The Young Professional
Laura got interested in birds when she was young. Her family had birds, she grew up with them and understood their basic personalities and challenges. After college, she moved out on her own and dove into researching which species would best fit her life. She understood the intense social needs of most parrots and decided to get a bird who she could hang out with and have fun with one on one. She already had some Budgies and figured an African grey would make a good addition. She researched her decision for 2 years before deciding to get a young weaned grey. Her bird was very independent and rarely exhibited any signs of stress or of needing more attention.
As Laura moved through her 20s, she eventually moved in with her boyfriend, who had a cat. In their small one-bedroom apartment, they were forced to keep the birds in their bedroom, which meant not as much out-of-cage time as they were used to, but they adjusted. They also adjusted through the couple's marriage a few years later. However, as Laura then decided she wanted to start a family. She realized that their two bedroom apartment was simply too small for her birds, the cat, and a baby too. Her birds were only getting a maximum of two hours a day out of their cages, which made Laura feel very guilty. She knew they needed more. It was a heartbreaking decision, but she finally decided that it was best for the birds if they went to a new home. Since her African grey was afraid of her husband, she knew she simply would not be able to properly care for her when the baby came.
The Mother Hen
Donna had two cheerful kids who decided in their early teens that they absolutely had to have some birds. They started off with some budgies. Easy enough, figured Donna. Then they "graduated" to Cockatiels and a few Conures. LOUD conures. She allowed her kids to even build an aviary into the living room so the birds would have more space. When her oldest daughter moved away to college, her son took on responsibility for the family's 5 birds. He did a great job, too, and Donna was pleased that he was taking his job so seriously. However, 3 years later when he, too, moved away to college (and dorm life, where birds were not allowed), Donna and her husband were left with 5 rambunctious, loud birds who missed their human family a great deal. Donna had never really interacted with the birds, so she was kind of afraid of the Conures' large beaks, and they didn't come out of their aviary much anymore.
Pretty soon, the noise got to be too much, and Donna found aviary-cleaning time to be an exercise in futility, because some of the birds would actually divebomb her and prevent her from really getting it clean. She checked in with her children, who simply couldn't predict where they'd be after college (graduate school, studying abroad, small apartments with noise-sensitive roommates, etc), so Donna reluctantly decided to place the birds with her local bird club, hoping they'd end up in a happy home.
The Aging Bird Lover
Alex had birds his whole life. After his children grew up and moved out of the house, he decided to add another bird to his family. He volunteered at an avian rescue facility for 2 years, carefully getting to know all the various species, their noise levels, and intricate care needs. His wife also enjoyed birds, and she kept a small flock of finches in an aviary in their warm, Florida back yard. Alex found a fiesty little Quaker and figured he would be a great addition. Alex knew he would have plenty of time to care for the bird as he was retired. At age 65, he adopted a sweet Quaker who had exhibited no behavioral issues while in his previous homes.
Alex, his wife, and the Quaker lived happily for many years. When Alex was diagnosed with cancer 8 years later and began undergoing treatments, his wife simply dropped everything to care for him, including caring for her finches and the Quaker. She tried to enlist the help of family members and neighbors, but the Quaker was used to a lot of socializing and had trouble adjusting. He began plucking his feathers. When Alex passed away, his wife was overwhelmed with the obligations of settling his affairs. She decided that the birds would all be better off with a family that had more time to care for them. She contacted her local bird club to put them up for adoption.
The Apartment Dweller
After graduating college, John collected his Umbrella Cockatoo from his parents' house (boy were they happy!) and moved into his first apartment. The landlord said pets were no problem, he just had to pay a small deposit in case of damage. Joe figured the worst that could happen would be that Jazzy would destroy some wood moldings and he'd lose $500, but that was a small price to pay for having his childhood best friend with him as he started this new phase of his life. Things went well in the new apartment until John got a call one day from the rental office. It seemed that a few neighbors were complaining of noise coming from his apartment. Jazzy was fine when John was home, but when he left for work every day, the bird sometimes screamed for 20-30 minutes at a time, a few times a day. John assured his landlord that he would fix the problem.
John bought more toys, began making up batches of good food to keep Jazzy occupied, and he even enlisted the help of an avian behavioral consultant. Nothing worked, and John finally realized that he would need to move. His landlords let him break his lease, but he lost his pet deposit (Jazzy had not only destroyed some door moldings, but he'd also managed to chew a hole right into the sheetrock). John moved into another pet-friendly apartment. He quickly introduced himself to his neighbors, explaining that Jazzy was often left alone while he worked and that if the noise ever got to be a problem, they could call him. Within a week, the calls started. John didn't know what to do. Jazzy was examined by an avian vet and deemed to be healthy. He brought in another avian behavioral consultant, but Jazzy was still screaming every day. John finally decided that Jazzy just couldn't deal with apartment life, and contacted an avian rescue and sanctuary organization, who promised to get Jazzy a feathered buddy who could provide him with the intense social interaction that Jazzy had been craving.
The "Just One More" Family
The Jones family had lived with birds for many years, and, through their involvement with a local bird club, became known as the people who could take in small birds who needed homes. Sometimes they would rehabilitate the bird (if needed) and search for a good home for them. Other times they would just provide a safe home for the bird. The two children in the family took their responsibilities seriously, and the parents understood the financial and emotional needs of caring for rescued and rehomed birds. Although most of the space in their small home was filled with bird cages, the family had big hearts and kept taking in "just one more" bird, time after time. Soon enough, their house was filled, and their lives were consumed with caring for birds. Cleaning the cages became an all-day affair, and buying food and toys drained the family's bank account. Finally, at the urging of fellow bird club members, the family decided to close their doors to new birds and rehome most of them.
The moral of this article? Life happens. Not all people who give up their birds are "bad" people. In fact, lots of bird people have done their research and did believe that they knew what they were getting themselves into before getting their bird(s). Life not only happens, but so do parrots! Sure, some people do buy birds on impulse with little or no education as to the proper needs of the birds. But oftentimes, it is the natural behaviors and qualities of the birds that cause them to lose their homes. The less we focus on the people, and the more we focus on the birds, the more we get to the heart of the "rehomed parrot" problem. Yes, bird people need to take responsibility for the feathers they care for, but we also have to understand that the innate nature of parrots often causes them to lose their homes.
Is this ok? Should we accept this? An interesting point to ponder.
