The Real Cost of Owning a Bird
I have been a bird caregiver for over a decade. It all started when my brother and I wanted a pet, but we weren’t allowed to have a dog or cat. So we got creative. We were huge fans of nature shows, and went through the list of which pets Mom and Dad would actually let us have; because technically a bearded dragon isn’t a dog or a cat right?
So after pitching pets to my parents, we found one we were all able to agree on, a bird. Birds have been our main choice of pet ever since. We have had other pets such as hamsters, hermit crabs, and fish; but there’s something about birds that resonate with my family.
Sometimes, I wonder if it’s because my family has always been drawn to aviation. My father was an aeronautical engineer, who serviced military aircrafts. My mom and I, well, we’ve always had a knack for traveling and flying. And my younger brother, he became a pilot.
Meet Smokey Jesse Frances Spencer White. My 13 year old cockatiel. One of the loves of my life. He’s extremely vocal about his preferences, lets everyone know who’s really the boss, and my sweet serenader all in one. My family’s life has been changed forever and for the better because of him. To say we love him is literally an understatement.
With that said, taking care of Smokey is pretty easy. But it didn’t start out that way. I mean, it’s like living with another being and you two speak two completely different languages, but have to learn about each other to live comfortably and get along. When we first brought Smokey home, he was super quiet. Almost zombie-like. I remember my mom calling and saying, “Kisha, I think something is wrong with the bird. He’s not moving when I put my finger by him.”
It took us a couple of days to figure out that Smokey was just a little frightened and shy. Wouldn’t you be? For some time I had felt a little guilty about taking him away from his other bird friends at the pet store, and placing him in this completely foreign environment with species who are ten times his size. But luckily, it all worked out.
Thirteen years later, and we’ve developed our own unspoken language. I know Smokey’s habits and preferences, and he knows mine.
If you’re considering a bird as a pet, I highly recommend them. Granted my opinion is based solely on one species, the cockatiel, but from what Smokey and I have seen on YouTube, birds are some of the best pets one could have.
To help you on your journey to prepare for bringing home a new family member, I’d like to share with you my experiences with what it takes to care for a bird.
Disclaimer: Every bird is different, therefore caring for your bird may look a little different. Also, this content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your veterinarian or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or care.
Initial Purchasing Costs
It’s been quite some time since we got Smokey, so these numbers have probably changed over the years and may be different for you.
Cockatiel: $119
Cage: $300 (Smokey has a large cage. We joke that he has a mansion).
Yearly Wellness Checks
Once a year Smokey visits the vet to get his yearly wellness check. Here, his vet checks his wings, nails, mouth, feathers, lungs…you get the point. Getting a wellness check for your bird is extremely important. For starters, it will help you to become familiar with your bird’s anatomy. I.e. the lungs are in the back of the body, birds have eyelashes, etc. Second, it helps to officially document your bird’s health. The Vet will be able to help guide you in caring for your bird as you learn more about your new family member.
This expense costs about $74.00/year
Gram Stains and Blood Work
These medical check-ups kind-of caught me off guard because I had no clue what they were for. A gram stain is when the bird’s fecal matter is analyzed (don’t ask me how, but I assume through lab work) to determine and identify if there are any underlying issues at the bacterial level that are in need of addressing. And blood work, sort of is for the same. Blood work is gathering a drop or so of blood from your bird to identify any internal issues of concern.
They are both important to have, as birds tend to hide their sickness until they are extremely ill. Having a gram stain and blood work done will show you how your bird is doing internally. These are yearly expenses.
Gram Stain costs about $35/year
Blood Work costs about $100/year
Food
We purchase a variety of foods for Smokey. He has his base foods which consist of pellets and seeds, but then we also provide him with fresh foods as well. Smokey has a strict diet, which over the years has come to be. On a typical day Smokey’s food is as follows:
3 teaspoons of Harrison’s Adult Lifetime Fine Pellets
½ teaspoon of Kaytee Fiesta seed mixture
From there, depending on how he’s feeling that day (I know, I know so ridiculous. I bet you didn’t know birds could be that way, haha), he will eat some of his favorite fresh foods. These include carrots, sweet potatoes, broccoli, boiled egg, and arugula. For treats he eats unsalted crackers, corn flakes, and cheerios. I may be forgetting something, but you can check out a list of foods for birds here.
Kaytee Fiesta seeds costs about $44/year
Harrison’s Pellets costs about $140/year (it’s about $35 for a 5lb bag that we get from the vet)
Fresh foods, well I generally don’t track this since I eat the same fresh foods as Smokey and include those in my grocery bill.
Toys
Smokey gets several new toys a year. It’s important to keep your bird entertained, especially if you have one of the more social birds. I buy his toys from Planet Pleasures. Yearly I spend around $50–60 for his entertainment.
Medicine
About a year ago Smokey had a very scary incident where he was sick. As a result he is permanently on medicine. It’s a power medicine that he takes every other day, and it’s sprinkled on his food. Just like with any other pet, you never know if there are going to be unforeseen medical expenses.
Smokey’s medicine costs about $105/year (it’s $35 a bottle)
Grooming
About every 3 months or so Smokey will get what I call his version of a mani pedi. He gets his wings and nails trimmed. We take him to the vet to get this professionally done. Don’t worry, they don’t clip all his feathers and it doesn’t hurt him. They trim his aviary feathers so he won’t be full flighted. Smokey is still able to launch and fly small distances. We choose to do this because Smokey spends about 85% of his time outside of the cage. We like to take him with us around the house, and he’s a lot easier to manage with trimmed wings.
We get his nails trimmed because when not trimmed they stick to some of our clothing while he’s on us. To prevent his feet from getting caught and to lessen us getting scratched, we choose to get his nails trimmed.
Wings and Nails Trimmed costs about $140/year (about $35 every three months and we get it done as a bundle deal)
Other expenses:
Time
This isn’t necessarily a measurable expense, but when adding a bird to your family it’s important to take into account the amount of time you’ll need to invest. One a typical day I play with Smokey for a couple of hours. When I’m not directly playing with him I’m watching him play on his own or vocally talking to him as he plays.
Cleanliness
You’ll want to weekly clean your birds area, if not daily. Birds are quite messy. Around 9 AM we’ll have freshly cleaned Smokey’s area and by 10 AM he’s got food and little bird feathers everywhere again.
We use newspaper at the bottom of his cage and use water to clean his cage. Sometimes for a deep clean we dilute vinegar with water to clean his cage. I don’t track this expense as we keep vinegar at my house for cooking purposes as well and read the newspaper.
Totaling everything up (not including purchase of bird and cage), it costs around $688 to care for a bird. Which overall is very affordable considering if you Google how much it costs to care for a cat ($809) or dog ($1,400-$4,300) per year.
Feel free to let me know if you do add a bird to your family. Until then, enjoy a montage of Smokey pictures.
