Any place that boards pets should only do so if it can guarantee their safety. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen at Magnolia Bird Farm in California, and it left a young woman heartbroken. She went on TikTok to share the horrible experience her family had with the facility.
She explained that she owned a Sun conure named Tango, a bird she had cared for over five years, basically since it was a baby. Because she had boarded Tango at Magnolia Bird Farm before without any issues, she never imagined something could go wrong. That trust is why she boarded Tango there again when her family went on a trip.
The family dropped Tango off on November 6th, with plans to pick the bird up on November 11th. But when they arrived on the pickup day, they were met with devastating news.
Any place that boards pets should only do so if it can guarantee the safety of the animals in its care. That didn’t happen at Magnolia Bird Farm in California, which left one girl completely heartbroken. She went on TikTok to share the awful experience her family had with the business. She explained that she had a Sun Conure named Tango, a bird she had raised since it was a baby. Tango had been with her for five years, and since the family had boarded him at the farm before without issues, she assumed he would be safe there again.
The family dropped Tango off on November 6th, with a scheduled pickup date of November 11th. But when they arrived to pick him up, they immediately sensed something was very wrong.
The girl said she and her mom walked in expecting to be handed their bird just like previous times. Instead, employees were acting stressed, pacing around, and making phone calls to the boarding area. No one brought out Tango. No one gave an explanation. After about 20 agonizing minutes, a manager finally appeared — and her first words were that she did not know where the bird was.
Rather than giving answers, employees began guessing. One said Tango must have “gotten out of the cage.” Another suggested “someone might have stolen him.” Both explanations were horrifying. How could a bird escape without anyone noticing? And how could someone steal a boarded pet under their watch?
It only got worse from there. The employee responsible for caring for the boarded birds admitted they hadn’t seen Tango “for a couple of days.” So they knew he was missing and did nothing — and never informed the family. When the girl asked if they kept a daily checklist or any system for tracking the animals, she was told no. Despite the farm’s high ratings, it turned out they had no real system in place at all.
Then came another alarming detail. When the family dropped Tango off, they left a toy inside his cage. That toy was also missing. If Tango truly “escaped,” where was the toy? The only explanation that makes sense is that someone stole the bird — and took the toy with them.
Still searching for answers, the girl asked staff to check the security cameras. That’s when the employees claimed the cameras had “stopped working a week ago.” Another unbelievable coincidence that conveniently prevented them from reviewing any footage.
To this day, the family has not found Tango. Magnolia Bird Farm refuses to take accountability and claims they aren’t liable for what happened. After the backlash began, they deleted their TikTok page entirely. Their Instagram remains up, and they recently posted a photo of Tango asking people to contact them if they see him. They closed the comments under that post and conveniently left out the fact that the bird disappeared while under their care. On their newer posts, however, commenters flooded the page demanding answers and asking where Tango is.
The entire situation is heartbreaking, and at this point, the lack of accountability only makes the farm look worse.
People Reacting to the California Girl’s Video
A lot of people felt awful for the California girl and desperately wanted her to find her bird. Almost immediately, viewers became convinced that the employees must have stolen Tango. “If the toy was gone, 100% an employee stole it,” one person wrote. Another agreed, saying, “Yeeeeeep, like if he escaped, he didn’t take the toy with him. And the second they noticed him out of the cage, they should have been looking and contacted the owner by the end of that day (Saturday apparently).” Someone else added, “The staff definitely stole the bird. They turned the cameras off and they took his toy too. Why else would the toy be missing if not to be with the bird??? Like what?”
Many commenters also expressed disbelief at the farm’s claim that it wasn’t liable. “In what world is a boarding facility not liable for what happens to animals that are in their care???” one woman asked in shock. Another woman, who owns a pet care business, agreed and said, “Of course they are liable.”
Hopefully, the girl will be able to find her bird. She may want to follow the advice someone gave her: get a lawyer involved.
The missing cameras were a major red flag for many viewers, and almost everyone agreed that something about the situation didn’t add up. One person explained why they believed the bird had been stolen, writing, “The cameras not working makes me 100% believe someone who works there took him and sold him because of his breed, temperament, and coloring. I haven’t seen a sun conure like yours go for less than $900.”
They went on to urge the family to take legal action. “I would 100% get legal advice from an attorney. Regardless of what fine print they put in their boarding contract about not being liable, you can sue for breach of contract for failing to provide adequate care that resulted in the bird being lost.”
The commenter also encouraged the girl to keep sharing her story in hopes of getting answers. “I’m so sorry you are going through this. Maybe with enough sharing of your video and some added pressure on them, they will get him back to you.”
