Please be aware that all the information in this section is entirely my own opinion. It is based on research, evidence and personal experience. It is not intended to offend but to pass on what I deem as good practise. Please do not respond negatively in any form to any of my opinions.

The Animal Welfare Act should underpin everything we do when dealing with all species.

The Animal Welfare Act 2006 - the five needs/freedoms:

*The need for a suitable environment
*The need for a suitable diet
*The need to exhibit normal behaviour patterns
*The need to be housed with or, apart from other animals
*The need to be protected from pain, suffering, injury and disease

Cruelty is often born out of ignorance.

There are approximately 400 species of parrot and 1/3 of these are threatened with extinction. Half of all living parrots are now in captivity- about 50 million (as of 2021). This critical status of the parrot is due predominantly to 2 factors: habitat destruction and the pet trade. Even though it is now illegal to trade in wild caught parrots, a huge amount - many thousands, are still trapped and caught to be sold into the pet trade every year. More than half of these die in the process. They are now the most endangered group of birds in the world. Parrots are popular due to their charismatic, intelligent and endearing qualities; their ability to copy sounds including human speech and indeed understand what they say; their ability to play; their tool use; their bright and beautiful colouring; their charm; their human like characteristics, but THEY ARE NOT HUMAN, THEY ARE PARROTS: PSITTACIFORMES

Parrots live in complex social groups and are monogamous. Many live for lifespans equal to our own. They are flock birds - with only a few species being the exception. They predominantly live in tropical climes - rainforests or savannahs across the globe. The most diverse ranges are in Australasia and Asia, and of course the Amazon. The African jungles in the tropical regions are home to a number of different species too - most notably the African Grey. Parrots mostly nest in holes in trees and roost often in massive groups. They are wild. They possess all the instincts of a wild creature. They are not designed to live in captivity at the whim of a human - most often in very small cages. They travel miles each day to feed on specific fruiting trees. Their world is so different to ours. We are capable of seeing about one million colours as we are trichromatic , parrots are tetrachromatic and see a hundred million. We can’t differentiate between the sexes, their vision means they see the world - and each other, completely differently. They demonstrate altruistic behaviour - feeding, preening, caring for each other and not just in breeding pairs. They are remarkably intelligent - being amongst the most intelligent species on Earth. We trap them, we cage them, we clip their wings, we shout in their faces trying to force them to repeat our ridiculous words. So many are locked away in solitary confinement, are screamed at, are hit, are abused, due to our total lack of understanding of their complex and diverse needs. We humanise them but THEY ARE NOT HUMAN, THEY ARE PARROTS: PSITTACIFORMES. Let them be.

Photo credits:
Time Magazine
The Dodo
World Parrot Trust