Starting a parrot daycare and supply shop

I am researching everything I can on what to expect when starting a birdie daycare and supply shop. I thought this community would be a great place to seek advice. Does anyone have experience with starting this type of business? I welcome your thoughts or anything you've learned from a similar entrepreneurial venture.

Sounds potentially fun, but a HUGE responsibility and undertaking!
Of course you'd have all the business laws, zoning, taxes, lawyer, etc. to deal with - the normal mountain of things you need to do to start any type of business.

Assuming that enough money to start up and run the business is not an issue, THEN there is the added concern about being responsible for other people's babies (living creatures). Not unlike a human daycare where they need proof of vaccinations, you'd need to have strict protocols in place for proof of viral disease testing (as any responsible boarding facility does).

Really important would be a pretty detailed contract and legal 'Hold Harmless' agreement for the parront to read, understand, and sign so that you won't be held responsible if something happens to the bird under normal circumstances while in your care. Will you feed foods they bring, or your foods? What if people accuse you of making their bird ill in some way because they forgot their food and you had to feed your foods? Just one of the MANY potential issues.

Maybe another part of the contract saying what will be done in case of emergency veterinary care. What if you need to run out on emergency, will there be another experienced person(s) to watch the birds?

Plus MANY other valid points for a legal contract that I don't know of or can't think of. I don't even have experience in this sort of thing, and still I can see MANY potential situations happening, only a few of which I said above, where you'd need to cover yourself thoroughly.

Not saying you haven't already given these things a thought, just thought I'd mention it Good luck if you decide to go for it!

In the most respectful way possible, I wouldn't ever consider leaving my bird around other unfamiliar birds. The risk of an unknown bird being a latent carrier of some horrific disease is just too high. Heck, the risk of another bird having a minor infection and passing it to my bird is too high (avian vets aren't cheap svn if it's just a respiratory infection!). I think the first thing you'd need to do is figure out how your policy on how to prevent disease within your facility.

A supply shop may be less complicated, especially if you run an operation where the supplies don't even share the same ventilation system as any live birds. MANY parrot owners seek out toys and parts that have never been around other birds before because it virtually eliminates the risk of disease spread. Unfortunately, theres not too many operations that offer that. Definitely a good concept if you'd like to run a bird related business.

Good post April (kiwibird) .

I "personally" would not take on such a venture without VAST bird business experience alredy, and probably not even then... Lots of headaches even when things go 'smoothly'.

RavensGryf said:

Good post April (kiwibird) .

I "personally" would not take on such a venture without VAST bird business experience alredy, and probably not even then... Lots of headaches even when things go 'smoothly'.

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EXACTLY! Not to mention how 'fussy' some people are about their pets. What do you do with the customer who thinks Polly (that one who attacks all the other birds) was "left out of the group" or insists Tweetie (the junk food addict) didn't eat enough veggies while in your care? You know....THOSE kind of people who will find anything to complain about I think pursuing the supply company is a much better venture if you are really wanting to open a bird related business.

I wish so much this type of thing could happen, but until avian diseases are researched and vaccines developed (IF that ever becomes financially lucrative to animal health companies even) that could protect my bird the way my dog is when he goes to dog class, events, groomer, dog park, play group, etc., I couldn't do it. I wish I could, though. I really do. It sounds idealistically fun.

Heck, I'm such a germ-a-phob about my birds that I won't even hire a pet sitter to come to MY home because I don't want them caring for every other bird in town with the same shoes and clothes (unwashed hands?) and then caring for mine. I just train non-bird-owning family members to do it in the rare event it becomes necessary.

Kiwibird said:

...Polly (that one who attacks all the other birds) was "left out of the group" .

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AHEM...her name is Sassy...not Polly....:09:

No advice on the parrot daycare other than all the issues that have already been mentioned.

4dugnlee said:

Kiwibird said:

...Polly (that one who attacks all the other birds) was "left out of the group" .

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AHEM...her name is Sassy...not Polly....:09:

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Rotfl :18:

Sadly, I have to agree. I would never take my bird to these places, and I can only imagine the liability involved in running one! The danger is disease even in the cleanest environment, the danger of escape, theft, injury, fights... I wouldn't. However, a bird SUPPLY store sounds great! A lot more feasible as well, especially if you could advertize that all your products have never been around other birds. Regardless of what business you choose, you should look up the laws and requirements in your city and state, and also be SURE your area has enough demand to support all the costs of running a business. Also, advertising BEFORE you open is important.

The only successful model of a bird daycare I can think of is one that's done by vets:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Currumbin-Valley-Birds-Reptiles-Exotics-Vet/141797059204766

I think if you were a board certified Avian vet, then it would be a great idea. But without knowledge of how to manage virulent disease, health complications that may arise, it would be rather hard and I'm not sure anyone would want to go to the vet to pay for a recent certificate of health to drop them off for daycare every time, considering they would also be paying a fee to keep the bird there.

