Man's best friend isn't always necessarily a dog, according to Dana Haygood of Conway.
Pet Country, a local pet store, hosted Bird Day on Saturday so Dana and her husband, Robert, could display several rare birds and teach valuable lessons on the education and care of these animals.
"Avians aren't just birds," Dana said. "They're a wonderful, beautiful, intelligent species, not just show pieces."
One of the rarest birds in the world, and one that loyally perched upon Dana's shoulder, is the blue-throated macaw.
"There are less than 100 left in the wild and less than 1,000 left in homes across the world," Dana said. "About a year ago there were still 200 in the wild."
Some reasons Dana said could be causing the decrease of this species are smugglers and the clear-cutting of the forests.
"Most are caught and exported illegally before they mature and 50 percent will die before they reach their destination," Dana said. "This bird is definitely at the top of the endangered birds list."
However, there are researchers currently in Bolivia who are tracking and monitoring the blue-throated macaws to try to save the species, she added.
She also said even though her blue-throated macaw, Jade, is only 11 months old and still in her "terrible twos," macaws can live up to 100 years.
"They're not only a lifetime companion, they're a generational companion," Dana said.
Most bird owners make it a point to put names of the people they want to take care of the birds in the future in their wills, she added.
Another bird becoming endangered is the citron-crested cockatoo, another one of Dana's nine birds. She said the recent tsunami wiped out most of their natural habitat.
"Unless somebody steps up to help them, they are going to be gone," Dana said.
Dana said her favorite part about working with birds is being able to educate others about them.
"I try to consult with people to find out what their needs are and what they want in a bird," Dana said. "We don't want to see them floating around in the classifieds or let loose."
Going to different schools in the area is another way to get this type of education out.
"Kids can interact with them and talk to them," Dana said. "I love to see their eyes wide in amazement."
Teaching kids and adults alike to know where your bird is coming from is another important aspect, she added.
"It's the same thing as not wanting to buy a puppy from a puppy mill," Dana said. "Everybody may not have my passion, but at least I can make people aware."
The nine bird companions living in the Haygood household all came from bird breeders who are friends of the couple, she said.
The birds fit in perfectly with the family and she added they're a lot like children. When the birds begin actually bickering verbally, Dana said "it just cracks me up."
These members of her family live in their own room, complete with a custom-built jungle gym.
"They're all spoiled rotten," Dana said.
When asked if Dana would ever be able to let go of her endangered pets, she made the answer perfectly clear.
"I will never ever sell one that is endangered," Dana said. "Not for all the money in the world."
As for teaching the birds to talk and be obedient, she said training can start as young as 3 weeks old.
"If they start it now, then they will have much less problems when the birds hit puberty," Dana said. "And you don't want to buy an older bird raised by somebody else."
The other side to the education of these birds is behavior modification, a weekly class Robert teaches at Pet Country.
In this class Robert teaches both birds and owners about basic bird care, cages, perches, showers and health care. Robert said 70 percent of problems with birds go back to nutrition.
"If you keep a bird on improper nutrition, they get upset and angry," Robert said.
The Haygoods actually cook their own bird food and sell it at Pet Country.
"If you were to think of a perfect human diet, that's the perfect bird diet," Robert said.
Owners also get a chance to learn how to deal with possible bad behaviors, including biting, feather plucking and the birds not wanting to follow commands.
"You can compare a lot of these actions to the behavior of a normal 5- or 6-year-old child," Robert said.
Letting the bird know who's boss is also very important to raising a well-behaved pet.
"If you buy a horse, you can't just climb on its back," Robert said. "Birds are the same way, they need the barrier to be set when they're young."
Robert said birds still have natural survival instinct and need to know who is in the dominant role.
"If you allow a bird to assume the leadership role and you leave the house, that'll make him a nervous wreck," Robert said.
Turning the bird over, offering treats for good behavior and being consistent with what you do are great tricks for bird training, he added.
The Haygoods' passion for birds began five years ago when Robert brought an Indian ringneck home for Dana as a Mother's Day gift, Dana said.
She then took some of the birds she bought over the years to their daughter's class for show and tell and said she has loved teaching kids about them ever since.
(Staff Writer Jessica Montgomery can be reached by e-mail at jessica.montgomery@thecabin.net or by phone at 505-1236.)
