Boo, a once-blind cockatoo, wins Pet of the Year in first for bird therapy animals

A once-blind cockatoo that survived neglect and abuse is now being recognized for helping people heal.

Since becoming certified by the Pet Partners Therapy Animals Program in 2025, Boo, the 41-year-old umbrella cockatoo, has visited children, seniors, and patients in therapeutic settings, work that helped earn him Pet Partners' Pet of the Year award. 

Boo's handler, Amy Hurst, an animal-assisted intervention specialist, told People the pair were overwhelmed by the recognition.

"When we found out we won, oh my gosh, we were up all night," Hurst said.

For Pet Partners, the award is also a first. The organization certifies therapy animals, but only a small number of them are birds. Before Boo, the group had never given its annual top title to a bird. The six-week fundraising competition aims to support the group's Therapy Animal Program.

As Pet Partners explained, "Boo loves visiting individuals on the autism spectrum, people with disabilities, and patients in occupational and hand therapy programs, as well as youth groups and community events."

The organization added that Boo has "raised more than $33,000 in support of Pet Partners" and "hosted local fundraisers like 'Brews with Boo.'"

But Boo's path to this point was anything but easy. Hurst said he was in terrible physical condition and had been blind for 11 years when she met him. Before that, he had been smuggled illegally into the United States, found during a police raid, and then left in a cage for a year after being mistakenly labeled aggressive, per People.

Once Hurst had helped restore his health, Boo underwent a "groundbreaking surgery" at North Carolina State University's veterinary school that returned his vision, according to the outlet.

Boo's work challenges the idea that therapy animals have to look a certain way. Dogs and horses often get much of the attention, but Boo's work shows birds can also form powerful emotional bonds and offer comfort in both clinical and community settings.

Hurst said Boo seems unusually adept at sensing what different people need and responding accordingly.

"Along the way, we have witnessed remarkable moments of connection — children finding confidence, seniors rediscovering joy, and people experiencing comfort during some of the most difficult moments of their lives," she told People.

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