Don’t Buy Wild-Caught Parrots
Trapping wild parrots for resale has existed for decades.
This practice is inadvisable and unacceptable, for many reasons:
- Trapping techniques used are inhumane
- High losses of birds occur once caught and transported
- Disease introduced from wild-caught birds into captive populations
- Wild populations reduced, genetic variety lost, and nest sites destroyed
- The trapping of species that do not survive well in captivity results in higher losses of birds
- Wild birds do not make suitable pets
The continued trapping of wild parrots does not help local people; area residents are not paid anything but a pittance for their efforts, with the more substantial proceeds going to the brokers who trade in birds. If a bird is entirely eliminated from an area, the local people have nothing left to enhance their income. The loss of a species affects the entire ecosystem, leaving the area out of balance, and affecting other species of animals and plants. If ecosystems are affected, then entire regions can suffer.
Buying wild-caught parrots does nothing to help or aid anyone. Nor does it enhance the aviculture industry; it can, in fact, endanger it. For anyone who wishes for a pet parrot, attempting to keep a wild bird can leave a trail of broken promises, and mean misery for the parrot and the people involved. A much better idea is to acquire captive-bred birds or, better still, adopt them from a reputable shelter.
With your help, and if you refuse to buy wild-caught birds, tens of thousands of birds can be saved each year.
Support the FlyFree campaign to stop the sale of wild-caught parrots!
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