Peoples thoughts on rescues.....

[irlgirl]

Not too sure how to word this so I will try to get to the point.
If a bird is brought from a petshop because the person wanted a new bird, is that classed as being in bird rescue?? to me that isnt rescuing the bird that is purchasing the bird and then the shop keeps on getting more birds because they sell. I thought rescue was about saving birds that will other wise be very neglected and rehoming them. Any thoughts on this would be appreciated and please let me know if you think Im wrong .


thanks julie

[Missi]

I believe that many people will have many different views on this topic.

However, my opinion stands with your view as well.

[Doyle'sMommy]

I don't think a petstore would be considered a rescue. Maybe people feel like they are rescuing them if the shop was not properly taking care of the birds. I know at the bird fair this weekend I was disgusted at the way some of their birds looked and the way they were housed and handled by any one that came walking up.

[Irish]

I wouldn't think that a pet store would be claiming to be a rescue service. Many are willing to take in an unwanted bird (they usually won't pay for them, though), but everyone involved is aware that the bird will eventually be re-SOLD, not ADOPTED out. Ditto with the zillions of hoarders and bird traders hiding their real purpose behind the name "rescue". My personal opinion is that there are far fewer true "rescues" out there than one would think by all the groups calling themselves that. I personally only know one person who is TRULY a rescue. She takes in one or two birds at a time, takes them to a vet, assesses and works their personalities and issues, and then adopts them out to someone else at little or no cost before she brings in another bird or two. I got Gracie from her (although Gracie was originally on consignment in a bird store, she was turned over to the rescuer when the bird attacked people and her owners couldn't take her back because the husband was desperately allergic to her). Gracie herself cost me nothing, and when it became clear that for our own health (allergies) Gracie would have to find a new home, this kind rescue person helped me find and screen the new adopter, who also was charged nothing. In other words, a rescuer isn't out there to turn a profit!

[Dayna]

People would not be "rescuing" birds from my store. My level of care is probably higher than home care. My birds are in the public eye, so everything must be spotless, the diet perfect, and the birds clean and well socialized.

[grandma]

I have two rescues.

1.) Cag would have been taken to the animal shelter. One previous owner, filthy cage, no water. I did pay for him.

2) Miligold Macaw. Two previous owners. The last inherited her from the first. Last owner was going to let her free in Philly. Convinced her to send her to me at my cost. Sent her via Delta, in a carier that was big enough for a bunny. I paid $80.00 for the flight and, I sent her $60.00 to purchase a carrier.

Also concidered rescues are;
1)birds that have escaped their owner and not been claimed
2) sick or wounded birds that owner can't or won't spend the $ on
3) neglected birds

Lynne could tell you a lot more.

[GreetingCardReligion]

I've never heard of a petstore claiming to be a rescue.

Many petstores/breeders will call buying their babies "adopting" instead of just "purchasing" because it fosters the idea that you are bringing a new familiy member home, not just an item, but I don't think anyone would consider this rescuing.

There are some people who don't think that buying from a breeder is necessarily wrong, myself included, especially when it comes to endangered species. I think its a judgement call... I would never EVER buy a cat from a breeder but a horse or a bird? Of course! Probably not a cockatoo however (even though I have no desire to be owned by a cockatoo in the first place) because they have such a "turn over" rate in new owners and are desperately needing good homes as a species.

I think it's wrong to condemn people for buying from a breeder/store. I think that that baby they purchased is just as existing and deserving of love and a good home than a rescue bird and having a good, permanent home to start out with just saves it trauma and the possibility of ending up in a rescue later on in life instead of an ignorant impulse buy.

I kind of rambled there, didn't I? XD Sorry!

[leighrivera161]

I think that some stores have no idea on how to really keep the birds until they are sold. This is a case in one of our local PetSmart stores. A poor little Conure, dirty water, canary sized dowel perch, food bowl on the bottom of the cage full of poop. Eating millet and sunseeds. The cage hadnt been cleaned in sometime, it was obvious. I took it upon myself to get the corporate office on the phone to set them straight! Anyway, in that case even though the bird is for sale, getting it out of there is more like a rescue situation. Because you are rescuing it from a bad place. The sad part is another will follow, that needs to be "rescued". I bought fish from the same store. They were sick and in bad water. Now they live in my pond and some are 10 inches long. This..in my opinion, was also a rescue. Otherwise, they would have died.

[Valo's Moirana]

alright - i believe there are different view-points on the word rescue floating around here... one is the general one, the other is the personal one.
you can feel like you rescue a bird from a store since it was kept in bad or unsufficient conditions, but i think in a general point of view this is not a rescue. examples like listed by susan i'd more place in the general definition of rescue.

that's just a short summary of my opninion on this matter. (i mainly wanted to point out the different definitions used for the same word leading to a confusing discussion - been there, done that )

[Tiki]

Irlgirl, we don't have many actual rescues like they do in America. I understand what your perception of "rescuing" a bird is. In America, there are many shelters for unwanted/abused birds like the RSPCA which are called Bird Rescues. I only know of one such place in Australia on the Gold Coast and even that one isn't close to the extent of the American ones.