Kid told to go and chase the birds

[GOODCAT]

I don't have kids, but was at the coast this morning when I overheard an adult, presume mum, tell a young girl to go and chase the birds, said in a way that meant she was to go and entertain herself by doing this.

My own parents would have told me off for this and to be kind to other living creatures.

It always annoys me when I see kids chasing birds and their parents saying nothing, but to actively encourage a kid to do so is a first.

AIBU to find it sad that this kid was being encouraged to chase birds for no other purpose than her own entertainment.

@MysweetAudrina

My cat stalks birds, should I tell her to stop?

Depends on whether you think we have a responsibility to raise humans who act out every impulse regardless of their impact on others or not. If you do then sure treats cats and children exactly the same.

@Greenrubber

Just as well we put some seeds out for the birdies then eh Lure them into our garden so my DD can terrify them Birds fly away no matter who it is that gets close to them Like I say as a self righteous vegan my conscience is clear We respect nature my DD was 3 when she told a boy off for stamping on ants she's is not hurting animals and wouldn't She is not terrifying the birds!!!! 🤷‍♀️

What emotion do you think they're experiencing when she forces them to fly away then?

What emotion do you think is usually associated with a flight/escape response?

What other animals do you think it's ok for her to chase?

More anthropomorphism, I see.

Erm the same emotion it gets when you walk past one 🤷‍♀️

Ooh I absolutely hate this, I always passively aggressively say to my own children "now we must leave the birds alone because it's cruel to chase them, you wouldn't like something 10 times your size running at you would you".

As in I say it in the vicinity of the chasing children and their parents, my kids known I'd go spare if they were cruel to animals

@Blossomtoes

More anthropomorphism, I see.

Only if you think animals don't experience emotional states. 20 years of welfare science research would prove you wrong but I guess dismissal is easier than education eh @Blossomtoes

@Blossomtoes

Please explain what exactly you think is 'anthropomorphic'?

https://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&assdt=0%2C5&q=bird+emotion+state+avian&btnG=#d=gss_qabs&u=%23p%3DebVJCbtNlycJ
.

https://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&assdt=0%2C5&q=bird+emotion+state+avian&btnG=#d=gss_qabs&u=%23p%3D-h2e0EYmECgJ
.

https://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&assdt=0%2C5&q=bird+emotion+state+avian&btnG=#d=gss_qabs&u=%23p%3D568rsAW5iPQJ

Ugh!

Try these links

internal-journal.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02707/full
.

link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10336-007-0175-8
.

royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2010.2701

[quote Peaplant20]@Greenrubber the child doesn’t know it’s cruel but the parents do. So the parents shouldn’t encourage them to do it. That’s the point.[/quote]

Chasing a pigeon is not cruel. I'd not allow shouting or kicking- but following an urban pigeon (not duck etc) is fine. (I'll admit, I hate people stamping at them etc.)

Pigeons are not scared by children most of the time: if they were, they'd actually fly away. Young kids following pigeons around is not cruel.

It's instinctive, I do it myself!

We should probably ban air travel too

@pollypokcet yes it is cruel. Following and chasing are different things. Running up to a bird scares it and it does fly away. Why would you think it would be ok to do it to a pigeon but not a duck? Doesn’t make any sense. Just leave them alone.

Why would you think it would be ok to do it to a pigeon but not a duck?

We wouldn't allow rats to freely roam our streets to clean up all the food we leave behind, would we? So why do we allow pigeons to do it?

Due to their scavenging nature, similarities between rats and pigeons are common. They are referred to as 'flying rats' by many people and local business owners - especially those operating in the food and drink industry - find them to be a real nuisance, with pigeons well known to rummage through litter bins and spill waste out onto the streets. They also contribute to building damage and will exploit any vulnerability in a roof to create a home, often causing hundreds of pounds worth of damage in the process.

