Owners should be aware of the responsibilities of keeping parrots before adopting or purchasing one. Before an owner considers taking care of a parrot, the knowledge on proper care and handling of companion parrots should be researched. Are pet owners receiving knowledge on the proper care and handling of companion parrots from pet stores or breeders?

Compared to cats and dogs, parrots are not domesticated pets. The reason why parrots are not considered as domesticated animals is because they still maintain the appearances  that the wild parrots display. Moreover, parrots are one or two generations of birds that have been taken from the wild. As a result, parrots have kept their  instincts and behaviours that wild parrots have (Engebretson, 2006).

There have been debates on whether parrots should be allowed to be kept as pets because they are restricted from performing their natural behaviours by being kept captive. There are people who believe that parrots are protected by environmental hazards if kept as pets. Others are worried about wild parrots escaping and affecting the native birds in the area. On the other hand, there are people who want to keep parrots as companions to help with the conservation of species (Engebretson, 2006).

All of these issues must be taken into consideration when deciding whether parrots should be kept as companion animals.