Caught companion
(Caged bird: back lanes, Shanghai)
Apparently there are not many wild birds in Shanghai because they are caught by locals and kept as pets like this. I’m not sure if this one was caught or bred to be there, but it was very inquisitive, as you can see. I can imagine these birds are lovely to watch, but the cages seem too small for them to spread their wings. It’s not fun to have no one to talk to that understands you, and to spend all your time in one space.
We found this guy hanging outside a shop in the lanes where we spent a contented afternoon browsing the little shops (You can them about 6 mouse-clicks back). I’m sure the main reason people love them is for the singing which this bird was doing before we became more interesting. It just isn’t possible to see this back home – nobody (unless they valued their reputation) would keep a bird like this, and certainly nobody would leave it outside unattended for crazy people to take pictures of it.
I heard that so many people keep these birds in Shanghai that they congregate in parks every morning to let the birds have contact with other friends. It is pretty bizarre, but in one way, it’s like taking your dog out to meet other dogs and make friends, except the dogs wouldn’t remain caged of course.
this bird seems not happy with something, trying to find out what has happened outside? haha, she looks bossy.
i love to keep a bird as a pet. but once i think of the poor bird has to stay in the cage all the time, i think that is a torture and it is very cruel to any animals. even a small fish.
however, i know a chinese
painter who keeps a bird in
a cage too. i was told by his student, he plays with this pet by releasing it from the cage and chasing it when it is flying in the flat (he closes all the windows before he opens the the cage). i don’t
how long does the game last, but naturally the bird would fly back to cage. don’t know if the bird has no choice or it prefers to stay in the cage. very interesting. the bird is his favourite subject of painting. i saw many of his paintings with the bird as the focus point.