To think a parrot shouldn't be a pet?

[Burnt0utMum]

Just seen a man on a bike outside the corner shop sat with a beautiful parrot on his shoulder. It had a cable attached to its leg so it can't fly away. He was smoking so it was breathing it all in, which makes it worse but it still didn't sit right with me even ignoring that. Part of me thinks these are wild animals that should be left to be wild and allowed to fly free, but then I'm asking myself if it's really that much different to a typical domestic pet like a cat or a dog. AIBU to think a parrot shouldn't be a pet?

I think the biggest issue is that many people don't know how to care for them properly. We did a lot of research and have plans in place if any of our birds outlive us. Fresh chop every morning, only in cages to sleep, training and mental stimulation and free flight outside once trained. I never leave our parrots for longer than an hour or two and they are always with one of us. We socialise them with other birds and also have money saved as avian vets are £££. We will shortly be building a dedicated bird room to improve their quality of life further.

The amount of them that are rehomed, especially during their bitey hormonal phase is tragic as they get so attached. We mainly rescue mistreated parrots, most of whom sit in a cage all day every day with a couple of toys and go mad with boredom and loneliness. Our sleep cage is gigantic, but you should see the size our lovebird used to be in with previous owner

You talk some rubbish out of interest are you in the UK as the chain is certainly not ok parrots legs are not as strong as a hawks if it took off it's a broken leg

Is that a polite way of saying ‘are you a silly foreigner?’ Sorry @Thinkthereieing I do bow to you Great British bird wisdom 😂

I don’t really agree with pets full stop. Cats and dogs are ok because it’s not like they can roam wild.

Cats and dogs would roam wild if we didn't domesticate them - like everything else.

I don’t think any animals should be kept in cages. I don’t understand how you can be so cruel as to keep a bird when they should be roaming free. Or a fish or a rodent. It is bloody cruel.

I’ve had cats and dogs. The cats I got one followed me in a park and another sort of joined our family and another was abandoned. The dogs I bought as puppies. They seem happy and want to be part of the family.

do you think they have been domesticated to the point they would be able to look after themselves ?

Keeping pets is unethical and is a relic from a bygone era, or should be. And no, you don’t ‘love animals’ just because you keep an animal as your property for your own pleasure, whether that be dog, cat or parrot.

I think this is an interesting thread.

I have two parrots, an african grey and parrotlet. Both are the most amazing beautiful animals in the world, both are three years old and so smart and fun, but they are the hardest animals in the world to keep happy!

I did so much research and our parrots are only caged if we leave the house to prevent them injuring themselves as both are flighted (id never clip); their cages are massive and have enough room for them to fly one side to the other when they are in them. They have inside the cage toys which are foraging mind puzzle games and some tough ones to destroy, they also have all natural differing perches to prevent foot problems.

My birds have their own bird room, it’s a paradise for parrots! They have a large java stand full of toys and we are in the process of ordering a lean to aviary so they can have access to outdoor life whenever they want, it’ll be attached to their room at the back of the house (it’s a nice wooden aviary, the neighbours won’t be shocked with a massive chunk of metal!)
Luckily both birds can fly round our house, they’re not massive birds and can easily fit through the door frames so they often fly room to room and when their aviary is built they’ll be able to fly there too. Id love to free fly and that’s on my list to look into more detail.

My birds have chop every morning with fresh veggies and a tiny amount of fruit (contents vary weekly!) they have vitamins prescribed by our avian vet, nuts for training and good fats.
Both have UV lights in a part of the room they can go under as and when they want.
They get showers every other day, all our pots and pans are ceramic/stainless steel for toxins, no candles/perfumes-the list goes on ha!

I think my point is we engage with them every second we are home, they do everything with us, we train them well to occupy their mind but we don’t show our birds off. They are well socialised and love to meet everybody who comes to the house and wants to see them.

Although i know my birds are looked after right, they are happy and loved and have zero health problems as we keep checks regular- I would never buy another bird, i often think how much happier they would be in their natural world.. obviously my two weren’t bred to be in the wild but i will love mine forever and never get anymore 🙂

Sorry @Musti I don't understand your question

I don’t see anything different from having a pet parrot to any other animal

Actually I own tortoises and I agree. I worry about what will happen to mine when I go all the time and it makes me wish I hadn't got them. I have put a lot of effort into their habitat and I think they have a good life in my garden, but too many people just chuck them into a garden with no stimulation or heating and let them get on with it. It's very cruel.

This.

We have a Derbyan and he/she is hitting the first hormonal stage so is currently a small angry green goose and little tosser.
He is out of his cage the 12 hours he is up, we play throughout the day and the first word he learned was my laugh because he is funny.
He is fed homegrown veg and fruit has vitamins sprinkled on his food and costs me a fortune in stuff to chew.
Speaks in context the few phrases he has (he's 12 months old)
I read up on how to care for Derbyans it still didn't prepare us for what 'they are destructive' actually meant.
His flight feathers are growing back and he now likes to fly to random places, shout so you can tell him how great he is and eventually fly back to his cage.
He loves us (no touching peasant, just tell me I'm beautiful) and we love him.
He doesn't love the wild ringnecks we have outside though and yells at then regularly.

I have still struggled this week and spoken to rescues.

Keep all the windows open to truly see how much your birds love being held captive. A gilded cage (your opinion) is still a cage!

Yeah cos being killed by magpie would be humane.

