References
Here's what our
customers have to say:
customers have to say:
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References |
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(click any picture above for a larger image) Dear Janet The family just wanted to thank you for all your help in picking out the perfect bird for our family. When we first came to you our thoughts were on a Cockatoo. You were very helpful in answering all my questions on these birds. As my research went on our minds changed and you helped out once more by suggesting a Military Macaw. I can’t tell you what a good choice that was for the family. Nicky has become a great member of the family, she gets along with the kids and the dogs, she has a great personality and makes us laugh all the time. If anyone is thinking of getting a bird, please do your research. Janet will help you out. This is a great place to buy your birds from. The pricing is great and the facilities are just spectacular. The time she spends with you and your new pet are amazing. I know we made four or five trips out to visit our bird before taking her home. When she came home she was already speaking and very affectionate. Please do your research. This is a commitment that becomes part of your family and does take time, but well worth it. If you have questions feel free to call me at 503-841-8856. Thanks Tim & family
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 (click here for a larger picture) As the saying goes: A picture is worth a thousand words! This family now has three of our babies!
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 (click here for a larger picture) Last year we began looking for large bird breeders in the area. We were interested in purchasing either an African Grey or Macaw parrot as a companion to add to our soon to be “empty nest”. During a visit to our local PETCO store one of the employees suggested we contact Janet Swanson of Wool-N-Wings. He provided us with Janet’s email address and suggested that we contact her. We were fortunate that we lived close to Janet and after contacting her we set up an appointment to meet her and see her avian breeding operations and selection of birds. We’ve never raised large birds, and Janet was extremely helpful from the very beginning. She asked us about our family and what our life style was like and what to expect with a new feathered member of the family. We saw many of the parrot breeds that Janet raises and we decided on a Ruby Macaw that was hatched on June 21st. He and all the other hatchlings were alert, happy and very well cared for in the Swanson’s avian center. We noted that while only weeks old, some of the African Greys were showing signs of vocalization. Our Ruby Macaw seemed to reach out to us so we decided to make the purchase and soon after named him Henry (not very exotic – but it seemed to fit). Later we would learn it totally fits his personality. During the next few months Henry had to develop and be weaned before he could go home with us which he did in the first week of October. Janet encouraged us to visit Henry while he was still being hand fed and weaned, and was always available to answer all of our questions. She offered information like what to expect in different scenarios and stages of growth, how to feed, bathe and handle him, along with “coaching” us through our daily interaction with him. Janet did an excellent job of imprinting and raising him. As mentioned we were not previous large bird owners, but because of Janet’s excellent methods and loving care and information she shared, the transition for Henry to his new home, as well as for us was very smooth. Henry is a very sweet and loving bird, he loves to snuggle and play. He displays signs of happiness and trust with tail wagging and laying against us on his back, with his feet in the air! He is happy in his cage or out, he does not bite or scream. He takes showers and then spreads his wings while we blow dry his feathers. He loves to be part of everything we are doing, even if he is simply in the same room sitting on his perch, eating dinner, or playing with his toys. One of his favorites is a Fischer Price ring stack toy. He can remove and replace the rings with little assistance. He likes the green and orange color rings the best. He loves to be vocal and learn new sounds, and says several words like “Hello”, “I love you”, “I’m a good bird”, and his name, “Henry”. He is learning “thank you”, he makes a laughing sound on his own in the proper situation, and he’s learning “Whaazuup” (from the commercials). He loves everyone in the family and seeks there attention when they visit. He also has made trips outside the home with us like to the local Starbucks for coffee in the evening where he is a big hit. For us it was important to know where our bird came from and that it came from highly trained and reputable operation. Janet and family are truly experts in the field of avian behavior and breeding and we couldn’t be more satisfied! We HIGHLY RECOMMEND the purchase of any hook bill breed from Janet and Larry at Wool-N-Wings.
Sincerely, |
 (click here for a larger picture) Janet, I can't begin to tell you how much fun Erico and I are having! He's been my best buddy since the day I picked him up at the airport. I was concerned about him traveling so far, as I'd never bought a bird from such a distance before. As soon as he saw me in the terminal he started crooning at me as if he knew me. When I got him home, I opened the carrier, and stepped back so he could come out when he was comfortable. I was sitting on the floor, I opened the door and he leaped into my lap. Seems like he hasn't left since! I've had birds for 17 years and he's by far the most socialized I've ever had upon first meeting. When I get more space and am ready to add another from my flock you'll be hearing from me again. Thanks again for such a GREAT baby!
