A Rant about Ignorant Bird Owners

Timothy

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Aug 16, 2014
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Port Richey, Florida
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Blue & Gold Macaw [Maya] // Sun Conure Baby [Zippo] // 2 Lovebirds [Nibblet & Nellie]
Ok so, having sold birds for a long time i've had to deal with some pretty ignorant people. I would grin and walk away after denying a sale to those who just should not own a bird.

One guy be like "I wont take my bird to the vet or have his nails/beak trimmed because i don't believe in it. They don't have people come in their tree and trim their beaks and nails in the wild."

I asked him if he ever owned birds before, he stated that he's had two birds, and both stopped eating after a few years. Im thinking to myself, yeah because their beak was overgrown and they couldn't eat.

So i try to distance myself from these type of people.

I go to youtube to watch bird videos quite a bit and recently have been reading the comments

Here is a comment i made


Randall (Removed last name)4 months ago

Hi. I have a cockatiel who will not stop flying around, even with it's wings clipped. It's not scared, because the crest is down. What can I do to stop her from flying?
Reply ·

Lones(removed last name)4 months ago

Clip just one wing and put a weight on it. 
Reply ·

Timothy Brischler9 minutes ago (This is my comment)

+Lones Cook That is a terrible comment, your going to cause people to injure or kill their parrots.Cockatiels are light and strong fliers, having the wings clipped properly by a vet will show you. They need to glide down or they can break their breast bone and die. they can fly with just 1 flight feather.
Reply ·

Ok so i think i did the right thing, but seriously How ignorant can people be? I mean id like to have a life too, and not have to go and comment on everything thats going to end up hurting a bird.

I want to take action and get people to realize that birds are not bunnies! They are intelligent fragile creatures that need love and attention and Proper Care!!
 

noblemacaw

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Sep 23, 2011
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Valentino - Red Fronted Macaw - Hatched August 12, 2012
I can relate how you feel about people that don't know enough to keep a parrot healthy and safe. It is very frustrating and as other members can attest too this is the sucky part of parrot ownership, dealing with stupid people and watching, being told of really stupid stuff people do to/with their parrots.

I use to do a lot of public speaking and spend a LOT of time talking people OUT of adding a parrot. Sure my boys were well behaved and made great ambassadors for parrot ownership but I also have worked very HARD for them to turn out that way.

After many years of having parrots in my life I know this. You get out of your parrot what you put into them. You make the effort to feed them correctly they will be healthy, you learn and know how to train and will put in the time to make sure they are mentally healthy you will have a well balanced friend. You continue to educate yourself with the advancements and setbacks of parrot care and diet your parrot will live for a long time (if they don't "catch" a disease).

Even after many years of parrot stewardship, learning and keeping up with current medical care, diet and everything else I can think of I still lost two mini macaws to heart disease and my Eclectus to PDD.

I would never claim to be an expert but I have been around the block a few times and know enough to keep my boy healthy and happy and I never stop learning how to keep Valentino even more healthy and happy.

After many years of watching stupid people not care for their parrots correctly and even though reaching out to help would end up in heart ache I had to pull away and resign the fact people are gonna do what they want and the bird being THEIRS you really have no power to help that parrot.

This might not be the correct way to handle that but for me it was what I had to do. I stopped public speaking and I withdrew from my local bird community. I just could not take how stupid people can be and how they have no desire/capability to extend themselves to learn how to care for their parrots better.

Timothy, I do understand how you feel. Unfortunately you cannot help them all. I can understand you wanting to share your experience and knowledge as I will always do the same but some people will not take the advise and some will just blatantly ignore the sound advise. That is hard to take. Expecially when actions endanger the parrot or help to make the parrot miserable and are abusive.

It is the same with dogs and cats. People will always be out there that do not care for them properly and many will suffer and die as the result of that. That also breaks my heart but I cannot help them all.

Unfortunatly there will always be ignorant people that do not know how to care for a bird, cat, or dog, any animal really. Because animals are looked at as property (not long ago I had to declare Valentino and his cage "value" for legal purposes and that was hard for me to do) we as stewards of proper care for our friends will really have no power to help someone else s "property". That totally sucks.
 

MustLoveAnimals

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Aug 14, 2014
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Missouri
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Female Cinnamon Cockatiel; Arka
~
Female Red Crowned Amazon; Chiba
Clip just one wing? And put a weight on it?? What are they thinking?
Poor bird, I hope Randall doesn't follow this advise.
 

