Parrot Confidential on PBS

[cml]

:( cant watch it as in the UK

Oh but you can Marie83 & Lady Saphine! Paper_lantern provided it at the beginning of the thread.

but if you can't watch or record it, or don't have PBS, the website also has it streaming. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes ... tial/8496/

We're sorry, but this video is not available in your region due to right restrictions.

So no .

[marie83]

:( cant watch it as in the UK

Oh but you can Marie83 & Lady Saphine! Paper_lantern provided it at the beginning of the thread.

but if you can't watch or record it, or don't have PBS, the website also has it streaming. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes ... tial/8496/

The website knows we are in the UK and tells us as such when we try to play it.

[Dbeguy]

What the documentary missing is some of the successful stories with parrots or birds in general. This kind of documentary is usually bias. But it is very informative. I am vert glad it was made to aim at those who are ignorant.

I agree too. The tragedy is real. I'm glad that they did everything in their power to dampen enthusiasm amongst the moderately interested and ignorant public. This documentary certainly will not encourage impulse buys!

As far as freedom, it seems like a balance to me. A good, nurturing home outweighs the consistent possibilities of starvation and predation in the wild. In the end, I don't know.

Also ... sorry to both of the members from the UK,

[Pajarita]

Problem is, humans with normal lifestyles cannot provide a 'good, nurturing home' for a parrot. You need somebody who has either no close family or a VERY understanding one, a lot of money (infrastructure, maintenance, medical services, etc been very expensive), a LOT of knowledge (years of doing research and on-hand practice), a LOT of time (can't work outside the house), a LOT of patience and love (and don't confuse 'enjoying' a parrot with 'loving' a parrot), and who would be willing to either pay for or do all the work him/herself (cooking, cleaning, getting up before dawn, been back before dusk, not going on vacations, etc) as well as keep them cage-free in an environment large enough for them to fly, AND in flock. How many people do you think could do this? 1 out of 100,000? Hmmm, I doubt it's that many...

[LadySaphine]

Also, about the Lady Gouldians, I've read that they're also dwindling because they're very, very picky about their nesting sites. At that parrot expo I talked to some breeders who only get a few nests a season, compared to others. I read they like these long hollows and will be very selective. It's the same with the Florida Grasshopper Sparrow- the adults will only nest if the water is at a certain height, the right plants are there, etc.

I think that every first-time parrot owner should have to watch this, so they understand what responsibilities come with it.

And about the wild parrot thing, even if we could release all of our parrots (and saying they were wild, not tame) they would probably end up dying/being poached/unable to find habitat. I only wish that the Carolina Parakeet was turned into a pet- at least, it might be Extinct in the Wild.

[Dbeguy]

And about the wild parrot thing, even if we could release all of our parrots (and saying they were wild, not tame) they would probably end up dying/being poached/unable to find habitat. I only wish that the Carolina Parakeet was turned into a pet- at least, it might be Extinct in the Wild.

The sadder thing was that it ever became a pet to begin with. It was far too easy to just poach them nobody bothered to try breeding them. Besides this was the generation that saw the end of the passenger pigeon as well.

Even captive breeding programs have a checkered history. The California Condor is still barely limping along.

[Lquan]

And about the wild parrot thing, even if we could release all of our parrots (and saying they were wild, not tame) they would probably end up dying/being poached/unable to find habitat. I only wish that the Carolina Parakeet was turned into a pet- at least, it might be Extinct in the Wild.

I read somewhere that Carolina Parakeets only extinct in the wild. There are Carolina Parakeets as pets. Some zoos still have them.

[Pajarita]

Nope. They became extinct in a matter of a few years and the last one in captivity (a male called Incas) died in the early 1900's (I forget the date) at the Cincinnati zoo a few years after his mate. There were some sightings reported in Florida a while back but it was determined it was another species of parrot and not a Carolina.

[jacou1010]

I watched "Parrot Confidential" and although I agree that parrots are NOT for everyone...what would become of the parrots born in captivity in the US if people didn't adopt them and give them safe and loving homes??? My parrot was born and raised, by hand, in Florida, within the US, and was NEVER going to make it back to the rain forests of Peru. So what would be the alternative?? I see the point of discontinuing the breeding of parrots in the US but that will just lead to importing them illegally again which I think is a worse scenario....

P.S. I'm glad the program was at least successful at deterring some, not fit to care for these beautiful birds, from adopting them in the first place.

[Dbeguy]

The one parrot refuge that was featured in the documentary has it embedded in their website.
http://www.fosterparrots.com/