LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — A toucan that spent months flying around Las Vegas is headed back to his owner.
“Sam the Toucan” escaped from his owner in November and made his home among the trees in the valley. In February, Southwest Exotic Avian Rescue trapped Sam after he flew into a garage in northwest Las Vegas.
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“We were really, really stressed watching him, knowing that that was not where he was supposed to be,” said Skye Marsh, president of the rescue. “And it was a really dangerous situation for him.”
Since then, Sam has been in the group’s care, recovering from his time in the desert. He was quarantined for the possibility of avian influenza and began eating a diet appropriate for his species.
“Unfortunately, he ate a lot of the wrong things, which kind of messed [up] his metabolism, and his body fat content was way higher than it should have been,” said Marsh. “We got all that balanced back out and he’s much more healthy now.”
The rescue is sending information to Sam’s owner to ensure he is well taken care of and that this does not happen again.
Marsh said exotic birds are not for everybody, and that anyone interested in getting one needs to do a lot of research.
“If you don’t know, talk to a recue around you,” Marsh said. “A lot of us have a lot of information that we’re more than happy to share with anybody. Because we want the best for them, too.”
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