How it started...

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At age 5 Joe Carvalho received his first bird from his uncle. He named him Pepito and promptly taught him to ride on the handlebars of his bike.

At age 22 Joe bought a car wash and later named it Bird Bath Car Wash. In order to give the birds the attention they needed, Joe brought them to the car wash with him. On rainy days when the car wash was closed, Joe would bring his birds to the local schools and charitable events to give educational shows for the children.

Joe and Sheik, his cockatoo, appeared on The Gong Show and received three 10s. Shortly thereafter he received a phone call from Knott’s Berry Farm asking him to bring his birds to their park during the summer or 1979. During that summer tragedy struck, a fire broke out near the birds’ housing, and all his birds died as a result. The grief was too much and he vowed to never have another bird. However the children of one of the schools, he had given educational shows to, embarked on what they called, “Pennies for Polly”. They presented Joe with their collection and beautiful homemade cards asking him to use the collection for him to obtain another bird. The gesture was so touching, Joe decided to risk the “feelings” and pursue finding another bird.

Since that time Joe has continued to grow his animal and human teams, where they connect with audiences around the world through his company Carvalho’s Friends of a Feather, Inc.

There was one missing piece… and in 2004 the non-profit Feathered Ambassadors and Friends was created with the goal to create outreach programs to educate children regarding endangered and exotic animal species, their behaviors and habitats, the effects of rainforest deforestation, and engage in endangered