"Abused" Birds

BeakerBird · Aug 29, 2012

Hello all. I have been doing a lot of research the past few months before I finally bought Beaker, my Quaker parrot. During that time I looked at rescues and read forums that talked about abused birds. I can't fathom the concept of a bird who has been harmed or abused, so can you all fill me in on what types of abuse these birds are going through? I see so many postings on rescue websites about birds with a rough past and can't believe it is such a common occurrence.

budgie_man · Aug 29, 2012

I have seen birds on craigslist with severely preened/plucked feathers, on 1 wooden dowel perch, and not one toy, also I would assume they get very little interaction.

BirdSquawk · Aug 29, 2012

Many times, because of bad diet or stress, birds can destructivly pick thier feathers out or create open wounds on thier bodies, whitch can also occur if there are no toys to play with. Small cage size can lead to picking as well as behavioral problems. Often people who get a parrot, many times a cockatoo, for the cute factor can become fed up with the noise and biting begin hitting or abusing thier birds. If you want to learn more, i strongly reccommend reading Of Parrots And People, as i can not describe all the horrible ways birds are being abused in one post. Good for you to want to learn more!

ruffledfeathers · Aug 29, 2012

i know someone who bought parakeets as "decorations". At least one of these was starved to death, i found out much later. I said 'how could you let that happen?' and was told "it was only a decoration." i think the availability and low price set those poor creatures up for neglect and abuse. the only other abuse situations i've known of were more neglect. (not given adequate caging, no attention, left in a dark room, just given food and water.)

BeakerBird · Aug 29, 2012

I mean, who could harm something like this face?

After bath time

ruffledfeathers · Aug 29, 2012

i couldn't!!

so cute and snuggly.

lizardsmells · Aug 29, 2012

I volunteer at a rescue this is what I've seen in my year there:

A B&G missing a wing and blind in one eye from being beaten with a baseball bat by a drug dealer who got her as a status symbol and then couldn't abide by her needs.

Many, MANY plucked birds (Kazi was one of them)

A b&G with severe brain damage from being exposed to meth fumes.

Mostly though, what we see is neglect. People get parrots, think they're fun and novel until they aren't, and stick them in a back room so they don't have to deal with them.

ruffledfeathers · Aug 29, 2012

This breaks my heart.

BeakerBird · Aug 29, 2012

lizardsmells said:
I volunteer at a rescue this is what I've seen in my year there:

A B&G missing a wing and blind in one eye from being beaten with a baseball bat by a drug dealer who got her as a status symbol and then couldn't abide by her needs.

Many, MANY plucked birds (Kazi was one of them)

A b&G with severe brain damage from being exposed to meth fumes.

Mostly though, what we see is neglect. People get parrots, think they're fun and novel until they aren't, and stick them in a back room so they don't have to deal with them.

That is sickening.

aliray · Aug 29, 2012

you have a very cute quaker parrot

sonja · Aug 29, 2012

In my rescue experience, neglect is far more common than outright abuse. Although, as lizard pointed out, there are those cases.......

cdog · Aug 29, 2012

I beleive Sully was abused in his former home. He is scared of my dad(my dad looks like his previous owner), you can't do any fast movements with your hands or he will frieck out, he is very scared of leather gloves and yelling makes him upset(he will start passing and hunkering down on his perch like he is scared.

Plus he and Bella were kind of neglected, all seed diet, two perches(one of which was a dowel), a small cage(coated with poop), and only two toys that were coated with poop!

Rio Mom · Aug 29, 2012

I got my Pepper from a rescue. Before coming to the rescue she lived in a home that also had a pit bull rescue. They would allow Pepper out of her cage when the dogs were around and they chased and jumped at her. This caused her to fly out of fear into walls/windows. They finally decided they weren't the best home (duh!) And gave her to the reacue. Her beak had small fractures in it that were sealed with a polymer. It's terrible to think somebody let that happen not just to her, but let the rescue dogs think it's "ok" to chase other animals.

BeakerBird · Aug 29, 2012

Thanks for all of this input guys. As hard as it is to hear, it is important to have awareness of what to expect when looking to rescue. This is sad, but enlightening.

Blue · Aug 29, 2012

growing up my mom had a Nanday, the guy she got him from would drop kick his cage when he was to loud, not sure how he wasn't severely injured... he hated men but absolutely love my mom

lizardsmells · Aug 29, 2012

And keep in mind that responsible rescues won't adopt a bird out to someone who isn't fully aware of its past.

Know what's hardest for me? Seeing all that potential just waiting for the right home. So many potentially wonderful companions, but no one wants them. It's just the saddest thing. Lots of them are very clingy because they miss that human contact and don't get nearly enough of it. The volunteers try to play with and interact with as many birds as possible, but it's impossible to give them all equal attention because there are so many who are so deprived and you want to spend time with them all.

DerSchniffles · Aug 29, 2012

I got my first bird (budgie) when I was about 10 or 11. When I was about 12, I volunteered at this bird store/rescue and I really didnt know any better, but the owner smoked like a chimney IN THE STORE. It was awful and so many of the birds got sick all the time from it. I had a wonderful experience working there as I got to hand tame so many rescues and hand feed baby parrots, but there was alot of simple neglect going on there.

Oedipussrex · Aug 30, 2012

I think (or like to think, because the latter is too depressing) that most of the parrots who end up in rescues are simply a victim of people who didn't understand what they were getting into, or were simply ignorant of what was actually required... The word 'abused' is tossed around a lot, and i dont think any real definition of the word covers all the cases in the same way at all...
I have seen many smaller birds (canaries, finches, budgies etc.) treated with less respect than a goldfish - a dowell and some seed, and definetly no vet visits for something that only cost $5 in the petshop, if your child cries because their "small 'starter' pet" dies you can always buy them another one... this seems to be a sad mentality prevalent in society about many small, short lived, and cheaper animals

mtdoramike · Aug 30, 2012

Hold the phone, just because a bird is plucked, plucking or chewing his feathers doesn't in any way reflect how that bird is cared for. I have seen numerous birds that are plucked or plucking and over-preeing that come from or are in well loved homes.
Take my Macky for instance, he has been an over-preening ever since I got him. He came from a well loved home where the owners adored him. He's been with me now for a little over a year and is still over-preening. He's out of his cage all day every day because I'm retired. He gets a well balanced diet and has tons of toys to play with. He's also interacting with me on a continous basis. He's been to the vet with a clean bill of health.

So birds no matter how well they are cared for can become pluckersor over-preeners, which can lead to plucking.

mtdoramike · Aug 30, 2012

lizardsmells said:
And keep in mind that responsible rescues won't adopt a bird out to someone who isn't fully aware of its past.

Know what's hardest for me? Seeing all that potential just waiting for the right home. So many potentially wonderful companions, but no one wants them. It's just the saddest thing. Lots of them are very clingy because they miss that human contact and don't get nearly enough of it. The volunteers try to play with and interact with as many birds as possible, but it's impossible to give them all equal attention because there are so many who are so deprived and you want to spend time with them all.

What is so hard for me is seeing rescue centers over loaded with birds to the point that they are having a hard time giving them adequate care and yet they want to be soooooo picky about their adoption process. They act like they are adopting out children. Now, I know we all like to think of them as our children

, but they are pets. I know a few rescue centers around me that nearly wants a kidney just to adopt one of their rescued birds.

"Abused" Birds

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