A lesson in hope: the Kiwa Centre
KIWA, a blue-and-gold macaw, hatched in 1996 in a large breeding facility in the UK. She came to live with 15-year-old schoolboy Joe Davenport and his family and their dogs. Kiwa bonded with Joe. She had the extra joy of being free-flighted. She’d fly to the school bus with Joe, then fly home to wait for his return. She became a family member. Her life as a pet parrot was as nearly perfect as you can imagine.
At 19, Joe wanted to travel. His parents decided they didn’t want to keep Kiwa. When the breeder offered to take her back and assured them that Kiwa would be given a mate and allowed to breed, they accepted. Joe went to Australia, where he married and decided to work. He kept in touch with the elderly breeder.
Seventeen years later, Joe and his wife visited the UK. They went to see Kiwa. The conditions they
