I’m curious about taking the bird outside

[wrench13]

Little story here - Salty is well trained in the subject of Harness and is not usually an overly skittish parrot. We were out and about, with him in his harness. I stopped to have my car washed. We waited for it to be done, outside by the exit for the cars. Remember that. Salty was in harness on my shoulder; he had recently been clipped (mild clip, just enough to allow gliding to the floor); and its not his first time with me at this car wash and he's been in my bright red BMW Z3 coupe many times.

So there we are, waiting patiently for my car to come rolling out. When Salty got a glimpse of it, off he took like a bat out of Hell. Classic fight or flight response. But because he was in harness, he got as far as the elastic leash on the harness stretched and then YOINK, he got brought to a dead stop. The point is that had he not been in harness, he would have been GONE!! Even freshly clipped, that flight response pumps so much adrenaline into a parrot's body that they can easily compensate in an emergency (in their mind) and off they go. You may never see that flight response within your house and be falsely led to think that the clipping will prevent your parrot from flying away 100% of the time. Absolutely not true!!

 

[LaurieLJT]

I would strongly advise against ever taking ANY parrot outside without a harness if they are not inside a cage. It is highly irresponsible and reckless to do so.

It only takes ONE time for you to lose them either temporarily or permanently. They might fly off, fly into oncoming traffic or into a predators mouth (such a dog on a walk or a cat).

Whenever I see an unharnessed parrot (not inside a cage) I get so angry.

There is SO MUCH to lose and little to nothing to gain by not using a harness. I could never imagine taking that risk. And everyone who is willing to take the risk, well, I think it says very much about them and how much (or rather little) they value the life and well being of their parrot(s).... (I know this might be an unpopular opinion/take on the subject).

(I understand that free flight is a bit of a different thing, but my stance remains the same)

To me it's the same as driving without a seat belt because the risk of being in a car crash is "relatively low"... But IF you get unlucky, you are pretty much f****d. And in that case YOU'RE the one responsible for your own suffering, the poor parrot(s) did not make the choice to be exposed to unnecessary dangers

Yeah. I understand. All birds get spooked by any noise whether they r familiar with it or not. I decided not to take him out. Only in travel cage. I’m way too nervous about it Thanks for information

 

[TeekoGreenCheek]

Im building a outdoor aviary with a forgivness net, for Teeko, so I can bring him outside to stretch his wings a bit. Even with a highly trained bird I wouldn't trust it..that's just me.. personally. I've brought him outside for years now inside of his cage to hear sounds, and feel the wind and sunlight. He loves it. I had a insident where Teeko got outside. And bolted, one of the scariest moments in my life..there is something about when your featherd friend flys away and so does all the memories and shock hit you at one time i cant explain it..fortunately he came back to me..after calling over and over..then after I cried for a couple hours of happiness and sadness. And then stuffing teekos beak with sunflower seeds spoiling him to death. I finally calmed down.

 

[GoldenDaysAz]

Im building an outdoor aviary with a forgivness net, for Teeko, so I can bring him outside to stretch his wings a bit. Even with a highly trained bird I wouldn't trust it..that's just me.. personally. I've brought him outside for years now inside of his cage to hear sounds, and feel the wind and sunlight. He loves it. I had a insident where Teeko got outside. And bolted, one of the scariest moments in my life..there is something about when your featherd friend flys away and so does all the memories and shock hit you at one time i cant explain it..fortunately he came back to me..after calling over and over..then after I cried for a couple hours of happiness and sadness. And then stuffing teekos beak with sunflower seeds spoiling him to death. I finally calmed down.

AweeeeeThanks for sharing!

 

[kme3388]

This is a very graphic photo. My husband just sent me this last weekend. This photo was taken in the center of the city I live in.

