I need advice

[SchoolGirl]

I am currently looking into getting a lovebird as a pet. However, I come from a fairly large town, but I am at college right now in a very small town. I could only find one pet store in the area that sells lovebirds, and frankly I'm not impressed with the store. Everything in there is dusty, and it doesn't seem very reputable. Can anyone give me advice as to if they think I should buy one of the birds from there or wait until I can go home and find a better store? Do the birds have to be up to some sort of standard? I'm afraid I'll get it home and then it will be sick or something. Is there a tactful way to ask the clerk if they have some sort of license or information on the individual bird?

I thank you for any help you can give me.

[Karen]

If you really want to get a bird from that store, ask if you could take it to a vet and get it checked within a certain time perios, and return it without charge if it's unhealthy. Then I'd try to find a nearby vet who specializes in birds - a dog-and-cat kinda vet might not know enough.

The following list comes from www.parrotparrot.com


Pet Store

Is the store clean? Are there poops everywhere on the perches and the swings and on the floors of the cages? Does it smell clean (a little feather dust is okay, but the smell of rotting carcasses is not)?

Are the store workers knowledgeable and good with the birds? Can they answer all your questions? If they have Fischer's lovebirds labeled "Peachfaced Lovebirds" or answer all your questions with, "I don't know, isn't he a cute bird though?" you aren't going to get any help with your new baby.

Did they finish the handfeeding of the birds or did a breeder? What method of handfeeding did they use? Syringe and spoon are best. Be careful about birds fed gavage-style (where the food is pumped into the stomach by a long metal tube), as they can sometimes have eating issues later in life.

Do the birds seem well socialized? Or are they unreasonably frightened, throwing themselves around the cages in terror? A terrified bird in the store
will be difficult to train and requires special attention. Some birds will never calm down.

What food is in the birds' cages. If there is just a bowl of sunflower seeds and some semi-clean water, these birds might have food issues. Birds
should have fresh foods like vegetables, clean water, and a healthy seed mix atleast.

Do they give a health guarantee? Be reasonable. A lifetime health guarantee will never exist, but a 48 hour to 72 hour guarantee that allows you
to take the bird to an avian vet upon purchase is always important. This time period should be expanded to allow for any test results to come back, since these sometimes take a week or more.

Are there too many birds in each cage? If the cages are overcrowded and the place looks like a medieval prison for parrots, these birds are not
well treated. Diseases run rampant in stores with overcrowded conditions, as owners don't have the space for proper separation of babies from different breeders.

Are there any large birds house in small cages (can't flap their wings freely) with no toys in a dark corner of the store? Hey, there's something wrong with that and I wouldn't trust people who keep a thinking, feeling animal in such conditions. Run out of the store.

[NoahsMommy]

I would recommend getting one from a breeder. To find one, you can look in the back of bird magazines or online. They seem to know so much more about the animals...especially individually.

I am going to get a cockatoo when I finish graduate school so I can have him in my practice for kids to feel at ease. I found an excellent breeder in Washington that cared a lot for her birds. I would recommend that vs. a pet store.

Good luck!

[SchoolGirl]

Thank you very much everyone. I think I will wait until I go home because we have tons of good pet stores in that area. We have all the big name ones, and smaller specialty stores that I know are good also. (I just feel bad for those birds at the dirty store here):( Thanks again!!:)

[lovemymaltese]

I have only had cockateils, but I hear that love birds make excellent pets. Sorry that I couldn't be of more help.