There is a world somewhere between reality and fiction. Although ignored by many, it is very real and so are those living in it. This forum is about the natural world. Here, wild animals will be heard and respected. The forum offers a glimpse into an unknown world as well as a room with a view on the present and the future. Anyone able to speak on behalf of those living in the emerald forest and the deep blue sea is invited to join.
11-06-2014, 10:20 PM( This post was last modified: 11-06-2014, 10:37 PM by tigerluver )
Gear on animals, an analogy:
On whether equipment bothers animals, back to birds. US laws mandate leg banding of all captive exotics. This band is often placed on a leg when the chick is very young. These birds grow into adulthood with it. So does this band bother or endanger the bird? Here are my observations:
The earlier the band is placed, the more tolerant the specimen is of it, often to the point it forgets it for most of the day. But, even birds who were banded when they were unconcious notice their band once or twice a day during grooming. A little chewing takes place as they try to reach the patch of skin underneath the band. The band moves normally, so they can normally lick the skin under most of the band by moving it. Birds don't seem too bothered by the band, but I've seen attempts to pull it off once in a blue moon even after having it for essentially its entire life.
On danger of the band. Normally, if the right size, bands aren't high risk. