There is always that 1 person who, when reading about a lost pet Bird, says something along the lines of “They are meant to fly free! Stop looking for them”. This is a dangerous myth. When somebody lost a Budgie once, a woman ranted about how the Budgie should fly free & was better off. How the Budgie knew nature & knew how to survive, the Budgie was found drowning in a pond & died from complications. This is not a rare situation. In this article we will cover why a lost pet Bird isn’t better off.
1- LACK OF FORAGING INSTINCTS- Pet Birds have only very basic foraging skills, if they even have them at all. Most have spent their entire lives eating from bowls & many have been reared by humans from the start of their life (hand fed by humans instead of parent Birds). Birds who live in the wild require advanced foraging skills & need to know which plants are safe or toxic- pet Birds don’t. Most pet Birds live on poor diets that consist only of dry seed mixes- The berries, flowers, grasses, blossoms, buds & leaves they would have to eat in the wild just don’t register as food to Birds used to dry seed only diets. This leads to chronic starvation. Some Birds may find their way to Bird feeders, but these don’t offer the nutrients they need to survive. It also exposes them to avian diseases & molds/ micro toxins that pet Birds can’t deal with due to low immunity.
2- LOW IMMUNE SYSTEMS- Pet Birds have poor immune systems when compared to wild Birds for a multitude of reasons. A few potential causes are color mutations- Birds bred different colors have lower immune systems & are more greatly at risk of certain health conditions such as atherosclerosis & fatty liver disease (which both also decrease resistance to infection). Malnutrition- Most pet Birds have malnutrition & are fed seed only diets or diets high in junk/table food. Nutrition is essential when building a Bird’s immune system & most have not had the diet they need for strong immunity to occur. We regularly take in ex-stray Birds & almost all have chronic infections from being ‘wild’ & not all recover.
3- THEY ARE NOT WILD ANIMALS- We often think of pet Birds as ‘wild’, but they aren’t. These pet Birds are domesticated for generations, each hatching in captivity from parents who also hatched in captivity for hundreds of years. The pet Birds you see today are a far cry from their wild conspecifics. They are different colors, smaller sizes & are set up genetically for domestic life. Some are deliberately bred with feather mutations, these mutations can make flight very difficult. If a pet cat or dog was missing, you would do anything to get them home, but cats & dogs survive much more easily on the streets than pet Birds do.
4- DANGERS- Pet Birds who suddenly find themselves out in the wild have no awareness of dangers. They go from a safe, loving home into an enormous & terrifying world of confusion, chaos & fear. They have no understanding of toxic plants to avoid, predators such as domestic Cats or foxes, deep water that they can drown in, windows they can fly into, cars that can hit them & so much more. The majority of stray pet Birds are found & picked up only when they are starved, severely exhausted or have been injured. One of my angels was caught by a Cat when he was a stray. Mammal saliva contains gram negative bacteria, which is deadly to Birds. His leg was broken & infected with gram negative bacteria, we were told to expect him to die even with treatment. Luckily he made it. It’s a race against time to get pet Birds safe. They need everybody on board to help, enough of the ignorant & smug comments, just help find them.
5- POOR FITNESS- The fitness & stamina that Birds need to fly, forage & escape from predators just doesn’t exist in pet Birds. Even those who seem fit & healthy can only survive for a short amount of time outside alone. Pectoral muscles make up the majority of a flighted Bird’s bodyweight & are essential for flight, however these muscles are often atrophied in pet Birds, especially those who don’t like flying. This means that sustaining flight for any length of time & getting lift is incredibly difficult, if possible at all. The less skilled they are at flying & the faster they exhaust, the more at risk they are outside.
6-PROBLEMS IN STRAY BIRDS- We have taken in many stray Birds over the years when no owner has come forward, we sometimes foster them during the legal time period of owners coming forward too. Stray Birds often have problems caused by them being stray & of the many we have helped over the years, all have had at least 1 of these problems. Broken bones, severe mite/lice infestation, worms, skin infections, respiratory infections, eye infections, low bodyweight/general poor condition, injuries, psychological trauma, starvation, dehydration, general weakness.
7- BUT THERE ARE WILD RINGNECKS NOW!!!!!!!!- Yes, & they have been here, in small numbers since it was common to import wild caught Parrots to the UK (which is now illegal), the Birds who escaped then were directly caught from the wild & imported, meaning they were wild Birds. The domestic Birds we have now, as stated above have hatched in captivity for hundreds of years, they are NOT wild & have NOT been taken directly from the wild (thus not retaining strong wild instincts like these wild caught ringnecks would have done). Their survival & rise to become an invasive species is nothing like a domestic Bird getting lost & being at risk.
ANDY’S STORY
Andy’s before & after is pictured below. Which one looks happy to you, him before or him after? Andy arrived as a severely starved stray with chronic starvation, dehydration & infection throughout his body. Weighing in at just 66g (70-120g is the right weight) we were told that he was too far gone to save. We battled & battled to get him to eat, which he eventually did. The process was slow & Andy was so starved that he was left with permeant organ damage. He lived happily & healthily for 6 years & is pictured in his large aviary full of friends & fun weighing over 100g in the after picture. He was happy, safe & free of pain. Pet Birds thrown into the wild don’t tweet a thank you over their shoulder before flying off into paradise, it isn’t a Disney film. They are scared, alone, in danger & starving. Stray pet Birds are not happy, they are not free, they are hurting & alone. Just look at the pain on Andy’s face in the before & the shining joy in the after. Which REALLY looks happy? Look at his wasted tummy, covered in mud after getting soaked on the ground in the rain, cold, weak & frightened, then his round & toned tummy in the after, feathers clean & in good condition due to love, care & attention. Please understand that pet Birds are DOMESTIC, not wild. Pet cats, dogs & rabbits can all survive easily on the streets when compared to pet Birds, who struggle badly. If you want to get them home, please, please understand that the Birds need a home too.
If ever you see a lost pet Bird, catch them if possible & get them to a local pet rescue or vet surgery who can give the Bird urgent treatment & find the owner. So much more awareness needs to be raised about how to correctly care for pet Birds, but spreading harmful myths about their Disney-like flutter to the wild is NOT the way to help them, you are making it worse. All pets need to be in a home & pet Birds are no different.