the lam
The Lake Oswego Review, Jul 30, 2009, Updated Jul 30, 2009

Sebastian, a scarlet Macaw, was safely at home after six days in a tree and a harrowing rescue. Many people in the Westridge neighborhood were involved in saving Sebastian from his ill-fated flight.
SUBMITTED PHOTO SHEILA HORNOCKER


Sebastian, a scarlet Macaw who was being bird-sat by Shiela and Bill Hornocker, flew from their Lake Oswego home in the Westridge neighborhood on July 16 and found himself stuck 60 feet up in a neighboring Douglas fir.
Despite cajoling from Sheila, Sebastian refused to come down or be quiet. His response to all who tried to talk him from the limb was a noisy “Hello, cracker.”

The Hornockers contacted Irene Thorensen, a bird expert from 9-1-1 Parrot Alert in Gresham, who was convinced the only way to bring Sebastian down was to soak his feathers so he couldn’t fly. Flying is a learned behavior for most Macaws, and something they will not do naturally. Encouraging Sebastian to fly down would most likely be in vain.
For a 50-foot spray to reach the bird, the operation required the Lake Oswego Fire Department which accommodated with a truck and three firemen.
But before the LOFD could dampen his wings, Sebastian got wind of the plan and flew to another tree a block away. He stayed there for two days.
While the children of the neighborhood did their best to talk Sebastian down with bribes of food and water, the unflappable bird continued on to a tree at the home of Linda Graybeal where he stayed for another three days.

By July 21, the officials at the Northwest Bird Rescue service informed the Hornockers that if Sebastian did not come down for food and water, he would most likely perish in the tree.
To save Sebastian, Bill Hornocker called Coast Crane Company, which donated a cherry picker to save the bird.
With the street loaded with onlookers and a lemonade stand set up for the crowd, the cherry picker stretched slowly up towards the bird. When every hose the Hornockers owned was strung together to reach from the spigot to the tree, the spray just managed to dampen the bird.
However, while he was now wet and immobilized from flying, Sebastian was still stuck in the tree.
In a heroic effort, neighbor Brandon Parr, climbed 50 feet up the tree to grab the bird, but with each reach the bird squawked and moved further out a branch.
Finally, Parr began to bounce Sebastian’s branch. Gripping for his life, Sebastian spun around and around the branch and finally dropped to the branch below. Parr continued the bouncing technique, and after three hours, Sebastian was safely at the bottom of the tree.
“Wet, hungry and scared, Sebastian was thrilled to be in the arms of someone friendly,” said Sheila. “The neighbors gave a big cheer to the rescuers.”
The Hornockers — and possibly Sebastian — were grateful for the support from their Westridge neighbors, the LOFD, Northwest Bird Rescue, 911 Parrot Alert, Coast Crane Company, and the neighborhood bird-whisperer, Brandon Parr.