Birdman666

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Sep 18, 2013
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San Antonio, TX
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Presently have six Greenwing Macaw (17 yo), Red Fronted Macaw (12 yo), Red Lored Amazon (17 y.o.), Lilac Crowned Amazon (about 43 y.o.) and a Congo African Grey (11 y.o.)
Panama Amazon (1 Y.O.)
These people are idiots, and a lot of the people who post comments are just trying to get a rise out of someone... thinking this is funny.

Until you get a major idiot who takes something like this seriously and actually tries to flatten out the bird's wings with a 25 lb. weight or something!
 
Last edited:

Birdman666

Well-known member
Sep 18, 2013
9,904
258
San Antonio, TX
Parrots
Presently have six Greenwing Macaw (17 yo), Red Fronted Macaw (12 yo), Red Lored Amazon (17 y.o.), Lilac Crowned Amazon (about 43 y.o.) and a Congo African Grey (11 y.o.)
Panama Amazon (1 Y.O.)
One guy be like "I wont take my bird to the vet or have his nails/beak trimmed because i don't believe in it. They don't have people come in their tree and trim their beaks and nails in the wild."

I asked him if he ever owned birds before, he stated that he's had two birds, and both stopped eating after a few years. Im thinking to myself, yeah because their beak was overgrown and they couldn't eat.

The hard part is resisting the urge to strangle them at that point!
 

Jayyj

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Apr 28, 2013
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Alice - Galah cockatoo
The one sided clip seems to still be quite common in the UK. If the bird isn't used to it then it doesn't stop them taking off if they're startled by something, and they can easily get several feet into the air before they lose balance and plummet back down to earth. I saw it happen a dozen times with Alice, and I half wish I'd captured that look of panic and bewilderment when she was panting on the floor afterwards to show on Youtube to people who think that clip is a good idea. Broke my heart every time.
 

Birdman666

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Sep 18, 2013
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Presently have six Greenwing Macaw (17 yo), Red Fronted Macaw (12 yo), Red Lored Amazon (17 y.o.), Lilac Crowned Amazon (about 43 y.o.) and a Congo African Grey (11 y.o.)
Panama Amazon (1 Y.O.)
The one sided clip seems to still be quite common in the UK. If the bird isn't used to it then it doesn't stop them taking off if they're startled by something, and they can easily get several feet into the air before they lose balance and plummet back down to earth. I saw it happen a dozen times with Alice, and I half wish I'd captured that look of panic and bewilderment when she was panting on the floor afterwards to show on Youtube to people who think that clip is a good idea. Broke my heart every time.

Or injures herself crashing into something...

My CAG is clumsy enough when he's balanced.
 

pycthedragon

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Jun 13, 2014
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michigan
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Cream, Cookie and Baby, peach faced lovebirds
"Clip just one wing and put a weight on it. "

I'm not a very experienced bird owner but that is just HORRIBLE. Unless they were trolling how could you even think of something like that and think it's okay?!
 
OP
Timothy

Timothy

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Makes me very upset tht even if it was "Fake comments" tht people would even post something like that. Some people are not smart enough to know the difference and unfortunately some of these people own birds, there should be an aptitude test before you can obtain a bird!
 

Birdman666

Well-known member
Sep 18, 2013
9,904
258
San Antonio, TX
Parrots
Presently have six Greenwing Macaw (17 yo), Red Fronted Macaw (12 yo), Red Lored Amazon (17 y.o.), Lilac Crowned Amazon (about 43 y.o.) and a Congo African Grey (11 y.o.)
Panama Amazon (1 Y.O.)
Makes me very upset tht even if it was "Fake comments" tht people would even post something like that. Some people are not smart enough to know the difference and unfortunately some of these people own birds, there should be an aptitude test before you can obtain a bird!

They call them TROLLS for a reason.
 

Mekaisto

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Zookeeper who has worked with many bird species, and owner of a cheeky red-tailed black cockatoo (Ash)
Ugh, I know exactly what you mean.

I'm in multiple parrot groups of Facebook, and some of the photos and questions you see...
People using cat litter to line cage trays, so they "don't have to clean it every day", people selling "cockatoo cages" which are just flimsy homemade wire cubes.

And of course the myriad of problems that could have been answered with a 5 second google search or a bit of preparation.
"I bought a macaw but he screams all the time, do you think I need to give him a toy?"
"How many toys does he have at the moment?"
"None, I thought he would be happy just looking out the window."

