FOR THE BIRDS

One day on her property in upstate New York, Kathy Murphy finds a duckling in her yard and decides to take it in. A decade later, her (and her husband’s) home is overrun with over 200 fostered birds, including chickens, geese, ducks, and turkeys. Shot vérité-style both at the couple’s farm and throughout the ensuing court battles with local activists and animal welfare officers, director Richard Miron empathetically documents the resulting strains on Kathy’s marriage and mental health as she fights to keep her birds, while shining a necessary light on the rarely-discussed issue of animal hoarding. Demonstrating that significant life changes are achievable, Kathy’s journey highlights the importance of community in the road to recovery, giving hope to all that struggle to face life’s challenges