On April 20, 2011 Betsy Lott holds Chalice, a Moluccan Cockatoo, amidst the screeching noise of other rescued birds at the Mollywood Avian Sanctuary. Lott began adopting birds with her husband Nate Lott almost 20 years ago. She now cares for about 350 birds 24 hours a day at her home in Everson. “I want the birds that could not otherwise find a home,” she said. “I want a place for retired breeders to live out their lives. I want the sick ones to get the help they need and to return to flight if possible.”
Ali Morland holds a Buddy who is recovering from a beak bite from another bird. Morland lives at Mollywood and helps care for the birds in return for room and board.
Lott multi-tasks while spending time with Abraxas (left) and Oglio (right). “Grandpa here will be 68-years-old on Monday,” Lott says, referring to Oglio. She says he originally came from the SanDiego Zoo and ended up at Mollywood after developing a heart disease and living in several other homes. “[Abraxas] is a little thug,” she says. He is five-years-old and likes to bully the other birds, she says.
Ricky (left) and Lucy (right) are Muluccan Cockatoos.
Betsy Lott and her husband turned this old milking barn into a home for the birds, she says.
