But no worries, he is in the very capable hands of Gerald Dilbert. Gerry will be opening an aviary/parrot Jungle within a few months. He will have 1 acre of land under netting so that Castro and his new found friends can fly to their heart’s content!! Gerry said he was taking Castro home to meet a female bird, her name is Cheetah!!. I will go visit him later this week, to take pictures of him in his new home, and will of course blog them for you all to see. Since the aviary is not yet ready, Gerry has built a temporary aviary behind his house where he will keep Castro and the rest of his birds.
We are all excited for Castro, as now he has the opportunity to meet friends of his own, of course he has “people friends”, but he was lacking in “bird friends”!! He will be greatly missed by the staff and the owners of the resort, but the good thing is that the aviary will be located behind the Frank Sound Fire Station, near the Mastic Trail . So in reality he is only 15 minutes away!!
10 comments:
I think it's great that Castro will be moving to the aviary but my family and I have been staying at the Reef since it opened and we loved to hold Castro in the evenings when Clive brought him out to play. Tell Clive to give Castro and kiss goodbye from all of us. What will Clive do now?
The Shoup family, Maryland
Don't worry!! We are working out visitation rights for CLive, as we know that
And dont worry, we are also workign on having Castro have special appearances at the resort every so often!!!!
Will defintiely keep you all posted!!
Will there be a "Castro Fund" or a way of making a contibution to the Aviary on Castro's behalf while we make our next visit to the REEF in October?
We will miss his cheerful morning "squawking" sessions! And also his famous "SWING Castro, SWING"...moves...
Perhaps Phil might fill in for him.. : ) (just kidding of course!)
JoJorn
Please do try to schedule regular times when Castro will come back to the Reef to visit with guests. He was always a highlight of our 10 year old daughter. She loved to feed him nuts with Clive and crackers from the bartender!
I am very disappointed with the decision to remove Castro from The Reef. We were there in February and felt a very distinct movement to get Castro out of The Reef and the reason was not based on what was best for Castro. Visiting Castro was a highlight of our vacation. I realize that he occasionally took a nip at a guest or 2, but I sincerely believe that an arrangement could be made so that Castro could stay at the Reef and bring the the pleasure to the great number of quests that he has for so many years. Afterall, Castro stuck out the worse in Ivan along with Clive and Mr Lawrence and he deserves to stay at his home.
Castro's eviction speaks volumes about the character of those who lobbied for his removal.
The Reef will not be the same without him!
Leslie Hatch
I agree with Leslie. Castro did not ask to be placed on a bar in the lobby of a resort and due to pure neglect from staff and management he of course is not behaving as they would like.
Perhaps we need to change the name of the restaurant now !!!!!!
I think those are very strong words, "pure neglect" and also totally unfair.
Castro was with the Thompson Group before The Reef opened and has been with us at The Reef since we opened. He is very much like a two year old child in how he relates to people, he needs constant attention and has some wild mood swings.
No, he never asked to be put on a perch in the lobby, but for several years he seemed happy and was well cared for. However, in recent months nothing has changed in his care, but he has certainly been unhappy, which is why we moved him.
Please also note that, before agreeing to let Gerald Dilbert take Castro, we made sure that Castro will be well cared for and that our staff (including Clive) will be able to check in on him frequently.
Castro is still part of the family at The Reef, please be sure of that.
Tom Cayman - You fool yourself if you believe the decision was made for Castro's sake!
You say nothing has changed in his care. I beg to differ with you. The staff who care for him has changed. When Marguerita was there, Castro received attention and rarely screeched. He acted happy during the day until Clive arrived in the evening. Since she left, Castro sensed the lack of concern and acted out accordingly. Unfortunately, the members and guests will have one less feature to enjoy at The Reef.
Leslie
Ms Hatch,
I'm going to respond one more time. This WAS done in Castro's best interests. Marguerita Berardi was a great concierge and Castro's best friend (next to Clive!), and when she left Castro was upset, but I must point out that I am here all year round, whereas you visit for two weeks each winter so only see what happens at that time.
Did you perhaps notice that a couple of years ago we had Joey Welcome find exactly the right kind of ironwood to build a perch that was far kinder on him and his feet than the cage he previously had ? Once that was built, Castro was very happy.
He also got on famously with several of our staff, including Sandra and Ethel, both of whom were very sad to see him leave.
Yes, some of our staff were happy to be without to hear his screeching over the last few months, but I didn't do this (and it was my decision, I take full responsibility) for any reason other than acting in the best interest of the bird himself.
I can't keep everybody happy, and, quite honestly, as long as I believe what was done was the right thing to do (and I do believe that), the buck stops here.
Dear Tom,
I agree with you and I think that Castro deserves to be with others of his kind. I never once thought Castro was neglected and I frequent the resort about 3 times a year. Castro always received care and attention from staff and guests around the clock. It has been well documented by several animal rights groups, such as Greenpease, that animals in captivity tend to become more aggressive as they mature. Castro merely wants to be around others birds. I feel bad for the staff as I know that he was loved. Though you had a tough decision to make, I believe it was the right decision and I applaud you for putting aside your personal feelings to do something that was necessary for Castro's happiness and longevitiy. I know I can speak for many others that are sad to see him go, but understand why he is gone. I look forward to enjoying the new attraction (bird sanctuary) and I will make it a point to visit with Castro. Great decision! Jenn
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