A new bill in New York City Council proposes to ban the retail sale of birds in pet shops across the city, stirring controversy among local business owners.
Drafted by Councilmember Diana Ayala, the bill seeks to amend Local Law 132 of 2024 by adding birds to the list of animals prohibited from retail sale.
If enacted, it would affect popular pet birds like parrots, finches, and parakeets, while excluding poultry such as chickens.
Breeders, however, would be exempt from the proposed ban, allowing them to continue selling birds.
This legislation would mark the first of its kind in New York State to prohibit the sale of birds as pets.
Allie Taylor, president of Voters for Animal Rights, has collaborated with Ayala to advocate for this ban.
Taylor emphasized the natural behaviors of birds in the wild, stating, “These are birds that in the wild, they fly hundreds of miles every day.
They’re crossing rainforests, savannahs, tropical mountainscapes that are rich in diversity.
They are not meant to be sitting in your living room in a cage in Chelsea.”
The proposed bill follows a recent ban on the sale of guinea pigs in stores, enacted by the City Council in 2023.
A similar bill aiming to curb bird sales statewide has also been introduced by State Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal and is currently in committee.
Many birds sold in New York pet stores are sourced from out-of-state bird mills, often compared to puppy mills, which have raised concerns among animal rights advocates.
According to Liz Cabrera-Holtz, senior campaigns manager at World Animal Protection, prohibiting the sale of exotic birds is crucial in halting financial support to these facilities.
“Birds suffer right from their birth at the mill to when they get transported from the mill to life in the store and then to a person’s home,” Cabrera-Holtz explained.
She noted that any sale of birds perpetuates the wildlife trade, further increasing demand for those caught in the industry.
Animal rights advocates contend that birds are not suited for domestication and should not be confined to cages.
They argue that birds often possess special needs which make them more complex to care for than conventional pets like dogs and cats.
Given that some bird species can live for several decades, the potential challenges they pose to older owners are also part of the discussion.
For pet store owners, this bill is just another hurdle in a series of restrictions faced by the industry in recent years.
Lisa Santiago, manager of Whole Pets Market in The Bronx, acknowledged that while the bill’s passage wouldn’t threaten her business’s survival, it would create operational inconveniences.
“Of course it’s going to affect us because we do sell birds,” said Santiago.
She continued, “If we can’t sell the birds, we still sell the feed.
But not being able to sell the animal, that kind of slows things down for the sale of the supplies.”
Having grown up with various types of animals, Santiago believes that the ban would strip children of the opportunity to learn responsibility through pet ownership.
“Before it was the rabbits.
Then it was the guinea pigs.
And now it’s going to be the birds,” Santiago lamented.
She expressed concern about the diminishing chances for future generations to experience joy from having pets.
Queron Romain, a bird breeder and employee at Wonder Pets Corp. store in Brooklyn, also voiced strong opposition to the bill.
He warned of negative consequences for both pet stores and consumers, predicting that prospective bird owners will face higher costs if they seek birds from breeders outside the city.
“What’s gonna happen to the average old Joe Shmo when he’s eagerly looking for a bird?” Romain asked.
He highlighted that costs for birds could soar from around $50 to upwards of $150.
“You’re only making pet stores work harder to stay open,” he declared.
“If you take out the birds, it’s only gonna be fish.
Literally, there’s nothing else to buy.”
Animal advocates like Taylor counter that while birds will no longer be sold in stores, they will still be available for adoption through shelters and rescue centers.
Unlike dogs and cats that are often surrendered to city shelters, many birds are either released into the wild or die at home due to lack of preparation by owners.
“We’re taking out the financial incentive of treating these birds like products,” Taylor concluded.
image source from：thecity
