I'm falling in love...

[Eshana]

...With a fiesty female CAG in a pet store by where my boyfriend lives.

 

When I first met her, she was in her small, dirty cage, rubbing up against the bars, begging to be scritched. I thought she was such a sweet thing. The second time I met her, she hissed at me and pinned her eyes. Today, she bent her head for me to scritch her, so I did, and after about a minute she turned and bit my finger. It bled, but I laughed, and she bent her head to be scratched again, what a lady!

 

I am not fiscally ready to get a CAG yet, but this has really been my first experience with one. Any advice to keep me from impulse buying/yelling at the shop owner for keeping her in a small cage eating only sunflowers?

[Cupid]

Get it off ur chest and let the owner know the conditions are unacceptable.... try to negotiate the price to see if u can take it home =) how much are they asking for it out of curiosity?

[Eshana]

He said she was 1400. I really want a CAG, but I won't be able to take care of one properly, especially with my two other birds, until at least December. The thing is..it's the only pet store near where my boyfriend lives, and I don't want to stir up any controversy, especially since he, my boyfriend, has a hedgehog, and taking care of them isn't something that every pet store accommodates.

[Cupid]

Too expensive....

[Dave007]

It's not right to scold the pet shop owner concerning cage size or food. You can make some suggestions and tell him how you do things with your birds. Impulse buying? Well, if the bird is a young one, he'll probably be sold by Dec. People usually shop around when buying a bird and they usually take their time doing it. That means going far away if you have to. You should check out Westchester or Long Island or Jersey. Prices are better and quantity is better. Lots more shops to pick from.

[carlsjr]

$1400 is way too much for a CAG the breeder im getting my baby from charges $850.

 

anyway here is a blog from birdtips that i think sorta applies to your CAG romance.

reprinted from http://www.birdtricks.com/blog/when-you-should-not-rescue-a-bird-in-need/

 

If I am out shopping and I see a pet store, I am unable to walk past it. My heart melts when I look at puppies and kittens; and heaven help me, the birds, but I tend to walk away from even the best pet stores with a sense of sadness. I worry about the futures of these small and innocent animals.

 

Every once in a while, you come upon a not-so-good pet store, and less frequently, a really bad one. When you’ve found on of these, you’ll know it right away, both by sight and smell.

 

The worst pet store I have ever experienced was one just outside of Chicago sometime in the mid 80s. The minute I walked in I was bowled over by the smell of urine. It made my eyes water and I had to pull my turtleneck up over my nose so I could breath. I wanted to walk in a little further to get a good description of the conditions because I already knew I would be making some phone calls when I got home.

 

There was a box of puppies about five feet inside the door that were covered in feces. Further in was a litter of kittens crawling around inside a filthy, old claw foot tub. Their urine had run out through the drain opening and was puddled on magazines beneath the tub. I heard a familar sound coming from the back of the store.

 

I walked past dusty stacks of bagged foods and dingy dog toys to find a blue and gold macaw crammed into a cage too small to extend his wings. The last four inches of his tail was permanently bent upwards from hitting the cage floor. The diameter of his perch was too small and his nails were too long for him to find any comfort in the only place in his cage with room for him to stand upright.

 

The macaw had only a small water cup that was caked with grime around the sides. It looked as though someone just tossed new water in on top of the old everyday. There was an inch thick layer of sunflower seed shells littering the cage bottom mixed with a good month’s worth of accumulated dander. The air quality was better in the back of the store because a back door was left open. However, it was winter and far too cold for a bird.

 

I felt a huge lump rising up in my throat and I left in a hurry because I knew the tears were on their way. I went back to my car and sobbed. When I got home I made phone calls complaining to anyone who would listen. I doubt mine was the only call the authorities had received about this store – it was that bad. Within a year it was gone.

 

Times have changed. Animal cruelty laws have changed. But the penalties for breaking these laws generally amounts to nothing more the proverbial slap on the wrist. Animals in need die while waiting for the courts to process paper work. Sometimes we citizens have to push hard to move certain matters along.

 

 

On the Facebook page, a reader posted recently about how difficult it was for him to walk away from a mistreated bird in a pet shop. I sympathized completely. I think many, if not most, of us have been in this position before.

