Birds Have Fundamental Right to 'Live with Dignity', Rules Indian Court

NEW DELHI: Birds have the fundamental right to "live with dignity" and fly in the sky without being kept in cages or subjected to cruelty, Delhi High Court has said while holding that running their trade was a "violation of their rights".

"...This court is of the view that running the trade of birds is in violation of the rights of the birds. They deserve sympathy. Nobody is caring as to whether they have been inflicted cruelty or not despite a settled law that birds have a fundamental right to fly and cannot be caged and will have to be set free in the sky.

"Birds have fundamental rights including the right to live with dignity and they cannot be subjected to cruelty by anyone including claim made by the respondent (Mohazzim)."

Well, this is a step in the right direction. I have often seen birds disappear from my neighborhood due to communication towers pesticides and other stuff. Its come to a situation where even the usual city birds like crows,sparrows are not seen .

Over here you have dog taxes, must always line it and even you must clean up the poop (pick it up with a plastic bag and throw it in the trashcan).
Yet cats have none of that and they kill countless of birds and other creatures (for the fun of it).
There seems to be a steady decline of birds, pesticides seems to be the main reason although I guess it are just many things.

But it's good to see birds get some rights I guess. Never understood why people have birds at home locked in a cage, or like we have gooses in parks which can't fly but are there for the ''looks''.

I have never known birds to want to hang around humans anyway. The only time they are is when they have been captured. I wonder how the ones bred in captivity would fare if set free? I wouldn't want to spend a life in a cage.

I always enjoy seeing things like this occur. Humans need to take a step down from our self imposed pedestal of rule over the earth and all living organisms. Too many people think we are somehow better than everything else whilst holding very little consideration for all other things because of that view.

birds not allowed in cages in india....so, there goes chicken farms then

originally posted by: SaturnFX
birds not allowed in cages in india....so, there goes chicken farms then

Or they can just have free range farms. Chickens like a safe & familiar shelter. So as long as they're given an adequate food/water supply & living space with a safe shelter, most would keep coming back anyway. But those cramped cages are disgusting & inhumane anyway, with loads of accumulated feces, etc.

As for the OP, I'm glad when I see things like this. I absolutely hate zoos & the concept of zoos. And most types of animals shouldn't be kept as pets anyway. I prefer situations where it's more of a partnership, where the animal "pets" are allowed to at least have semi-normal lives.

I see where they're going with this law, but what of the people who have birds as pets? It's like telling a dog owner they need to kick their dog out of their home and make it survive on it's own. That seems quite cruel. Many birds bond with their owners, and if the bird is something like a parrot you can realistically be living together for 50+ years. Can you imagine one entity in that relationship just abandoning the other due to rule of law?

originally posted by: Aazadan
I see where they're going with this law, but what of the people who have birds as pets? It's like telling a dog owner they need to kick their dog out of their home and make it survive on it's own. That seems quite cruel. Many birds bond with their owners, and if the bird is something like a parrot you can realistically be living together for 50+ years. Can you imagine one entity in that relationship just abandoning the other due to rule of law?

Remember, this is in India, not the West. Different states in India already have laws banning the slaughter of cows & banning the selling or possession of beef. It's a completely different mindset & culture. And this specific ruling was focused on the business of selling captured birds, though I wish there was a link so we could get a better idea of the actual story.

As for the dog comparison, if you allow the animal freedom & it leaves, obviously it didn't feel the same way you thought it did. But if you allow it freedom & it comes back, that's when you know the "relationship" was mutual.

originally posted by: enlightenedservant
As for the dog comparison, if you allow the animal freedom & it leaves, obviously it didn't feel the same way you thought it did. But if you allow it freedom & it comes back, that's when you know the "relationship" was mutual.

Not quite. Many animals get out and get lost. They don't run away and cease to return because they're after freedom but rather they get overloaded and simply can't find their way back home. You can see this especially with dogs, when you reunite a lost dog with it's owner and it's overjoyed.

You don't see it as often with birds since they're not as emotive and far fewer are reunited however birds do bond with people.

If you've ever had an indoor/outdoor cat and moved a lot you might be familiar with this. The first few times you let it outside at a new residence you have to go out with it just to ensure it doesn't get lost.

Bit ridiculous when one considers how so many Indians live.
A country that relies on other countries aid yet has a space program.
Women still have little value and people live in abject poverty.

Lucky for the birds.

i think all animals have a right to live with dignity.

I was sitting on my best friends back porch. He has a new girl in his life, and she likes birds. So on her back porch are 2 birdcages with some exotic birds.

So i am sitting there one morning with a cigarette and a cup of coffee, looking at the flurry of life happening in the trees over his back fence, when the birds in the cages grab my attention. The little yellow parakeet has taken to attacking a small mirror containing his reflection. After watching this bird for awhile, it just looks sad. They are both sitting there in their cages, watching all the other birds in the trees, and squirrels, running around, doing their thing. Singing away loudly at each other while they go about their life. Then there are these 2 birds, in cages, bearing witness to it, and having only their own reflection in the mirror to interact with. And instead of singing to their newfound friend in the mirror....they are attacking it like a lunatic.

originally posted by: spirit_horse
I have never known birds to want to hang around humans anyway. The only time they are is when they have been captured. I wonder how the ones bred in captivity would fare if set free? I wouldn't want to spend a life in a cage.

