Northbird is a small home-based bird-sitting and boarding studio in Newmarket, Ontario. These are the terms we work under — written the way we'd explain them to you across the kitchen table, not in legalese. By sending an inquiry or booking a stay, you're agreeing to them.
Everything begins with a letter through the contact form. An inquiry is just a conversation — it holds no dates. A booking is confirmed only once we've replied, agreed on dates and a rate, and (for new guests) met your bird at a short meet-and-greet. Because we cap the studio at two households at a time, dates are held on a first-confirmed basis.
The rate card on the site is a starting point. Larger parrots, multiple birds, medical or hand-feeding needs, holiday weeks, and extended stays are quoted individually after we've heard the particulars. Any figure we give you in writing for your specific stay is the one that stands; the website rates are illustrative, not a contract.
You know your bird better than anyone, so we ask you to bring what keeps it well: enough of its usual food for the stay, any medications with clear instructions, and a note of its quirks, dietary needs, and anything a sitter should watch for. Please tell us honestly of any illness, aggression, or contagious condition before drop-off. Your bird should be in good health and, to the best of your knowledge, free of communicable disease when it arrives.
We watch our guests closely and treat them gently. If a bird falls ill or is hurt while in our care, we'll try to reach you straight away using the contacts you left. If we can't reach you and the situation is urgent, you authorise us to seek avian veterinary attention on your behalf, with reasonable veterinary costs being the owner's responsibility. Leaving us a current phone number and an emergency contact is part of every booking.
Plans change — we understand. Let us know as early as you can so we can free the dates for another family. A little notice keeps everyone whole; cancelling at the last hour, or not arriving for a confirmed stay, may mean a portion of the booking is still owed, since we'll have turned other birds away to hold the room. Any deposit terms for a particular stay are spelled out in writing when we confirm it.
We agree on drop-off and collection times when we book. If you're delayed coming home, simply tell us — we'd far rather extend the stay than have you rush. Extra nights are billed at the same nightly rate. Birds are released only to their owner or a person the owner has named to us in advance.
Payment is due at the rate and time we agree when the booking is confirmed, typically by drop-off or on collection. We'll always tell you the full figure before a stay begins — no surprises.
We promise reasonable, attentive, loving care of the kind we'd give our own birds — clean stations, fresh water and food, daily company, and a calm room. Birds are living creatures, though, and even with the best care nature sometimes has its own plans. Except where caused by our negligence, Northbird isn't liable for illness, injury, escape, or loss arising from a bird's existing condition, temperament, or the ordinary risks of boarding. Our responsibility for any single stay is limited to the fees paid for that stay. We carry our care out in good faith, and we ask you to entrust your bird in the same spirit.
These terms are governed by the laws of Ontario. If we ever update them, the current version always lives on this page with its date below. If a part of them couldn't be enforced, the rest still holds. Above all, we'd always rather sort out a misunderstanding with a phone call than anything heavier.
Anything here you'd like explained? Write us a letter and we'll talk it through.
Last revised — June 2026 · Newmarket, Ontario.
