The craze for canaries lasted for more than a century, with imports reaching half a million birds each year. But even after they went out of style, the canary's impact on culture remains.
By the time I came along in the 50s, my parents had a pet "dwarf parrot", green, named Skippy, and around the time I was 6 or 7, a couple of blue and black and white (best guess of my ancient memory) parakeets. I eventually was charged with the duties of cleaning their cages. As a birdwatcher today, I would love to figure out what they actually were, but the passage of time. ... Back then, growing up, I didn't think this was unusual, though I don't actually remember encountering caged birds at the homes of any of my friends. If I could have a conversation with my now long-departed parents, one of my questions might be -- why keep caged birds as pets? Unless I've forgotten, we did not have bird feeders outdoors, which would be, and is, my choice today. Thanks for bringing back an interesting memory.
And thank you for sharing that memory! I still haven't found a compelling narrative for why keeping birds has become so much less popular than it used to be (while dogs and cats have never been more popular), but it's really interesting to see that trend in action - namely people like you who had pet birds as kids, but choose not to as adults.
By the time I came along in the 50s, my parents had a pet "dwarf parrot", green, named Skippy, and around the time I was 6 or 7, a couple of blue and black and white (best guess of my ancient memory) parakeets. I eventually was charged with the duties of cleaning their cages. As a birdwatcher today, I would love to figure out what they actually were, but the passage of time. ... Back then, growing up, I didn't think this was unusual, though I don't actually remember encountering caged birds at the homes of any of my friends. If I could have a conversation with my now long-departed parents, one of my questions might be -- why keep caged birds as pets? Unless I've forgotten, we did not have bird feeders outdoors, which would be, and is, my choice today. Thanks for bringing back an interesting memory.
And thank you for sharing that memory! I still haven't found a compelling narrative for why keeping birds has become so much less popular than it used to be (while dogs and cats have never been more popular), but it's really interesting to see that trend in action - namely people like you who had pet birds as kids, but choose not to as adults.