 

The thing is, walking away is exactly what we MUST do, as hard as it is. When we see an animal that is suffering in a retail situation, you have to think for a moment about the mind set of the store owner. Obviously animals are regarded merely as merchandise and the only loss he would feel should they die in his care is a financial one.

 

 

So one day you walk into this store, and see a young yellow naped amazon sitting in a small, dirty cage, with a bowl of seed hulls and water with a layer of scum forming over the top. The store has an entire wall stocked with toys, yet the amazon has none.You see some young children taunting the bird through the cage bars and none of the employees intervene. Finally, you’ve had enough and you whip out the credit card.

 

You go home with your rescued amazon, puffed up with pride for a good deed done. Another life saved! A couple of days later, in the cage that once housed your amazon is a young african grey. Inadvertantly, and with the best of intentions at heart, you have helped this store thrive by giving it your business. When you save one bird by purchasing it, you just create an opening for another potential victim.

 

The only way to stop the cycle of abuse is to walk away empty handed. Yes, it is very hard and your heart will ache each and every time. But try to appease your conscience by making the appropriate phone calls to the animal welfare groups and by convincing others not to patronize this establishment through whatever means you can muster. A business cannot stay afloat without customers and their money. It is the only way to stop this cruelty.

[Cupid]

$1400 is way too much for a CAG the breeder im getting my baby from charges $850.

 

Inadvertantly, and with the best of intentions at heart, you have helped this store thrive by giving it your business. When you save one bird by purchasing it, you just create an opening for another potential victim.The only way to stop the cycle of abuse is to walk away empty handed. Yes, it is very hard and your heart will ache each and every time. But try to appease your conscience by making the appropriate phone calls to the animal welfare groups and by convincing others not to patronize this establishment through whatever means you can muster. A business cannot stay afloat without customers and their money. It is the only way to stop this cruelty.

 

 

So true, I think a better option would be like Dave said finding a breeder that might not be around the corner, or looking for a re-home/rescue from craigslist or other site.

[birdhouse]

I think that what carlsjr said about enabling a bad store to continue to make money by selling to sympathetic animal lovers is true... to a point. But, respectfully, I just don't agree w/walking away & doing nothing because animal cruelty laws aren't at all well enforced.

 

If no one does anything about this type of situation, nothing will get done. Animals will continue to suffer & die needlessly. The more people make calls, the greater the likelihood that someone official will finally respond... eventually. Otherwise, nothing would have improved over the years.

 

 

And how much effort is it to make a phone call? For me, at least, it takes a lot less effort than to walk away, let alone continue to think about it.

 

Eshana, I understand your hesitation about approaching the store owner. But they'll have no reason to associate you w/anything if you talk to someone official w/o first talking to them. That way, at least you may have done something that might improve the situation.

[Eshana]

I have decided that the next time I go to the shop I am going to speak with the shop owner and see if I can get something done. I'm not going to take her home, but I will check up on her now and again. Thanks for the advice!

[Luvparrots]

I believe you will do what your heart directs you to do. I visited an older ekkie in a local pet shop that was totally miserable living in the shop with several other birds. I would visit him and bring him treats and foods. The owner eventually came down in price with one I was willing to pay as it was very apparent that this ekkie liked me. Sully didn't really fit in with my Ana Grey and I eventually found him a new home which he totally loves. Sully is over 10 years old and is picking up words and names. He goes bus riding and outdoor mart shopping and he is totally happy and I am very pleased for him. So whatever you decide to do will be the right thing. I will say that purchasing from a good breeder is my favor way to go. I was very lucky to find my young CAG for $850 and he is very tame and social. I am delighted with him.

[Eshana]

Well, I move next month, so the first big item of furniture I'm going to buy is a CAG cage! (not kidding)

 

I feel like, right now, I'm more open to rescue, especially after meeting this lovely female CAG

[Cupid]

Not that theres anything wrong at all with getting a baby, I wish I could, plus I know you had your heart set on a baby from a breeder, but in reality- theres so many unloved greys out there that need an owner like you, (caring / thoughtful) that IMO you should seek out a rescue and make that bird your new baby.

 

 

Congrats on your new place!