Misconceptions About Rescue Parrots

Not all rescue parrots come from abused or neglected backgrounds.  Although there are some that do.  The majority are  given up by their owners due to no fault of their own but can no longer care for the birds.  Health issues, circumstances beyond their control, moves, deaths etc. are just some of the reasons that parrots end up coming into our care.

Due to our work in the avian community, we get asked regularly to help owners find new loving homes for the fids (feathered kids).  They count on us as they know our standards are high and we are highly involved in the avian community from bird clubs to humane societys and local vet colleges.  They want to utilize our experience and vast network to find the best placements for their birds.

Many of the birds that come to us have come from wonderful loving homes that due to unfortunate circumstances have to be placed into a new home.  The owners are devastated at having to give up their loved ones and have entrusted them into our care  to find a proper home for their loved ones.

We do get cases of abuse and neglect from time to time but most of the birds that come here are not abused or neglected.  It is still sad and devastating on the birds that they have to be removed from their loving homes. But cases of abuse are not common place.  You might find some of these birds here for months on end while we work on behaviours.  They are posted available for adoption in the event that another experienced person may be able to take on a bird with  some of these problems and do the behaviour modifications themselves.  This does happen on ocassion.  We also believe in full disclosure and make sure each potential adoptive home, understands with eyes wide open, what to expect then they bring a particular bird home.  Some are definitely harder to place than others but during their stay with us we work on behavior modifications to fix some of the problems they arrived with.

My own philosophy and how I have always viewed what we do is that the owners have come to us and entrusted us to find the best possible placement and most suitable home for their bird.  It is my job to make sure that the birds come first and their needs will be met regardless of who wants the bird.  This job I take very seriously.

We try not to refuse homes when people want a bird.  We try to direct them sometimes on a more appropriate bird than what they may be inquiring about.  As we are aware of the various species needs and abilities or we direct them to further their research before deciding on a parrot as a pet.

It is our firm belief that pet birds belong in  loving homes and deserve to be loved and given lots of attention.  We carefully match up the birds needs to what potential homes are able to offer the parrot.  Only then will an adoptoin take place.

If you look at our past successes and reference letters, you will see that we are good at what we do!

Please consider giving some of these wonderful second hand parrots a chance at a new life as they can make wonderful companions and most come already trained!

My Parrot is lonely and I want to get him a friend

I try to keep this blog relevant to questions I get asked regularly.  In hopes that people will read and gain a greater understanding of how best to keep your parrots.

One of the questions that I frequently get is “do you think my parrot’s lonely” or “I want to get a companion for my parrot, what kind should I get?”.

There are many things to consider before introducing a second parrot into your home.

There are any number of variables that can happen and I hope that in reading this, you will be better informed on making a decision that will be right for you and your bird as well as ways to introduce a new bird into your flock.

Most people automatically assume that the same species/opposite sex, would be the best companion for their bird.  But that is not usually the case if you want to maintain your parrot as a pet.

  Birds tend to bond to a mate for life.  In the wild this would be  the opposite sex, same species. 

In captivity, they bond to their human companion and can treat it as a mate.  They can also bond to a different species of parrot.

Birds act in a very similar way that we humans do in that they don’t always like those around them.  Some birds have an instant attraction for another and some can have an instant hate while others can remain indifferent to one another.

It is very hard to determine how your parrot will react to a new comer until they are placed in the same vicinity.

Typical reactions will be:

•      Indifference to one another
•      Instant attraction
•      Fear
•       Aggression/Jealousy/Hate
•       Over bonding
•       One Sided Emotion
•       Reverting to wild tendencies

There is no way of knowing until the birds are placed together.   Which in itself presents a problem.  How do we know if our birds will be compatible or hate each other?  All kinds of issues need to be well thought out and there are no easy answers. 

  I will describe each scenario and the implications or benefits and how we can do our best to make it work.  In each scenario, birds should be housed separately and only allowed to interact under supervision until you are confident that no issues will occur.

 Indifference – This would be fine for keeping a lonely bird company and would also work well as it should not affect the dynamics of existing relationships.  This is how many of the parrots at the rescue behave.

