Don't Shoot - What to Do if a Pet Bird Flies Away
If a pet bird flies away, it's in danger sometimes even from well-meaning neighbors who might shoot it to get it down from a tree. Look here for safe, humane ways to protect pet parrots from flying away and what to do if they do.
(PRWEB) March 12, 2005 -- When their African grey parrot got out, a neighbor
persuaded Brenda and Dan that the easiest way to get the bird out of a tree was
to shoot it with a BB gun. Nobody can say for sure that Simba was hit. Observers
do know he took flight from his very high perch, circled frantically, and Brenda
and Dan haven't seen him since.
"Start by staying
calm," says Mattie Sue Athan, world-famous parrot behavior consultant and author
of eight books on parrot behavior. "If their neighbor's aim is as bad as his
advice, the bird will be fine. With luck, Simba will show up at a backyard bird
feeder. If wounded, he could be in pain and slow-flying lunch for a
hawk."
Companion parrots are often accidentally
released during warm months. Trimmed wing feathers usually regrow by April or
May every year. Accidents happen. If the bird is chased, it may become more
frightened and keep flying. Follow as closely as possible without running.
Maintain sight and sound of the bird. Continue vocal contact, even if it can't
be seen, as parrots love to call back and forth.
When
enticing a bird to fly, pay attention to wind direction, as a bird must extend
the wings and face into the wind for lift when taking off. A bird unaccustomed
to flying is most likely to climb down. Don’t take unnecessary climbing risks,
and be especially careful around power lines.
If the
bird's location is unknown, report it as missing property to police and animal
control, otherwise, the police may not assist in getting it back. This is one of
the points of law that could be difficult if pets were not classified as
“property.”
A parrot doesn’t just disappear; someone
will see it. Be friendly, network with friends, neighbors, and strangers on the
street. Post advertising, including handbills seeking anybody who has seen the
bird. Never give up. It usually takes less than a day to recover a bird but it
can take weeks, months, or sometimes as long as a year.
Athan has retrieved every bird she's been contracted to recover in her
27-year career. She's still taking care of another parrot that is handicapped
from being shot as a recapture process. Shooting a parrot, even with a cheap BB
gun, can kill, maim, or frighten it so much that it will be more difficult, if
not impossible, to recover. And, of course, it's a lot easier to keep a bird's
wing feathers trimmed than to find and retrieve it. Today is the day to update
safe, effective wing-feather trims for pet birds.
More
information about Mattie Sue Athan's recapture, grooming, and parrot behavior
services can be found at PositivelyParrots.com.
# # #
Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/3/prweb217115.htm