Miche T. (and Erico, hatched 6/10/05) |
 (click here for a larger picture) Dear Janet, When my husband and I started thinking about "adopting" a bird, we knew we wanted something special. We waited a while until we were ready for it and we went to many websites and researched a lot about the species of bird we wanted to get and where it would come from. We finally found Wool-N-Wings website and we were amazed about how much Janet and her family cared about the birds they help to come to the world and how much information they provide to all their costumers on the website. A few months later, after many phone calls and e-mails, we were finally going to pick up our baby girl and we couldn't wait to see her. We can't tell you how happy we were when we saw how beautiful she was (and is) and how well mannered she seemed to be. In the first days, my husband and I were both very happy, scared and overwhelmed about having such a beautiful bird in our family. We always knew we would have to devote a lot of time to training her and bonding with her, but we didn't realize we would love her so much and we would want her to be the happiest macaw on Earth. Janet and her family were always very patient and caring with us. We called her a hundred times to ask her questions on how to handle Pitanga and she was always there for us. We read many books and websites about the behavior of a macaw, but we always trusted Janet experience above all the information we could find. Pitanga has been a member of our family for a little over two months now and we couldn't be happier. She is a sweet, caring and calm baby. She learns fast. She knows we love her. She behaves like a princess and she truly is the bird we have always dreamed of having. My husband and I love animals and we truly love this "little" red head. Our other babies (a dog and two cats) respect her a lot and already love her. She never ever tried to attack one of our other babies. She always behave like a princess when our friends come over to see her. She is just wonderful. Yes, she is all that, because she is very very very loved by her family, but we will never forget that everything started when she was just a little "ugly" baby with no feathers and Janet and her family raised her with a lot of love, knowledge and attention, to be the beautiful and majestic macaw she is now. We are sure Pitanga is going to be a friend for life and we can't thank Janet and her family enough. thank you!
Vanessa & Daniel |
 Dear Janet, I just wanted to take a minute to thank you for my lovable boy Chief . You can tell he was raised with lots of "hands on" Care. He has been in my home for such a short time, and I can already tell he loves me as much as I love him. He is so willing to do everything that I want. I am so glad I found a breeder like you. Even tho you had a busy summer schedule, you kept me updated on him, and answered all my questions. And still you continue to answer my questions. This bird has brought so much joy to my life already, and I just wanted to say THANKS!!!!!
Angela |
 We found Wool-N-Wings on the internet in September of 2003. We were impressed with everything we read concerning the breeding and hand feeding of the bird babies raised by Janet. We emailed her requesting a baby African Grey we would name Winston. We were invited to visit the ranch after their babies started hatching in the spring. We were very impressed with the facilities and especially the nursery. Misty Grey (not Winston) hatched July 7, 2004. We watched our baby girl grow up with pictures posted by Larry on the Website. We visited Wool-N-Wings a 2nd time when Misty Grey was about 3 months old. We wanted to bring her home then but knew better then to even ask. Their babies never leave until they are fully weaned. Our little girl stayed until October 30, 2004. While we were waiting for her to come home, we read everything on the internet we could find concerning personality and health needs of African Greys. The more we studied the more frightened we became and to be honest we almost changed our minds. We weren't entirely secure with our ability to provide a perfect home for her. As our education continued we realized we were reading more about mistakes people had made early on with their babies and decided we would just avoid making similar mistakes, bite the proverbial bullet and give our baby a forever home . When the day finally came to bring her home she already knew how to step and step down. A few days later she whistled the wolf whistle but we didn't teach her that. The word "good girl" was next. At first the words weren't exactly clear but as she practiced they became very clear. Her vocabulary has increased to many words now and she is only 7 months old. She tells our German Shepherd to shut-up and I think I only said that word once in front of her. So when Buddy barks he gets a reminder to shut-up from Misty Grey . We call "kitty,kitty,kitty" and she answers with a long and loud meooooooow. She loves to go in the shower and is learning to say shower time? We taught her Ho, Ho, Ho, Merry Christmas!! during the holidays. She and her dog Buddy were the stars on our Christmas cards. We follow the diet recommended by Wool-N-Wings and she eats almost everything she is offered and is very healthy. She beeps like the microwave when we go in the kitchen. We share little bites of people food with her in her food dish so she feels like she is eating with her family, we also have to share little bites with Buddy or he feels left out. He has eaten apples, lettuce and even peppers. We truly believe our girl was given the best start in life by being hand raised with so much love. If you are in the process of deciding to become a flock member of a birdie family, we highly recommend you consider a baby from Wool-N-Wings.
