Tomorrow is National Bird Day. It’s a low-key day that few animal people know about and few animal groups promote. But birds are the number four domestic pet kept by Americans (#1 Cats, #1 Dogs, and #3 Rabbits) and I am glad someone has created a day of awareness for them.
Shelters, or course, have always focused on dogs and cats. They reluctantly help rabbits; one, because they don’t have designated space for rabbits, and two, they don’t have a lot of staff knowledge on how to care for them. (Town Lake Center in Austin, though, has a wonderful rabbit adoption area that is maintained by volunteers from the local rabbit group.) Shelters rarely take in birds, which means rescue groups must form to care for birds the public no longer wishes to take care of.
As more and more people acquire birds, the same problems occur that we see with dogs and cats: they become disposable. People give up their pets for a variety of reasons, often “setting them free in the wild.” This, of course, is abandonment, since these domesticated pets don’t have the ability to care for themselves. It would be like dropping our children off on an island, figuring their survival instincts will kick in and they will figure out how to find food and shelter.
I have always had trouble with the idea of birds as pets. While they do bond with their owners, they also are smart creatures, and relegating them to a small cage when they should fly in the sky seems rough duty for them. They can live a long time. A parrot can live upwards of 65 years or more; a cockatiel, 25 years or more; a parakeet, 15 years or more. What this means is that a large bird can far outlive its owners. When you consider parrots mate for life, the constant change of having new caretakers can be stressful. Why not just let birds be in the wild? Why do we have to keep them as pets?
I think we do because as humans, we have a strong need to have relationships with the animals on our planet. I agree that my life would be incomplete without my relationships with pets. Pets help define us. We can release our compassion on them because they accept it. We work on their behalf because we know them. So in part, we do work harder to protect animals we have relationships with.
But in the instance of large birds, I think they are best left alone, living in their own countries and in the wild. Too many end up at bird rescue groups as early as five years old, basically living out the remaining 50 plus years of their life in a shelter-like environment. It’s very sad.
My advice is not to adopt a bird, unless you’re getting one from a rescue group. If you have already committed to a bird, then be committed to creating a stimulating environment for them too. Here’s a list of 10 things you can do to make your bird happy from Born Free USA.