9 ms·

I had a parrot growing up. Well, my family did, I suppose. My dad bought a Senegal when I was about 15. It passed away when I was in my early 30ies. They are i

I had a parrot growing up. Well, my family did, I suppose. My dad bought a Senegal when I was about 15. It passed away when I was in my early 30ies. They are indeed highly intelligent and social animals. It bonded with my dad the most. I was his second favorite. It didn't like anyone else. As awesome of a species as they are, I can't help but feel guilty for keeping a bird caged and indoors their whole life. He definitely was neglected during the last few years of his life as it was almost like caring for a young child who never grows up. 20 years of that and you're going to be drained, especially as an older person with responsibilities. Anyone thinking of getting a parrot as a pet, I strongly suggest you ask yourself. Are you willing to care for a bird who is as demanding as a young child, constantly, for decades? The positive side is they do bring you closer to nature and enrich your life in ways you couldn't imagine.

RachelF 8y ago
I love parrots, they make fantastic pets. However, your comparison to a small child is very good - they have the nature and intelligence of a human 3 year old. Parrots are wild birds, they have not been domesticated for ten thousand years like dogs, and it is probably not humane to keep them in a cage. If you want a happier parrot, then get a breeding pair. They won't be as affectionate their owner though, as they have a mate.
- dmix 8y ago
  What are some of the things it does to be annoying or demanding, similar to a child?
  - acct1771 8y ago
    Have you met children? Make messes of all sorts of shit (sometimes literal), and make noise, which carries multiple emotional and logistical concerns.
  - oh_sigh 8y ago
    Throws temper tantrums and act out if they don't get what they want, or are neglected
    - AllegedAlec 8y ago
      Oh Christ yes. A friend of mine had a parrot that'd start to remove keys from his keyboard if it wasn't being paid attention to. Rather annoying when you try to play games with friends.
  - DyslexicAtheist 8y ago
    my wife at the time convinced me to get a cockatiel since she grew up with birds. Her tolerance to noise as a Japanese is very different to mine as a European. (Japanese can sleep anywhere, I sure can't) The bird we had is very small in comparison to the parrots discussed in the article but the noise they make is not to be underestimated. And you can't turn it off. Yes you can throw a cover over the cage but you can't cover it for longer than what they need sleep. It was very hard for me to endure the constant noise (never ending screeching) which felt like Chinese water torture. That bird drove me absolutely insane over time. To me it felt like the bird was so loud exactly because it was incredibly intelligent but it used that intelligence to be jealous and protective and the intelligence was probably the cause of its unhappiness (since it knew it was in a cage). My wife loved that bird to bits but to me it felt like I was taking care of a disabled child that is not mine (bonded with my wife only) and which would never grow up. It became more nasty and mean to anyone except my wife even it was hand-fed as a chick. Knowing nothing about birds when we got it I thought I'd be able to manage it (after all I grew up around cats, dogs, and farm animals so how hard could it be looking after another animal?). But it just got worse and worse and still is horrific today. I am no longer with my ex and that bird was at least 20% reason of why I could no longer live under the same roof. Seriously don't get a bird unless you have lived with it for a couple of months. Once you have done that think of what it would be if you live with it in a more stressful period of your life ... Could manage that animal at a time when you are looking after your new born children? When you are up to your elbows in baby diapers and chronically sleep deprived? After seeing this animal in captivity for so long I have grown somewhat disgusted with the idea of birds as pets. I guess it takes a very special breed of people to keep birds and be OK with it: The type of people who see a bird and go: "You see those beautiful creatures that are able to fly. Yeah, I'm going to make them stop do that."
