I feel your pain Noodles...I take Kane, my Senegal, all over the place with me in the spring through the fall, when it's warm enough in central PA, but I make a point to NEVER take him to places where there are other birds, that's rule #1, for obvious health reasons...That's why I couldn't at all understand someone on here a few months ago making the decision to take their Macaw (I think) to a "Bird Fair" with hundreds of birds for sale from dozens and dozens of different breeders/owners...that's asking for your bird to get sick with some kind of Bacterial or Fungal infection, or much more worrisome is obviously the risk of an Avian Viral Disease...
So we avoid places like pet shops, and usually we go for hikes in the woods, or we take drives (he loves to sit on his car-perch on the front-passenger seat and look out the window), and we visit my mom and stepfather's house, where I know they don't use anything at all harmful to birds...
Rule #2 is we never go inside anyone's house that we don't know is bird-safe beforehand...Teflon, cleaners, candles, etc.
I do take him to things like fairs, the Central PA Arts Festival and other Arts Festivals and events at Penn State, like lots of outdoor concerts and sporting events, but I don't let other people touch/handle him unless I know them, because I don't know if they have birds at home or not that could be sick...I will take him on runs to Lowes or Home Depot because they allow pets inside the store, I think it's good for him to socialize with people, but again, no one touches or handles him that I don't know....and NO pet shops...
Walmart is another place that he loves to go, in fact he looks forward to going. I have no idea why Walmart is any different than any other public place, but he loves it there...He gets lots of attention from people who are just amazed that there's a parrot wearing a harness and on a leash, lol...I usually sneak him a grape or two, lol, or I'll buy some fresh greens, veggies, and fruit and Kane will help himself to some of it...I think his favorite thing is simply riding around on the cart!!! As soon as we walk into a store and I grab a cart, he jumps right down onto the back of the child-seat and faces forward, like he's on a ride at an amusement park or somethi3ng...So I humor him and we walk all over the store a few times just for him...We stop and talk to people who are amazed by seeing a parrot in the store, I get him to say a few words and they love it...but again, NO TOUCHING!
It's odd though, both Walmart stores in State College (less than 5 minutes away from each other, it's ridiculous) not only allow pets inside of their stores, including the entire grocery area, but I'd say that every single time I go inside either of them I see at least 2 or 3 dogs at a minimum, usually it's more like 10+ at any given time...I don't know if that's because of Penn State being here with over 100,000 students or what, I'm assuming so, because these are not "Service-Dogs" at all...I guess people call them their "ESA's" and I often see the Emotional Support Animal vests and such on them, but that is obtainable by literally anyone and any dog. But Walmart has no issue at all with it...I've not ever seen another bird in any store before, once there was a Bearded Dragon being pushed around in the cart, and I saw a cat on a collar and leash once, but that's it.
So I think the bottom-line about bringing your birds out with you is just using common-sense...Avoid places where other birds are regularly, especially pet shops or bird shops, and don't let people you don't know pet or touch your bird, not only because of the worry of illness/disease, but also because you don't want a lawsuit due to a bite...And taking your bird's outside for outdoor activities is safer than taking them into stores and such, as long as they are always on a harness and leash...And of course, avoid taking your birds into any homes of people you don't know or that don't have birds, because they probably do use Teflon to cook in, and use harsh commercial cleaning products and the like...The same goes for restaurants, people don't often thing about that but most restaurants are going to cook with cookware/bakeware or appliances that contain Teflon or other non-stick coatings made with lethal, fluorinated compounds...
