Exotic birds require a lot of care and have big personalities that can cause them to be orphaned by their human families.

“I’ve been doing this for 40 years, they teach me something new every day,” said Jamie McLeod, founder of the Santa Barbara Bird Sanctuary.

In 2004, McLeod opened the Santa Barbara Bird Sanctuary to rehabilitate and rehome unwanted and displaced exotic birds.

“It doesn’t just change your life. If you do it right, they become your life,” explains McLeod.

Exotic birds can live 60 to 80 years, but most are given up within 2 to 3 years, according to McLeod.

“People look at them and they’re so drawn to their beauty. They’re intelligent. They can talk, you know. Often people understand them and don’t do enough research,” explains McLeod.

About 50 abandoned birds house the nonprofit.

“This is Doodle. She was abandoned at the Santa Barbara Zoo and she had a note that said: Please help me paint,” said Jodi McLeod, keeper at the Santa Barbara Bird Sanctuary.

When Doodle was found, he had a large wound on his chest and had pulled out almost all of his feathers. Doodle, Kakatu, is now a permanent resident of the sanctuary and is bonded to staff member Jodi McLeod.

“We can cuddle, and they like to walk around on the table, exercise,” McLeod said.

The sanctuary just received an exhibitor license under the USDA Animal Welfare Act, which requires more safety and supervision for the birds.

“This legislation is important because it was developed to prevent things like the King Tiger and animal poachers and situations where these creatures are exploited for money, trafficked, on the black market because they are quite valuable,” explains McLeod.