He got out
He waited under a car and yelled for me to go and get him

I don't agree with keeping pets at all. Maybe cats and dogs are an exception as cats are free to roam and dogs form a bond with their owners, but anything else is for human gratification.

Nor do I agree with the people who go around tagging wild animals on the pretext of studying them. Just leave them alone. The tv programmes are always so proud of being able to follow whales / dolphins etc to find out how many there are and where they go. Completely unnecessary.

Misses point of thread about parrots .

This is very short sighted. You have to "break" a child to get them to pee in a potty or a toilet. To behave. To not wipe bogies on the wall 😂. Providing training of any species is done work positive methods ( and not abuse) it can be hugely beneficial to animals AND humans.

Horses, for the most part, love to run. Absolutely adore it. Is what they are for, their reason to live. All animals have been chosen to do jobs based on their body type and what they are good at. I would have a huge problem with a race horse going up a mountain with the Sherpas or a donkey being forced to run and jump because both have very socialist skill sets

As for parrots, I have been incredibly lucky to have been involved with exotic animals my entire life. I have long term fostered two macaws, a blue and gold and a green wing. The NG was in a terrible state when he arrived with me, horrifically self mutilated wings from being treated so incorrectly. It had become a personality disorder but he was a beautiful bird with a gorgeous soul . We took in a GW and she was fully flighted so could fly. They lived in our living room and she would fly from one side to the other freely from 8am to 8 pm. A total distance of 8m. They were fully bonded by the time they went to a long term home so I'm really hoping that they live happy lives together.

Over all I believe in animal welfare, not animal rights. You can stop people having pets. You can't stop people eating meat. Christ, we claim to be a developed species but we can't even look after the surplus human children that our species produces and leaves in kids homes so we are not THAT compassionate. But I do believe that animal species should have very strict welfare rights and much stricter penalties for breaching. Macaws and cockatoos should be on the DWA list ( they can literally snap your fingers off with that beak) along with primates. Simply because that way, people that want to keep them will follow the extremely strict conditions, invest £££ and get a license before the animal. And off they don't keep it properly, they get seized. Raccoons are more on that list in the uk too which nearly killed mr as I had to give my incredibly well cared for trio up, desire them being perfectly cared for.

But we train all sorts of animals to do all sorts of things.

Horses are primarily working animals. That work varies depending on breed, location etc. but a horse that doesn't want to be ridden won't let itself be ridden. Lots of horses end up as "field ornaments" as they won't or can't work!

I don't own a horse but share care for one. He's 27, has acres of land to roam and run on, has free access to his barn, bed and haylage, a supply of fresh water, plenty of shade and lots of mud to roll in. I don't feel remotely sorry for him - he has a lovely life, and would do if his owner still worked him as well (he's a bit arthritic these days so he's no longer ridden).

So, yes, you have to "break horses in" but only in the same way you have to house train a dog, or teach a kitten to use a litter tray, or even toilet train a child.

Ha - x-post @devonianBiatch

I think we should stop breeding them (and birds generally) as pets, yes.

They naturally would have a lot more space to fly around in and a house is not a natural environment for them. Even if you are letting them out of the cage into a room, it is not really meeting their needs or anything like what they would have in their natural habitat.

Some are domesticated and used to that life, of course, so they seem fine - I'm not saying domesticated parrots are mistreated or anyone who has a pet parrot isn't looking after it. But I still think it's unethical to breed them into captivity as pets, and the practice should stop.

I feel similarly about a lot of other animals really, but especially birds. Parrots are intelligent too.

I hate any kind of bird kept as a prt. Thank goodness nogpt many prople have caged budgies these days. So cruel.

But you might love that particular animal.

I can hear parrots now outside my house, rainbow lorikeets and the distant raucous shrieking of sulphur-created cockatoos.

I don’t think birds should be kept as pets at all, its very cruel, the same for other animals who are designed to roam far and wide, such as hamsters. Hamsters in the wild have a huge range, yet most owners keep the poor things in cages.

So how do people feel about the MANY instances of private hobby keepers that have managed to bring back species of animals from the brink through private breeding? Should that be banned?

If zoos and conservation were banned, dozens, no, hundreds of species would disappear overnight. You think that safaris aren't zoos? Don't let the lack of bars fool you. They are absolutely micro managed, from keepers intervening with single animals to fleets of light helicopters managing herd migration etc. often animals are captured and moved xxx miles . Is not "wild", it's a giant zoo without bars where the animals feed and water themselves ( part of the time) . At very best it's a soft release.

I find having birds as pets weird

They're generally not comparable to your average pet owner though.

I actually have no issue with the zoos, sanctuaries or wildlife parks that do the right thing, but there are thousands the world over that mistreat animals and don't give a single fuck about welfare.

Unfortunately the same applies to pet ownership. While some owners are excellent and most try their best, some are shoddy and have no business owning animals.

Generally I disagree with birds as pets as most people don't have the space to keep them properly.

I agree and we have one. I am supposed to "inherit" and I have no idea what I'm going to do with him. I'm not in the position to give him the time or space or financial commitment he needs but when I think about it where am I going to find someone who has hours a day to commit to entertaining him,
and socialising with him but still has the funds to give him the appropriate diet, replenish his toys on a daily basis and ensure he has access to a specialist avian vet when needed and who also has space outdoors for a massive, outdoor cage, space indoors to allow him to climb and play but still has 30-40 years of their life left so they can be his "forever" home?