When we appreciate birds, we’re usually focused on their songs or their beautiful feathers. Often, their personalities come a distant third place.
But anyone who has had a bird as a pet can tell you that they have tons of personality. Pet birds aren’t living decorations, but funny characters all their own that can liven up any family.
When the Escobar family adopted a lovebird three years ago, they called him Blondie.

It seemed fitting for such bright, yellow feathers. Blondie was curious and silly, but after a while, he began to struggle with flying. Blondie was losing his feathers.
At first, they thought it was just a molting phase, but he kept losing more and more. The vet did every test they could think of, but couldn’t identify a cause.
It wasn’t until the family stumbled upon photos of a bird with a similar appearance that they were able to diagnose the issue.

Blondie has Psittacine Beak and Feather Disease (PBFD) , which is an immune disease that can cause feather loss, an overgrown or deformed beak, and a generally weak immune system.
Now that they had a name for his issue, they could work to provide Blondie with a full life regardless of his nakedness.
He’s given a fortified diet and his bare skin is regularly moisturized to prevent discomfort.

Since he can’t fly without feathers, the family then began finding plenty of ways to keep his adventurous nature entertained.
He doesn’t like clothes, but has plenty of stuffed animals to nestle into if he’s feeling cold, and he particularly loves a dollhouse the family found for him.
Like, he seriously loves the dollhouse. It belongs to him and don’t you dare mess with his property.
While playing in his house, Blondie will shove away any human hands that try to mess with it. Videos of him protecting his domain recently went viral, for obvious, adorable reasons.
The Escobar family hopes that by sharing Blondie’s adventures on social media, other people with birds who have PBFD may stumble across him and be able to find help.
If you’d like to follow Blondie, you can do so on Instagram @blondie_thelovebird .
h/t: The Dodo
Last Updated on May 29, 2020 by Amy Pilkington