Buying a bird in a pet store is still legal and it is, of course, your prerogative to do so. But bear in mind that the average cockatoo goes through FOUR HOMES in its lifetime. The average macaw and Amazon Parrot also goes through multiple homes during the decades of its life. We believe pet stores and avian breeders are exascerbating an already exploding problem of unwanted birds in our country. Our goal is to avoid adopters who make impulsive decisions or who think birds are cool because they saw someone else who owned one or they are simply going through a phase. These are very intelligent, sensitive animals which are prone to psychosis, feather plucking and even self-mutilation if they are not given the appropriate diet and enrichment.
We are attempting to find permanent homes for our birds. If you as a potential adopter can't be bothered to go through a vetting process and you ultimately decide to run out to a pet shop and buy a bird, the chances are you will eventually contribute to the problem, rather than to its solution. We hope you will see how critical this is to the happy, healthy life of the bird, and will understand why we are so careful with the animals entrusted to our care.
