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Breeder vs Rehome

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Re: Breeder vs Rehome

Postby Jenny » Fri Nov 19, 2010 9:46 am

Shani, you are so right. I'm printing your post & sticking it to my fridge. Your experience is the reminder I will need in the future to first consider the welfare of the animal & from that perspective to examine my best intentions.
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Re: Breeder vs Rehome

Postby Shani » Sat Nov 20, 2010 3:19 am

Jenny wrote:Shani, you are so right. I'm printing your post & sticking it to my fridge. Your experience is the reminder I will need in the future to first consider the welfare of the animal & from that perspective to examine my best intentions.


Wow, thank you so much, I'm honored that you'd do that. I'm 100% sure I gave the eclectus a much, much better home than what she previously had, but I just didn't have the experience or the know-how to help her with her severe behavioural issues and juggle everything else that was happening at the time.

It's such a complicated issue. The last thing I want to do is deter people from taking in a bird, but I'm hoping I've shed some light on what can happen even if your intentions are good. Experience just means so much when it comes to having any parrot as a pet, let alone a rescue.
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Re: Breeder vs Rehome

Postby Becco Lunatico » Sat Nov 20, 2010 6:33 am

captwest wrote:Yes Micheal, i agree whit much of what you say, and wish everybody knew what we know before getting a bird but thats not realistic. I also wish we could prevent impulse buying and trophy birds but that;s not realistic either. goess i'll just do my best to help educate new owners and try to keep my big mouth shut. Richard


I'm so new to parrotitis that I walked into a local aviary and naively mentioned that I was thinking about volunteering at the local Parrot Rescue....the next time I went back, the woman saw me and seemed strangely embarrassed at the condition of her cages (which I thought were acceptable)...it didn't dawn on me until later that both entities are at odds with one another. Reminded me of the same tension I experienced in law enforcement dealing with victim's of violent crimes. But I have to tell you that I came to my own conclusion and believe there is room for both breeders and rescue/re-home.

By the way, I am impressed with your participation here. It shows an uncommon commitment in that you (and the others here) are generously sharing your experience with us newbs and thus, saving birds in your own way. ;)
"She was not quite what you would call refined. She was not quite what you would call unrefined. She was the kind of person that keeps a parrot." ~Mark Twain
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Re: Breeder vs Rehome

Postby thegreatkatsby » Sat Nov 20, 2010 11:31 pm

i might be the exception rather than the rule... but i went straight from having a cockatiel as a kid to taking on a behavioral-disaster triple-rehomed amazon as a young adult--and i don't regret a thing!

there were many tears and more than a few dramatic emotional moments of frustration throughout the years... but the way things turned out was great. within a couple of years, she transformed from a monster/disaster bird into my best friend. maybe i was just lucky? regardless, all the tears and frustrations were worth it in the end--and it was all the more fulfilling knowing that she was happier too.

of course, i like the idea of buying a bred bird that hasn't developed any behavioral problems yet, is well-socialized, and it more-likely-than-not disease-free. maybe some day i'll be able to pay the high price for a baby. in the meantime, i love my little "challenges". ;)

everybirdie deserves a good home, regardless of where they come from!
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Re: Breeder vs Rehome

Postby ldallas04 » Sun Nov 21, 2010 6:37 am

I think you should give yourself more credit than just luck. :) Good Job.
Lindsay, :gcc: (Max) & :sun: (Apollo)
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Re: Breeder vs Rehome

