Parrot Rescue – Is It Right For You?

Article by Beth.

Many people like the idea of adopting a parrot: After all, parrots are talkative and will learn to mimic what you say, right? What can be more entertaining or fun than a bird who can talk?

The fact is not all parrots are talkers and parrots require the same care as a human toddler. If you have ever cared for a toddler, you know it requires a lot of work and patience. The only difference is parrots never outgrow the toddler phase and some, depending on the type, can live as many as 100 years.

Adopting and caring for a healthy parrot can be a challenge at best, but when you consider adopting a rescued parrot, who may have suffered abused and neglect, you are going to need even more patience, understanding, time, and knowledge of parrot care.

Neglected and abused parrots will often exhibit their pain through their behavior. For example, a neglected or abused parrot may scream or pick out her feathers until she is almost bare. It’s also common for abused and neglected parrots to bite.

While it is possible for a parrot’s destructive behavior to change or to lessen when she is taken out of the abusive or neglectful situation and placed into a loving and attentive home, there is no guarantee that the behavior will stop. Will you be able to handle it if the behavior continues?

Here’s Pedro, a 22 year old Mexican Redheaded Amazon, who is looking for a home at this time at petfinder.com.

Imagine that the destructive behavior and self-harm will end. Is adopting a rescued parrot still right for you, your family, and for the parrot herself? There are a few factors you want to take into consideration when making that decision:

- Are you prepared to care for the parrot for the rest of your or her life?

-Can you provide her with a large enough cage to spend time in? A parrot who lives in a cage that is too small will suffer psychologically.

- Will she have plenty of time outside of her cage to interact with you and to explore her surroundings? Keeping a parrot confined to a cage all day amounts to cruelty and will negatively affect her psychologically, often leading to screaming, biting, and feather plucking.

- Can you deal with the mess that a parrot will cause when she’s out of her cage?

-Are you prepared to be patient? It may take your parrot months to adjust to her new surroundings and to trust you. Avian experts recommend allowing the parrot to come to the new owner to establish a relationship. Never force your parrot to interact with you, or you could frighten her, making bonding even more difficult.

-Can you afford the cost of caring for a parrot for the whole of her life? Avian vets are generally considerably more expensive than vets who care for dogs and cats.

Before you decide that adopting a parrot is right for you, talk with other parrot owners and contact rescue organizations first to get an idea of what life is really like with a rescued parrot. You may even want to volunteer with a parrot organization, such as Foster Parrots, Ltd., so you can gain firsthand experience before you take on the lifetime commitment of adopting a parrot.

“The parrot holds its food for prim consumption as daintily as any debutante, [with] a predilection for pot roast, hashed-brown potatoes, duck skin, butter, hoisin sauce, sesame seed oil, bananas and human thumb.” ~ Alexander Theroux