Perhaps if you collaborated with an avian veterinarian interested in coming in once or twice a week to have your clients checked over before agreeing to accept them into the daycare, or an agreement with a vet clinic to send your clients there it would work.

What I would be considering if I was you would be these things:

- how many clients am I expecting? Out of how many of those clients will be small, medium, large, or XL birds?
- will I have staff to clean, to train, to socialize, feed, and manage the store front?
- can I form an agreement with a newspaper company, paper company, etc. to ensure I can change the cage lining daily, if not twice daily?
- will I be fitting the cages with full spectrum lighting, or will I have an outdoor space with enough room for flying for flighted birds or climbing for clipped birds?
- will I have an area to bathe birds in the way that their owner knows they like best?
- will my store be located in an area where I won't receive sound complaints from neighbours due to the screaming/talking of several birds housed together?
- can I form an agreement with toy companies to bring in clean toys? Especially considering that toys brought from houses may potentially be hazardous to other birds?
- will I have a room to separate dusty birds from oily birds? IE, will I have an appropriate ventilation system to prevent certain species, such as macaws, from developing or resurfacing sensitive respiratory issues?
- will I be keeping birds for the day, or for the week? How will this impact my costs upkeep?
- what will my liability clause be should an individual bring in an unhealthy bird that was deemed "healthy" by a vet? Will I require a blood test specifically to accept new clients, or just a general check up, or both?


The list is extensive and exhaustive. I recommend contacting a professional who runs a parrot sanctuary, rescue, or the veterinary clinic to see how feasible a parrot daycare would be and what they would suggest.

I want to thank you all so much for your time and input! Some great thoughts here!

I definitely didn't expect the overwhelming response from you bird owners who wouldn't even consider patronizing a birdie daycare. It is entirely possible that the responsible parrot owners I envision using the service are the ones that would never go near it! Maybe this business would only attract the kinds of people who would be a constant headache, e.g. overly-picky clients, clients that refuse to pay for services, or even clients who abandon their birds. Yikes! Of course, it depends on the business potential in my area, but that is definitely something to keep in mind. In short, I agree, the legal foresight needs to be immense.

For those who are curious, or don't have a business like this one near them, I am looking into something similar to Bird Camp in Manhattan (Base Camp).

Thanks again for the help team!

We have a wonderful place here that boards birds, and they are booked up for a year in advance. These places can be successful if you are careful and take all precautions possible.

Maybe instead boarding birds on site you could have bird sitters. Still a lot of headache but maybe a possibility. Go to their house instead.

Llamalark said:

I am researching everything I can on what to expect when starting a birdie daycare and supply shop. I thought this community would be a great place to seek advice. Does anyone have experience with starting this type of business? I welcome your thoughts or anything you've learned from a similar entrepreneurial venture.

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It's a great idea....however allow me to put some things here for serious thought...and do think about it.

As raven mentioned...there is a lot of legal implications to jump thru.
One...people in America are sue happy, so keep in mind that anything and anything at all happens to the bird, your at fault and to blame, when it may not even be related to your daycare. They find a way to blame shift it in your direction.

Second, it would be a big legal concern to have different birds from different people that you don't know in same day care with your birds.
That's asking for serious legal problems, both on state and federal levels. Not to mention the severe health risks in cross contamination of a sick bird with others.

To give you a example, dog kennels that board dogs require kennel cough vaccination, rabies and current vet papers BEFORE the dogs can be boarded.

The same principle only stricter will apply to parrots.

Personally I wouldn't do it, to much legal jardon you have to go thru.

OOwl said:

I wish so much this type of thing could happen, but until avian diseases are researched and vaccines developed (IF that ever becomes financially lucrative to animal health companies even) that could protect my bird the way my dog is when he goes to dog class, events, groomer, dog park, play group, etc., I couldn't do it. I wish I could, though. I really do. It sounds idealistically fun.

Heck, I'm such a germ-a-phob about my birds that I won't even hire a pet sitter to come to MY home because I don't want them caring for every other bird in town with the same shoes and clothes (unwashed hands?) and then caring for mine. I just train non-bird-owning family members to do it in the rare event it becomes necessary.

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I here ya there, But sometimes you have no choice but to board your birds.. I board mine with the vet/avian store. He only allows birds that came from his store and are known o be in good health. He boarded my 5 birds for 2 weeks when I had to fly to England for my Daughters wedding.
She's now living a couple blocks away from Johnny Depps house. ( one of them) and I had coffee with John for a couple minutes and a remote coffee house. Has some cool stuff And weird stuff in his house. But like his Black Jaguar.