Postby Mom2Rico » Tue Dec 07, 2010 11:13 am

Adopt a rehome or adopt a baby of any animal (and human for that matter) really is a personal decision. I have done both, with dogs and cats, and now have a rehomed bird. After adopting a 6 year old small dog, who I love dearly so don't get me wrong...I've decided I will likely never adopt an adult dog again. She comes with a lot of baggage and odd behaviours that she wouldn't have if she'd been mine from a puppy. She's loved, cared for, and deserves to have a comfortable home as she is aging (going on 10 years old), but she is also very frustrating to live with at times. I also have a larger dog that I got from a breeder when he was 8 weeks old. He's smart, extremely well trained and quite the pleasure to live with. My 2 cats, one is from the SPCA and is a wonderful cat, the other is more standoff-ish, and he's from a breeder.
I guess my point is, if you're going to adopt a grown pet, you have to be willing to accept some things that may not be as you'd prefer them to be, and love them anyway. However, it's a good thing that there are GOOD breeders out there who do their best to produce good pets, and add to the gene pool of healthy animals.
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Re: Breeder vs Rehome

Postby guybo » Tue Dec 07, 2010 5:02 pm

There is a basic difference between dogs and birds. It's not a fair comparison. Moreally it's the same- rehoming any animal in a bad situation is the right thing to do for the animal regardless of the sepcies.

But a dog, as long as it isn't viscous, can normally be rehabilitated from a bad situation and made into a perfectly fine pet. Many dogs are judged to be valuable based on breed as well and mutts are often discarded. So rehoming a dog usually means not only saving the dog's life (sometimes literally- from a kill shelter) but also you get a great animal even if the stigma of "mutt" is attached.

Birds don't go to kill shelters. Birds aren't labeled mutts (although less desirable species of bird may have stigmas of their own and bird "upgrades" do happen). Birds do go to ignorant and non-attentive owners and they live miserable and short lives. Yes, the ignoratn owner may kill the animal by mistake but usually it's a miserable wasting away and feather plucking, not a kill shelter that gets a bird. But either way, it's not a straight analogy to the plight of a dog who will suffer immediate death (within a couple weeks) and that's not reversible- unlike the situation of a bird which can go to a nice home and be saved.

Also, a bird sometimes can't be made into a nice pet. Once a bird gets to a certain point, the amount of work that has to be put in, most people won't do. Plus when a bird gets cagey, wild, untame and bites, and is old to boot- there isn't much that can be done for most people. An older dog can be rehabbed, the older bird takes a LOT more work and will only go so far.

So back to breeder vs rehome. Almost any dog can be successfully rehomed, but a bird has to be realtively young for most people. A breeder bird (from a good breeder anyway) will come already tame and ready to develop a close relationship right away. A dog from a [good] breeder usually is for show/status not for temperament. IMHO rehoming a young bird is much more personally fulfilling, but I will never begrudge someone getting a bird from a breeder. I have 4 birds- 2 from a breeder, 2 rehomed and they are all great companions and all different. With dogs, I applaud anyone who's saved a dog from a bad sitaution and those with status dogs I try not to judge as long as they take good care of the animal. I've only ever had dogs from other homes (though not always from bad a situations).
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Re: Breeder vs Rehome

Postby patdbunny » Sun Jan 30, 2011 3:20 am

Again - I am SO sorry for being late to the party once again. But I have strong feelings about this thread. Just this past Christmas I had a lady call me about a baby jenday. She had never owned a bird before. She was trying to decide between getting a baby jenday from me or a 5 year old M2 from a rescue. She was leaning towards the M2 in the rescue because it's a cooler bird. She said the rescue told her the bird would be perfect for her - it's very sweet (aren't they all?!), used to pluck but is pretty now.

I was completely appalled that the rescue would rehome an older too, known plucker to someone who knew absolutely zero about birds. Yes, I tried very, very hard to talk her out of getting that M2. I've taken in cockatoos w/ plucking and mutilating issues in the past. I know what a challenge it is. All I could think about was this woman getting this too and it starting to pluck again. . . and getting ditched again.

So, for people new to birds my opinion is that they are probably better off with a well raised, very tame baby. Hopefully, w/ a lot of emotional and behavioral support from the breeder.
Roz

There are in nature neither rewards nor punishments — there are only consequences. Robert G. Ingersoll
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