Pet cockatoo stuck at airport for months: ‘We want Charlie home’
Sorry, Charlie.
Jess Adlard, 33, moved to the UK from Pennsylvania in November 2022, temporarily leaving behind the beloved cockatoo she got in December 2019.
She was supposed to reunite with 4-year-old Charlie in August — but the rose-breasted bird has been stuck at Heathrow Airport in London thanks to some missing paperwork.
“They said the original export permit was missing — but it was with Charlie when he left the airport in the States,” Adlard told SWNS. “We have sent picture copies over to them, but they say they need to see the original — but it was with Charlie.”
Adlard says she shelled out over $7,000 for the “cheeky chap’s” journey. Her husband, Joe, a customs clearance agent, traveled to the US to bring their precious pet to the UK.
Three months later, Charlie is still in confinement, worrying the former pharmacy technician.
“We haven’t heard anything from them since September,” Adlard claimed of airport officials.
She is begging for his release.
“I suffer from anxiety and depression, and Charlie really alleviates that,” Adlard explained. “My daily routine revolved around him — it has really thrown me off. We haven’t been able to see him, but they sent us videos and pictures.”
According to the Home Office, the department of the British government responsible for immigration and security, wildlife arriving in the UK are subject to “strict domestic and international law.”
“Where required documentation isn’t presented, Border Force can seize pets,” the agency told SWNS. “We take the welfare of animals in our care seriously and those in our protection are looked after in suitable facilities by trained staff, with specialist veterinary care available if required.”
Meanwhile, Charlie has reportedly shown signs of distress by banging his head against the cage and plucking his feathers.
“He has been banging his head against the cage wall and crying for me,” Adlard said. “He has been plucking his feathers and asking if he is a good boy.”
Adlard says the staff at the private animal facility has been playing the animated 2011 movie “Rio,” which is about a talking macaw, to help mellow Charlie.
She just wants him home — she misses him terribly.
He’s cheeky, intelligent, funny and likes to dance.
“If he ever does anything naughty and gets caught he will immediately say, ‘I love you,'” Adlard reminisced.
As they await Charlie’s arrival, the Adlards have set up a GoFundMe to help cover the costs of his trip and his daily care. They have raised about $300 of their $7,300 goal as of Monday.
“It is difficult to put into words how I feel when I think about Charlie coming home. It is like Christmas and your birthday. I am tearing up thinking about it,” Adlard described.
“We want Charlie home. We have a beautiful home for him.”
