Have you ever considered turning your love of birds into a full time career? Don't know where to start? We consulted experts from all over the country, and here's what they have to say about what they do for a living. Some of them may surprise you.

Jim Bonner, Curator of Birds, National Aviary, Pittsburgh

"I spent over ten years in electronic security, and at the same time was volunteering at the National Aviary on weekends. I had the opportunity to reevaluate my career, and I decided to pursue working with birds. My original degree is in math and computer science, so I went back and got a veterinary technology degree, as well as another degree in the natural sciences, then worked my way into working in the aviary.

"My job is to oversee the animal care department here. Eight staff members do most of the work with the birds, including diet creation, feeding, cleaning enclosures, supporting breeding, medical concerns, catching birds, record keeping, among other tasks. Unfortunately, I don't get as much time with the birds as I used to. There is a lot of interaction with the public, explaining what's going on in and around exhibits.

"You have to be multi-faceted to do this job. We have to do a lot of inventing of things that you can't just pull off the shelf. Getting into any animal career, especially birds, you have to have good observation skills. If you're working with one bear, it's not hard to find that bear everyday to see what he's doing, but if you've got fifty or a hundred birds, like we do in some of our exhibits, it's difficult to find them all and know what they're doing every day to understand and observe them. That's critical. You have to have the capacity to learn and to want to continue to learn. There are ninety-eight hundred species of birds out there, and you're never going to know everything about them all.
"People always laugh at me when I say this, but it's easy to make money. You can work hard and do whatever needs to be done to make money. I gave up a whole different career to pursue something that I enjoy. It's hard to estimate a salary range, particularly when it comes to aviary curators. It depends on the aviary, whether it's government or privately run. But it's generally not a highly renumerated field. I would say that curators make in the lower 20's at some institutions, to the 40's or 60's in the larger ones."

Angelica Daza, Avian Vet Technician, B.I.R.D. Clinic

"I got into this position because I like animals. I didn't know much about birds when I started, but I've learned from working here. There's a lot more to it then it seems. I've gotten to like birds a lot since I've been working in this job.

"I got my training from hands-on experience at the B.I.R.D Clinic, and also through a six month program that sent me out into the field.

"Someone going into this career should be open minded and willing to learn a lot. They should be patient because you're dealing with clients. We have to care for the clients as well as the animals.

"You can plan on starting at about $7.00 an hour, and work on up from there. My advice for someone wanting to work with birds is to get some training and just go out and do it."


Jake Stewart, executive director, Rescue Me Avian Sanctuary, Washington D.C.

"I've had birds since I was a really young child. Over the years people would bring me birds that they couldn't take care of anymore, and I would make them part of the family. Then, in 1996, Rescue Me became official when we got a five month old cockatoo that had been battered. She was just this tiny little bird and I looked at her face and I knew what I had to do. It wasn't even a question.

"I've taken ornithology classes and classes in animal rehabilitation where I learned to do emergency procedures. But pretty much I learned from taking care of the birds. I'm still learning. I don't think you can ever really know everything.

"You have to have an inordinate amount of patience to do bird rescue and rehabilitation. A lot of the birds that come to us come out of situations where they've been passed around from home to home, or even abused. I have been bitten on many occasions by a formerly abused bird, and people ask me how I can still pet him, and I have to ask, how can I not pet him? It's not his fault.

"I have a full time job besides this full time job. Salary for this job is nothing. I'm a graphic artist for a law firm and I actually use my salary to support the birds. You have to also be able to recognize that you will give up a lot. I can't afford to buy certain things, but that doesn't mean anything to me. The birds cost a fortune to keep. People have called me wonderful for doing what I do, but I think I'm just lucky enough to have found what I was put on this earth for, and I'm very fortunate, but I'm not anything special. The birds are special."

