I want a pet bird but don't wanna be one of those cruel owners to cage a bird!?

Just FYI, many people keep larger birds' cages open, but keeping them INSIDE and keeping their wings clipped are more for the bird's safety and well being, rather than your automatically assumption of it being cruel.

Do you know how many birds get out, get injured, and die because the owner wouldn't clip its wings? Or how many birds just take off and never come back? Even indoors, birds face all kinds of dangers when not caged when certain things are going on, like having guests over, you doing some simple chores, cleaning, even having a ceiling or stand fan on poses a threat to birds, So you want a cage-free bird, but how are you going to pay for medical and/or legal bills when you have a friend over and the bird possibly flips out on him/her and clamps down and doesn't let go? How many vet bills can you afford when your bird decides to just up and fly into the glass door or the ceiling fan? How many items are you willing to replace by having a bird just roam free in your home, destroying everything in sight?

Truth be told, I don't think you're ready for a bird at all. You have NO IDEA what it takes to take one on, especially a larger breed that requires so much time and dedication. Oh what's that? You can train it? Ok, have fun spending 2-3 years of your life continuously doing so only to be its strong-willed self and just up and fly away.

You pose more a threat to owning a bird than your silly belief that you're actually doing a "good deed" by not doing what's right by it.

If you want something like that you should feed birds in your backyard. The whole point of a pet is taming it and keeping it in your house. You can actually get wild birds to eat from your hand and learn who you are if you feed them regularly. Any bird can be outside of a cage without it's wings clipped as long as it stays inside. But if you let it out, even with training, it still might very well decide to just fly away, a gust of wind could blow it off track from your house, it could fly too far out and get lost, it could breed with other birds and make invasive species, it could even get attacked by hawks, cats, dogs, etc. That's just not safe to let a pet bird outside. It's not use to all the factors that being in the wild has to offer. Even if it's only out there for a very short period, it can still get into harms way. You're kind of asking for a disney world.

Absolutely not! Even highly trained birds fly off all the time. I own a green cheek conure, a Quaker Parrot,and many parakeets, and I belong to many pet bird forums. EVERY DAY I READ A NEW POST WHERE SOMEONE TOOK THEIR MACAW OR COCKATOO OR AMAZON THAT THEY'VE HAD FOR 20 YEARS OUTSIDE WITH THEM, THINKING THEY WOULD NOT FLY OFF, AND THEN THEIR BIRD JUST TAKES OFF! SOMETIMES THEY FIND THEM AFTER HOURS, DAYS, WEEKS, OR MONTHS, SOMETIMES THEY NEVER FIND THEM AGAIN, SOMETIMES THEY ARE KILLED BECAUSE THEY ARE CAPTIVE BRED BIRDS AND THEY CANNOT TAKE CARE OF THEMSELVES IN THE WILD!

That is what you need to realize, that any pet bird you could get, from a parakeet to a cockatoo, is a captive bred bird. They were bred by people and raised by people, and they cannot survive in the wild. I let my birds out of their cages all day long in their room, then when I get home they run the house, only in their cages to sleep. I even take them outside on their harnesses. BUT NEVER, EVER FREE FLIGHT!

Homing pigeons are really only birds that will learn to return home. How about building an outside aviary. Birds are always best keep in avaries with others of their own kind. And you can get a lot of enjoyment watching them interact with each other and get up to mischief.

pretty much all birds can have free flight time around the house as long as they are supervised, but it's still a good idea to have a decently sized cage that they can sleep in at night and stay in while no one is home. When you first get whatever bird you decide on, it will take a while to get them used to you enough, tame enough, and feel safe around you enough to let them out . For the going outside thing, I've heard and looked up quite a few things and from what i've heard, your best bet is to either be super bonded with them or to get them a good flight harness.

Not matter what, you will need a cage for the bird. Cages are not cruel unless they are undersized. So first you must decide which bird you want and do as much research as you can: diet, life span, needed attention, cage dimensions, and so on. You could reserve a room specially for the bird. That's what my friend did. She had parakeets that had their cage open most of the time cause someone was home. When you first get the bird make sure to keep him in his cage for at least 2 weeks so he recognizes his cage as his safe place, almost like a bedroom. Slowly introduce him to perches and toys outside the cage until he is comfortable in the room. Never let the birds fly outside the cage if no one is there to watch. If by any chance the bird is in a situation, whether it's crashing into a wall or getting caught behind furniture, someone MUST be there to check on them. Make sure to close the birds into the cage at night as well. This is all the advice I can give you!

Actually birds love their cages as long as they are size appropriate for the bird. It gives them a space all of their own. Having a space that it just theirs with their food and toys and bed gives them space to relax and hang out if they're feeling overwhelmed or want a nap. Some days, just like people, birds feel cranky and want a little space from their people even when they love them. Not having a cage gives them nowhere to go for a little peace and quiet. They will simply create a space somewhere in your house for themselves that will get in the way or you could accidentally hurt them as you don't know they are there. Also, they would poop all over your house constantly rather than only when you have them out of their cage.

Unfortunately, there is no pet bird that can be released outside and will come back to you. And if you did this, the bird would have no idea how to survive in the wild and would be quickly killed by wild birds. There are bird leashes that you can attach if you want to give them a little outside time, but they will honestly be happy just flying around and hanging out inside. The outside world is scary to pet birds as they are not used to it and it can be overwhelming.

I do, however, recommend having your bird's wings trimmed. It is not harmful to the bird as long as you get them clipped by someone who knows how to properly clip bird wings. Do not attempt it yourself as you could accidentally hurt your bird. With trimmed wings, birds can still float and glide, but not fly up to the ceiling. This is a good thing. While flying around your house, your bird could get hurt. They could run into a door that you close if they're flying behind you, fly into a ceiling fan, land on the kitchen stove while you're cooking, etc. It really is better for the bird to have their wings trimmed, but they will be okay if you are careful and really don't want their wings trimmed.

Not really. there are many small parrots, which will come to you but not outside they can easily get lost.

Like a cockatiel which should should stay in their cage most of the time, but once trained can fly around your room or home. cockatiels love to be with people, most will gladly sit on your shoulder for long periods of time.

I want a bird as well but I don't like the idea of caging it. One day when I'm rich I'll have an area of my yard dedicated to a large bird cage. And indoor I'd have a smallish cage (larger than most you buy at the store, though) where I'll keep them during the day. I also might left them fly around the house.

Some larger birds can be put in a harness as well. I'm not sure how I feel about this either.

I probably won't ever own a bird, though. Maybe.