Suspects wanted for animal cruelty after bird found in trash

The Animal Rescue League of Boston is searching for animal cruelty suspects after rescuing a severely neglected bird from the trash last month.

On July 25, someone in Dorchester noticed “something odd” with the trash put out around Norfolk Street, according to the Animal Rescue League (ARL). In the middle of the garbage waiting to be collected was a birdcage filled with maggots, cockroaches and an Umbrella Cockatoo.

The bird was emaciated and had a serious medical condition that required emergency surgery. After undergoing surgery, she is recovering at the ARL and workers there say that soon she’ll be well enough to find a new home.

The ARL has also posted a call for the public’s help on itsFacebook page, asking if anyone recognized the white Umbrella Cockatoo, which members of the organization have named Mayfield.

“The person(s) responsible for neglecting and cruelly abandoning this lovely bird needs to be held accountable for their actions,” the ARL wrote.

Staff there are looking to identify Mayfield’s original owners, and noted that failure to provide proper food, drink, shelter, and a sanitary environment and willful abandonment of an animal are felony violations of Massachusetts’s anti-cruelty laws. Someone convicted of these crimes can face up to seven years in prison.

“Sadly, Mayfield is not the first animal we’ve seen who was abandoned and left to die in the trash or on the streets,” the ARL wrote. “We understand that tough economic conditions also affect pets, but let’s get the word out that the last resort is not throwing your pet away.”

Anyone who recognizes Mayfield or has any information regarding her case is encouraged to contact the ARL’s Law Enforcement Department at 617-226-5610.