Hello, my parrot lovers...
My name is Karmen Budai & I am the founder, parrot lover & owner of Polly’s Natural Parrot Boutique. It all began back in 2016 after getting this little bundle of joy called Polly – the lesser sulphur crested cockatoo who was full of life and sucked us right in with her cuteness and fluffiness.
After Polly’s battle with a series of health issues that came along unexpectedly, it was only then that I started to look for some alternative holistic medicines and discovered the importance of raw whole food, sprouted seeds, dried herbs and avian herbal teas that helped Polly with her recovery. With this, and through a process of trial and error, it became obvious that for Polly, a well-balanced diet complemented with avian herbal teas played a crucial part in her recovery. During this time, I would post every day on social media various parrot healthy fine dining meals when someone commented, which really resonated with me and I just couldn’t get it out of my head, “hey, you’re like the Nigella Lawson for parrots, you should write a cookbook! Hmm …and that’s how my very first cookbook for parrots was born – ‘A Parrot's Fine Cuisine Cookbook and Nutritional Guide’. I was nobody trying to make a difference and help others with everything I learned on the way.
My aim was to highlight the significance of providing a healthy, diverse diet & enrichment by offering natural food. Following the book's success, I then, in 2019 launched a brand named Polly’s Natural Parrot Boutique to continue on my mission and the avian herbal teas came to light.
I was fortunate in being able to work with Dr Jason Crean, MS Bio, EdD, degreed biologist, an avid aviculturist and certified avian specialist and president of The Avicultural Society of Chicagoland in the US; his valued expertise in avian nutrition has aided us in the understanding of the best suited dietary and nutritional requirements of parrots like Polly. His ideology is centred around promoting the implication of a raw-whole food diet for the animals in our care; helping them to not only survive but to thrive through increasing dietary diversity. This is something I wholeheartedly support.
He is the mastermind behind the development of our unique organic avian herbal teas that can enrich your parrots' quality of life.
Since I first introduced avian herbal teas in the UK and Europe, I decided to explore further and expand the product portfolio by introducing a variety of herbal & dry mixes, edible flowers, soaking & sprouting blends, and freeze-dried food to help you create the most nutritious meals for your flock to help them thrive.
I was also very fortunate to be able to collaborate with an avian vet specialist Dr. Stephanie Lamb, DVM, DIPL ABVP, whose medical input is extremely valuable and helps when developing various blends to ensure the safety of the ingredients we use.
A few years into my brand, and it began to get recognised. Since then I collaborated with various charities & foundations such as World Parrot Trust, Phoenix Landing Foundation, Parrot Society New Zealand and various small non-profit charities and rescues, various worldwide influencers.
But fast forward to today…
We now have a large, loyal customer base that we love and appreciate for their continued support.
My dream and commitment to you is to help your parrot live a better and healthier life!
We are elevating every single part of the company & are excited for you guys to experience even more with Polly’s!
All we do revolves around our love for parrots!