The last time I was in my local Petco, I asked if I could bring my bird in next time and they said, "please do." The new owner loves birds and ever since he took over this store they've really stocked up on bird supplies.
So, I decided to brave the traffic and let Dobby go with me. They have a huge vet section and there were a lot of dogs with their owners. I was nervous but we stayed away from them. It was kinda cool getting to take him down the aisle. We picked out nutriberries and he saw some of the toys he had at home and I think he made a connection in that little brain.
I know some people might think it was really risky of me bringing him in the store with no cage but I knew he would really enjoy the experience. I have my heart set on this baby sun conure and I showed him to Dobby and they loved each other instantly. uh oh! (the price tag was $579!!!)
At first everyone in the store seemed leary to what I was doing but when they saw him react to the other birds, several people came over and started asking the usual questions. (does he talk...)
I was a special ed teacher for several years and it brought back a lot of nice memories. Sometimes this bird reminds me of those days because I had to take the people I worked with into some less than safe (the general public) situations but they were always willing to take the risk because they knew I was going to show them something really cool. Luckily that's how this situation went.
Then when we went through a drive through on the way home he started yelling into the intercom as if he was ordering.

I take Nick places with me sometimes depending on the weather, but I've never had him in someplace. I'd be a little leary of him getting startled and hurting himself trying to get away.

They make little suits for these guys that allow you control without them being in a cage, I'd look into one of these if I were you just to cover the unknown.

Other than that all the books say take them out and about.

Weather permitting I take my birds all over the place, to different pet shops and even to Lowe's hardware! When ever I have my birds with me I plan on spending at least 2 hours longer there than I normally would because people want to talk and pet and hold if the bird will allow it. Yes...you get all the same questions...does he talk, does he bite, are they messy...etc. Its good socialization for the birds.

As far as losing or having an accident with any of them, When we are out and about they sit on my hand and I have a grip of their feet so that they can't get away. I make it a habit of ALWAYS holding their feet so I'm sure I have control should they become startled. All my birds wings are clipped so less likelihood of them flying off even when startled and with my grip of their feet. But keep in mind that even though your birds wings are clipped it is still possible for them to catch a current and be gone. So ALWAYS have either a good grip on their feet or have them in a flight suit or harness of some kind!

The birds love to ride on the cart handle at Lowes... And when Andie and I both take birds People just "flock" to us. Andie usually takes her umbrella cockatoo "Cash" and he is a ham and will sing and laugh and people absolutely adore him.

One word of caution though when you're taking them into other pet stores...Don't allow them to make contact with other birds...if you handle other birds be sure to wash your hands extra well before handling your bird again and vice versa...

I'm glad you mentioned what you did in your last paragraph Connie...I was wondering the same thing about exposing your bird in and around other birds.....I would be apprehensive in this respect.....

I've taken Harley out a few times and he gets so excited and people want to hold him. I can hand him off to them but you can't just up and take him from me. (he will bite for sure).

interesting! thanks for the advice about the feet. these birds were behind thick glass so I think he was okay.
I bought a flight suit and tried to get him to wear it several months ago. I finally gave up on that.

That's great about the other birds behind glass...Didn't know that...



And on the flight suits.. A lot of birdies just don't like them.....I've heard if you start with them when they are very young, you have a better chance of training them to the suit...I know I wouldn't be able to get one on Harley....

even though that sun conure was behind the glass, they had an instant bond. Dobby was bobbing his head and the conure was flipping around in his cage. I could tell he was excited to see us. poor little guy. nobody will buy him because he's priced too high for what people can afford in this area

Click to view attachmentI have taken Pete (conure) into many places..
One time we went for a car ride and I did not bring a cage
(I will not leave them in a car alone)..so...
I took Pete into Walmart..I really did not want to get notice but, of course he had to start talking
we where notice and asked question after question
After awhile the question
IS THAT BIRD REAL? I said NO
it ran on batteries I did not want to get kick out because only service Animals are only allowed in Walmart

When my Quackers was alive I would take him with me to school and into some stores. The first couple of times he went to school, he was pretty uneasy about all the kids coming up to us. (I was an aide.) I could walk all over the campass. Quackers rode on my shoulder while we were in the building and I held him against my chest if we went outside. I also took him when I went to visit family.

