Here’s how I ended up writing about National Bird Day… it started with some mental farts.
Okay, New Year’s Day is officially over. Time to make good with my New Year’s Resolution and make sure I post a blog on this site every Thursday.
My problem right now?
I got nothing.
Just a few minutes after New Year’s Day and I’m struggling with writer’s block.
What animal am I gonna write about?
Mental Block Over, Let’s Talk About National Bird Day
Okay, I’m back.
After spending an hour Googling what animal is interesting for January 2, I chanced upon an event that’s about to happen in a few days.
So, does anyone know about National Bird Day?
Yeah, it’s a real thing!
And it happens every January 5.
So, that’s on a Sunday.
Perfect!
What is National Bird Day?
Like I said, National Bird Day occurs every January 5 and it is a day dedicated to the appreciation of birds.
Birds are beautiful creatures.
Tthey are also important to the environment and the ecosystem that they live in. therefore, we should make sure that we also put enough focus on their welfare and protecting them and their habitat for their continued existence.
The first ever National Bird Day was organized by Born Free USA and Avian Welfare Coalition in 2002. It’s been more than 20 years and it seems like the event has gotten enough traction with bird brains… er lovers from all over the world.
Why is National Bird Day Important?
Every year, millions of birds are taken from the wild and sold illegally to animal collectors or those who will use them for amusement.
That number is only for wild birds that are sold as pets, entertainment or whatever.
That doesn’t account for tens of millions of birds that belong to poultry.
So, this means that birds, as a species in total are one of the most exploited animals in the world.
That’s sad.
That’s why groups like Born Free USA and Avian Welfare Coalition are equally important. These groups are the voice of the birds who can’t raise theirs against those who would abuse them.
National Bird Day, raises public awareness about the bird trade, cruel poultry practices and discusses how to improve the conditions of birds specifically bred for human consumption.
I mean it’s a necessary evil I guess because we do need to eat and birds are an important food source.
So we also need to regulate ourselves to provide more humane practices that benefit these birds.
My Personal Feelings About Birds
To be honest, I’m not that much of a fan of birds as I am of reptiles but this site is dedicated to loving all things with fur, feathers, skin, or scales so…
It’s not that I don’t like birds at all.
I just like a few.
Like chickens.
I like chickens enough to write about them. In fact, I wrote a few articles and ebooks for some companies in the past.
If it were up to me, I wouldn’t want my birds caged.
Or if they were caged, I’d want them to be housed in an enclosure so big that you could walk into it and enjoy them as they fly past you.
You see I don’t like dirty cages.
I just feel like I’d end up sneezing endlessly if I come close to one that’s packed with their droppings and feathers.
And I agree that they’re #MoreBeautifulWild
Just check out flamingos. They’re so pretty. And much more vibrantly colored if left alone in their environment instead of the whitish or washed out colors of captive flamingos who don’t get the right diet to produce that pink color.
I Like Aviaries
When I was younger, my uncle built a bird house that was big enough to walk into. It was like a small, house with screens for walls and a low-ceiling (at least for him). For me, it was perfect. I could walk in, let the birds come to me for food and it was clean enough.
But, I still wouldn’t want birds to be caged.
The closest aviary that I like, is the one in Malagos Garden Resort.
Their aviary is big enough and it also houses fishes and turtles inside for added variety.
To support the aviary, youcan buy birdseed for Php20 a bag? I might be wrong, it could be Php50.
I forget.
Anyway, you can buy food to feed the animals inside the aviary.
The only animals you can’t feed inside the aviary are the turtles. Because they don’t have food to sell to you to feed them.
Plus turtles don’t usually respond that well to that kind of treatment.
And there’s also the risk of overfeeding which could in turn lead to spinal issues if the turlrtes grow too fast in a short amount of time.
Just in case you’re curious, the turtles they have inside the aviary are red-eared sliders. Oh and they also have red eared sliders out front and in the petting zoo area.
So.. they seem to have a lot of red-eared sliders.
Things to Do on National Bird Day
So, what are things you can do to celebrate National Bird Day?
These are the activities that I would recommend:
Get to Know Birds More by Reading About Them
What I know about birds, I learned from books. Come to think of it, a lot of what I know about comes from books! And I would recommend picking up a book and reading a few pages every day instead of doom scrolling on your cellphone or playing mindless games.
A mind is a terrible thing to waste. Make the most of it by providing it lots of information and taking action by writing or doing stuff with the knowledge you gained.
Build Birdhouses
The first bird I was truly curious about was the hummingbird. I’d just seen them on the pages of National Geographic and as a young kid, I wanted to own one.
And when I went to the library in our elementary school, there was an old book that talked about how to take care of a variety of animals from frogs, to turtles, to rats, and mice, and even a skunk.
There was also a section that talked about building birdhouses and I was in love with the idea of building them.
I tried to convince our carpenter then to build one for me. I didn’t have that much luck because I couldn’t put into words what I saw. So I copied the birdhouse plans by drawing them on a piece of paper and showed it to him.
He said no because he was busy.
I ended up learning how to handle a hammer and built my first crude birdhouse out of discarded pieces of wood when I was 9 years old. Thanks to my fascination with the hummingbird.
Donate to a Bird Sanctuary or Aviary
Sometimes the best ting one can do is donate money or stuff to a bird sanctuary or aviary to help support it.
Having owned several animals at one time, I know how quickly expenses can rack up just to house and feed them. Now imagine how much a bird sanctuary or aviary needs to house and feed all the birds and make sure the employees are paid their salaries as well as having all the utilities paid.
Yup.
It’s a lot.
That’s why they are happy when someone volunteers or someone donates money or gives stuff that can help them keep their operations running.
Visit a Zoo that has an Extensive Collection of Birds
Visiting a zoo means paying an entrance fee which in turn helps fund their operations to continue to care for the birds in their collection.
I know it might seem or feel like a scam to buy bird seeds for 2 or 3 times their original price but if you just think of where the money eventually goes, you know it’ll be worth it.
So yeah, go visit a zoo and support them especially if you see that they truly do love and care for the animals in their collection.
Go Bird Watching
I used to do this with my grandfather. He had this powerful set of Bushnell binoculars. He’d let me peer through them before taking out his air gun to shoot them. It was a good thing he was a bad shot. He never seemed to hit any of the birds he pointed at.
As I grew older, I tried to take bird watching up as a hobby. But living in Manila, it was tough to spot birds. I eventually tired of it and shelved my binoculars.
I thought I’d take it up again after coming over to Davao but it seems like it’s not just my cup of tea. Or maybe it’s not my cup of tea yet.
Maybe when I’m a bit older.
I mean a bit older than now.
I know Malagos Garden Resort can help you achieve all the things I listed save for building birdhouses and reading books about birds. They have a cool aviary, they provide bird watching tours, have a great collection of healthy birds, and also have a cool bird show.
Time for me to Ca-Caw!
Well, I’m out of ideas.
This was a good writing exercise and I’m looking forward to celebrating the National Bird Day looking out for cool birds in the sky.
And if you’re in Davao, there are many places that you can do bird-related activities in Davao City.
Now if you wanna visit cool zoos where they take care of their bird collection well, I would recommend Malagos Garden Resort, the Philippine Eagle Center, and Davao Crocodile Park.
Want more content like this? Comment below or send me an email.