Richard Mizera, Pat's Pets, Utah

"I worked part time in a pet shop and I really enjoyed it, so when I moved out to Utah a store became available and I ended up buying it. I've had birds and animals all my life, which were a big part of my training. I took business courses when I got out of college. It took about a year to really get the idea of how to run a pet store. It's not just about caring for animals and selling them. You have to do advertising, sales, and other things, but the knowledge of the animals is the most important. We specialize in birds, so that helps us answer questions about them.

"It's a good idea to have an interest in both business and animals. You have to have a good personality and be good with working with people because you're going to find people with complaints or problems and you have to be flexible in order to work it out. Have an out-going personality-- a lot of people like to come in and talk about their pets and what products they really like. If you want to own a pet store, try to get as much experience as possible. Talk to bird breeders and pet store owners for background information. What you earn depends a lot on the area of the country you live in. You can make twenty thousand a year on up in a rural area, more than that in an urban area."

Linda Harrison, publisher, Zoological Education Network

"I used to attend the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians conferences with my husband. The avian veterinarians started getting together out of that organization and formed the Association of Avian Veterinarians and I was asked to start a newsletter to keep everyone in touch. Then I moved on to doing a journal and that led into publishing.

"We, the Zoological Education Network, produce books, magazines, and CD-ROMs that help veterinarians to deal with more exotic species, including birds. When you work with veterinarians, you start to see what their needs are.

"To do this job you have to be out in the field watching people and seeing what they need. I gained most of my knowledge through hands-on experience, being around and listening. The main traits that you should have are organization and focus. If you really want to get into the veterinary aspect of things, you have to hang around with vets. I used to go to vet meetings. It always interested me to see how they approached exotic species.

"It's hard to determine a salary range, but I would imagine that someone should get between forty and eighty thousand, depending on experience."

Tani Robar, Bird Trainer

"I started off as a hobby, the pleasure of training my own birds, and it evolved from there. The birds were doing really well, and someone said, 'Why don't you make a video of it?' Then someone suggested that I make another video showing how I taught the birds. I have four videos now. I didn't plan any of this, and it's still a hobby for me. Because it's a hobby I don't mind sharing it.

"I used to train dogs and horses and I had some cockatiels. I thought I could try to train them too. At that time there wasn't anything out there about how to train birds, so I started with a dog trainer's mentality and had to learn from there. You can't put a collar and leash on a bird. The bird does what you want it to do, you reward it. It evolved from your basic "dog tricks" like waving a foot, to more complicated tricks. You have to keep watching all the time for ideas. It got to be a really fun thing.

"I didn't charge when I first started out. Now I charge per show. You can charge according to what you think the market will bear. I sell my videos as a sideline, but you don't really make enough to cover all expenses. If you want to make money bird training, there are parks where you can work, as well as hotels that put on bird shows, so there are other places you can use the training skills.

"You have to have a real love of the birds. I have come across magicians that want to learn to train birds. They didn't care about the birds, they just wanted them for their act. Entertainment should be second, the bird first. Birds learn very quickly, I think even quicker than dogs, but you have to patient. You have to be able to do one thing over and over again without getting upset, and you have to be willing to try different things, be inventive. The challenge is part of the fun."

Brad Livezey, Associate Curator, Carnegie Museum of Natural History

"I am both the Associate Curator, my permanent title, and the Dean of Science, which is a several year appointment at this museum. With the help of a couple of other people, I take care of the collection here, which consists of approximately 154,000 study skins, 1,400 mounted specimens, 15,000 skeletons, about 10,000 egg sets, 5,300 thousand spread wings, and in the area of about 7,000 birds preserved in fluid. My primary concern with the collection, personally, is research. I try to reconstruct evolutionary relationships.

"I got interested in birds doing out-doorsy kind of things with my dad and brother. I started out with a BS in wildlife science, then got a masters degree at University of Wisconsin in wildlife ecology. I got my Ph.D. at University of Kansas and that's where I got into systematics and ecology, which was more pure evolutionary research. I also got a masters in math while I was there. I was in school until I was about thirty-five, then I did post-doctoral study for about four of five years.

