“I thought it would be the perfect gift to him, to give him a set of love birds,” Eunice said. She explained that Ricardo always talked about birds, and he had a special passion for love birds. They traveled to Tampa to retrieve the birds, and then it was history.

“Ever since then, it just started growing, and we got another pair, another pair and another pair to where we ended up starting our own business at home,” Eunice said. “Then it just got bigger.”

They began to breed the birds and they began to collect other breeds, as well, and decided to open a shop.

Feathers of Love opened in Downtown Troy on East Walnut Street on Aug. 1, offering a brand new service to the City of Troy.

“I think it will bring in a lot of extra people, different people and a lot of outside people that will come in to visit Troy because of the fact that this has never been here,” Eunice said. “They come from miles around. We have visitors come all the way from Dothan. If we are getting people from other towns to come in, they are bringing their shopping to Troy.”

Eunice said that although Feathers of Love has only been open about three weeks, she and Ricardo have seen a lot of interest in their business.

“There is a lot of people that have come in and are so glad that we are open,” she said. “So many people have traveled a long way to travel to get supplies for their birds.

She said that if there is a bird that a customer wants that they do not offer, they will work to find what they are looking for.

“We do the best we can to get them what they are looking for. Not everyone likes love birds like we do, if they come in wanting something different than what we have, we do our best to help them get what they want.”

In store, they sell nine different kinds of birds, and different species of each kind. Of course, they offer the love birds, but they offer several other kinds.

Feathers of Love does not only sell birds, but it also sells all the necessary items needed to take care of a bird, such as the cage and bird feed, but they also provide bird grooming services and boarding services for the birds.

“People go on vacation, and they need somewhere for their birds,” Eunice said “Families can enjoy going on vacation and not have to worry about their birds. They can bring them to us and board them with us.”

While most people are drawn to cats and dogs, the Rios demonstrated a unique passion for birds and encourage anyone who wants a bird to try out the experience.

“They are a lot less maintenance than other pets,” Eunice said. “It’s amazing what you can teach them and what they can teach you, as well.”