    - andai 8y ago
      After reading your post I'm amazed that the bird was only 20% of your reason for leaving.
      - ndnxhs 8y ago
        The noise is incredible. Super loud, high pitch screaching non stop.
  - eljimmy 8y ago
    They're demanding in that they are highly social animals, so they can't really be left alone for long periods. They need affection/interaction. They bond with humans just as humans bond with each other. So they really do become almost like a family member. Because of their intelligence, it's not just like having a dog who you can throw a ball and walk down the block. I suggest reading and watching videos of Alex the African Grey. Really eye-opening into the learning abilities and reach of intelligence which birds possess.
- bayesian_horse 8y ago
  They make terrible pets. They need large cages/rooms, must be kept in pairs or groups, they are prolific poopers, can be loud as heck, pluck their feathers if you are away (or not), destroy furniture ... Unless of course you keep a single hand raised parrot in a small cage and don't much care about its well being. Then they make fantastic pets.
  - krageon 8y ago
    You are making it sound much, much worse than it actually is. As it stands they make good pets if you have the time to give them the attention and freedom they require. They're very affectionate and if you pick the right type of parrot for you it will not be loud. As with dogs, they're terrific if they have a good owner and absolute horrors if they don't.
    - bayesian_horse 8y ago
      If they need extreme amounts of time, expertise and resources, they don't qualify as "fantastic" pets, in my opinion.
      - ndnxhs 8y ago
        My parents have had a few. Incredibly loud an a few of them have died from various mistakes. Also destroyed all of my headphones.
  - mark_l_watson 8y ago
    I am not sure about your comment about not caring for the bird's well being. We have a very small parrot in a very large cage. As long as he gets out of his cage to play, gets lots of head scratching, and my wife or I am in the same room as our parrot, he really seems happy. Also, it is easy to know when a parrot is happy, bored, or unhappy. Lots of signals. There are also little things that mean a lot, at least to our parrot: at meals, if our food is not healthy for a parrot, one of us will put something good for him on our plates, and we always make a show of 'sharing' something on our plates with him. This communal eating seems to be important to him. Another thing that seems to make him happy is to sit on my shoulder while I am working at my computer. He is not really a distraction and he seems to enjoy it. I try to cook with him on my shoulder but he wants to rummage through food ingredients laying about. Yet another thing to do is understanding the bird's natural desire is to forage for food. What to do? Hide food and let him find it. EDIT: I should also say that whenever someone likes our bird and talks about getting one, I try to talk them out of it. It takes a lot of effort to have a parrot and if that effort, over several decades, is not a lot of fun for you then getting a parrot is a bad idea.
- idoescompooters 8y ago
  This is why I gave up my parrot to a lady with an entire room dedicated to a cage for her birds. A very nice new home. I also was tired of the poop... And squawking.
have_faith 8y ago
How do animal lovers generally justify the caging of birds? I've always seen it as a sketchy idea. Does it negatively affect the birds behaviour? Not something I know a lot about to be honest.
- neuronic 8y ago
  What exactly is sketchy about forcefully inhibiting the primary form of locomotion for a certain life form in order to feel more powerful and in control? /s

