Missing St. Pete Cockatiel, Family Offers $500 Reward

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A St. Petersburg family asks for the community's help to find their 2-year-old cockatiel that went missing on June 19 in the Crescent Heights neighborhood. They are offering a $500 reward.

"We are worried that he is not getting enough food or water, and he is starving, sick or some animal has gotten him," Mark Michaels, the owner told Patch. "Essentially that he could be sick, hurt, starving, scared or worst-case scenario dead."

The cockatiel's name is Sunshine, and he responds to his name, and will stay and chirp if you say his name. He also responds to whistling and the wolf whistle. He likes to eat millet seed, tortilla chips, rice, pretzels, oatmeal and watermelon. If you live in this community, it would be smart to place some water out for Sunshine, too.

Michaels said that Sunshine got out of their house when the door was opened for a brief moment as they brought a package inside. A loud traffic noise scared Sunshine, and he flew out the door. He was last seen on 22nd Avenue North and 11th Street North at around 1:30 p.m. on June 19.

Another member of the family who misses Sunshine is his brother, a parakeet.

"Sunshine is remarkable in that he's a very handsome bird," said Michaels. "I'm not just saying that because I'm his parent, he could be a show bird if there was such a thing. His crest makes him look a little like Bart Simpson."

His wings are clipped.

Sunshine will say his own name, said Michaels. A good way to know if you have him is by listening to what he says.

He will say, "I'm Sunshine the bird! I'm a good little bird! I'm a good little boy. Peekaboo!"

If you have any information that can help reunite the Michaels family with Sunshine, call them at 727-488-8733 or 603-759-7868.