Atlantic City ADVICE- PLEASE

[Tink131]

Hi Everyone!
I've never posted on this board before. I just recently became owned by a Hahn's Macaw :) He is such a sweetie and we've made great progress developing trust. Here's my problem: My husband loves to play cards at the Tropicana, it's quite a drive for us and we usually stay 3 or 4 days. I don't want to leave Kermit for that long! I was looking for a place to board him while we are down there, someplace that would let me visit for as long as I wanted, but I'm so anxious about getting a good place for him. There's a place called the Atlantic City Pet Hotel on North Trenton Ave. that sounds perfect, but I wanted to know if anyone had ever heard of it or if anyone could provide recommendations. Kermit had slight neurotic tendencies when I got him, which are gone now- I don't want him to be traumatized again.

Thanks,
Wendy

[catschair]

Welcome to Bird Board! I'm sure you can find a good spot to board your bird (or maybe someone to stay with him?). I'm sure some of our members from your side of the country will be along soon with referrals.

[sweetpeaches]

gees...i wish i could help you out. i live about an hour and a half from AC but never heard of this place. i know how you feel tho. i'm going on a trip in march for 2 weeks and will be leaving my baby caique (he'll be 9 mos then) with my 21 yr. old son..whom i'm sure will take care of him, but not the way mom would...

[birdsnreps]

if you are gonna be out of town frequently, its prob gonna affect the bird emotionally. can you find a bird sitter that can visit with him regularly even when you are not out of town, so he can have someone care for him that he likes and is familiar with?

if i can help it, i try to never board birds, they are thrown into a boarding room in an unfamiliar cage with unfamiliar care-takers, and unfamiliar birds and noises, and a different routine that he is not used to. i used to work at a bird store, and it was rare that one of the workers would try to play with any of the birds and play with them, they just cleaned and fed them, and that was it. some of the birds would not let you handle them, but some would and i would play with them. i actually got in trouble several times for playing with them when i was supposed to be doing stuff on the floor of the shop

also, with all the diseases out there, to me, its scary to have my birds thrown into the same room with a ton of other birds from who-knows-where. some places want health certificates, but even then, the birds are only tested for 3-5 of the "common" diseases.

[Tink131]

Thanks for the input. Here's a clearer picture: Kermit would have his own cage and he would travel with us. They say they disinfect twice a day (I'm concerned about the fumes of that too!) And I would plan on visiting him either once a day for a few hours or twice a day for a couple hours each time- my husband is the one who likes to play cards- not me, so I have plenty of time to spend with him. This place is only 2.5 miles from the hotel. I will be training my grand-daughter to sit for him, but that has happened yet. So here's another question- do you think it would be better for Kermit to go to grand-daughter's house for a few days and be completely without me- or to travel 6 hours and be in, what is described as more of a plush pet hotel than an actual kennel, with me being there with him several hours a day. I'm pretty emotionally attached to him myself- LOL!!
Thanks in advance!

[sweetpeaches]

hmmm...personally i think he would be better with your grand daughter. i would be concerned about bird diseases too! and the disinfectant. i wonder if there is any place you could stay that would allow you to keep a parrot in the room?? guess that's a long shot. however, i've noticed that some hotel rooms have ALOT of insulation between them. that would be great if you could find a place like that especially since your hubby likes to visit there frequently. i have a friend who has a b/g macaw and they travel quite a bit, so they have their neighbor come over and sit with their macaw and 2 yorkies...that's probably a good solution too.

[birdsnreps]

you would be surprised, there are several pet friendly hotels, if you wanna do that type of thing, you just have to call and ask cause most hotels dont announce that they are pet friendly. idk what is better, taking him to the hotel room, where employees and possibly others have access to, or boarding him and visiting him daily. if your bird doesnt have any plucking probs or prone to nervousness, i would think boarding him and visiting him would be ok for the bird...but you still run the risk of exposure to diseases. also make sure you ask what types of disinfectants they use, cause you already know that some of them are not safe.

if you can train your granddaughter to care for him, that sounds like a great idea too. and if the birds likes your granddaughter, it makes the whole experience that much better for the bird :)

[Tink131]

Thanks. I guess we're going to have to train the GD- there are some pet-friendly hotels, but to complicate the issue my husband has allergies!! If we got a room that had a cat in there his allergies would go nuts! That would be the perfect solution though, but I even called one of them and they don't allow birds! Sheesh! We are even a little concerned about him being in the car with him for 6 hours- he seems to be doing okay with him at home, but we haven't tried close confined quarters for extended periods yet- which is the other issue of the bird being in our hotel room too. That's why we were leaning toward a kennel. I doubt that this facility has many birds, but I would have to call again to be sure, but especially this time of year I'm sure they're slow. They are a 24 hours facility and I can go anytime- which not only impressed me, but made me feel more comfortable as well.

GD will be coming over Monday to be introduced- I hope it works out for all of us!

[sweetpeaches]

i hope it works out for you as well! it's amazing how attached we get to these fids!
it's such an appropriate name...

[Lisa B]

Hi Wendy. I am about 35 miles outside AC.

I would see if the GD could do it for several reasons.
1. the recent outbreak of Beak and Feather disease in NJ.
2. being around strange people in a strange place.
3. parrots being stolen right out of that type of situation.

Not sure you wanna travel outside the touristy areas of AC. Even though, its 2.5 miles, it might be in a part of the town ya just dont wanna go.
Some areas are pretty seedy, and its just not safe.
Last year, they found either 4 or 6 hookers murdered along the AC expressway. not sure if they caught the guy.

I also think I heard something about the Tropicana losing its licence....lemme see if I can find it.