GFAS Announces New Avian Care Roundtable Series for National Bird Day 2016

Washington, DC, January 07, 2016 --(PR.com)-- Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS), an international sanctuary accreditation body, is announcing a new training series they are sponsoring in recognition of National Bird Day on January 5th, 2016. Representatives from animal shelters, avian rescue centers and sanctuaries are invited to join a three part online roundtable series in which key experts will be available to address common questions regarding short-term care and placement of captive exotic birds.

The first in the series is titled, “Overcoming Obstacles: Starting An Exotic Bird Shelter Program,” which will feature renowned avian veterinarian, Anthony Pilny, DVM, ABVP (Avian) and will be held on Tuesday, January 26th at 1:30 p.m. EST.

Organized by the Avian Welfare Coalition (AWC), an organization whose mission is to raise awareness to the plight of captive birds, the aim of the series is to expand resources to help captive birds in need by engaging the animal sheltering community, improving the standards of care for birds in shelters, and providing educational materials to facilitate this goal.

“The success and positive feedback we received to last year’s 3-part webinar series, “Caring for Exotic Birds in the Shelter, led us to take this next step,” says Denise Kelly, AWC President.

“This year’s three-part series will be an online Q&A forum where shelter staff and volunteers can directly engage with our avian care experts, get answers to their specific questions, and increase their ability to provide the best care possible for birds in their facilities.”

Kellie Heckman, Executive Director of GFAS added that, “The comments and input we received from shelters during last year’s National Bird Day training event helped us to hone in on their specific concerns regarding the care and housing of birds within the shelter environment.

We are excited to expand our resources to support animal welfare professionals that find themselves in need of additional training to care for birds that enter their facilities. We also hope this and future series will ultimately facilitate a safe placement of homeless birds into GFAS accredited sanctuaries, where we are certain they will be provided a lifetime of quality care,” says Kellie Heckman.

Find details about the roundtables, including dates, times and links to register at http://www.sanctuaryfederation.org/gfas/information-tools-resources/avian-education/.

About Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries:
Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the sole purpose of strengthening and supporting the work of animal sanctuaries/rescues worldwide. The goal of GFAS in working with and assisting sanctuaries/rescues is to ensure they are supported, honored, recognized and rewarded for meeting important criteria in providing care to the animals in residence. GFAS was founded in 2007 by animal protection leaders from a number of different organizations in response to virtually unchecked and often hidden exploitation of animals for human entertainment and financial profit. The GFAS Board of Directors guides the organization’s work in a collaborative manner. They represent top leadership from American Anti-Vivisection Society, Born Free USA, The Humane Society of the United States, International Fund for Animal Welfare and Tigers in America. For more information, visit: www.sanctuaryfederation.org.