Sincerely, |
 I had the wonderful opportunity of being able to visit Wool-N-Wings on one of my husband’s business trips to Portland. We live in Northern Washington and had found Janet through the internet. We called and spoke with Janet and she invited us to visit her and she her birds. Unfortunately at the time her birds were all spoken for. We drove out to her place one rainy afternoon and Janet was so kind to us as she showed us her Llamas and then we visited her breeders. I have never seen such organization with breeding birds. Each set of birds were in clean cages with plenty of water, fresh foods as well as her homemade pellet foods. As we walked through her facility she spoke gently to her birds. Many of them ran out to say hello to her and she would pause and talk to the birds. I was so moved by her gentleness and their love for her. We were so happy with her facility that I told her I would love have one of her hahns macaws. She said she would notify us when some became available. I gave her my phone number “just in case” her last Hahns baby that she had would not be able to go to another person because I was so taken with him. Well, it was meant to be, I received my phone call saying that the person who was to receive the bird could not take it because she had been in an accident. We rushed back to visit her again and she explained that we could still wait for another clutch for our little guy and I said “No, No, I want this one”. We brought our little Scrappy Doo home on November 13, 2002. It is now January 14th and I am proud to say Scrappy Doo is feisty, in fabulous condition, loving, and spoiled rotten. He is also talking already!! He can say “Hello Scrappy Doo” and is learning “good morning”, though no one but family recognizes it yet. They will soon and he is a great talker. He is a little 160 gram buddle of energy and thinks he is a giant macaw. We haven’t had the heart to tell him he isn’t, so he rules the rest of the birds. I highly recommend anyone discussing birds and behaviors with Janet as she can help you make the important decision as to which bird would fit in with you and your family. If I should decide on making our family larger I will definitely go back and see Janet again!
Sincerely, |
 Where do you go when you’re looking to acquire a new feathered family member? Well, that’s easy, Wool-N-Wings of course! I recently was in search of acquiring a new feathered family member and searched and searched both newspapers and websites. I stumbled across www.parrots.com from a “google” search. Even more perfect for me, they’re in Oregon. I dialed the number on the website and was greeted by the kindest person. She had all types of birds! I was in heaven! I made an appointment and went out to meet my hopeful new family member (I did!)…I fell in love with a baby umbrella cockatoo and I ended up naming him Zeus . I spent the next few months visiting with Zeus and asking Janet (bird lady) tons of questions. Most places I would research, websites and books would only have negative things to say about purchasing a large bird, especially cockatoos. Janet, Ms Wool-N-Wings herself did not hide the fact that cockatoos can be noisy, messy, etc. but they can also be very loving and rewarding. In the right home, any parrot can thrive. She spends quality time with each baby bird making sure when it finally goes to a home, it is the most loving gentle creature! I highly recommend Wool-N-Wings and Zeus does too! When Zeus was old enough to come home he was murmuring the words “I love you..” perhaps that’s a little bias from me but becoming more and more distinct each and every day! I have Janet and Wool-N-Wings to thank for my newest and dearest family member. Be careful, birds are addicting! When I’m ready to add to my feathered family, I will definitely choose Wool-N-Wings!
Zeus and I both thank you Wool-N-Wings! |
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September 2002 Janet, We have recently celebrated our one year anniversary with Lola , our beautiful Ruby macaw, and I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for all you did for us in her first 5 months. You always responded so quickly to my many, many e-mails asking questions about her and we all loved looking at her baby pictures on your web site. I was a nervous wreck waiting for her at the airport and was amazed that she arrived totally unfazed by the 10 hour trip. We brought her home to our four large dogs and she said “Hello” to them right away. I was impressed that she also could say her name, you must have spent hours talking to her and it shows in her loving, confident disposition. Pretty much everything you said would happen did. She tried to be the boss and she sometimes nipped us pretty hard. But after a year with her, I can’t imagine not having her in our lives. She is incredibly affectionate and cuddly and we are all amazed at her intelligence and sense of humor. I look forward to her maturing and all the surprises yet to come with her.
