Wanting to rescue this bird from the pet store, plz advise?

[samy23]

Should I?

We just went in the pet store for the first time in a while, and usually everything is fine...it's a pretty good one as far as pet stores go. However today there was a problem with one of the birds.

It was sitting quietly on a perch while about 10 others were chirping away and hopping/flying from perch to perch. I noticed most of the feathers from the top and back of its head are not there, and it had a bloody scab type lump by one of its eyes. And I saw another bird kind of attacking it...like trying to peck at it's head.

I immediately asked the pet store worker "what's wrong with the bird in there?" and he just said "it's because there are too many male birds and it's a female". So does that mean it was the only female in the whole cage? And the male birds were plucking its feathers out? Why would they do that? And why wouldn't the pet store worker put the bird in a seperate cage?

They are zebra finches according to the pet store worker...I've never heard of them before and have no idea how to care for them, however I have owned several budgies in the past. I feel so bad for it, who is going to buy a bird that looks sick? And meanwhile it is continuing to be attacked by the males? What should I do? I can't help wanting to rescue animals like this....but I do worry about the cost of keeping it. We have 1 dog right now.

[Tofu the Geek]

Can't the store owner put it in another cage either alone or with an acceptable amount of males? That's horrible and I can't believe the store owner is allowing the bird to be bullied.

[samy23]

Originally Posted by Tofu the Geek

Can't the store owner put it in another cage either alone or with an acceptable amount of males? That's horrible and I can't believe the store owner is allowing the bird to be bullied.

I guess not, because when I asked about it he just told me what was causing it, he didn't say anything about seperating them, it was like "oh well that's just what happens"...like he thinks thats ok....

[Tofu the Geek]

Is there an SPCA or Humane Society in your area you could call for advice?

[SophieAnn]

If you are considering buying this bird - I would do is asap before she is injured any more.

Generally, birds are very cheap to keep, but have you considered any possible medical bills - if her injuries do not heal on their own? I would assume you don't want to rescue her just to have her "put down" or die of her injuries.....

I always enjoyed having a bird when we did. Our budgies woule mimic sounds they heard regularly (like the telephone) and would call out to birds outside sometimes.

Would that type of bird need a 2nd one to keep her company (another female perhaps)?

[samy23]

Originally Posted by Tofu the Geek

Is there an SPCA or Humane Society in your area you could call for advice?

Yeah but I doubt they would have time to come out asap...and if they did then the pet store worker would know it was me who called them, and I would have no chance of buying it if they allowed it to stay there, but maybe I will go look at their website now and see if they would possibly come out tomorrow to see it, I could email them?

Originally Posted by SophieAnn

If you are considering buying this bird - I would do is asap before she is injured any more.

Generally, birds are very cheap to keep, but have you considered any possible medical bills - if her injuries do not heal on their own? I would assume you don't want to rescue her just to have her "put down" or die of her injuries.....

I always enjoyed having a bird when we did. Our budgies woule mimic sounds they heard regularly (like the telephone) and would call out to birds outside sometimes.

Would that type of bird need a 2nd one to keep her company (another female perhaps)?

Yes I have been researching them online since, they do best in pairs. I could afford to buy 2, and the vet cost if she doesn't recover on her own, but it's the expense of the outlay for the bird cage and equipment that concerns me. I have been looking up cages as I got rid of my old ones a while back, they are so expensive! Especially the wide type I want, as apparantly finches enjoy having room in their cage to fly about. I don't think I can afford a bird cage right now, unless I get the cheapest one which wouldn't be the best size for her. But any cage might be better than being attacked by the other birds in a big cage?

Poor thing, I can't help thinking about her having to be in that situation for another 16 hours -that's the soonest I could go get her. Really not sure what I should do. I remember they do make quite a bit of mess with stuff falling out the cage, dirt and such, plus they aren't a pet you can get that attatched to/cuddle/stroke whatever, since they don't like human contact.

