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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Lost Bird Rage.

8 replies

poorbird · 17/06/2023 20:33

Name changed for this but long term member. I’m not active on Facebook but I noticed that a friend shared a post the other day where a neighbour was asking for help to find an exotic bird they keep as a pet who had ‘managed to escape out of the window’. I’m so angry at how utterly irresponsible this person has been. I won’t go into the rights and wrongs of keeping this bird in the first place (it’s not an inherited pet) but why on earth would you have this bird in a situation where it was able to ‘escape’ from a window YOU left open! It was mentioned that it can’t fly due to having certain feathers missing and it’s blatantly obvious that it has zero chance of survival… it’s been missing for 5 days. The owner is ‘so upset, shocked and worried’ and I just feel so angry with her that this even happened in the first place, wtf did she think was going to happen with an unchanged, unsupervised bird and an open window (she opened it!) , I know accidents happen but from start to finish from buying this bird to leaving the bloody window open when it was unsupervised… AIBU to think this is just awful to the point that she shouldn’t be allowed to own a bird again… I personally don’t think anyone should in the first place unless it’s a rehabilitated wild bird….. but surely there should be some repercussions here, I just can’t stand the sympathy they’re getting on Facebook because they’ve really messed up here and should be held accountable instead of being given ‘hugs’. I just feel so bad for that poor bird.

OP posts:
Lougle · 17/06/2023 20:36

Accidents do happen. I'm sure she didn't mean to allow that to happen. Just like cat owners don't mean for their cat to get run over. Dog owners don't mean for their dog to slip its lead, etc.

poorbird · 17/06/2023 20:39

Lougle · 17/06/2023 20:36

Accidents do happen. I'm sure she didn't mean to allow that to happen. Just like cat owners don't mean for their cat to get run over. Dog owners don't mean for their dog to slip its lead, etc.

I completely understand that but decisions are made as to whether the cat will be indoor or outdoor and to an extent the cat is able to take its chances. The window wasn’t left open accidentally. The bird owner was just shocked the the bird flew out. I can’t get my head around that.

OP posts:
UpaladderwatchingTV · 17/06/2023 20:45

I agree with you OP. Surely you'd check to make sure all windows are shut before you let a bird of any sort out of it's cage. To me it's a bit like leaving tablets out when you have children, you just DON'T do it! I disagree with previous poster who said that 'owners don't mean for their cat to get run over. Dog owners don't mean for their dog to slip its lead, etc.' These are accidents, cats wander at will, and a dog slipping it's lead isn't necessarily something which could be predicted. On the other hand, if you took a dog out without a lead, and it ran into the road, to me, that would be the same as opening a window, and then letting a bird out of it's cage - asking for trouble.

AmyDudley · 17/06/2023 20:53

presumably if it can;t fly, she didn't think it would escape.
I am no fan at all of birds kept in cages, or exotic animals kept a pets. But I don't doubt she is upset and worried, and I see no problem in asking on FB for help looking for the bird.
I'm a bit confused about your anger, you seem to know the history of the bird, so why are you only angry now it has escaped, instead of expressing your concern when it a purchased? I agree the poor thing probably has little chance of survival, but if it were me, instead of raging about the fact that it is being kept as a pet, which is an irreversible state of affairs, I would try to increase it's chance of survival by helping to look for it.

unvillage · 17/06/2023 20:54

If it can't fly, there was probably no expectation that it would be able to leave through a window.

I feel similarly about cat owners who allow their domesticated animals out to be run over, poisoned, shot or decapitated, though. Sad for the owner but it was waiting to happen.

DiscoBeat · 17/06/2023 20:54

Keeping birds in cages is cruel. Especially on their own. Birds belong in their own habitat, in flocks with their own kind.

Dressydress · 18/06/2023 11:52

@discobeat not all birds live in flocks.

Chermeup · 18/06/2023 11:58

It happened to us when I was young. But ours was fully able to fly. He was out as usual and mum opened a window to hake out crumbs from tea towel. He never had interest in outside before. Took few seconds. He did just fly to tree and came back when we called him. They are amazingly smart.

Accidents happen. Like with kids, people just don't think for a second and that's it. Friend just turned round to pick up a spoon not realising the cup of tea was on a top of tiny table cover thingy. While it was far enough, kid pulled on the table runner like thing. Should she alao be publicly shamed or whatever is it looking for this person for mistake which can easily happen in literally 3 seconds?

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