RachelF 8y ago

I love parrots, they make fantastic pets. However, your comparison to a small child is very good - they have the nature and intelligence of a human 3 year old. Parrots are wild birds, they have not been domesticated for ten thousand years like dogs, and it is probably not humane to keep them in a cage. If you want a happier parrot, then get a breeding pair. They won't be as affectionate their owner though, as they have a mate.

dmix 8y ago
What are some of the things it does to be annoying or demanding, similar to a child?
- acct1771 8y ago
  Have you met children? Make messes of all sorts of shit (sometimes literal), and make noise, which carries multiple emotional and logistical concerns.
- oh_sigh 8y ago
  Throws temper tantrums and act out if they don't get what they want, or are neglected
  - AllegedAlec 8y ago
    Oh Christ yes. A friend of mine had a parrot that'd start to remove keys from his keyboard if it wasn't being paid attention to. Rather annoying when you try to play games with friends.
- DyslexicAtheist 8y ago
  my wife at the time convinced me to get a cockatiel since she grew up with birds. Her tolerance to noise as a Japanese is very different to mine as a European. (Japanese can sleep anywhere, I sure can't) The bird we had is very small in comparison to the parrots discussed in the article but the noise they make is not to be underestimated. And you can't turn it off. Yes you can throw a cover over the cage but you can't cover it for longer than what they need sleep. It was very hard for me to endure the constant noise (never ending screeching) which felt like Chinese water torture. That bird drove me absolutely insane over time. To me it felt like the bird was so loud exactly because it was incredibly intelligent but it used that intelligence to be jealous and protective and the intelligence was probably the cause of its unhappiness (since it knew it was in a cage). My wife loved that bird to bits but to me it felt like I was taking care of a disabled child that is not mine (bonded with my wife only) and which would never grow up. It became more nasty and mean to anyone except my wife even it was hand-fed as a chick. Knowing nothing about birds when we got it I thought I'd be able to manage it (after all I grew up around cats, dogs, and farm animals so how hard could it be looking after another animal?). But it just got worse and worse and still is horrific today. I am no longer with my ex and that bird was at least 20% reason of why I could no longer live under the same roof. Seriously don't get a bird unless you have lived with it for a couple of months. Once you have done that think of what it would be if you live with it in a more stressful period of your life ... Could manage that animal at a time when you are looking after your new born children? When you are up to your elbows in baby diapers and chronically sleep deprived? After seeing this animal in captivity for so long I have grown somewhat disgusted with the idea of birds as pets. I guess it takes a very special breed of people to keep birds and be OK with it: The type of people who see a bird and go: "You see those beautiful creatures that are able to fly. Yeah, I'm going to make them stop do that."
  - andai 8y ago
    After reading your post I'm amazed that the bird was only 20% of your reason for leaving.
    - ndnxhs 8y ago
      The noise is incredible. Super loud, high pitch screaching non stop.
- eljimmy 8y ago
  They're demanding in that they are highly social animals, so they can't really be left alone for long periods. They need affection/interaction. They bond with humans just as humans bond with each other. So they really do become almost like a family member. Because of their intelligence, it's not just like having a dog who you can throw a ball and walk down the block. I suggest reading and watching videos of Alex the African Grey. Really eye-opening into the learning abilities and reach of intelligence which birds possess.
bayesian_horse 8y ago
They make terrible pets. They need large cages/rooms, must be kept in pairs or groups, they are prolific poopers, can be loud as heck, pluck their feathers if you are away (or not), destroy furniture ... Unless of course you keep a single hand raised parrot in a small cage and don't much care about its well being. Then they make fantastic pets.
- krageon 8y ago
  You are making it sound much, much worse than it actually is. As it stands they make good pets if you have the time to give them the attention and freedom they require. They're very affectionate and if you pick the right type of parrot for you it will not be loud. As with dogs, they're terrific if they have a good owner and absolute horrors if they don't.
  - bayesian_horse 8y ago
    If they need extreme amounts of time, expertise and resources, they don't qualify as "fantastic" pets, in my opinion.
    - ndnxhs 8y ago
      My parents have had a few. Incredibly loud an a few of them have died from various mistakes. Also destroyed all of my headphones.
- mark_l_watson 8y ago
  I am not sure about your comment about not caring for the bird's well being. We have a very small parrot in a very large cage. As long as he gets out of his cage to play, gets lots of head scratching, and my wife or I am in the same room as our parrot, he really seems happy. Also, it is easy to know when a parrot is happy, bored, or unhappy. Lots of signals. There are also little things that mean a lot, at least to our parrot: at meals, if our food is not healthy for a parrot, one of us will put something good for him on our plates, and we always make a show of 'sharing' something on our plates with him. This communal eating seems to be important to him. Another thing that seems to make him happy is to sit on my shoulder while I am working at my computer. He is not really a distraction and he seems to enjoy it. I try to cook with him on my shoulder but he wants to rummage through food ingredients laying about. Yet another thing to do is understanding the bird's natural desire is to forage for food. What to do? Hide food and let him find it. EDIT: I should also say that whenever someone likes our bird and talks about getting one, I try to talk them out of it. It takes a lot of effort to have a parrot and if that effort, over several decades, is not a lot of fun for you then getting a parrot is a bad idea.
idoescompooters 8y ago
This is why I gave up my parrot to a lady with an entire room dedicated to a cage for her birds. A very nice new home. I also was tired of the poop... And squawking.

have_faith 8y ago

How do animal lovers generally justify the caging of birds? I've always seen it as a sketchy idea. Does it negatively affect the birds behaviour? Not something I know a lot about to be honest.

neuronic 8y ago
What exactly is sketchy about forcefully inhibiting the primary form of locomotion for a certain life form in order to feel more powerful and in control? /s