Here is an article I once wrote for a bird magazine.
Birds come in many different qualities and quality combinations. Most people do not know this and most breeders and resellers of birds take advantage of this fact.
One factor that goes into determining the price of a bird is the quality of the breeder parents that were used and the history of their offspring.
Another factor is the amount of time that the breeder spends with the bird. Some breeders think hand feeding a baby bird means opening the cages squirting some juice in the baby's mouth and locking it back up again. After all that bird is hand fed isn't it. We like to use a term we call "Hand Raised". This means that not only was the bird hand fed, it has been handled for hours a day, each day. Most smaller breeders are one or two man operations and there is no way they could possibly spend that amount of time with each and every little baby they raise. The very big commercial breeders also cannot spend that sort of time with each and every bird. We are a medium sized breeder and our aviary is in a very small town that has a high population of retired people. We hire retired women to come in every day to feed and play with the birds. This is a great situation because they are willing to work cheap so we can afford to pay them to play with and socialize each and every bird. This is great for the ladies as well. They get paid to play with birds all day.
One more factor that comes into play when determining the price of a bird is the cost of the food. Some breeders use only seed and others use a mix of seed and pellet diet. While others use only pellet diet and supplement the diet with a daily assortment of fresh fruits and vegetables. Most breeders will say they feed only the best pellet diet and yada, yada, yada. But a breeder will get eaten out of house and home if every bird ate that way. Here is a tip; the higher quality birds receive the better, more expensive diet. They are worth more and the breeder will recoup more money for expenses on the higher quality birds.
The lower priced birds may have some sort of physical defect such as a missing toe. This is very common because the mother may nip off a toe while the babies are in the nest. In fact some breeders use this as a means to measure when it is time to remove the babies from the nest. The healthiest babies are the ones who have stayed in the nest the longest. Some breeders remove the babies from the nest too early in order to avoid possible physical damage to one or more of the babies. Then they incubate the babies, but these babies do not develop as fast or as strong and healthy. So in order to get the best healthiest babies, sometimes you have a bird in a clutch that has been damaged. This bird can be sold off at a discount. Since most birds do not need four toes, it does not make a big difference in the quality of the affected birds life. In fact most consumers never even notice. Some breeders do not disclose this but they all occasionally have birds like this.
Sometimes there are other minor physical defects such as the coloring not being just right or the feathers aren't in perfect condition. These birds don't have to be discounted as much as a missing toe but should still be bought a little bit cheaper.
Other differences in quality are the mental characteristics of the bird. Even at a very early age, the bird may be displaying signs that in the future, it may end up becoming a biter, screamer or feather plucker. Since all baby birds look and act sweet, most consumers do not know what to look for and cannot tell which ones are displaying these signs. Breeders and resellers will take advantage of this fact and tell you that all of their birds are the sweetest birds in the world. They will show you pictures of their birds cuddled up next to teddy bears and toys, but these are just sales tactics. If they told you the truth, you probably would not buy their bird.
So how do you as a consumer know which birds are the best. Well first of all, you do have to come to terms with trusting someone at some point in time. Most high quality breeders run a closed aviary. This means that you will not be able to see the breeder parents, what they feed the babies or parents etc. This means that you will have to take the breeders word for it. Who do you trust? Here is a tip; how many breeders told you there were differenced in the qualities of birds.
One way you can tell the quality of a bird is the price. Each variety of a bird has its own wholesale price level. A Congo African Grey parrot for example has a wholesale value of $1195.00. This means that this is the price any pet shop would be willing to pay for a good quality Congo African Grey. Should you be able to buy it for this price? Not unless you own a pet store, have a resale tax id number and are buying several every month. But that does not mean that you cannot buy a slightly lower quality bird for that price or even cheaper.
Now let me ask you a question. You would not sell a ten-dollar bill on the Internet for $7.00 if you knew you could go to any bank and get ten singles for it, would you? I didn't think so, unless you already brought it to the bank and they told you they would not accept it because a corner was ripped off. Then you might consider selling it for $7.00
Well no breeder is going to sell you a $1200 bird for $900 either, unless it is only worth $900.00. On the Internet, you may find legitimate sellers selling Congo African Greys for as low as $900. This price is by the way, below wholesale. There are several reasons for this.
First, there are a lot of fraudulent sellers on the Internet. In fact if you find any prices too good to be true (example: African Grey Parrots for less that $900) Rest assured, it is a fraudulent seller.
The legitimate sellers are only advertising their cheaper (lower quality) birds online because that is what the online shopper is looking for. Most breeders don't explain this to online shoppers because it takes too much time, the customer won't appreciate the difference anyway and someone has to buy the lower quality birds. It might as well be the person shopping online for the cheapest price. Like I said earlier, Most people don't know the difference so most breeders will take advantage of this. They will tell you that the bird you are buying is the best quality you can get. Remember, he is a salesperson. He knows he only has one shot at selling you a bird so if he doesn't make his bird out to be the best in the world, you may buy another bird from someone else.
Just remember, there is no such thing as a free lunch. There is a standard for pricing on birds, so if one bird is cheaper than another bird of the same type, there is a reason for it.
Most of the birds listed for sale in classified ads are slightly older birds that have problems like feather plucking, biting and/or screaming. Most of the sellers of the birds in the ad will tell you that it is a great bird and that they are only selling the bird because of a divorce or they are moving or they no longer have time for the bird. But in most cases, the bird is being sold because the owner realized that his "good deal" wasn't such a good deal after all.
If you don't want to end up selling your "good deal" or problem bird in a classified ad in a few months or so, you should bone up and get the better quality bird. If you spend an extra couple hundred dollars on the bird, prorate that over the lifespan of the bird and you will see that it did not cost you that much more and you and your family will enjoy the bird much more.
By the way, any older bird should be bought for cheaper than the same type and quality baby bird. This is because older birds have already bonded with their owners and have already developed habits (good or bad).
I hope this helps you to understand why some birds of the same type are cheaper than others.
by
Mike Kelly
Master Breeder
Chicago Bird Store
1-877-744-BIRD (2473)