This Cooper’s hawk got this pigeon in flight. With ease & no effort from the sounds of it

Our parrots really don’t stand a chance against predator birds

Another thing to be very aware of if parrots are brought outside without a harness, or not in a carrier

Moderators you can remove this if you think it’s too graphic I get it

 

[SammyAndyAlex]

View attachment 60808
This is a very graphic photo. My husband just sent me this last weekend. This photo was taken in the center of the city I live in.

This falcon got this pigeon in flight. With ease & no effort from the sounds of it

Our parrots really don’t stand a chance against predator birds

Another thing to be very aware of if parrots are brought outside without a harness, or not in a carrier

Moderators you can remove this if you think it’s too graphic I get it

This is so scary... A dead pigeon was found in our yard a few months ago. Most likely also killed by a falcon (or some other type of predatory bird). It was clear that it had suffered a violent death.

A bird of prey can even attack a parrot that is harnessed. If they are bold enough even when the bird is perching on you or you are within a few feet of the parrot.

Terrifying thought

 

[kme3388]

This is so scary... A dead pigeon was found in our yard a few months ago. Most likely also killed by a falcon (or some other type of predatory bird). It was clear that it had suffered a violent death.

A bird of prey can even attack a parrot that is harnessed. If they are bold enough even when the bird is perching on you or you are within a few feet of the parrot.

Terrifying thought

It’s actually a Cooper’s hawk. I misspoke. From my quick reading on this specific hawk it sounds like it eats about 2 birds a day. I’m not sure on specifics of how rare it would be for a captive parrot outside to be prey of our predator birds. Nature is really cruel.

All I know is the Harpy Eagle is a mean green killing machine. Everything about how that bird is made is to hunt & kill. Its nails are as long as a bears. It can see a penny sitting on the ground 2 football field lengths away. It actually hunts & kills monkeys. It watches monkey troops for days, and exhibits the behaviors of the monkeys before striking. I do find the harpy eagle magnificent, but I wouldn’t want to be on its prey list. Our parrots truly stand no chance against these predator birds. I can’t even exaggerate that enough.

 

[BE GROW]

Even so, don't forget that they were supposed to fly

 

[SammyAndyAlex]

Even so, don't forget that they were supposed to fly

Are you referring to parrots?

Although you are correct, they are also supposed to live in the wild. In huge flocks of their own species. Without contact with humans. They are also not made to get any medical attention if they get sick.

 

[kme3388]

Even so, don't forget that they were supposed to fly

Yes, I do agree with that. Its important for their health to fly. Flying outside is the concerning part. Especially for captive parrots who do not have the natural instincts, or wing strength of their wild friends. Nextly they haven't been exposed to nature what so ever. They are very easily spooked, and make great targets for our cruel nature.

 

[BE GROW]

Are you referring to parrots?

Although you are correct, they are also supposed to live in the wild. In huge flocks of their own species. Without contact with humans. They are also not made to get any medical attention if they get sick.

If they really fly away someday, even they lived with human all the time, but maybe we won't have a solution to find them back, the only thing I can do is hoping they could quickly adapt and be safe.

 

[GaleriaGila]

It's an age-old question not just related to pet birds... excitement vs. safety.
A life on the excited edge is a life at risk, and a life in sheltered safety is a life in ennui, perhaps... and every gradient in between. We all have to find our comfort/ethical zone. My Rb has led a life in the slow lane... he's also 40 years old. No judgment called for... just open-eyed, loving hopes, I guess.

 

[Suzette]

OMGosh… @Botsari … I cannot believe this scenario just happened to us… walking into the house from the outdoor aviary and our neighbor started up his diesel truck. Couldn’t have even planned this post for today!. I didn’t waste the opportunity to videotape it and I will post to YouTube and share the link with you here soon.
Fortunately, we got her back, but it required a ladder. The most terrifying thing is, it is 110° here in Phoenix right now and she wouldn’t have lasted even 1/2 hour on a tile roof Our female golden conure Daisy talks and she said “thank you” in the middle of her panting all the way home.

I'm so glad you got her back!