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Parrots for Patriots: Washington veteran adopts out birds to help other veterans

Founder Christopher Driggins said owning a bird is like raising a 3-year-old that requires constant attention. That focus can help those with PTSD or their own daily struggles.

VANCOUVER, Wash. — Christopher Driggins is known as "Birdman" to his friends and for nearly 20 years he's been rescuing abandoned or neglected birds and giving them a new home. The birds he rescues are not perfect.

"This is Tippy. We have to cook for her twice a day, she lost her lower mandible," Driggins said while lifting the cockatoo out of a cage, showing its missing lower bill.

Then there's Sunshine, a Macaw missing most all her feathers. 

"She was a show bird and won first prize when she was fully feathered," Driggins said.

Just like the birds dealing with their own personal struggles, Driggins has his own. 

"I've always had a constant stammer and stutter," he said.

It wasn't until he started working with birds that his speech impediments went away. During the application process for his birds, he started noticing more and more veterans applying. That's where Parrots for Patriots started.

"I knew how they helped me with my stammering and stuttering problem and it was like a closeted little secret," Driggins said.

Among the veterans he's placing a bird with is Army veteran Leslie Sziebert of Anderson Island, Washington. He's adopting Sunshine, the macaw with no feathers.

"It's just fine to have a perfect bird, but that's the same creature. It's the right thing," Sziebert said. "There is nothing like bird love. They're wild animals and you can't foster your relationship by punishing them at all."

Driggins said owning a bird is like raising a 3-year-old that requires constant attention. That focus can help those with PTSD or their own daily struggles.

"The thing about them is they keep you so busy, you don't have time to think negative or do anything else," Driggins said.

If you'd like to learn more about Parrots for Patriots, visit their website.

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