Bird owners, is it just me or do any of you stress about going on holiday and leaving your bird behind? :-(?

Question

Ok so i'm the proud owner of hand-raised male cockatiel, we've had him for just over 4 months and call me insane if you will, but i feel like my days of a worry free holiday away are gone.

"obi" has at least 4 hours a day out of his cage with attention/playtime a day and i just worry that whoever looks after him when we go away (hiring a pet sitter) might not give him the same attention hes used to.

Do birds survive ok with "different" owners whilst their main owners are away on holiday. am i silly to stress so much?

i'm talking like 1 to 2 week vacations here.

have the rest of you ever felt this way? who do you get to look after your bird(s) when you go away?

i guess i just want to get some reassurance from other bird owners who have had to leave their birds in the care of someone else for awhile

thanks in advance for answering

Answer 1

I absolutely do! In fact, I haven't gone on any overnight trips since I got my cockateil a year ago. I suppose I need to get over that, but i'd be worried sick about him and also worried that he would be lonely and sad without me. Sorry, I guess i'm not reassuring you one bit LOL.... I'd also like to hear from bird owners to see what's happened when they left their birds in someone else's care :)

Answer 2

Birds will do fine while you are away.  If you have a neighbor or friend that will take the bird, that would be great.  Also, if there is somewhere near you that boards birds, then at least you know that your bird is with someone that understands what is normal for a bird and can take care of any problems immediately.

    Don't leave your bird home alone for more than 24 hours.  They foul their water and food and can get sick from that.  If the bird doesn't get the same amount of attention while you are away, it is fine.  He'll just be that much happier to see you again.  Also, don't feel silly about calling home to check on your feathered friend, people do it all the time.

Answer 3

No, I don't think your insane. If I was gunna be gone for that long, I'd take my birds with me and if I couldn't take my birds, I wouldn't go at all. And I'd NEVER EVER trust my birds with ANYONE >:O

Answer 4

SAME. I have a 4 year old Hand Raised Grey Cockatiel and i don't trust any one to look after him, We have never been away the whole 4 years. I would worry too much, He is like our child, lol.

Try getting one of your friends to look after him and house sit, someone the bird knows.

That's what we are going to do, but we would never go away that long, just 3 or 4 days at the most. I would stress too much about my baby.

Answer 5

Hi no your not crazy if it was possible to take him everywhere you would... I know I have 3 Parrots and going away was always something I worried about... My fave pet store owner used to breed Eclectus Parrots and he does board birds.. So I took mine there and they loved it he didn't keep them caged at all as they are used to being out all day he carried them around on his shoulders as he went about his day ... My birds are very friendly so ppl would come in and pet them they were fine ... I just took thier food and left instructions... He has a great staff very knowledgeable about parrots ... Also my vet would board them but they wouldn't get the out of cage time they were used to so just start checking around getting feedback ask questions... I dont worry about going away anymore I know they will be fine with Ron ( the owner of the pet store ) ... Good luck

Answer 6

I take my amazon with me when I go on jobs and vacation....I wouldn't leave him with anyone!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 7

Animals do miss their owners a great deal,especialy if you have very few people coming over your place.We have a cat,dog, and birds.I always try to allow others to interact withthem so if I do have to leave them in the care of others atleast they have had contact with others before.

No matter who watches our pets I agonise about them.