Hello! Best Bird for Shows?

[Pajarita]

I think that Wolf's point was that lying to kids about animals is not what you would call the best education. Lying about Santa, the Tooth Fairy or the Easter Bunny is just a way of preserving childhood. It's a lie but it's a lie that is never going to hurt the kid perception of nature or anything else. Personally, I think that teaching kids about animals and different species is the best thing one can do for them.

Yes, Michael, I am aware that you allow kids in the park to touch your birds but not everybody agrees with this practice. Personally, I don't allow any stranger to touch any of my parrots. I have one cockatoo that is a show-off and a ham and loves people but even he can get testy at times and go after your feet with his huge beak. I think it's stressful and unnatural to allow strangers physical access to parrots because, in the wild, they would not allow a strange parrot (and much less a member of a different species) to touch them. But a few kids in the park (not their home) surrounded by grown-ups and cameras (ergo, on their best behavior) is not the same as an audience of 25 kids that are at high levels of excitement (we don't even allow our own dogs to mingle with the kids during my grand-kids birthday parties!).

[Wolf]

You are all welcome to your own views. We all have to make our own way through life and while I will state my views, which opens them to discussion, I can not hold you to my views as that would also be wrong. Personally, I don't lie, I see no advantage to it and I don't see anything good coming from it. I do see a world that, gives me plenty of problems because of the sheer amount of deception and how much it is condoned and even encouraged.
You make your own choices, you are the only one who has the right to choose what you will or will not accept in your life.

[Tyler]

Thanks for all the discussion! I've had a bunch of chats with the parrot community as well as the magician community (bird and non-bird performers alike) and I've decided that ultimately, the best animal for magicians is still a rabbit. On the checklist of "things you want in a magician pet", rabbits hit every point perfectly.

So thanks again for the discussion and the helpful tips, it definitely gave me the insight I needed to make the right choice.

Cheers!

[Elaihr]

Hi!

I just wanna put a word in for rats, they're also great animals and they're heaps of fun to train. Guess the problem would be that they might be too small to be seen from afar, though, that's less good.. But anyway, might be worth mentioning anyway

Good luck with your rabbit, if you end up getting one!

Sincerely,
Sara & Penny

[Michael]

Im glad this discussion helped you make the most informed decision.

[GreenWing]

I think such a parrot does not exist.

[parrotsofdoom]

You have what it takes to own a bird if you really will do as you say. You must keep this bird if you get him, unless he/she will be better off some where else. if this is the case hand pick his/her new handler for the least stress to him/her. I would recommend an African Gray, or a cockatoo, best of luck!