While in the truck driving I know you are suppose to have them in a cage, but I let him ride on my shoulder. He would walk across the back of the seat and on the steering wheel. I used caution when letting him get onto the steering wheel.

So many children and adults are affraid of parrots. When you can show someone the fantastic nature of these comical creatures and how loving they really are, you open the door for loving new relationships.

I have talked to many people who own birds and sll the and they say the more you can socialize them the less likely they will become grouchy towards other people. I am not saying they won't have their favorites. But at least others will most likely be able to handle the bird if you are not around. Never know when something might cause you to have to be gone and not be able to take them with you. Also, I think the birds really enjoy enteracting with other people.

I would be interested in little trips, but would be very wary about pet stores b/c of the disease factor. I had no idea they let you take pets on other stores. I'll have to see if there are specific policies around me. But you're right- great socialization. I try to take my dogs along with me to pet stores and the park etc- but it's hard b/c Mac is aggressive and needs a refresher training session and special gear before we go anywhere (then she's pretty good) and Delilah is a pansy and is afraid of everything.

petey goes to work with me but I use a travel carrier and seat belt him into the backseat of the car. It has straps like a backpack so I can carry him around and still have my hands free and he can see as we go around.

I have never taken him into a pet shop mostly because I dont trust the dog owners and of course the disease factor with the other birds they tend to keep that have never been quarantined or vet checked etc. The biggest issue I have is with some (but not all) of the dog owners. On any given occasion I have seen people let their dogs get close to other dogs and a fight has begun between the two dogs.

Then again I saw two humans yesterday that needed to be on leashes...but thats another story (G)

Yes, it took me about two months to get the "guts up." He didn't touch anything in the store except me and the bag of nutriberries I was holding. (I don't know about breathing germs)
I don't usually have that much time to take Dobby through an ordeal like that. Like Andie's mom mentioned, you have to add another hour or so onto your schedule but the experience is rich for them. Dobby was in such a good mood yesterday. He loves attention from people and he's been called cute so many times, he's learned the word.
The drive thru was hilarious. I had forgotten that I had taken him through once before but he remembered and I swear he was ordering food through the intercom. We just couldn't understand the chirps.

So sorry, I could not respond to the email sent. It would not let me for some reason so I'll post it here and hope the sender reads this thread again.
Flight suits can be found on ebay for about $30. You can buy a leash for a little extra. They are hard to describe but if you do a search for flight suits, you can see what they look like.
Unfortunately, most birds do not like having something around their little bodies so they won't wear them.
Others on this forum have had success with them so hopefully they will come along and respond as well.

I'm very leary of taking my bird place, but that's only because my last name is Leary

The drive thru must of been a hoot what did your fid order btw?

I have only taken Louie back to the store I bought him. They are an all bird store and he was weaned there etc. I had to bring him back for a couple of weeks to get him weighed so we could make sure he was eating good and not loosing too much weight.

The people who buy their parrots there can come back with them and visit, board for free and get grooming done for free. However, you guys are right about being cautios with diseases. I should ask them about it - although I did hear the owner tell a customer on the phone that she needed to bring a current health slip from the vet.

Are there vaccines out there for parrots? Kinda like Bordatella for dogs who are boarding.

That sounds like a really good pet store! This Petco is more like an Office Depot. The pets are all behind glass cages and it is aisle after aisle of products and that's what we were really after. He was out of nutriberries.
All these responses have brought up some very valid points!
I spoiled Dobby so much yesterday that today his behavior is atrocious! (He is demanding a lot of attention...more than usual)
I have no idea what he ordered, lol IMPdujour, the person who waited on us did not speak bird but I really got a kick out of seeing a "drive thru" through my birds eyes. Can you imagine what he thinks!
"I get it. You yell in that metal box and they hand you food!"