From the outside, Kim Hannah's Hermitage home looks like any other. But inside, there are cages in every room, housing nearly 40 parrots that have been surrendered by their owners.
"A lot of people will impulse buy. They'll see a beautiful bird in a pet shop or a show and they'll think, 'How cool would that be?!'" Hannah said. "Then they get them home and realize they're really loud. Or they're really destructive, or they really bite hard."
Hannah first began rescuing parrots in 2003. Now she operates the Exotic Avian Sanctuary of Tennessee out of living room.
The birds are expertly cared for, many recovering from severe neglect and abuse. But Hannah said her cause has simply outgrown her space.
She hopes to build a new facility on an acreage just off Old Lebanon Dirt Road.
"It'll be a 40 foot by 70 foot building," Hannah said. "We're going to have indoor aviaries, or rooms, so they don't have to be in cages."
The project will cost an estimated $180,000, so Hannah has launched a capital campaign to cover that cost.
You can donate at the rescue's website.
