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Craigslist

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Craigslist

Postby pchela » Wed May 19, 2010 2:22 pm

Does anybody else drive themselves crazy looking through ads on Craigslist? I look every day at the parrot ads and I always get upset. Why do I do this to myself? I can't save them all... I have in the past bought birds through CL and found them good homes but I can't really afford to do that now. I just feel so bad for these poor birds who are being passed around or kept in tiny, tiny cages etc. Today I saw a Quaker for sale for $100 that's in a flight cage for canaries or budgies... it's the Hagan Vision cage that is 18 x 15 and looks like this... http://www.amazon.com/Hagen-Vision-Bird ... B0012DOXFC

Why do I do this to myself??? :(
"I bet the sparrow looks at the parrot and thinks, yes, you can talk, but LISTEN TO YOURSELF!" ~ Jack Handy ~ Deep Thoughts
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Re: Craigslist

Postby Titanius » Wed May 19, 2010 2:56 pm

Sad but I do too...I usually just leave the site more worked up than before. There's always that curiosity with me. I think to myself hmm maybe I can help this parrot out if its not too far of a trip. But usually their really far away and the person who is ''desperate'' to rehome wants to sell it to you? Seriously?
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Re: Craigslist

Postby Michael » Wed May 19, 2010 3:19 pm

Ok, so I never use craigslist but since you brought it up I went there to see what you're talking about. The first thing I came across was this:

http://newyork.craigslist.org/brx/for/1738736083.html

They go on and on about what a wonderful, beautiful, playful, friendly parrot is is and how picky they are about the new owner being less of a bastard than they are that will love the bird and not rehome it! And then they want $3,000 for the parrot!? The nerve! They are getting rid of the bird "Unfortunately because of my spouses and my demanding schedule, we are no longer able to prioritize Malibu or bestow any genuine attention." And then they want someone who is better to take the bird: "We are looking for a true bird lover/ buyer, who are willing to treat Malibu as a member of their family, and are truly going to care for her as a child." Are you fucking kidding me??? Seriously??? Do people do this to their children? "Woops, sorry kid, don't have time to work, go out, AND take care of you so I guess we're going to have to find a new home for you" The poor bird lives in a museum piece case as it is. Maybe the sick asshole is bored of it because he just treats it like a piece of furniture and never spends enough time with it to develop a relationship he'd enjoy! The bird is only 2 years old and this has to happen to it because some lazy inconsiderate prick thought it would decorate his room nicely? And then after all that he is going to ask money for it!!!!????

Everyone has a busy schedule... I think it mostly just comes down to people choosing how they spend their "off time." Perhaps for some people, they have so little that it would have to all be consumed by their parrot while for others they can do other things as well. But I'd really have a hard time believing someone could buy a parrot but not have enough time for it later on unless they are just really selfish and want to spend the time for themselves and not their parrot commitment.

If I were in a truly desperate situation (other than bankruptcy) where I had no other choice but to have someone else care for my bird, I'd probably be the one to pay them and give them money toward a fund to care for the parrot. And these sick people, after making all sorts of demands, are claiming to give you a bargain deal cause they spend $10,000 on it but are only asking 3,000????? This is just sickening.

And then there are others about people bouncing parrots around. They wanted to be all noble and rescue it but now they got bored of it themselves, etc. :evil:
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Re: Craigslist

Postby MandyG » Wed May 19, 2010 3:30 pm

$1,200 for a doctor visit? What? I can't imagine how it would be that expensive unless it needed some sort of emergency surgery. That's also like saying "I bought it this much food in the two years, plus this many toys, etc. so you should pay me this much."

I don't know if Canada's Craigslist is different but the only animal I found in Manitoba's capital city was a cockatiel. I'm wondering why there aren't as many animals or animal supplies up here?
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Re: Craigslist

Postby Michael » Wed May 19, 2010 3:31 pm

Perhaps Canadian cabin fever?
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Re: Craigslist

Postby pchela » Wed May 19, 2010 3:42 pm

Oh Michael. You definitely should not go back to Craigslist. It's like that all of the time. If that one post makes you this angry... I just don't want you to put yourself through that over and over (like I do). There are listings here in Austin and in the Dallas and Houston areas all of the time for rehoming parrots and they ALWAYS want to try and get their money back. I can understand if you get really sick and can't take care of your bird or some other extraordinary circumstances where you'd have to rehome your bird. But seriously, if you really want somebody to love and care for your bird that you just don't have time for anymore (which you should have thought of before spending thousands of dollars on it) then you should focus on finding a good home and either give the bird to them or have them put a certain amount of money into a fund for future veterinary care for the bird. Another thing I've noticed is that a lot of the birds that are being rehomed are around 2 years old which is when a lot of birds go through their terrible twos and get a little hard to handle. So people buy this sweet baby bird and the minute it displays any kind of bad behavior they try to sell it and recoup some of their money. I so wish people would do their research before buying birds!!!

