The great bird debate

[Monica]

They require special care and understanding which the average person or household cannot provide.

I couldn't agree more! Case in point, I had someone tell me that a particular cockatiel was aggressive because it attacked him. What was the situation? There were two untame cockatiels sitting in a cage, decent sized, usually ignored except when fed or watered. The person tried to handle one of the birds, and being in a caged, cornered if you will, did the only thing she could! She couldn't fly away, so she "attacked" him, because she's afraid. All because of that she was labeled as "aggressive". I put the situation into the persons perspective for them to understand... because I know have that one bird that "attacked" this person and although she is not tame by any standards, I can still tell she's a sweet bird! She's never outright attacked me, but she has had her fits and shown her displeasure! She's never bitten, thus never drawn blood!

Simply put, birds are greatly misunderstood by a large percentage of people who own them.

[ROYJOY]

Being in the cage all the time isnt fun, if you've experienced freedom, but some birds are in a cage all there life, and dont know any different. i try to give my birds all the out of cage time i can (outdoors too). when they are in the cage, its for there protection, when im gone. they have plenty of toys, and dont fight going in. their cage is their inersanctum (SP?)

on another note, i asked a co-worker, who hunts dear, what the thrill is, shooting a defenseless animal. he said "oh, they have a defense, they can run away".

[Amie]

Originally Posted by ROYJOY

on another note, i asked a co-worker, who hunts dear, what the thrill is, shooting a defenseless animal. he said "oh, they have a defense, they can run away".

I was JUST going to say that this argument is a lot like the hunting argument.

I'm also going to say that every time I use the word hunting, I mean responsible hunting. Hunting and killing are VERY different things.

Coming from a family of hunters and living in the country, I know what happens to the wild in an area when hunting is outlawed. Within a decade, the law is revoked and hunting is allowed again. Because humans have moved into the picture in the too recent past for nature to regulate the number of a population, hunting is VERY important. Without hunting, the population grows too quickly, and the animals starve to death or die of diseases. Which is the better way to die? Quickly I would say, as opposed to starving for weeks.

Now, I'm not a hunter because I can't even kill a bug without feeling awful. But I understand the hunting argument. And the thrill is definitely primal. My father will spend all season hunting and never kill a single deer waiting for "the big one"--until it's the last day of the season and they have to thin out the does on their land, then MAYBE he'll shoot a doe. But just being there is exciting to him, even if he never sees a thing! He brings a camera and takes pictures of all the wild cats, too. . .so that's probably just as thrilling to him as actually killing a deer.

As a side note, my dad uses every bit of meat from every animal he kills, and he tans the hides and sends them to a Native American charity who uses the hides in replicas and such. But that's just because my dad is kind of superstitious as a hunter and thinks you shouldn't take more than you give or you can use.

But deer are cute, so people don't see it as the same as killing cows for food.

[Amie]

You know, the bird argument gets me. I'm not saying Scarlett wouldn't have been happier had she been born wild and been allowed to live in New Guinea as opposed to with me, but she wasn't born wild. And honestly, I do my very best to make sure she has the happiest home life possible. I honestly think she's happier with me than she would be with her other options.

I am slightly hypocritical in my stance on parrots now that I've grown. I will only rescue and rehome now, even though I bought Scarlett from a breeder, because I'm now old enough and less naive and can see how many homeless and neglected and unloved parrots there are out there. I do not support breeders, I don't like when people "buy a pair of Greys so they can breed them and make extra money" and I don't ever suggest someone go to a breeder first unless it is their absolute first bird ever and they have small children - as I know how hard it can be to find a rehome or rescue without a nipping problem.

Now, responsible breeders who make sure their birds are going to loving homes, I'm okay with. Hence the slightly hypocritical part of my argument.

[Lisa B]

I can say, many of my birds have been special abled, as well as alot of my friends birds.

all's I can add, is that any of the special abled birds I have known in my years whether mine or friends, would never have survived in the wild.

The love of my life, Miss Emma Lynn, included in that.

