-=> Quoting Jerry Rudoff to Kathy Johnson <=-
 -> It's not so much supply/demand as it is education of the public.
 -> People need to learn to ask questions-- like WHERE did the pet-store
 -> bird they're considering come from, was it hand-fed, is it
 -> vaccinated, etc. If the potential buyers were more well-informed
 -> about the product (birds), then the low-quality breeders wouldn't be
 -> able to sell junk birds to the stores or directly to the buyers.
 JR> The 21st century public, I believe, is generally an educated public..I
 JR> think it is HUMAN NATURE to want something for nothing and to get the
 JR> best possible price regardless of the ultimate cost.  We as breeders
 JR> (some of us) continue to sell our birds at wholesale prices to pet
 JR> store that increase the price 10's fold...Folks who do this are
 JR> opportunists who see the opportunity to make a couple of bucks...People
 JR> are willing to buy...thus supply and demand...I think folks go into
 JR> these situations with their eyes open thinking they can beat the odds
 JR> of getting a pet that is not healthy, etc.
I don't think that a pet shop is necessarily a bad place to buy a bird.
It depends upon how ethical the store is, and how ethical is the breeder
that is selling to the pet shop.
We've got one pet store in my community that has been in business for
more than 30 years, and they have a good reputation. I wouldn't
hesitate buying a parrot from them if there were no other sources
available. In fact, I went there a few weeks back looking for books
and they had some parrots for sale that looked to be very healthy and
active - from my novice opinion, anyhow...
It's too bad there are no pedigrees and breed standards in the bird
world, as there are with dogs...that would be a big help in making
an educated choice when buying parrots. If the parents of a parrot
were both multiple show winners, it would at least give the buyer
a better idea of what to expect from the offspring. But on the
other hand, while dogs will breed with any other dogs, such is
not the case with parrots.
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