But there are still dozens of birds available for sale, from tiny zebra finches priced at $5.99 to a large 9-year-old Catalina macaw named Copious, who’s priced at $2,000. In preparation for the closure, many of the cages, hand-mixed bird feed and other merchandise at the Escondido store have been sold and cleared out. “It’s so hard to believe that this won’t be here anymore.” “There’s something very rewarding about matching up a bird with the right person and seeing them happy together,” Whitesel said through tears. She’s worked at A Bird Haven for 18 years. Store manager Maxine Whitesel of Valley Center said she can’t imagine what she’ll do come March 28. But it will most likely be the employees, many of whom have worked at the store for decades, like 24-year staffer Larry Brown, an ever-smiling man in his 60s with autism. Or it could be the longtime customers, who arrive in a steady stream each day to wish the Petrarcas a happy retirement before closing day on March 27. Maybe it will be the jungle-like cacophony of tweets and caws from the dozens of exotic birds in the store at 249 E. Sharon Petrarca isn’t sure what she’ll miss most when she and her husband, Mark, close the doors later this month on their 40-year-old business, A Bird Haven, in Escondido. (Charlie Neuman / San Diego Union-Tribune) The 40-year-old business will close March 27. Behind her are employees Eonah Woodward, left, Larry Brown and Maxine Whitesel. At Bird Haven in downtown Escondido, owner Sharon Petrarca holds "Miller," a citron-crested cockatoo.
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