As far as the birds in the past and the ones still being caught for exportation into other countries and or their own countries, I feel this is horrible. We can not change the past, but we are responsible for the present and future.
Its up to us for the birds we love so much to thrive, and lead a healthy life.

[KimM]

Originally Posted by Lisa B

I can say, many of my birds have been special abled, as well as alot of my friends birds.

all's I can add, is that any of the special abled birds I have known in my years whether mine or friends, would never have survived in the wild.

The love of my life, Miss Emma Lynn, included in that.

As far as the birds in the past and the ones still being caught for exportation into other countries and or their own countries, I feel this is horrible. We can not change the past, but we are responsible for the present and future.
Its up to us for the birds we love so much to thrive, and lead a healthy life.

Here here Lisa! My little Elliot would never have made it out of the nest with his wing. And thank God he's with me. He's my "little man" as I call him, and the sweetest Scarlet I've ever met.

My favorite quote is by Baba Dioum and it says, "For in the end, we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand, and we will understand only what we are taught." I think if we educate people and help them understand, as responsible loving "parronts", then we're working toward that conservation.

[Icednova625]

I agree with all the points above. Me personally, I feel so strongly for my fids, that if I was approached with that question in person, I'd give them an earful..probably more than that but I try to be civil. My Fids are only caged to sleep and when I'm not home, BUT me and the wife worked out schedules out around the fids schedule so someone would be home all day with them.

[my-africangrey-echo]

Wow this turned out to be an awesome thread What a great group of people we have here.

Everyone has posted from their heart and it shows!!


One more point I was thinking as I read through everyone's responses. The Parrot like all animals we take care of actually live longer from our love and care then they ever would in the wild.. So if the quality of life is better how can it be the wrong thing to do!

[Astrid660]

"My Fids are only caged to sleep and when I'm not home" same here!
uhh, and then there's benny. he never seems to want to go away!! ever! He's pretty much a free range bird, sad to say He never gets into trouble though, he just falls asleep on another bird's cage. I give up trying to tame him... He's just Benny Boy! Hard to explain. He's really smart though. :)

[SDavid]

As a person lives and grows with their fids, the persons attitude will change alot over time I believe. That's what happened to me. Before I got my first....a TAG, I never considered whether or not parrots are suited to captive life. Or, specifically, life in a human household. I did to a point....I considered which species would be suited to me, my wife, and home. But, the larger issue of whether they should have ever been made pets didn't occur to me. After I got my first fid, I did what many of us here do, I continued to educate myself and it continues to this day. Mental and physical health of my fids became very important to me as is their happiness.

The result of all of that (and to answer the original question more specifically) is probably this....

If someone told me that parrots don't belong in captivity (not zoos mind you but households) I would tell them "you have a logically and scientifically valid point that I can't argue. The evidence for what youre saying is overwhelming in your favor."

Remember this is a generalization and I know that many of our birds are currently happy in their lives with us. But I'm confident that the people on this forum are very dedicated to their birds. But even our birds may develop problems associated with the frustration of captive life. It's something we all strive to avoid.

I would also say that the situation of them in captivity IS there and it's why many of us want to give them good homes. It's also the reason that so many of us wish we could take them all in. We feel we understand them better than the average..... "it bites so I'm never gonna take it out of it's cage I'll just put it in the basement and change it's food and water...." Or, "I keep the cage covered at all times because it's always making noise.." Or, "I'm pregnant so I'm going to ignore it because I'm no longer interested..." The list goes on.

But, I'd have to also add that had I never owned a bird and learned as much about them as I now know, I would not be as empathetic to their neglect/abuse. It's a point that some of the posters before me brought up and it's a good one. I feel so frustrated and helpless when I see a bird that's being boarded who's plucked, left with not toys, and so badly wants to interact with you. I see this on a regular basis. Seeing healthy baby birds in a store is one thing but when you see the result of their life with people after some time, it's quite another sight. And, that sight makes me question captivity.

I ask myself if I could change history would I erase the "pet parrot" trade altogether even though they've changed my life for the better. It's a tough one.