For this reason, pigeons are considered a 'pest species' by local councils and people who operate within the pest control industry do refer to these birds as vermin. This does not include domestic pigeons which are pets that have been vaccinated against disease.

Defra

For this reason, pigeons are considered a 'pest species' by local councils and people who operate within the pest control industry do refer to these birds as vermin. This does not include domestic pigeons which are pets that have been vaccinated against disease.

^My DH has told me this. He works for our Local Authority (as a Bridge Engineer) and he also refers to pigeons as ‘flying rats’.

I find it hard to believe that triggering the startle response in birds takes a huge emotion or physical toll on them as birds tend to startle dozens of times a day. I can understand rare birds but urban birds like pigeons and seagulls won’t care.

It would be different doing it to a duck because ducks actually approach people they have trust in people because they are often fed by them

Pigeons know to keep away from people a duck doesn't

@Blossomtoes you’re still trying to argue that it’s ok to scare animals for our entertainment. Just because it’s a pest species doesn’t make it not mean. It’s different if you’re shooing it away from your food or whatever but to purposely run up and scare them just for the fun of it is mean and never won’t be.

Whatever argument you or anyone else can come up with to make yourself feel less guilty about thinking it’s ok, will never make it not mean to purposefully run up to an innocent animal and scare it which is what this post was originally about. It’s not about whether the child knows it’s mean or not, it’s not about the fact that birds are startled anyway by traffic, other animals or people walking by anyway, it’s not about whether the animal is a pest or not and it’s not about scaring the birds away if they’re trying to get your food. It’s cruel to purposefully scare an animal purely (so
not including any of the other reasons I’ve just listed) for our amusement.

@Greenrubber at the end of the day it’s all irrelevant.
The question is whether it is ok to purposefully scare a bird for no other reason than our amusement.

Top result on Google when you ask if birds get scarred: Fear and tension: Frightened birds exhibit several behaviors that demonstrate their fear. Quick flight and escape is the most common reaction to fear and is the same fight-or-flight response humans use.

So yes if they fly away then clearly they are scared for anyone that’s said it doesn’t scare them.

I agree OP. Hate to see birds being chased. There is a weird lack of empathy involved in adults who encourage / allow their children to do it.

@Blossomtoes

Why would you think it would be ok to do it to a pigeon but not a duck?

We wouldn't allow rats to freely roam our streets to clean up all the food we leave behind, would we? So why do we allow pigeons to do it?

Due to their scavenging nature, similarities between rats and pigeons are common. They are referred to as 'flying rats' by many people and local business owners - especially those operating in the food and drink industry - find them to be a real nuisance, with pigeons well known to rummage through litter bins and spill waste out onto the streets. They also contribute to building damage and will exploit any vulnerability in a roof to create a home, often causing hundreds of pounds worth of damage in the process.

For this reason, pigeons are considered a 'pest species' by local councils and people who operate within the pest control industry do refer to these birds as vermin. This does not include domestic pigeons which are pets that have been vaccinated against disease.

Defra

@Blossomtoes

That is not a quote from DEFRA

It's a quote from a private pest control company with a vested interest in exterminating pigeons and is entirely irrelevant to the discussion.
Please stop making things up. It's foolish
Also I note you've ignored my question - so you're just throwing unfounded accusations around?

Agree that encouraging children to chase birds - any birds - is not on. But the poster who won't let her two year old pick any flowers, even daisies or dandelions in the park, is OTT. Do you never have flowers in a vase in the house?

It was kid told to go and chase the birds
It was also at the coast so one can only assume it was a gull of some sort

Gulls are not your average bird and would not be scared by a child chasing them

So get over yourself
It's not animal cruelty your being rediculous

Couldn't get worked up about this
The parent would also know there was no way for the kid to catch the bird

Be very different if a parent told a child to throw stones at the birds or found an injured one and was told to stamp on it

Birds are not as stupid as you are making out

Gulls are not your average bird and would not be scared by a child chasing them

Then why do they fly away?