Ever found an injured or homeless bird? There's a sanctuary for them

SALT LAKE CITY — My kids found a nestling dove on the sidewalk in front of our Salt Lake City home. She didn't have all her feathers yet and couldn't fly. She was cold and hungry and needed help. We found just the place.

Richard Nowak crouched down near the pond and offered food to the ducks he cares for. "What do you want? You wanna wag that tail?" he said, and the duck wagged its tail.

It's this kind of affinity that's plain to see in West Valley City, at Avian Sanctuary and Protection, the place birds come to roost. "They are my friends, yes. There's a few we've adopted out that I miss," Nowak said.

Here, fine feathered friends forage, and a wild bird might just land on your shoulder. "This is a magpie. He comes by. He feels safe with the volunteers because no one's trying to harm him," he said.

Two 40-year-old parrots outlived their owners "talk" to Nowak. "Want a cookie?" he asked. "Want a cookie," a parrot answered. "I have better conversations with birds than some people," Nowak said, and a bird squawked behind him.

Nowak is a modern-day Dr. Dolittle. He's always been fascinated with birds. "Six years old is when my mother bought me a parakeet," he said.

While working at Tracy Aviary, he saw a need and hatched a plan. He started taking in homeless birds. "About 2006 is when we created the name."

A shrinking habitat left these birds no place to go. This year alone, Nowak and his team of volunteers have saved 716 birds. "They're basically homeless birds just like there are homeless people on our streets."

Nowak takes the birds no one else will. Like Pete, a small parrot. Once the novelty of having a parrot wore off, his owner decided he couldn't take the squawking anymore."

And there are hundreds of stories like Pete's. "An elementary school decided to tear down the nature area and put in a parking lot. So they drained the ponds and just assumed all the birds would leave. So the mallards and Canadians, which are wild birds, did leave. These two were left behind," he said. "We're successful at finding homes. We've had adoptions in Nevada, Idaho, Colorado."

A black and white turkey wandered the city streets three days before Thanksgiving. "We named him 'Mr. T." The bird visits schools, retirement homes and even preschools.

Other birds that get hit by cars, crash into power lines or windows find a home. "This pigeon came in and actually couldn't fly straight. He'd crashed and you can see he's holding his head sideways and actually upside down. It's a condition called paramyxol," he said.

The work is 24-seven. "Birds don't read calendars or clocks," he said. "We feed them about six times a day." That's 300 pounds of food daily, and it's not bread, which is nutrient poor. "Lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, corn on the cobb. Chickens love it, so do our ducks."

The birds flock around Nowak. His grandkids call him "Grandpa Bird." The birds just call him friend. "Birds are just like dogs," he said. "They can sense fear in people. Birds can tell if you're a friend or foe."

One-third of the U.S. bird species is endangered. Experts say birds play a vital role in the ecosystem: eating insects and other pests. "Many birds actually help plant new bushes and trees and as they eat the fruit or the seeds, they can redeposit them miles away to help grow new plants," Nowak said.

Once wild birds have healed, or nestlings have gotten their feathers and can fly, they release them back into the wild. After two and half weeks of hourly feedings, the time had come. The little dove my kids found had all her feathers and was ready to fly.

The good-bye was bittersweet as we watched Nowak take her out of her cage one last time. As my daughter giggled excitedly, he opened his hands, and she flew away, finding a spot high up in the trees.

Nowak and his team work with animal control and the Petco Foundation. Their operation is mostly funded by donations. They just started "Free Bird Friday" and say it's a great place to adopt a pet.

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