Parrot Club Fees

[Michael]

If you're in a parrot club, how much do you pay and what do you get for it?

If you're not in a club already, I'm just curious how much you'd be willing to pay yearly to be in one. I'm just trying to get some more ideas for my NY Parrot Club project. Practically speaking the club has to establish a budget and then divide it across the number of members. However, right now while I am outlining my goals, I'm curious what kind of dues I can expect and then be able to interpolate that to the minimal number of members I have to convince to join.

So how much would you be willing to pay for a club that meets monthly with themed discussions/demonstrations, gets discount vet visits for you, and buys toys/supplies in bulk and sells them to members at discount prices? How much more on top of that would you pay for monthly "fly days" when members can meet at a large indoor location for the purpose of flying their parrots? Anything else you would like from a parrot club? Things like newsletter, fundraisers, and trips are all possible pending volunteer support so these need not be figured into this dues estimate.

The main costs I can foresee for such a club would be meeting location rental, fly location rental, and paying for interesting speakers from time to time. Beyond that, most things would be volunteer based or be paid for directly by members (like vet visits or bulk supplies).

[TheNzJessie]

michael, i have a question. if your parrot club is successful, im in new york in starting in april of 2012 for 6 weeks, is it possible to come to the club as a 'visitor' or do you have to be a paying member? even if you make a dontation thanks

[Rrrma]

$0, but interested.

The clubs I have belonged to never had a fee. They have always been held at public places or a person's house. The club newsletter is shared via facebook and an email ring and trips are paid for by each individual. The speakers usually volunteer to join(or come for the price of their dinner ) and they co-op supplies.

I know that you live in a very different area than I do, but keep in mind whatever free options there are(like the internet for newsletters and invitations). Ontop of that I'd only charge what it cost to rent out and supply whatever area you meet in. I figure where you live, someone owning a 10 acre farm with a large building on it is not common, so that is kind of out of the question(one of our kennel club members bought a camp site that has a large gym type facility on it, so that gets used a lot for free ).

So anyway, no fee, but everyone pulls together when something needs to be bought/rented/etc.

[Rue]

Not sure about a bird club, but our dog club charges $15 per person, or $20 per family. The riding club was $20 per person, $25 for family - and that one included speakers, workshops, etc.

[HyperD]

Michael,

Surely it depend on what is on offer...

Obviously the more perks it has, the more expensive it is...


Things like vet visits would be awkward to negotiate, unless everyone is in the near vicinity of the same vet then I am not sure how it would work.

The toys are a good idea, but it will also probably need quite a few members to be able to have the quantities needed for any reasonable discount.

The fly days is another good idea, and I even thought of doing it just for my sennie to let her have lots of freedom... But then the question is where... Then there are logistical things like are all the birds potty trained? What happens if the birds start chewing things... Can you ensure there are no high areas the birds can get to that you cant?
That is even before you start thinking about the amount of birds that will be there, what happens if they dont get along? Would they chase each other round? Would you mandate they are leashed/caged and out in small numbers?

[Natacha]

I don't pay anything, perk of being on the Executive and working for the club.

Our fees?
$30 for people receiving the monthly Newsletter by email, $40 for those receiving it by snail mail (to cover the cost of printing and sending them out).

The fees do drop by half at one point (I think when 2/3 of the year has passed).

We get discounts to local stores.

Sometime, if a guest speaker is attending and the cost to bring them in is higher than norm, then they'll be an extra cost at the door, with it being cheaper for members vs non-members of course. We also had a meeting with a guest speaker where non-members had to pay but not members.

[TheNzJessie]

i changed my vote because i remembered it would be in usd lol

[kellybird]

I voted for 5-15.00. Obviously I would like it to be free but would spend 15.00 at the highest (again depending on whats involved.) I would not want to spend a lot and then not be able to attend or something if plans come up.

[Kim S]

Our parakeetclub charges 35,- dollar. But it is not easily compared to one of your parrotclubs. Most of the members are breeders, or owners of large aviaries. So the things discussed at our regular meetings (once every 2 months) is mostly about breeding, health, diet and such.
We dont have flydays or anything like that. We do organise shows and fairs so our birds can be evaluated by experts and sold or traded. We also have info-evenings to which guest speakers are invited, but they usually dont v=cover training.

The 35,- also includes the membership of the "Dutch association of birdlovers" (roughly translated). This is mandatory for breeders who wish to ring their birds. You can only buy closed legbands if you are a member.

We do however have one member who trains parrots, birds of prey and even mammals for educational purposes. I have only met him once before I even had Kika, so I hope to see him again so I can ask him some questions.

[lzver]

At the Golden Triangle Parrot Club, the membership is $25 per single/family.

I've only attended 2 meetings so far, but they have guest speakers, hold raffels every month, have a picnic coming up in September and we get a 10% discount at the local pet store that carries a fairly good variety of supplies, food and toys.