"People who want to go into this field should be quantitative and interested in things that are mathematical. They should be comfortable with computers. They should be independent and motivated, as you have to work alone a lot. They should be willing to go to unusual places for an extended period of time, sometimes not the most hospitable places. I was in the field doing doctoral work and there were times I was at gunpoint. Things like that will happen depending on what country you're in. It can be stressful. But danger isn't really the issue. It's more staying in a hotel room and working in a museum for twelve hours a day by yourself and collecting data, day after day.

"Sometimes people who like birds think that they would make good ornithologists, and I don't think that is necessarily true. I'm not even sure a lot of ornithologists really like birds all that much. What they are is interested in birds. They want to figure out where they came from and how they work. To me birds have become a group of organisms that I know anatomically reasonably well so I can actually add to the body of knowledge about them. I work with preserved specimens, dead birds, all the time as objects of study. I am comfortable working with anatomy, but I don't want to become personal with birds. I have bird feeders at the house, and I don't hunt for sport, though I have collected specimens in the field.

"In the museum end of this business, as an assistant curator, which is how you would enter in, you could expect to make between thirty-five to fifty thousand, associate curators would be fifty to seventy, and full curators would be another ten or fifteen on top of that."

Sandee Molena, Breeder

"I was a paralegal for fifteen years until about 1993, when I quit the paralegal business to breed birds full time. In addition to breeding, I also have a web site where I sell cages, supplies and toys. I have also supplemented my income by writing and speaking. It's really hard to make money just selling birds. You have to have a lot of other things.

"A lot of my training was hands-on, my own experience breeding my own birds, but I have also taken several college courses on business management. I am also certified by the Pet Industry Advisory Counsel which consists of a four hour seminar that is followed up by a written test. It's helpful, especially when you're first getting started. I breed parrotletts, and when I first started there was no information about them at all. It took about five or six years of just learning about those birds. It has definitely been a developing process.

"You have to be very organized to do this. If you have one or two pairs of birds, you are going to be managing those birds much differently that if you have a hundred pairs. You want to give each pair the care they deserve. A high energy level is a good quality to have, as well as a willingness to learn. Even though I breed parrotletts, I have learned many things from my friends that breed other types of birds.

"It always should be fun. Never let it get to the point where you just hate going into the bird room. Don't go too fast. You'll start with a few birds and the next thing you know you've got birds everywhere and you're going out of your mind, so try to know your limitations.

"It's hard to say what you can earn, because it depends on the birds and the amount of expenses that people have. I made a lot more money as a paralegal and it was a lot easier. I got lunch hours and vacations. But the feeling that you get when a child takes a bird, or you look down at a very rare bird that you bred that nobody else has, the feeling is incredible. You could never get that from a paycheck."

Mattie Sue Athan, Companion Bird Behavior Consultant

"There was a pet store owner who noticed that when I came into the store, if I interacted with his birds, his birds were better behaved after I left. It became apparent to him that I had some ability to do something I didn't know I could do. As a result of his hiring me to modify his birds' behavior, I started professionally.

"A lot of people want to equate a bird behavior consultant with a psychologist. They are completely different. It's not so much about laboring over what happened in the bird's past as it is practical information about how to modify behavior.

"I work primarily with people. I rarely touch a bird anymore. Most of my work is over the phone now. Also, bird behavior consulting is a very publish-or-perish field. Until you are very well known, it is very difficult to make a living wage. After you are well known, it is quite a bit easier. On the other hand, you get harder cases.

To begin, it would be extremely helpful to have as much education as possible. At the very least be a vet tech. I'm not sure that you get really good until you've done a lot of work, or until you write about it. Writing allows you to analyze what did and didn't work. If you are able to get a good enough name to be able to live off your income, then you should be willing to travel and speak at engagements.

"You also have to be a writer which means you are going to spend a lot of time alone. After I get up and go to the coffee pot, I go to the computer and spend three of four hours. Then I'll have two or three telephone consultations. It probably sounds pretty boring to most people. But what's exciting is the subject matter.

