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Post by josiedownunda on Dec 4, 2004 7:01:34 GMT 10
Just had to have a whinge about this! I was reading the classifieds as usual this morning and saw a few ads selling baby cockatiels........they state just out of the nest!!!!...some say 5 weeks old!!!! I am so tempted to call them and tell them not to be so cruel! The poor things aren't weaned and are certainly not capable of feeding themselves! Any poor unsuspecting person wanting a pet buying one of these doesn't stand a chance of the bird adapting easily! They will be lucky to keep them alive! It's no wonder the general public would rather buy birds from pet stores than breeders when people do things like this!Grrrrrrrr
Jo-Anne
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Post by lovemytiels on Dec 4, 2004 8:38:56 GMT 10
Hi Jo-Anne. I would have to agree with you. This is disgusting to hear that someone would advertise baby birds to sell unweaned, & very irresponsible of them. Must admit this is one of my pet hates as I have rescued quite a few unweaned birds myself from bird places The poor things are probably only still pecking at seeds & not eating them, hence they would probably end up dying.  . it never fails to admaze me what some people will do for money. But in some states as i have learned it is not illegal to sell unweaned birds but here in SA it is. Cheers for now Anna. |
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Post by AussieBirds on Dec 4, 2004 12:49:05 GMT 10
This is just one of my pet hates Jo-Anne. For many years now I have been breeding and selling baby budgies and more recently Love Birds and Red Rumps and wont let them go until they are self sufficent. Not long ago I happened to be at bird shop and was talking to the owner regarding baby birds and the selling of them, he was telling everyone that would listen that he would buy any parrot from a breeder but it had to be a max of 4 weeks old so he could hand rear it and sell it as a tame bird, and he did have some baby tiels that he had purchased off a breeder that day in the shop. I asked him if i could see them and he pulled out an old cardboard box form under the counter which contained 15 baby tiels and 5 ring necks. He had already said that he would only take the birds if they were less than 4 weeks old so I was taking it that these babies were exactly that age, less then 4 weeks. I asked him how he hand fed so many birds at one sitting and ran the shop at the same time, knowing full well that this guy was not doing a proper job with these little birds, and he then pulled out a syringe with a rubber or plastic tube attached to it and proceded to show me how he pushed this tube down each babies throat and pumped them full of food until the wouldnt take any more  He told me that it only took him 5 minutes to feed the birds and they were then put back in the box until the next feed. I then asked him who he bought the babies off in the first place and was told that he had at least a dozen breeders who sell him these birds and they are in ages ranging from 2 to 4 weeks old. The older, and might i say surviving, birds were then put on display for people to handle and look at and to purchase. I asked him if the birds were weaned when he sold them or were they still on soft food and bieng force fed by him, at this point he started to get a bit evasive in his answers and i think he was starting to get a bit worried that I was from the RSPCA or some other orginisation and the conversation soon ended with the pretence that he had customers waiting. My point is that there are out there supposed reputable dealers that sell babies that are not ready to go or to leave the parents and i do my very best to let these people know that what they are doing is nothing short of criminal and i will do everything in my power to make sure they are put out of business. Just as a finish to the story by the way, the shop was visited by the RSPCA the week after i had been there along with the National Parks and Wildlife. I refuse to buy birds form them and nor do I recommend them to any one and tell every one that will listen about the place. If i could have found out the names of the breeders that were selling these birds to the shop I would have done the same thing to them, as I said one of my pet hates Jo-Anne. I will now climb down off my soap box John |
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Post by chickabee on Dec 4, 2004 13:58:15 GMT 10
After reading your posts I did nothing but cringe at the thought of those poor babies, OMG how horrible, my babies that I have now are parent fed and when they are out of their box they stay during the day in the aviary to be taught how to feed by their parents, then they come in doors at night with us for some play and they are returned back to the avairy in the morning. Just yesterday I had a friend of a friend ask if they could buy one, and when I said not yet, they gave me attude, well bugger them because my babies will be ready when there ready and if I get attude from someone then they will definitely not be having one. I will not sell to a pet shops, I want to know who the new owner will be and what sort of life my tiels will have, they are my babies and only the best will do. There John I just shared your soap box with you. 
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. it never fails to admaze me what some people will do for money. But in some states as i have learned it is not illegal to sell unweaned birds but here in SA it is. Cheers for now Anna.
