Animal Education Foundation
JJ has spent his entire life with birds. His experience with companion parrots ranges from parakeets and cockatiels, to amazons and his current umbrella cockatoos. Prior to co-founding AEF, JJ was an active volunteer with a parrot welfare organization. He is also currently a volunteer with the Raptor Conservancy of Virginia. He has received a Certificate of Excellence from Dr. Susan Friedman's Living and Learning with Parrots (LLP) course. He has attended the Companion Parrot Workshop and the Advanced Companion Workshop at Natural Encounters, Inc. He also completed a six week internship with Natural Encounters, working at their Birds of the World Show at the State Fair of Texas in Dallas. He is an ardent supporter of the World Parrot Trust and the Peregrine Fund, and a professional member of the International Association of Avian Trainers and Educators.
Leigh is Director of Animal Health at the National Aquarium in Baltimore. She works with a team of veterinarians, veterinary technicians, and husbandry staff to help provide care to the aquariums animals, including over 600 species of fishes, invertebrates, marine mammals, primates, reptiles and amphibians. Leigh obtained her Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine. She completed an internship in small animal medicine and surgery at Friendship Hospital for Animals in Washington, DC and an internship in zoo/aquarium medicine at Lincoln Park Zoo and Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, IL before undertaking a residency in pet avian and exotic animal medicine and surgery at Angell Memorial Animal Hospital in Boston, MA. Leigh is a published author of veterinary articles and lectures on a variety of topics at scientific and continuing education conferences. She is passionate about utilizing positive reinforcement training and enrichment for pet and zoo/aquarium animals. In her free time Leigh enjoys being outdoors -- hiking, biking, or boarding (on water or snow).
Meredith is an avian and exotic veterinarian and chief of staff of Eastern Exotic Veterinary Center located in Fairfax, Virginia. Meredith completed her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from Cornell University and a residency in poultry medicine along with a Master of Science in Veterinary Preventive Medicine from The Ohio State University. Her clinical work includes surgical and medical care of rodents, rabbits, pocket pets, ferrets, reptiles, amphibians and birds. An important part of the practice is client education on nutrition, husbandry and preventive medicine of these species. She considers herself very fortunate to have been able to fulfill her dreams of working as an avian veterinarian which has been her goal since she was a child.
Susan is a psychology professor at Utah State University. Over the last decade, she has helped pioneer efforts to apply to animals the scientifically sound teaching technology and ethical standard of Applied Behavior Analysis that is so effective with human learners. Susan has given a wide variety of workshops and conference presentations including the Association of Avian Veterinarians, the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria, the American Federation of Aviculturists and Moorpark College's Exotic Animal Training and Management program. She was a guest speaker on the topic of learning and behavior for NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Colloquium and presented master classes and workshops in Africa, Australia, Canada, France, Holland, Israel and New Zealand. Her articles have been translated into 8 languages. Susan teaches two on-line courses, one for veterinarians and other animal professionals (www.lla.tele.com), and another for pet owners (www.behavioroworks.org). Susan is also a core member of the Condor Recovery Project and has been nominated for the Media Award, given by the International Association of Behavior Analysis, for her efforts to disseminate to pet owners, veterinarians, animal trainers and zookeepers some of the essential tools they need to empower and enrich the lives of all learners.
Barbara has been a professional in the field of animal training since 1990. She owns and operates a company, Good Bird, Inc., (www.GoodBirdInc.com) that provides behavior and training products to the companion parrot community. These products include Good Bird Magazine, books, videos, and parrot training workshops. Barbara has provided animal training workshops or presentations at the Association of Avian Veterinarians conference, The American Federation of Aviculture conference, The Avicultural Society of America conference, The International Parrot Conference at Loro Parque, Parrot Festival, The International Association of Avian Trainers and Educators conference, American Association of Zoo Keepers conference, Association of Zoos and Aquariums conference, The Parrot Society of Australia conference and many more. She is the past president of the International Association of Avian Trainers and Educators (www.IAATE.org) and has been on the Board of Directors since 1997. Her expertise has been utilized by the US Dept. of Agriculture and Fish and Wildlife Service. In the past 4 years she has trained over 600 parrots at her workshops presented around the world.
