by Pajarita » Sat Oct 25, 2014 2:51 pm
Well, this is quite a general comment because there are lots of good homes that get parrots for free (I hardly ever pay for a bird and, when I do, it's always to get them out of a bad situation). The trick is going through the right motions: asking the right questions, checking vet references, meeting the person and his/her birds, and doing a home inspection because no owner of snakes who wants the free parrot for food or reseller could possible pass all the steps. The danger is not checking and that holds for whether you charge a rehoming fee or not. And, when you get a parrot from a good rescue, the vetting was already done and you get the records so, in reality, the adoption fee covers most of it plus you already had the bird quarantined, evaluated and, in some cases, even rehabilitated and switched to a healthier diet whereas, when you get a parrot from a breeder or a store, you have to vet it no matter, you have to start from scratch on diet, behavior, etc and you have no real idea of the bird's temperament so adopting is not only always cheaper in the long run, it's also more practical than buying retail. But I do agree wholeheartedly that parrots are expensive animals to keep as pets and the 'expense' covers more than just money!