[sonicfrost]

I've had several zebra finches in the past 14 years or so. (the only one I have left is 14 years old!) They are not a bird you can take out of the cage and have it sit on your finger or shoulder. They are wild for the most part. If you let them out of their cage they fly around the room insanely, as if panicking. They are finches, so they can't "talk" like parrots. I remember one of the birds kept getting the feathers on the back of its head pulled out, but I don't remember the genders of the ones involved. The remedy was a spray that tasted like sour apple, sprayed on the back of the victim bird's neck. It cured the problem and the feathers grew back. They are very cheap to maintain/keep. If you buy only one, buy a mirror for it, they will think they have a friend.

I second the idea of calling the local SPCA. The pet store should be doing something about the problem, not just saying "it happens".

[samy23]

So if you were in this situation, would you go and get it?

[sonicfrost]

Originally Posted by samy23

So if you were in this situation, would you go and get it?

personally, I would not buy this bird, but that's mainly because I am unemployed and have a newborn. But I would call someone.

[Momily]

I wouldn't. I would try and talk to the pet store and say "this bird is not saleable in this condition, I will take it for free" but I wouldn't pay. If you pay for this bird, the store is going to turn around and buy another bird and put it in the same page. You're essentially rewarding them for doing so.

It's similar to the puppy mill thing -- while it's really hard to walk away from that sweet little face it the cage, "rescuing it" will mean that many more will suffer.

[samy23]

Oh I still don't know...I don't want to leave it in there to suffer, but I also don't really want the responsibility of a bird for the next 10+ years, yk? I already feel pretty bad that I didn't rescue it today already....ugh why do I have to love animals so much, it's annoying sometimes. Maybe I could get it, nurse it back to health, then find it a new home?

[Tofu the Geek]

Call the SPCA. I am sure there are lots of other people who've been in his pet store, it could be anyone who called. It sounds like you don't go to the pet store often anyway so does it really matter if he thinks it was you? You won't have to buy the bird after the SPCA goes in as I'm sure they will take care of getting the bird safe, i.e. getting the owner to put it in it's own cage, so there is no worry of him not allowing you to buy the bird. Which is strange anyway, why would he tell a random customer that they couldn't buy a bird? He will have no proof it was you that reported him and he might not even remember you next time you go back.

[Oubliette8]

I've owned zebra finches in the past and this is really common for them. They tend to develop a pecking order and some poor bird loses a bunch of feathers. They don't do real well if kept alone either. However, the bird is clearly not sellable in that condition and the situation needs to be addressed. If there are truly too many birds in the cage, then they should move the birds to smaller groups. Sometimes adding more mental stimulation to the cage helps, or hiding places etc. And the injured bird should be given proper medical care.

I would not recommend buying the bird to rescue it. First, you can't afford it. Second, if you truly feel the conditions are appalling, you send the wrong message to the store by buying the bird- the more birds they sell, the more birds they will order. If birds don't sell, they'll stop selling birds. When I find a pet store whose ethical practices or animal care I don't agree with, I refuse to shop there at all. And I tell other people why I won't shop there.

If you do end up buying the bird, I recommend making sure you get them all the same gender. Zebra finches breed worse than rabbits. You can't stop them. If you take out the nest, they'll lay on the floor, in the food bowl etc. You can't stop them and its not good for the females to be constantly laying. In normal colored zebras its easy to tell- males have orange cheek patches, females don't. Some color mutations make it hard to tell though.

[samy23]

Thanks for everyone's advice! I phoned the ASPCA as soon as I got up this morning, they were really great about it and said the place will be inspected and they will check for that bird. They are also going to give me a call back to let me know what happened. I will update this post when I hear back from them

[Tizzy]

Personally if the SPCA couldn't or wouldn't do anything about the situation, I'd buy the bird and put it in the small cage I already have. Then I would scour craigslist/freecycle/kijiji for free/inexpensive larger and better cages.
And then I'd have to figure out where to hide the bird in my house because DH has made his stance on pet birds VERY clear.

[ShadowMoon]

Hopefully the ASPCA will do something. I, personally, would probably end up buying the bird because that's just what I tend to do. (and is why I have a random assortment of critters in my apartment ).

But if you're not completely prepared, calling the ASPCA is a great option. Most pet stores that are reputable will usually separate out males and females, especially if there is aggression.

[sonicfrost]

any update?