She is the author of “Good Bird! A Guide to Solving Behavior Problems in Companion Parrots” by Avian Publications and also “The Parrot Problem Solver. Finding Solutions to Aggressive Behavior” by TFH Publications. She is also the producer of the Good Bird Parrot Behavior and Training DVD series.
Barbara’s experience also includes consulting on animal training in zoos and other animal related facilities. She has been a part of the development and production of more than 15 different free flight education programs. Barbara continues to provide consulting services to zoos, nature centers and other animal facilities through her other company Animal Training and Consulting Services (www.ATandCS.com). In her career she has trained animals, trained staff, and/or presented shows at facilities around the world.
Wendy holds advanced degrees in finance and accounting and has several years of experience with nonprofit accounting and financial reporting. She has shared her life with parrots since 1997 and is a passionate advocate for training animals using the most positive, least intrusive methods; in particular, Wendy emphasizes the use of positive reinforcement to train husbandry behaviors. Wendy is a perpetual student of the science of behavior analysis and the art of animal training. She has presented several seminars on parrot behavior and holds a certificate of excellence in Dr. Susan Friedman's course, Living and Learning with Parrots, and in Dr. Friedman's telecourse for animal professionals, Living and Learning with Animals. Wendy has completed three parrot training workshops at Natural Encounters, Inc. and Bob Bailey's Discrimination workshop (aka, Chicken Camp I). She is an active volunteer with the Raptor Conservancy of Virginia and adores great-horned owls. Wendy is a member of the World Parrot Trust, and a professional member of the Animal Behavior Management Alliance and the International Association of Avian Trainers and Educators.
Steve has lived with parrots from the time he was five years old. By the time he was 16 he was already training parrots and his interest expanded to falconry. He has now been a Master Falconer for over 40 years. He began his professional animal training career when he set up the first of its kind, free-flight bird show at the San Diego Wild Animal Park in 1976. Since then he has produced educational animal programs, or consulted at, over 50 zoological facilities around the world.
Steve has produced three videos on parrot behavior and training, and he lectures frequently about parrot behavior. He has also written several articles on animal behavior and conducts four training workshops each year at his facility in Winter Haven, Florida. Over two-thirds of his year is spent on the road consulting with zoos and aquariums on animal behavior issues or teaching people the art and science of animal behavior.
Steve is President of both Natural Encounters, Inc., a company of over 20 professional animal trainers, and Natural Encounters Conservation Fund, Inc., a company dedicated to raising money for conservation projects. In the past 12 years, Natural Encounters Conservation Fund has donated over $400,000 to in-situ conservation programs.
Steve is a Trustee with the World Parrot Trust, a Core Team Member of the California Condor Recovery Team, and founding member of IAATE, an international bird trainers' organization.
Julie has been involved with companion parrots for thirty five years. Julie is founder and president of The Gabriel Foundation®, dedicated to educating the public about the complex needs of psittacine birds through each of its seven programs: Education and Outreach, Adoption, Sanctuary, Rehabilitation, Rescue, Long-term Foster care, and Conservation, about the need to preserve wild parrots in their indigenous habitats. Julie has been published nationally and internationally. In addition to her many national presentations, she has been a regular presenter at the AAV, AFA and NAVC conferences and she has internationally lectured in Canada, the U.K., and Japan. She has traveled widely to observe parrots in their natural habitats and learn firsthand the critical importance of in situ conservation programs. She is a member of AAV, and a lifetime member of A.F.A., WPT, A.S.A., IAATE and the Loro Parque Fundación. She is a member of other professional organizations in the animal sheltering community.
Joseph is engaged in extensive training and educational activities. He is a determined advocate for critical thinking and the use of positive reinforcement and operant learning in the human realm, inparticular leadership and management training. He is CEO and President of Omnis, Inc., a science and technology consulting and training firm in Northern Virginia. He is also a Ph.D. astrophysicist and is an associate professor in the Department of Physics & Astronomy at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA.
