Having a Pet Parrot is for the birds!
I’m hoping this morning’s CBS Sunday Morning episode featuring parrots as pets shows the unpleasant reality of having parrots as household pets. Unlike the dogs and cats we keep in our homes today, parrots are NOT domesticated animals. They are highly social and intelligent creatures and may very well live longer than their human guardians. Long story short, keeping them as pets is detrimental to their well-being and will likely make their caretakers crazy. Fingers crossed that people considering acquiring a parrot will think twice!
TRENDS: Parrots!
Parrots are beautiful, they can talk, and they do tricks. So it’s perhaps no surprise that parrots are now one of the most popular pets in the U.S. With an estimated 40 million in American households, they’re not far behind cats and dogs in popularity. But owners soon learn that Polly wants more than just a cracker - Polly wants hand-prepared food, plus all your time and attention and patience.
Parrots can live to 80, they love to chew, and they have beaks as strong as can openers. Like a toddler, if they don’t get the care they need, they bite and scream. Or even worse, if isolated in a cage, these flock animals go stir crazy, mutilating themselves and plucking out feathers.
It’s all too much for many owners. The result: Flocks of parrots, set loose by frustrated owners, are multiplying from coast to coast, with 30,000 flying around cities from California to Brooklyn, even as their numbers decline in their natural habitats. Parrot rescue centers, now found in every state, are also growing fast. It’s such a big problem that the Humane Society recommends unwanted birds be euthanized.
Many owners say they love their parrots but, experts say, prospective parrot owners should be prepared for a pet that demands a lot of time, attention and patience.
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