Dear editor,
Re: Birds that make for popular pets (Record, Feb. 4).
It saddens me that owning caged birds is still considered an accepted thing to do.
I can only guess that the people who say they love birds (read: love owning birds) are ignorant of one of the most basic instincts (needs) that birds have. Namely the instinct to fly.
There is a reason they have wings, they don’t have them just for looks. One argument that people offer me is that they let their birds fly around in the house, as though it is equal to the open sky.
Is the inside of a house as exciting as the sky with its fresh breezes, sunshine and sounds? Another argument is that their birds are happy because they sing and hop about.
Caging birds does not give them the opportunity to live to their full potential, which includes self determination and being with their own kind.
That “birds can make a fun and aesthetically appealing addition to a home” does not justify shortchanging them. Please think of the birds’ needs and not your own.
Jude Kirk,
Denman Island