Joe earned his Ph.D., M.Phil., M.A., and M.Sc. from Cambridge University(Peterhouse) and the International School for Advanced Studies inTrieste, Italy, and his B.A. in Physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder. He is a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, a professional member of the Animal Behavior Management Alliance, a member of Peterhouse, Cambridge, the American Astronomical Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Sigma Pi Sigma, and the Cambridge Philosophical Society.
His interests are many and varied and range from non-human intelligence and interspecies communication to critical thinking and antiques.
Sid is the founder of Avian Ambassadors. He has more than fifteen years of experience working with wildlife in public presentations. He is a professional member of the following organizations: International Association of Avian Trainers and Educators, Animal Behavior Management Alliance, Association of Professional Wildlife Educators, New Mexico Wildlife Association, Raptor Research Foundation, and the World Parrot Trust.
Sid is President of the International Association of Avian Trainers and Educators and has also served on the board of the New Mexico Wildlife Association for several years. He is a charter member of the Animal Behavior Management Alliance.
Rita Sambruna's passion for parrots exploded several years ago when she acquired her first parrot, a Jardine's named Reggie. Since then, Rita has been an avid learner of all things avian. She lives in Northern Virginia with seven parrots, two horses, and her husband Joe. A PhD astrophysicist by trade, Rita is a firm believer in the power of evidence-based knowledge to improve the lives of parrots, and all animals including humans, both in the wild and in captivity. Her experience with behavior and teaching includes serving as a TA for Dr. Friedman's online LLP class, as a threadleader and mentor for the Parrot Behavior Analysis Solution list for a number of years, giving behavior seminars, and writing articles for parrot magazines. Rita continues to increase her knowledge and skills by attending numerous behavior and training courses and workshops. Among others, Rita attended four workshops at Natural Encounters, Inc., Bob Bailey's Discrimination workshop, and Dr. Susan Friedman's Living and Learning with Animals telecourse for professionals. She is on the Board of Directors of The Gabriel Foundation and a member of the World Parrot Trust.
Robin is the owner of The Leather Elves, a company that designs and manufactures enrichment devices for animals in captivity. The Leather Elves started as a family business that created enrichment for companion parrots. After working with several facilities that housed collections of parrots Robin realized that there was a need in those facilities for enrichment targeting other species.
In 2000 The Leather Elves began working with zoos internationally to enhance the level of enrichment provided. Since then Robin has consulted at zoos in the US, Canada and Holland and has distributed enrichment products worldwide. In the companion parrot community Robin has spoken at numerous parrot clubs, providing a workshop that helps companion bird owners create a stimulating environment for their pets. Robin also works to develop new enrichment products for companion parrots that will stimulate naturalistic behavior when presented. Robin has published articles on enrichment in national and international publications. She is the enrichment columnist for the Flyer, a quarterly publication of the International Association of Avian Trainers and Educators. Robin also co-hosts a weekly pod cast called Wings n Things which focuses on enrichment and training for companion parrots at www.petliferadio.com.
Robin is a member of The American Association of Zookeepers and The International Association of Avian Trainers and Educators. Robin works closely with the AAZK enrichment committee as an advisor and is a member of the IAATE enrichment committee. At the 2006 AAZK conference Robin received a certificate of appreciation for her contributions to the field of enrichment with regard to management of captive exotics.
Kathryne is a graduate of 4 workshops at Natural Encounters Inc. She has also earned a certificate of excellence for the Living and Learning with Parrots online course and attended several Parrot Behavior Workshops around the country. She worked for two years as a volunteer at the Raptor Conservancy of VA and was a member of the Board of Directors of the Wildlife Rescue League of Northern VA. She has lived with parrots for more than twelve years. She is a Lifetime member of Indonesian Parrot Project, Member of The World Parrot Trust, World Wildlife Fund and ABMA.
Richard volunteers for several wildlife rescue organizations, including the Wildbunch Foundation, Dogue Hollow Animal Sanctuary, and the Raptor Conservancy of VA. He was on the board of directors of a parrot rescue organization and served as Chairman for two years. He developed a number of unique parrot-related products, including the TriGym, ShowerGym, and TrainerGym, which help support AEF activities. He is a Lifetime member of Indonesian Parrot Project, Member of The World Parrot Trust, World Wildlife Fund.