It really makes me sad to see the way people treat aviculture and parrot ownership in Australia sometimes.
 
OP
Timothy

Timothy

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I use ground walnut for my large parrot. I use a cat scoop to get any leftover food/doo doo/wood chips/ every morning, and i change the walnut once a month. I love it and its sanitary.

I dont like corncob cause if it gets wet mold can grow so fast, even overnight


What's different about Australia and how they trat birds there?
 

Birdman666

Well-known member
Sep 18, 2013
9,904
258
San Antonio, TX
Parrots
Presently have six Greenwing Macaw (17 yo), Red Fronted Macaw (12 yo), Red Lored Amazon (17 y.o.), Lilac Crowned Amazon (about 43 y.o.) and a Congo African Grey (11 y.o.)
Panama Amazon (1 Y.O.)
I dont like corncob cause if it gets wet mold can grow so fast, even overnight

It's both a respiratory and an ingestion hazard as well...

I use regular everyday newspaper.
 

Birdman666

Well-known member
Sep 18, 2013
9,904
258
San Antonio, TX
Parrots
Presently have six Greenwing Macaw (17 yo), Red Fronted Macaw (12 yo), Red Lored Amazon (17 y.o.), Lilac Crowned Amazon (about 43 y.o.) and a Congo African Grey (11 y.o.)
Panama Amazon (1 Y.O.)
it really makes me sad to see the way people treat aviculture and parrot ownership in australia sometimes.

and then there's tab... !!!
 

veimar

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Chicago, IL
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gcc Parry; lovebird Coco; 3 budgies (Tesla, Franky and Cesar); cockatiel Murzik, red rump parakeet girl Onyx
I've been in the parrots world for only 7 mo now, but I understand you so well! It doesn't take that much to educate yourself about birds when so many online resources are available. Sometimes I just freak out when I see how ignorant people are about birds. Sometimes just using common sense can help! I do research all the time and ask here about any concerns and questions I have about my birds, and I still know I have so much to learn.
 

Mekaisto

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Melbourne, Australia
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Zookeeper who has worked with many bird species, and owner of a cheeky red-tailed black cockatoo (Ash)
What's different about Australia and how they trat birds there?

Well I haven't been to the US, so I don't know how things are there, but here you just get people every now and then who want birds because they're 'pretty' or 'cool', without considering the fact that it's a living creature with wants and needs.
 

veimar

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Feb 5, 2014
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Chicago, IL
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gcc Parry; lovebird Coco; 3 budgies (Tesla, Franky and Cesar); cockatiel Murzik, red rump parakeet girl Onyx
I also hate when parents buy little birds for their kids as toys. And then dump them when kids lose the interest. I've seen a lot of such ads on craigslist and almost got one of these poor birds. :(
 
OP
Timothy

Timothy

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Blue & Gold Macaw [Maya] // Sun Conure Baby [Zippo] // 2 Lovebirds [Nibblet & Nellie]
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I also hate when parents buy little birds for their kids as toys. And then dump them when kids lose the interest. I've seen a lot of such ads on craigslist and almost got one of these poor birds. :(

When i worked at Todd Marcus Birds Exotic in New Jersey, USA. Parents would bring in 4 year olds and they destroyed the store while their parents would ignore the kids and buy either a tiel, parakeet, or even a grey for their kids.

If you cant take care of your own kids, what makes you think you can care for a bird, which imo a macaw or grey especially, requires MORE attention than a kid :p

Maybe not, but still. They are not "Things" they are Highly intelligent beings with emotions just like us.

Or how about someone that doesnt do their research and buys a cockatoo or a Nanday/Sun Conure and then gets rid of it because its noisy. Yeah cockatoos are extremely cuddly, but if you give it all of your attention, and then give it less and less because you get bored with it THAT will cause it to scream because it craves that attention it got when it was a baby. and then when it doesnt get it, it starts to self mutilate.

OMG i could go on for hours. I HATE people who dont have a clue. There is SO MUCH information available these days, even on the internet. Just goes to show some people should not reproduce. let alone own the worlds most beautiful, intelligent, and social creatures available.
 

goalerjones

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Oct 24, 2011
1,390
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Hahn's macaw, RIP George, Jenday Conure
It will be interesting to see those same people go onto a Webmd site asking for medical advice.
Q:
"I have constant headaches and I get dizzy and have blurred vision. What should I do?"
A:
"I think you have athletes foot. You should walk in a driving snowstorm with no clothes and that should cure you."
 

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