"Most bird behavior consultants have salary jobs. Some consultants are occasionally hired by companies to evaluate their products and be a spokesperson. I would think if a person was really diligent, had a good education and could write, they could make eight to ten thousand a year. I make more than I expected to, but the lion's share of that is from my book royalties."

Bonnie Jay, Photographer

"Back when I was in college took a photography course and found out that it was wonderful and that I was good at it. Then I won a couple of scholarships and took some other courses and the photography just took off. Before I graduated I was invited to do an apprenticeship with an advertising photographer and then went into freelance. I did street shows where I sold signed and numbered limited editions of my images, primarily landscapes and abstracts. Then I opened a frame shop and had that for a number of years. Then right around the time I was deciding to get rid of the frame shop, I decided to make a commitment to dedicate myself to the welfare of animals, primarily captive parrots.

I started photographing parrots and right away I was published. I think that because I have such a deep love and respect for parrots, that they are aware and in tune with that. I believe I have the ability to capture who they are as opposed to just an image. When I photographed birds for the first time, the owner got all teary-eyed and was astonished at the images because she knew exactly who they were and she said that the personalities were there in the photographs. Her reaction confirmed my suspicion that the images were really personalities as opposed to appearances.

"You have to have patience to wait for the right moment. You have to have an awareness of when that moment is happening. To move the viewer, which is my ultimate goal, not just to capture an image, you have to have a deep level of commitment for the subject of the photograph. If the viewer can see, in the photograph, something they have never seen before in a parrot, then it brings that bird into their conscious awareness on a different level, and maybe, because of that photograph, the viewer will have a greater appreciation of the next parrot they come across, or their own parrot.

"You can expect a lot of physical work, dragging stuff around. There are also technical problems to deal with. You are at the mercy of machines. You have to be willing to work hard in uncomfortable situations. You have to be willing to learn. As with any career, one must be willing to be committed to it. You have to be organized as well.

This is not a career you choose to make money. There aren't enough sources that need images of parrots. It's more like pocket money. The only thing that really matters is the love and compassion for your subject."

Michael Schindlinger, Harvard Ph.D. candidate in biology

"I am scientific researcher studying evolution in animal behavior. I grew up with a parrot, a wild caught yellow crown Amazon, but it never occurred to me to shape a career around him. After I found out about animal behavior I did some research out of curiosity and found there was a lack of specific info about the lives of wild parrots. I was a musician before I got into biology. What fascinated me was the parrots vocal behavior-- how their large vocabularies are and their propensity to learn. You could say I study parrot oral culture.

Outside of theoretical coursework, figuring out what to do and how to do it, I worked with field researchers in Mexico engaged in the study of the basic ecology of Amazons. I started out at the Harvard extension school, and got my degree from there. I spent three years in the field with the parrots, and two years on either side preparing an analyzing data.

You have to be adventurous to live among the ticks and mosquitos as well as the parrots, have a general concern for animals in their environment, as well as the patience to sit in the field for hours with nothing happening. You have to be creative in how you fund yourself and try to make as many contacts with people doing similar work because there aren't many and it makes all the difference. You could expect to make $40,000 to $80,000 as a professor teaching courses in evolution conservation."

Mark Hagen, Nutritionist

"In 1982 I walked into one of our quarantine stations and was surrounded by fifty blue and gold macaws, all screaming at once, and I saw the need for our company to stop importing the birds and to start captive breed them. I decided to concentrate my studies on bird nutrition and biology. I did my masters in avicultural topics, such as incubation, disease prevention, and nutrition. Because I was developing bird foods and vitamins at the same time I was studying, it took me four years to complete my masters.

"I oversee the movements of the birds, new projects, the results of the feeding trials we might be doing, the production and packaging of foods, quality control, look at new ingredients and new packaging systems, new layouts-- I spend most of my day dealing with product development issues and less time on avicultural issues.

"To begin thinking about going into bird nutrition, take a general animal nutrition bachelor of science course that most agricultural-based universities will offer. You have to understand, in a general sense, the role of nutrition in animals, as well as the basic biology of birds. A veterinary technician course would be good.

