Why YOU shouldn’t “save them all”
By Abi Strachan
Being involved in rescue, it’s a natural instinct to want to save every single bird that crosses your threshold… Being a good rescuer means that you can differentiate between what you want, and what is needed from you.
It’s so easy to fall in love with every bird that we have the honor of fostering. It’s so easy to think “I can offer them a much better life”. It’s so easy to fall into the terrible habit of being a foster fail.
The truth is, we don’t need foster fails, the birds don’t need foster fails. We need fosters. Fosters have a very specific duty to our organization, and we require that duty to be perfectly fulfilled.
If we had a network of foster fails, we would just be a bird trade club. But we’re not. We are a rescue organization that has taken an oath to serve and protect our feathered friends. More often than not, this means that we are in their lives for a short period of time.
Our system, as mentioned previously, functions on the availability of our carefully selected fosters, who function as transitional housing for most of the birds that are surrendered to us. It simply does not match our MO to have every foster adopt their foster fid.
Birds are surrendered to us, we take them in, perform an initial assessment, from there we decide if this particular “halfway house” is best suited to the bird’s needs, or we find one that is. In foster care a bird receives dedicated attention to assist with any issues they may have, they are chauffeured to vet appointments, educated on “proper behavior” and transitioned on to healthy diets. Some birds require more help than others.
If a foster were to adopt every bird that they took in, not only would it defeat our very purpose, but it would also create an entire community of hoarders. Hoarding anything, let alone sentient beings, is not ethical or healthy.
The fact is that you will share a special bond with every bird on some level, but that isn’t necessarily what the bird needs. We love every foster bird we meet, but we accept that there may well be better waiting for them on the other side of us. We are a chapter, not a story.
It’s simply not viable for us to entertain every foster as a “foster fail”. While this does sometimes occur, and we don’t frown upon it, realistically, it’s just not possible to have that big of a connection with every single bird. It’s a rarity, and each case should be analyzed accordingly. Our birds require more from you. They require a safe “landing spot” to settle, and overcome any trauma or hardship they may have endured.
Your duty is to assess and react accordingly, to every bird’s needs. It’s impractical to have a flock of 25 house cockatoos. Each one requires so much attention and special care that there just aren’t enough hours in the day. The same would apply to any species, or a mix thereof.
It’s also completely acceptable, and respected, to admit that you are not suited to being a foster home. It’s OK to admit that you grow too attached and battle to let go. But that’s when you know you are not an appropriate foster. Your services could be better utilized as transport, or cage collections, or an adopter. All of which are equally important.
Please, just keep your limits in mind. This duty requires the ability to accept that you are not the best that every bird has to look forward to. This doesn’t mean there’s a fault in your care, just that birds are like us, they “click” with certain people, and others not. And that’s OK!
We do not discourage fosters from adopting, but we do encourage the search for “the right fit”
Fostering also affords you the opportunity to get to know and love the beauty of birds, without the concern of financial commitments. Often food, medical and enrichment costs are daunting. Fostering allows you to reap all the rewards of owning a companion bird, without the financial limitations. But in order to do this, you must be prepared to hand a bird over to their forever family when the time comes.
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