Thank you again for all you did for her (and us), |
 I had decided about three years ago that an addition to my family was needed. I had found myself following the works of Dr. Irene Pepperburg and her Congo African Grey “Alex” as both intriguing and fascinating. I had decided that I too had the time, patience and willingness to dedicate to a very special African Grey who I named "Jack" long before he ever existed. I read anything and everything I could find be it books, magazines or Internet downloads about African Greys. I then researched pet stores and breeders on a local scale. After approximately 6 months I turned to the Internet because I found what options I had locally weren’t right for me. Something was just missing. Then I found Wool-N-Wings. I read their website forward and backwards. I called and questioned Janet on their breeding and weaning program. After just a couple of calls and e-mails there was NO doubt in my mind as to where Jack was going to be born. All the answers were in Gaston, Oregon. After many months waiting for the breeding season the phone call came. I anxiously waited the 6-week period to see if the baby chosen for me had sexed out to be a male. As soon as Janet received word she contacted me and from that day on Janet and Larry referred to our boy as Jack. I had received e-mails on his progress and saw him develop via pictures on their website. Janet let me know how his vet visits went, that his appetite was amazing and that he “smirfed” and chirped in the evening before settling down for the night. Jack was free eating around 100 days but was also still wanting the evening weaning meals therefore until Jack specifically let Janet know that he was ready to come to Tulsa I waited. Only he could let Janet and I know when the time was right. I had concerns about his flight. He left Oregon at the 120-day mark around midnight and did not arrive in Tulsa until 7:30 the following morning. Once they brought Jack to me from the plane any fears I may have had completely vanished. Jack was showing everyone how handsome he is. Once I got him home he also showed me how loving he is as well. Cuddling and chirping. He is the healthiest most well rounded pet a person could ever ask for. He took to me instantly and bonded with my dog of 10 years without question. His first visit to the vet confirmed for me, what I had already seen, that he is very healthy, well adjusted and a HAM!! The vet and he were cuddling and cooing the first five minutes they met. He weighed in at 476 grams, which also confirmed for me that no weight had been lost from the flight. “Everything” I have offered him to eat he takes graciously. Everyone he has met has been allowed, by his choice, to hold him, pet his feathers and stroke his beak without incident. Janet stays in touch with me on a regular basis and I know any questions I may have be it now or in the future she and Larry are just a phone call away. I totally believe that this whole experience has been made possible only because of the start in life that Jack was given by Janet, Larry and their family. So in closing I truly believe there are no better breeders than Janet, Larry and theirs sons who have dedicated so much of their time and lives to bring joy to a family like mine.
Thank you so very much, |
 All during the weaning process, Larry and Janet kept us posted frequently of our baby's progress. They were always very patient with us and also posted many pictures of our parrot on their internet site, as she grew and developed which we greatly appreciated. As we had never owned a parrot before and we had lots and lots of questions, Janet took the time to answer them all and gave us additional information often. The day finally came when Niki was to be shipped to us. She had spent some 10-12 hours in travel and arrived in perfect health and good mood, and seemed no worse the wear for it. I thinks this speaks a lot of Janet and Larry's experience, care, and skill in raising their birds. Niki adapted to us almost immediately, wanting attention from not just my wife but our entire family. She very quickly became a member of our family. She's very affectionate especially for a Grey and I know this is because of all the care and kindness that Janet and her family lavished her with. I would and will reccommend Larry and Janet's Wool-N-Wings aviary to anyone I know seeking a healthy, well bred and caringly hand reared bird. That's just what we got. That and more - a lasting friendship.
Mike and Sheila B. |
  I'm happy to give you a reference on Wool-n-Wings. We had been considering buying a Macaw for some time but hadn't found a breeder that seemed right. We had shopped around and even visited many bird stores (I almost changed my mind after looking at many of the caged birds who seemed so "wild"). We finally found Wool-N-Wings on the Internet and after emailing back and forth and talking to them, things just clicked. I can't say enough good things about Janet and the "TLC" she gave our Greenwing, Maui, during the first 5 months of her life. This was a big investment for us as well (time and $) and a we thought a lot about it before we made the decision. We just couldn't be more happy now! ABSOLUTELY NO REGRETS!!! We have had smaller birds for many years but never a large parrot. We made the decision to purchase when Maui was about 4 weeks old. Over the last several months, Janet and Larry have kept us up to date on how Maui was doing and even posted pictures on the Net for us to see! Once, I was talking to Janet on the phone and she had Maui with her and she held up the phone so I could hear Maui "talking". Janet didn't know I was going to call so that showed me that she obviously spent lots of loving time with the birds and didn't just keep them caged up all the time with no attention. After we had Maui sexed and picked out a name for her, Janet and Larry called her by her name. She knew her name by the time she arrived. Maui arrived after a 5 hour flight from Portland to Albuquerque and she wasn't even nervous! She squawked only a few times when she came through the luggage conveyor belt, but as soon as we started talking to her at the airport, she calmed down immediately. That confirmed our earlier belief that Janet and Larry had really taken excellent care of her and loved her lots before she left them. Also, we had not had her for 10 minutes (we were just leaving the airport) when Janet called on our Cell phone to be sure Maui had arrived ok. She was truly concerned and it showed how much she loved her and cared about her. We have only had Maui for a few weeks but during that time she has become an intregral part of our family. She has been handled by probably over 20 different people during that time and made 3 different car trips. She has never tried to bite anyone and equally loves men and women. We spend lots of time holding her and she is completely at ease and totally calm. She even rolls on her back and plays with your hands with her feet (totally trusting). I took her to our Aviary Vet after we had had her for 1 week and the Vet said she could tell she had been very well taken care of and that the breeder really knew what she was doing during feeding and weaning time. She has seen lots of young birds come in and they don't look nearly as good as Maui. She also commented that she was extremely calm (normal heart rate) for a young bird at a strange place. This Vet has the reputation of being one of the best Aviary Vets in the Southwest so she knows what she's talking about! I guess the point I'm trying to make that I attribute all of this to the wonderful care she got at Wool-n-Wings. If you're hesitating at all, don't.... We love our Maui!
