SKARA, Sweden, April 3 (UPI) -- A Swedish parrot breeder discovered 20 of his prize birds beaten and apparently bitten to death in the yard of his Skara home, police say.
When Torny Sjokvist walked into his back yard Sunday morning, it was unusually quiet. It was because 20 of his parrots, some of which were valued at $17,000 each, had been mangled in their cages.
"I'd had some of them for ten, fifteen years," he told Aftonblat newspaper. "I'd raised them myself."
Sjokvist suspects a human was responsible for the attack, ruling out the possibility of a small animal managing to bypass his traps.
"No ferret can get through my nets -- they're too tight," he said. "I think someone let in a mink and beat some of them to death."
Among the casualties were Rose-breasted Cockatoos, Amazon parrots and rare Golden Parakeets, dealing quite a blow to Sjokvist's breeding business.
The Local reported police are investigating the attack, which they say occurred between Saturday night and Sunday morning.