"The field of bird nutrition is very limited. I only know of about eighty animal nutritionists in the entire country that formulate foods. You may be able get a position at a zoo for $20,000 to $28,000. Salary will depend on your position. There are a lot more people needed to mix up the foods and deal with quality control."

Melissa Kauffman, editor, Bird Talk Magazine

"I was a journalism major and was interested in magazine journalism, but my concentration was more in broadcasting. I did an internship for a television station in their promotions department and then graduated with the journalism degree. When I moved to California I got a position with this company in their production department, which is concerned with printing and quality control. Then I transferred to the editorial department and around that time I adopted a bird. When a position opened I became associate editor for Bird Breeder Magazine. Then I got a couple more birds, and when an opening came up several years later at Bird Talk, I became managing editor, and then eventually became editor.

"My big love is for writing. You could not get a job in a professional publishing company as an editor without some kind of training for that. What I am is a specialist in putting out magazines. My interest outside of work happens to be birds and I was lucky enough to be able to combine them. If you want to become editor of a bird magazine you either have to start your own or you can work for a professional publishing company and have experience with magazine publishing. There are a number of small special interest magazines that people do start themselves, but you couldn't work in a professional magazine company without the background. There are a lot of rules to be followed. You have to be computer literate and you need to know something about the production process. A magazine is a business product. You can't put out a magazine if you don't make any money on it, so it's good to have a business background.

"As the editor I am responsible for the vision of the magazine, what stance we take on certain topics, what we want to cover. I am responsible for the budget, as well as keeping in touch with the industry. I am accountable for everything in the magazine.

"In terms of becoming an editor, I like to see someone with a journalism or English degree, some kind of training, like an internship with a professional company, and some sort of writing experience. You must have lot of energy and willingness to learn. Because we are a bird magazine, I like to see someone with a lot of bird experience, to at least have owned some birds.

"Salary depends on your position and the magazine. You will probably start in the low 20's. If you're trying to get rich, you do not go into publishing. What you will find is a fulling job."

Sam Vaugn, Avian Veterinarian

"It was a childhood want and dream to become a veterinarian. It took nine years in undergraduate and professional school. But I did not learn a lot about birds in veterinary school. When I graduated I was able to document twenty birds a week for five years which, at the time, was what the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners required. I wrote some papers and took some tests and was declared a bird specialist.

"Compassion is very important to doing this job. You also have to not be afraid of doing new and different things. The most frustrating thing that new graduates say to me is that they've never done something before. You better be prepared to do something new or you better get out of exotic medicine, because you never know what is going to walk in the door. You should have an air of humble fearlessness. Be open to change and new things. When I started, there was only one textbook, and now there are over fifty. But my best advice: wear earplugs.

"As a veterinarian you could expect to earn $38,000 to $42,000 just out of school."

Gayle Soucek, Pet Product Distributor

"I am the president and buyer for Hornbeck's, which is strictly an avian supply company. When we started this company, most of us having been breeders and involved with birds for a long time, we knew the frustration of not being able to find a product. I'd have to make seventeen phone calls to find a specific product for my birds. We tried to look at it as the one-stop-shopping catalogue for birds. We'd sit and brainstorm and think of things someone would need to buy, or what if you could get something invented, and then we would go out and try to source it out.

"My background is in outside sales and I got into birds as a hobby. I was going crazy with the lack of information. I started getting involved in different sources, a lot of the bird clubs, research for some of the articles that I wrote.

"Perseverance is a good quality to have. This is a niche market. With dogs and cats you can get a lot of funding, but for birds, nothing. You have to go into it for love. You can't get rich going into birds. Understand, in the bird business, that nothing is carved in stone. You can have five different experts with five different opinions, so you have to constantly be on the look out, constantly learning, and be open minded enough to take what information you can use and leave the rest. It's hard to know what's right because we are always finding new things. Keep your ears open.

"You could expect to learn between $18,000 and $45,000 depending on the company and the expertise."