 Instant Attraction – As long as they get along and do not fall into the over bonding stage, this also works well.  Over bonding can take place later down the road, especially in the spring.  There are a few things that can be done to help avoid this.  In all of the scenarios, NEVER keep the parrots in the same cage.  They can have playtime outside of their cages but should never be housed together.  Certain types of toys can also stimulate hormonal/nesting behaviors and those should be avoided.

 Fear – One or the other bird is afraid of the new arrival, which can lead to other problems such as plucking, stress and anxiety.  The solution would be to remove the new arrival to a different area of the home.  This does not help the lonely parrot, but then he may not need/want the companionship.  However now, you are stuck with a second bird that may or may not share the same fears and have opened up another area of your home to have to keep bird safe.

 Aggression/Jealousy – Typically the existing bird would become jealous of the new bird which will lead to aggression.  They also may just not like each other.  This can be onesided or  with both birds.  Great pains will have to be taken to keep them apart and safe.  These birds can hunt the other one down either inside the cage or outside the cage.  There is a great chance of injury for these birds.  There can also be a greater chance of you getting bitten by one or the other as birds bonded to their human will try to protect the human by biting them to scare them off from what the parrot feels is a threat in order to keep them safe.  This aggression can lessen over time but great care would need to be taken to keep the parrots safe. See below about how to introduce a new bird into your flock.

 Onesided Emotion – It is quite common and happens here frequently, where one bird is attracted to another bird but the other bird does not reciprocate the feelings.  This can cause stress on both birds as the one bird will try to follow the other around and sit close to it, wanting to preen it etc and the other bird wants nothing to do with it.  This can cause stress on both birds. 

 Reverting to Wild Tendencies – Birds that bond tend to want to mate and want to breed, typically revert back to a wilder state where they will no longer interact with humans.  They want to protect their nest (cage) and become aggressive towards anything that tries to interfere with that, including feeding them etc.  Sometimes they only become aggressive during the breeding seaons and can be handled at other times and sometimes they become totally wild.  They will no longer make a pet for you and may or may not lay viable eggs.  It could destroy any relationship you had with your bird.  This does not always happen with same species birds as two birds of different species can sometimes revert to breeding mode and become wild, go through all the breeding motions but of course would not produce viable eggs.

(**Note when you adopt from PASO you are required to sign a no breeding contract)

 There is no way of knowing how your birds will react until you put two together and see how they interact.

 How to Introduce a New Bird to your Flock

 Whether you have a flock of 1 or 10 there are a few tips you can use to introduce a new bird into your environment.

 -         Make sure that when you introduce the birds, that it is done away from their cages and play areas and is done in a neutral area.    Preferably away from view of their cages.

-         Do not hold them and introduce them.  Use a chair or something and place each one on a separate chair so there is some distance between them.

-         Be prepared for anything.  Have a towel ready in case they try to attack one another so that you can separate them and keep them from harm. 

-         Have a carrier or cage handy and open to place at least one of the birds in if there is a  problem.

-         Spend time with the original bird first and reassure him about his new friend.

-         Watch for signs of aggression or fear. 

-         Keep their cages well apart from one another until you are confident that they will tolerate each other.

-         Continue to monitor any changes in behaviors.

-         NEVER put the birds in the same cage.  At some point if the birds are comfortable and seem to be getting along, they can play on the same cage, but should not be caged together or aggression and over bonding can take place.

  I order to lessen chances of over bonding and reverting to wild tendencies, bring in a different species of bird or a playmate of the same sex.  You will want to keep either only males or only females.  Later if you try to introduce an opposite sex bird (more so of the same species), you may run into troubles again as the two may fight for the love of the new bird.

 This is just the basic way of introducing a new bird.  There are other variables but these are the most common and should provide you with at least the basics of what can happen when you are considering introducing a new bird into your home.

Photo Gallery

This is the link to our photogallery

CBS Evening News Story About the Dilemma of Parrots in the US

The Parrots and People Paradox

Metro News Article about PASO

http://www.metronews.ca/toronto/Work/article/215597