Sucky Pet Store

[Michael]

Kathleen and I were in a mall yesterday and they had one of those mall based mini pet stores. Kathleen likes to go into those to look at the budgies so we went in to see what they have. After seeing a bunch of really sleepy budgies Kat spotted a Red Bellied Parrot in the next tank which was a rare sight around here but especially from this kind of store. In the adjacent tank they had a Brown Headed Parrot. I was really surprised because of all the bird stores I've ever been to, I've never seen a Brown Headed Parrot in person.

I lifted off the lid to the tank and stuck my hand in to pick up the Brown Headed. The birds at this store did not seem particularly people friendly and it tried to run away from my approaching hand but I grabbed the parrot and pulled it out of the tank. I held it tightly in my hand because it was trying to bite and cuddled it close up to my shirt. Having handled Kili and other birds at stores, I've learned how to hold them so that they can't bite.

A women working at the store told me from behind a counter a bit of a ways away, "Don't handle the birds, they bite." To which I replied "No, they don't." I guess she say that I knew what I was doing and handling the bird that she stopped bothering me. Kathleen and I petted the parrot. Several times I tried to loosen my grip so that the bird could sit on my finger but every time I'd loosen my grip it would start flapping, biting, and screeching. One time I loosened the grip it got me good on top of my thumb but it's no big deal. The woman behind the counter was getting annoying again saying, "If you're not going to buy the bird you have to put it down!" I don't know why they have such a problem so I responded, "It's not like they get enough attention anyway!" To which I put the bird down, slammed the tank shut and walked out with Kathleen.

Certainly I was not there to buy the bird, however, I could have went over and spotted bird supplies I needed to buy. However, when the employees are so rude and don't care about the animals in their store, I want to do nothing to support their business. I do understand that some kids will try to harass the animals and might get hurt, I am experienced with handling Poicephalus and just wanted to treat the poor bird to some interaction. If the employees knew anything, they should be grateful that I was contributing to the taming of their bird, yet they decided to be nasty to potential customers instead.

The bird store I got Kili from has the exact opposite mentality. All of their tanks are open and all visitors are encouraged to handle the birds. This not only socializes the birds to different people, it also teaches the customers more about birds. I probably wouldn't be looking around for a Grey or Cape right now if it weren't for handling the larger birds at that store. If I didn't demand a flighted bird, I would have probably bought it there but they cannot raise one flighted. Even if I don't buy another bird from them, I'll still go there to buy all my supplies so they win and their birds win and the people who buy those birds win.

[miajag]

Are pet stores where you are allowed to open up cages and handle birds or other animals yourself common in you area? I don't think I've ever seen one where you could open the cages without the assistance of someone who worked there. Anyway, I agree that it's lame and there was no reason for her to be rude for you, but I understand why stores have policies like that. Not everyone is as knowledgeable or experienced with parrots as you are, and they have to protect the birds from customers and vice versa.

[Natacha]

Not everyone is as knowledgeable or experienced with parrots as you are, and they have to protect the birds from customers and vice versa.

This.
I agree with the fact that bird stores need to protect themselves and probably have the rules for a reason. Agreed that it doesn't justify the person working there talking with any attitude, but you have to understand where they are coming from. Quite frankly, I was surprised that you just walked up to the tank and opened it without asking first. If I was a clerk working in a pet store and I saw someone do that without asking, I wouldn't be pleased.

Now you have experience with handling parrots, how is the person working there supposed to know this? Having been in those type of pet stores and having looked at the average customer, I wouldn't think most of those people are as knowledgeable as you or anyone on the forum are. The person working at the store probably has had to deal with lots of people who don't know much about parrots and who might do things to the parrot it will not like and end up with a bite.

This doesn't excuse the fact that the poor parrots there are lacking socialization. But these type of stores aren't relying on the parrots sold to survive; they have them and if they sell them, great. I wouldn't buy a bird from such a store, wouldn't encourage any of this, and sadly, it's all one can really do. You could have, as you walked in, explained how you have experience with these kinds of birds and the benefit of trying to socialize them and how to do so instead of just walking up to the tank and taking the parrot out. Sorry to say, I think your approach was a tad inappropriate, specially since no one there knows you and you don't know how they operate.

[Michael]

First of all the store was busy and employees nowhere to be found (if you needed help). Secondly on an adjacent tank it said something like use caution when handling the birds. I forget the exact words but it basically said to be careful and not do not touch. Thirdly the tanks were not locked. If they really want to enforce no one handling them, they should lock the tanks rather than yell at customers who don't know what their rules are. You lose customers that way. Noone came over and offered to take the bird out for me. Finally nowhere did it say not to handle them.

And finally for anyone who has not seen this already, here is the video of Kathleen pulling a Meyers parrot out of the tank from our favorite bird store where I got Kili. The birds at that store are much more social. They know how to step up and like humans. I think the store has a much better policy. Many of the birds aren't even in cages. The back room is the cage and some of the bigger birds hop from table to table.

So I'm sorry but it was not my fault that the sucky pet store I went to was incompetent in methods of preserving order. I skillfully pulled the bird out of the tank and held it in a way it couldn't bite me without holding the bird. They did not tell me to put it back because I couldn't handle it, they told me to put it back because I wasn't buying it. So the bird's socialization time was cut short by annoying store employees who were bothered by me socializing the bird. Great.

[Kathleen]

Anyone who is interested in handling birds that are unfamiliar (such as in a store, if they allow you to), I would recommend a long sleeved shirt that you don't care about, and the thicker the better. This really only helps with birds that don't try to run away from your hand. If they are running away and you still want to pick one up, prepare for a bite.

[kimbo]

they dont have pet stores over here where you can hold birds. they are normally in an indoor aviary or cages with bars accross so you cant touch them.

[alight15]

and the sad part is these people give the option of cliping their wings

speaking of which I recently got a parakeet from a place exactly like that one
I annoyed the lady with how I wanted it's wings clipped

but since this came up..
I was wondering about something my new parakeet has..it's tail is rather wide for a "parakeet" who's name means "long tail"

I've had one parakeet before which had something like it but it was temporary and small
but this one seems to have a much widder looking tail

the age of the parakeet was "9 months" as the mall store claimed but i'm not so sure
The bird does look sick either
It was hyper when i saw it,looked at me and ran around after me as i got closer to the cage than most people.
Out of the other ones not sleeping(at 2pm in a brightly lit floracent area) this one caught my eye because of how it was so intent of eating and running around like it owned the cage
and tipped my desicion when it jumped in one of the many food trays and turned it's head back like sleeping as if to dissuade the others from eating from the same feeder there then eating when there was no other bird around it and pacing after me from in the cage with seeds in the mouth..
not to mention it's fierce and loud resistance to being grapped by the employee to get clipped

It was fine the whole time and was only a bit easier to catch as it escaped out of her hand after being clipped,it was more interested in the view on the car ride..looking out on the drive home(totally ignoring me who was holding its cage on my lap and trying to get it's attention)

It's only been 2-3 days and it's still doing the "meditating nap" instead of sleeping where it leans on one leg and closes it's eyes but wakes to the tiniest noises..

I've been letting it get used to it's envioment(leaving it alone to rest,only 1 toy with a mirror for comfort)
and mixing treates into food to observe which it likes etc) and I'm not too worried but..


The one i had before had a smaller version the new one is wider like shown..and this is "all" the time (also they had the same coloring as these_)
Image from http://www.animal-world.com.(I edited)