Dave and Shelly M. |
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03/23/1998 Wool-N-Wings is a great place to find the perfect bird. Larry and Janet Swanson were very helpful, friendly and sensitive to the special concerns of people interested in purchasing a bird online. Their aviary is first-rate, clean and professional, yet small enough that each bird receives lots of individual attention from all the family members. Our Congo African Grey baby passed her "new bird" vet check-up with flying colors and when we are ready for another bird, we will be coming back to Wool-N-Wings!
Gary and Bev K. |
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In May of 97, we got an email from Janet and Larry Swanson that they had a new brood of Greenwing Macaws. We had been inquiring about Greenwings for some time, looking from breeder to breeder. We wanted to find the right breeder and Wool-N-Wing definately fit the bill. We found their web site, called them and then went out to see them and their facility. We were very impressed. Fortunately, they were not far from were we live. After the Greenwings hatched and they were a few weeks old, we came to visit them and saw our baby for the first time. Janet and Larry allowed us to visit as often as we liked so that we could watch our Greenwing develop and grow. And as our relationship with our bird grew so did our relationship with Janet and Larry. We don't just consider them an exotic bird breeder, we consider them our friends. They answered all our questions and taught us how to be good Macaw parents. This is our first one and we named her Rio. She is beautiful, healthy and extremely lovable. We are very happy with Wool-N-Wing and all they have done for us.
Sincerely, |
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My husband and I were interested in buying a baby Military Macaw. We
were unsure about buying a bird that we had never seen, over the internet.
When I called Wool-N-Wings Janet made me feel very comfortable. When we decided
to buy our baby, Willamina, Janet and Larry went out of their way to take
pitures of her for us, and give us weekly reports on her progress. I was
so impressed with their professional and caring attitude. I was more
impressed when our baby came in on that big plane. She was beautiful. We
have had Willamina for over 4 months now. I can not possibly say enough
about what a wonderful sweet treasure she is. She is the most healthy,
beautiful, and sweet tempered Military Macaw I have ever seen. I have
bought other birds through pet shops, and my experience with buying
Willamina through Wool-N-Wings was every bit as easy and pleasant. I would
definatly reccomend buying a baby this way, you will not regret it.
Melissa B. |
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I bought two parrots from the Swansons and I found the entire experience to
be a very good one. Larry and Janet were quick to answer all of my
questions and concerns. They obviously know what they are doing because they
sent me two beautiful, well-adjusted, happy, and healthy babies. The birds
had been exposed to many different types of people and ate up everything I
served to them! They were affectionate, adorable and loving. They obviously
had been well cared for and played with frequently. Larry was more than
happy to provide me with baby pictures over the computer and frankly, I
learned a great deal about parrots from Janet. Both Swansons share a love
and devotion to their birds. I bought an African Gray (Congo) and a male
Grand Eclectus. I would buy another bird from them in a minute. Both of my
birds were obviously loved and enjoyed by the Swansons before they came to my
home. I am very satisfied and confident in their knowledge base, abilities,
and love for these wonderful creatures.
Diane |
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I was a little uncomfortable about dealing through the
internet but I am most pleased at your professional, efficient, and yet
friendly way of doing business. Your promptness at answering all my
questions was reassuring and the reassurance was founded. I will definitely
highly recommend you to anyone who is interested in purchasing a parrot.
Brenda |
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