Abstract
When I became involved with birds and their breeding I thought it was a good way to make money without doing much work. I thought I could go to work and the birds would be breeding and making money for me, and all I had to do was feed them and everything would fall into place. I have since come to the realization that it is almost impossible for someone to make money breeding birds without doing so at the expense of the birds themselves.
We must be aware that the rain forests are being lost at the rate of 53 acres per minute to provide man with land that he can cultivate, even though past experiences remind us that the land on which the rain forest grows is not capable of supporting farming operations. Man continues to disrupt nature through destruction or pollution of the forests, rivers, streams, oceans and even the air we breathe. As the rain forests disappear we must ask: where will all the animals go? What will be their future? In light of this we must breed these birds in captivity. If we are not careful with the birds now and do not take full advantage of the breeding potential, we are throwing away a great gift. This is where the aviculturist can help with his acquired breeding knowledge. Every aviculturist must understand that the birds are held captive at his behest no matter how large the cage or how well-fed the birds will be. In most instances the birds were probably free just a few months ago or were just born and removed from the parents' nest for delivery to the markets of the world which may save their lives and possibly save some species from extinction. The keeping of these birds is an awesome responsibility.
So what do we owe to the birds that we house and breed? Birds or any animal kept in captivity under optimum conditions can expect to live two to three years or maybe even four times as long as it would in the wild. I believe that we owe it to the birds and to ourselves as aviculturists to take proper care of the animals since we have more birds and breed more birds than any other group. The birds that arrive here and end up with a good aviculturist who genuinely cares about the welfare of the animal, is a lucky bird. If we care for the birds properly, and in such a manner that they will breed and produce young, we then will be able to breed the young with other unrelated young and start the development of the domesticated bird. Over a given period of time, it should be expected that the birds being bred will respond to us in a similar manner as the domestic dog does now. Unfortunately, some birds will not end up with a caring aviculturist but one that is in the business solely to make a profit. This bird will not fare well at all, and a great injustice is being done to the bird as well as the aviculturist. By this I mean, inadequate food, housing, medical attention, cleaning and other areas where the breeder can skimp so as to make more money for himself. If we know of a breeder who does not live up to proper standards it is up to us to express our concern and offer to help him take better care of the birds. I am sure there will be opposition, since I encounter it quite often, as I am quite vocal about how animals should be treated. If we can help fellow breeders, we can show that we are, indeed, a caring group of people who want and love birds for themselves.
If we are lucky enough to breed these birds, we then can sell them to people who want and are willing to take proper care of them. I usually ask questions such as how many birds have you had before? Is there anyone home during the day to care for the bird? Are there any other animals in the house and what kind? Do you have other birds? Are they hand fed or tame, imported birds? What type of cage will the bird have? Where will the bird be in the house? Do you know how to properly feed the bird? This is just a partial list of the questioning that takes place before anyone buys a bird that I have bred or bought from a fellow breeder. I believe that the interested, prospective owner must show that they are going to properly care for the bird. They are not required to know all the answers to the questions, in fact there was one person who purchased a cockatiel from me for his fiancee for a Christmas present who did not know anything about a bird except that it had feathers. The time he spent reading and questioning me gave me great confidence that the bird would not just exist in its new home, but thrive, and I am happy to say that it has thrived. I am willing to work with people who show genuine interest in owning a bird as a pet and need questions answered. If you, and most breeders have, handfed a baby bird you know the amount of time and patience it takes to bring one up to the point that they are eating on their own. It is not my intention to, after long, arduous hours of handfeeding, turn this bird over to someone who wants a bird because he has the money and his friend has one just like it, and it would look nice in the cage in the corner. It is the breeder's responsibility to see that this bird is placed in the proper home and environment so it will thrive in his new home.
The breeder has the same responsibility when selling birds to a pet store. The store must live up to the breeder's expectations of cleanliness, housing, food, water and medical attention, proper lighting and ventilation.I am very selective as to where any of my baby birds go, especially if they are still being handfed. If a store loses one of the baby birds while still handfeeding, it would be inconceivable that they could explain why the baby died and they would not purchase any more babies from me. Here again, the breeder must work with the store to make sure that any of the birds that you deliver are going to receive appropriate care. I have, on at least one occasion, worked with a small, new pet store, specializing in dog and cat grooming, to set up a bird department. It is quite modest by most standards but it is exceptionally clean, has Vita-Lite over the bird, feeds greens and some fruit and vegetables on a daily basis and changes the water and seed every day. He only has finches, cockatiels, parakeets and canaries that are well looked after. I would feel confident should he want to go to larger birds. This is an exception rather than the rule for a pet store but he shows me that he is interested in the welfare of the animal, and I like that.