Dear Elephants, Birds and Humans,
Wow, 30 years, 30 years together and we still like each other. That is a better record than a lot of families can boast. This is indeed a special evening. The Catskill Exotic Bird Club began in 1987 and here we are in 2017 and still going strong. We still spread the word about the humane treatment of birds and every other animal. We still maintain that every pet bird, whether adopted or bought must be a member of the family in which they live, a permanent, beloved member whose needs, both emotional and physical, must be met. We originally felt that our motto, "domestically bred only, let the wild fly free" was right and appropriate. Then we learned more about the bird breeding industry and we learned what the cruel collateral damage of "hand raised babies" was all about, the parents of those hand raised babies are cruelly devastated when you take their babies away. This is unkind and not necessary, except it makes for more eggs from the parrots and more money for the breeder. You can still have domestically bred baby birds and let the parents raise them until they fledge. They tame down very quickly and make the same pet. We have learned that some species, mostly certain cockatoos, really should not be bred as pets because they are rarely if ever kept for their lifetime, and so many end up mutilating themselves or dead, or being thrown from home to home, but their sale makes money and so they continue to be bred and sold.
Pet parrots make wonderful pets if they are treated correctly and the person going into adopting or buying one knows what they are getting into. One must realize that most species of pet parrots, besides parakeets and cockatiels and a few others, are lifetime companions. They are not a dog or cat that lives with you its 14 or 15 allotted years and then dies. They live a long time and must be provided for in case they outlive their owners, not an easy task. A parrot family bird should never live its life out inside a cage 24/7, a bird like that is a prisoner, not a pet. They have many needs; we must learn what they are and meet them. We, the members of our club, know these things and we have taken this as our job to teach this to the bird wanting public. Ergo we do programs in schools and many other places, including a library this year, our 30th year, where we spread our message of how intelligent, sensitive and needy our parrot friends are an what it takes to be a good, educated bird owner.
I love my birds and I hope I am doing well by them. Aristophanes is 24, Zeke is 23 and Emma is 36.
I hope to be part of this amazing group for many years to come. I hope I can keep providing programs for us that teach, entertain, stimulate and inform. Right now, due to some switching I had to do, I need a program for August........any ideas?
Be well, be happy, love your birds and be kind to all animals, especially elephants. Aristophanes does not hate me anymore and that makes me glad.
Happy Anniversary and here's to another 30,
LOVE,
Richie
Wow, 30 years, 30 years together and we still like each other. That is a better record than a lot of families can boast. This is indeed a special evening. The Catskill Exotic Bird Club began in 1987 and here we are in 2017 and still going strong. We still spread the word about the humane treatment of birds and every other animal. We still maintain that every pet bird, whether adopted or bought must be a member of the family in which they live, a permanent, beloved member whose needs, both emotional and physical, must be met. We originally felt that our motto, "domestically bred only, let the wild fly free" was right and appropriate. Then we learned more about the bird breeding industry and we learned what the cruel collateral damage of "hand raised babies" was all about, the parents of those hand raised babies are cruelly devastated when you take their babies away. This is unkind and not necessary, except it makes for more eggs from the parrots and more money for the breeder. You can still have domestically bred baby birds and let the parents raise them until they fledge. They tame down very quickly and make the same pet. We have learned that some species, mostly certain cockatoos, really should not be bred as pets because they are rarely if ever kept for their lifetime, and so many end up mutilating themselves or dead, or being thrown from home to home, but their sale makes money and so they continue to be bred and sold.
Pet parrots make wonderful pets if they are treated correctly and the person going into adopting or buying one knows what they are getting into. One must realize that most species of pet parrots, besides parakeets and cockatiels and a few others, are lifetime companions. They are not a dog or cat that lives with you its 14 or 15 allotted years and then dies. They live a long time and must be provided for in case they outlive their owners, not an easy task. A parrot family bird should never live its life out inside a cage 24/7, a bird like that is a prisoner, not a pet. They have many needs; we must learn what they are and meet them. We, the members of our club, know these things and we have taken this as our job to teach this to the bird wanting public. Ergo we do programs in schools and many other places, including a library this year, our 30th year, where we spread our message of how intelligent, sensitive and needy our parrot friends are an what it takes to be a good, educated bird owner.
I love my birds and I hope I am doing well by them. Aristophanes is 24, Zeke is 23 and Emma is 36.
I hope to be part of this amazing group for many years to come. I hope I can keep providing programs for us that teach, entertain, stimulate and inform. Right now, due to some switching I had to do, I need a program for August........any ideas?
Be well, be happy, love your birds and be kind to all animals, especially elephants. Aristophanes does not hate me anymore and that makes me glad.
Happy Anniversary and here's to another 30,
LOVE,
Richie