When I had my two fosters recently, the man who asked me to care for them paid me monthly for their food and board. I didn't ask him to do that and even told him it wasn't necessary but he insisted. He put a lot of time into finding a good home for them and he continued to take care of them even when they weren't in his home. That's a good bird owner in my opinion. (side note- he gave them up due to mental health issues and is now better and has them back so happy ending!)
"I bet the sparrow looks at the parrot and thinks, yes, you can talk, but LISTEN TO YOURSELF!" ~ Jack Handy ~ Deep Thoughts
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Re: Craigslist

Postby Michael » Wed May 19, 2010 3:53 pm

If these parrots are being rehomed for the first time around 2 years old and can live 40-70 years... that is a grim future... Plus, I think the older (or more rehomed) the parrot, the less likely the new owner will have the maximum attachment to it and not rehome again. While many parrots acquired as babies do end up getting rehomed, I think the parrots that stay with one person for over 80% of their lifespan are more likely to have been baby bought. You agree?

It really upsets me that people are being such hypocrites trying to find a perfect home while they don't want to provide one themselves and then want money for it. But on the flip side, what if they were giving the bird away free/cheap? What would happen then? Some dumb person would think it's cheaper than buying decorations for their home or some little kid would talk his parents into getting it since it doesn't cost much anyway. So free/cheap isn't the right approach either. However, making it expensive definitely doesn't help. Moral intentions aside, I can't imagine anyone preferring to spend $3k on a "used" parrot when they could get much of the same new for the same dollars. And you can't expect well intentioned/generous/loving bird owners to shell out $3k for another parrot to rescue. What a messy situation. No matter how you do it, it's bound to screw the bird first and foremost.
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Re: Craigslist

Postby pchela » Wed May 19, 2010 4:05 pm

Hmmmm.... that's a tough one. I think that most people (I'm talking about dedicated owners) who have parrots probably have at least one that was a baby when they bought it. I think that once those people really learn about parrots a percentage of them will start bringing rehomed birds into the home and keeping them for the rest of their lives. Another percentage will buy more hand raised babies because they already know it works well. So I do think that a lot of these rehomed birds find their way into good, permanent homes. Once people really know birds they realize that it is entirely possible to form a strong bond with a rehome just as one would a baby bird, it just might take longer. Sadly, there is also the percentage that buys a rehomed bird because it is cheaper (or even in an effort to do a good thing) and then rehome again when they can't handle the bird or don't like it. Those are the birds that develop behavior issues from being passed from home to home and can't ever find a good home. So, I guess I didn't actually answer your question...
"I bet the sparrow looks at the parrot and thinks, yes, you can talk, but LISTEN TO YOURSELF!" ~ Jack Handy ~ Deep Thoughts
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Re: Craigslist

Postby Natacha » Wed May 19, 2010 4:34 pm

As a rule of thumb, I tend to stay away from want-add sites, occasionally dropping by mostly to see if there are any nice used cages for sale, but will have to admit that I did get Joey through that medium - not that I was looking for a bird really at the time and the add for him was in no way terrible.

And I'll admit to a horrible truth - even if I see some adds which are totally preposterous, I never really feel tempted to "save" the birds. Most of the time, the adds are for birds which species do not interest me. I do feel bad for the bird, but that is it. I might forward it to someone I know who might be looking for such a bird and that is it.
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Re: Craigslist

Postby Michael » Wed May 19, 2010 4:44 pm

I don't think that is horrible. I don't think that any responsible parrot owner that takes good care of their own parrots and doesn't doom them to a similar fate should ever have to feel guilty for not rescuing someone else's parrot.

The kinds of parrots I like are the less likely ones to be rehomed. Go figure why I like them? :lol:

The typical rehomed parrots are cockatoos, amazons, african greys, and conures because they are very noisy. I would never be buying any of those as a baby (yes I considered a Grey at one point but really decided I'd be better off sticking with Poi) so I couldn't imagine getting a rescue one either. Who's ever heard of a rescue Cape? Even if there were one, I'm sure it would get snatched up right away as a novelty.
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