The Ruth Melichar Bird Center
The Ruth Melichar Bird Center was named in honor of the late Ruth Melichar, a well-known Boise artist who for decades rescued injured and sick birds and cared for them in her home, earning her the moniker, “The Bird Lady of the Treasure Valley.”
Carrying on her work, sisters Mady Rothchild and Toni Hicks combined the avian facility with their existing mammal rehabilitation organization: Animals In Distress Association.
Read more about Ruth Melichar in this lovely article in Territory Magazine by Patti Murphy.
AIDA & RMBC Staff
Mady Rothchild
Owner and CEO
A native Boisean, Mady Rothchild has been an animal rehabilitator for 34 years. She started her career in advertising, working at BBDO in San Francisco, KIMO-TV in Anchorage, Alaska, J. Walter Thompson and then the Martin Agency in Virginia Beach and Water’s Advertising in Newport News, Virginia.
In 1986, she returned to Idaho, becoming the president of the Idaho Humane Society. In 1987 she founded Animals In Distress Association (AIDA) that she runs and is CEO of to this day. She specializes in the care of bats, badgers, cottontails, raccoons, and coyotes.
Jennifer Rockwell
Director - Ruth Melichar Bird Center
A routine trip to the grocery store turned into a life long passion for Director Jennifer Rockwell. After finding an injured bird on the side of the street, she stopped to pick it up, held it in her lap and drove to the local bird sanctuary in Boise, Idaho. The very next day she signed up to volunteer. That was 20 years ago. Now the Director of the Ruth Melichar Bird Center, her passion is deeply rooted in wildlife rehabilitation. She says, "it’s a mission for her, not a job. It is an amazing honor to work with and have the privilege to rehabilitate these beautiful animals."
Susan Dumeyer
Assistant Director - Ruth Melichar Bird Center
For Susan it all started 10 years and 1 injured hummingbird ago. After finding an injured hummingbird and taking it to a local rehabilitator, she started volunteering at Pacific Wildlife Care in Morro Bay, CA. After 6 months she was offered a supervisor position and a unique opportunity to work side by side with one of the most skilled wildlife veterinarian on the west coast. 2 years of amazing experience under that guidance gave Susan knowledge that most rehabers don't get.
Upon moving to Boise she wanted to share the skills she had been given and soon found the Ruth Melichar Bird Center. Susan's motivation for doing rehabilitation is to help reduce the footprint that humans have on nature and wildlife. For her there is nothing better than watching your hard work fly off into the sunset.
Although seasonal hours exist, the Bird Center is open 7 days a week, 365 days a year including holidays. Because we care for over 3000 birds annually and are open 84 hours April-September; we must pay a small staff to care for the birds. Most infant birds must be fed every 30 minutes, 12 hours a day. Normally we have 100-200 baby birds at any given time throughout the summer.
Of the 3000 plus birds, 500 or more are waterfowl with most of those being ducklings. Baby birds and ducklings all require heat 24/7, which is provided by either heating pads and/or ceramic heat bulbs. The volume of water utilized in caring for waterfowl is enormous. Swim tanks and enclosures must be hosed down and cleaned 2-3 times daily. We have amazing volunteers that work incredible hours for these young birds.
“I realized that If I had to choose, I would rather have birds than airplanes.”
— Charles Lindbergh
