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Sandee and Robert Molenda have been breeding birds since 1983 and parrotlets exclusively since 1986. They own The Parrotlet Ranch in Santa Cruz, California. Both have also been certified by the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council under the Avian Specialist program. Sandee and Robert have over one hundred breeding pair of parrotlets which include six of the seven nominate species as well as many subspecies of the Forpus genus. They also have many beautiful color mutations of the Pacifics parrotlets. They specialize in breeding rare species of parrotlets and hold several First Breeding and Difficult Breeding Awards. They have also been very successful in breeding a difficult species, Mexican parrotlets, are one of the first breeders of Spectacled and one of a handful of breeders working with Yellow Face parrotlets in the United States.
Co-founders of the International Parrotlet Society, Robert is the Society's treasurer and Sandee the secretary, journal editor and American Federation of Aviculture club delegate. In addition to the International Parrotlet Society, Sandee is also a Board member of African Love Bird Society, Great American Bird Show and National Cage Bird Show and is an Associate Director for the Society of Parrot Breeders & Exhibitors. Sandee is also a former Board member of the American Federation of Aviculture and International Aviculturists Society. Prior to being a full-time parrotlet breeder, Sandee
had a 15 year career as a legal assistant. Sandee and Robert have been involved
with avian legislative issues since 1989. Sandee was a Co-Chair of the Pet
Bird Issues Advisory Panel started by U.S. Department of
Agriculture and served on the Exotic Newcastle Disease Task Force.
She also worked with Bird Clubs of America to
establish an educational campaign for the care of birds by pet shops. She has
also worked with the U.S. Transportation Security Administration
to develop security policies and protocols for people traveling with pet birds.
Sandee has testified before
state and Federal regulatory bodies such as California Department of Food
and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service. Sandee has also been involved with Federal legislation
such as the Wild Bird Conservation Act and Animal
Welfare Act as well as California state bills such as A.B. 409 (Exotic
Animal Bill) and A.B. 202 (Unweaned Baby Bird Bill). She
has testified before California legislative committees as well as advised
lawmakers in other states on issues relating to bird ownership. She also has
worked with international
legislators regarding regulations affecting aviculture. Sandee has also been a consultant and advisor to many different avian industry businesses to help them develop new products specifically designed for parrotlet breeders and keepers. This includes Volkman's seed company which resulted in their Parrotlet Super mix - the only major bird food manufacturer to provide a diet that is made specifically for the nutritional needs of parrotlets. Also, California Cage Company, used many of Sandee's recommendations in the design of their "Barcelona" cage. Hagen Corporation also has designed a cage that is ideal for keeping parrotlets. The Hagen Living Visions Cage comes in two sizes and has four food/water cups, horizontal bars to facilitate climbing, has plenty of room for perches (included) and toys, is easy to clean and attractive. It comes with or without a stand and even has a built-in bird bath. Sandee highly recommends this cage for keeping parrotlets. Robert and Sandee are professional writers and the authors of the first booklet written on parrotlets, The Parrotlet Handbook which is considered an excellent basic book for people just learning about parrotlets. They have also written All About Parrotlets which has all the information in the first but includes much more on behavior, color mutations, breeding and showing parrotlets. Currently, they are working on an expanded book exclusively for pet owners complete with full color photographs as well as an updated version of All About Parrotlets. Sandee also has been retained by Barron's to rewrite and update its version of The Parrotlet Handbook. In addition, they have contributed to other author's works including Guide to Companion Parrot Behavior by Mattie Sue Athan, The Parrotlet Handbook by Matthew Vriends and Generic Genetics by Pilo Suarez. Sandee is also the editor for the Journals of the Society of Parrot Breeders & Exhibitors and International Parrotlet Society. In addition, Sandee has written many articles on parrotlets and other avian subjects which have been featured in national and international magazines, newspapers and other publications such as
There are also countless publications written by Sandee in bird club newsletters and journals as well as online web-sites. Sandee also writes a monthly column in Bird Talk called "Beyond The Feathers" and is journal editor for the Society of Parrot Breeders and Exhibitors and the International Parrotlet Society. Sandee is also a professional speaker and lecturer and gives Power Point or slide presentations on a wide variety of avian topics including:
Sandee has been a featured speaker at numerous national and international avian conferences and symposiums including:
Sandee has also given presentations to many bird clubs including:
In 1997, Robert and Sandee began exhibiting their parrotlets in bird shows around the country. They have won many awards including several Best in Shows and have several Champion and Grand Champion parrotlets as well as receiving numerous Exhibitor Awards. In 1998, Sandee and Robert became the first exhibitors to win the American Federation of Aviculture's Best Bird in Show Bred and Banded By An AFA Member at both the Great American and National Cage Bird Shows. In 2003, their female Blue Wing Parrotlet won Best Parrot in Show and second Best Bird in Show at the Great American Bird Show. In 2005, their male blue mutation Pacific parrotlet was the Top Winning Parrot in the United States. Robert and Sandee hold the highest number of wins for the International Parrotlet Society's Best Parrotlet in Show Awards and have been the Society's Exhibitor of the Year every year since the Society started the presenting the award. In addition, Sandee and Robert have won the prestigious Society of Parrot Breeders and Exhibitors Exhibitor of Excellence Award every year since they started showing parrotlets. In 2004, Robert and Sandee achieved the highest exhibitor honor in the Society of Parrot Breeders and Exhibitors by achieving the Supreme Exhibitor Award in an unprecedented 7 years and with only one genus of parrots, parrotlets. They are the only exhibitors in the Society of Parrot Breeders and Exhibitors history to have received that award with only one genus of parrot. Sandee and Robert are members of American Federation of Aviculture, International Parrotlet Society, Society of Parrot Breeders and Exhibitors, National Cage Bird Show, African Love Bird Society, Great American Bird Show, Santa Clara Valley Canary and Exotic Bird Club, and RARE Center.
Sandee & Robert Molenda |
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