Belize Bird Rescue
Avian Rehabilitation Centre & Bird Sanctuary
call (+501) 610 0400
WISHLIST
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Operational Costs
People often ask what it costs the Directors to run Belize Bird Rescue. Here are our major, unavoidable daily expenses
Average annual running costs $85,000USD
All operational and expansion costs from 2004 to 2015 came from the Founder/Director private funds.*
Income is now derived through our Global Giving platform, Paypal and local fundraisers
Ways to Donate
FOOD
All parrots are fed every morning
We use 70+ baskets to hold the daily rations of parrot food which costs around $80US per day. Each basket contains items such as parrot pellets, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, papaya, banana, fresh vegetables, seasonal fruits, cooked corn and beans, multivitamins, cooked egg, birdy-bread.
Seasonal fruit examples: coconut, tamarind, various apples and plums sugar cane, craboo, kinep, noni, surinam cherries, black-berries, gooseberries, wild grape, mango, cashew fruit, pitaya
From our ponds and the river we harvest fish for the numerous water birds we rehab throughout the year, and we purchase fish from local sea-fishermen for our sea-birds which costs around $200US a month
Other weekly feed costs:
Rats & Mice - $50 (bred for raptor food)
Mealworms - $11 (bred for passerine food)
Chicks & chicken (bred for raptor food and eggs) - $30
Onmivore and toucan foods include special pellets, meats and egg.
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Weekly feed costs* approx $623US
WAGES
Covid has curtailed staff hours considerably. We try to make sure they have some work, but it hasn't been easy. $400US is almost a third of our pre-covid wages bill
Oscar is our Husbandry Co-ordinator keeping a close eye on the birds physical and mental conditions.
Jose & Orlando are our groundsmen who help out BBR by doing everything from building structures and enclosures to maintaining the fish ponds and fruit trees.
Carmen cleans up morning prep, scrubs cages, washed towels, cleans the indoor rehab/nursery/clinic areas, prepares fresh produce for the next day and forages for home-grown foods.
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They are fabulous, dedicated people and we wish with all our heart that we could afford to pay them more for their services.
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Weekly wages costs* $400US
TRANSPORT
BBR is currently without a vehicle of our own. Thanks to a very good friend we have use of an old Toyota, but we need to get our own vehicle very soon.
If you would like to donate specifically to our vehicle fund, please follow this link to our Global Giving site, or Paypal
We travel hundreds of miles a month for our rescue and release trips throughout the country. Other regular journeys include shopping, education/outreach, and veterinary visits.
Average monthly fuel bill is $450. Vehicle tax, insurance, and repairs are another $3,500 per year.
Weekly transport costs (average) $150US
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UTILITIES
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The water supply is electrically pumped from Roaring Creek to a hill-top tank, and gravity does the rest. The electricity is drawn from the national grid and is expensive.
There is also a solar pump that aids the aeration stream to the fish ponds.
Gas for cooking and water heating is delivered by truck to a bulk tank and piped to the house.
The phone line to the house is also our internet connection and we have a post-paid cell phone contract; two prepaid numbers and a toll-free Wildlife Advice Hotline.
Average monthly utility bills for BBR:
Electricity $500
Butane gas $160
Phone & Internet $250
Weekly utilities costs* $210US
PUBLICITY, EDUCATION & ADMIN
Our education programmes are on hold due to Covid, but we still produce a selection of educational materials, the majority about parrots and parrot care. We reprint as often as able and can distribute through appropriate public venues and outlets
We assist the Forest Department with their outreach initiatives wherever possible, and conduct our own public awareness and education programmes.
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View or download our current materials.
Request copies for your school (in Belize only)
Contact us to arrange a presentation for your school or organisation (Belize only)
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Admin includes web hosting, taxes, fees, postage, printing costs etc
Weekly costs* average $75US
FACILITY
'Facility' is a broad term for everything that is Belize Bird Rescue. The entire ground floor of the 10,000 sq.ft. building encompasses the food prep area, nursery, quarantine, clinic, bathroom, office, storage areas and some of the non-releasable resident birds.
All of the buildings and practically all of the enclosures were originally funded from the Directors' personal savings. Our current costs are for expansion, upkeep, repairs and replacement of existing facilities
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MEDICAL CARE
We use Animal Medical Centre in Belize City as they are the most suitably qualified for avian veterinary care and orthopaedics.
A wing or leg pin surgery costs between 150-300US and an X-ray is $25US. Monthly costs vary but we usually have outstanding monthly bills of over $350US
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Weekly costs* facility & medical average $175US