I've kept pet birds. They have been in cages, but I generally kept their cages open all day and they only went in at night to sleep. My birds have also interacted with me and played with me, they even have had conversations with me. But it is the same reason we keep our dogs on leashes.

But I have seen videos and pictures of parrots and other smaller birds who willingly interact with humans even though they weren't caged.

My birds have been treated very well, they were fed every day, given fresh water and they were entertained. Domestic birds treated well actually live longer than birds in the wild.

How long can birds live

Birds can be very long-lived in captivity. One Sulphur-crested Cockatoo (a common Australian parrot made famous by the TV show "Baretta") lived most of his 80-plus years in a zoo. Captive Canada Geese have lived for 33 years, House Sparrows 23 years, and Northern Cardinals 22 years. In nature, the life-spans of these species are much shorter. As luck would have it, however, the record for a European Starling in the wild, 20 years, is 3 years longer than for any starling captives.

My birds managed to get out and get lost, that's why I don't have any right now, but they were well taken care of. I do not agree that people should get a bird and then never interact with it, that is cruelty.

originally posted by: bigfatfurrytexan
i think all animals have a right to live with dignity.

I was sitting on my best friends back porch. He has a new girl in his life, and she likes birds. So on her back porch are 2 birdcages with some exotic birds.

So i am sitting there one morning with a cigarette and a cup of coffee, looking at the flurry of life happening in the trees over his back fence, when the birds in the cages grab my attention. The little yellow parakeet has taken to attacking a small mirror containing his reflection. After watching this bird for awhile, it just looks sad. They are both sitting there in their cages, watching all the other birds in the trees, and squirrels, running around, doing their thing. Singing away loudly at each other while they go about their life. Then there are these 2 birds, in cages, bearing witness to it, and having only their own reflection in the mirror to interact with. And instead of singing to their newfound friend in the mirror....they are attacking it like a lunatic.

I've actually taken my birds outside on my shoulder and they didn't fly away. The only reason mine got lost is because when we were moving, my husband accidentally knocked the top of the cage off and it startled them and they reacted like any other startled birds would. The wind then caught them and they couldn't figure out how to fly back down, they were in the trees crying and the more we called them, the more they cried back. Finally we just had to let them go.

I just don't know why people would get birds and not interact with them. Mine were happy, but when they were lost, we could hear the fear in their calls back to us.

Mine not only talked to us, but answered the phone and gave kisses. And they liked me well enough to climb on my shoulder to take afternoon naps.

I wish someone would pass a law allowing humans to live with dignity. Wouldn't that be a nice change?

a reply to: bigfatfurrytexan

most animal [ regardless of status ] will display abberant behaviour if presented with a mirror .

indeed the ability to discern that the image in the mirror is the subject - not " something else " is a key test of self awareness

originally posted by: ignorant_ape
a reply to: bigfatfurrytexan

most animal [ regardless of status ] will display abberant behaviour if presented with a mirror .

indeed the ability to discern that the image in the mirror is the subject - not " something else " is a key test of self awareness

Mine had mirrors and paid no attention to them, as soon as they were awake and chirping, they expected that cover to be taken off and the door open so they could get out and play.

One of mine actually did this, he was standing on the window sill looking out and a bird flew past the window so my bird didn't see quickly enough and turned to chase after it, came within an inch of the side of the window sill, stopped and for a long pause looked at the frame, then bent over to the side to see around it then raised back straight, then did the same thing again three times before he turned around to come back to tell me what he had seen. The whole time I was trying not to laugh out loud.

Then that bird one day was sitting on the sill, he then decided he was going to walk around. He was limping and dragging his little leg and I thought he must have hurt himself, so I picked him up to look at him, then put him back down, and he kept doing that. Then he finally walked normal and I realized, he was imitating my walk.

Birds with just a mirror, that can be sad. Mine had toys and each other, and still came out to play with me. But as soon as it was 7 pm, they went back to their cage and demanded the cover be put back on. Sometimes at night they would wake up and talk really low to each other. I could hear them together, their little voices almost in whispers.

Mine were treated with dignity and showed the same toward me.

a reply to: maddy21

This is great news! Says the swanne...

It comes right after india has declared that dolphins are "non-human persons":

Dolphins are non-human persons

Now I wonder: why can not the western world follow this example? (rhetorical question)

S&F

a reply to: WarminIndy



What specie were they?

a reply to: maddy21

"Birds Have Fundamental Right to 'Live with Dignity'"

So do Woman and Children!

Possibly a better idea to address the mass poverty and other socioeconomic problems, never mind the oppressive caste system in operation regarding their populace before worrying as to the dignity of the birds.

originally posted by: andy06shake
a reply to: maddy21

"Birds Have Fundamental Right to 'Live with dignity'

They are only lacking the desire and ability.

Sry, I don't like birds. Not as pets. I bet those birds that are bonding with you are pooping on you while they do it.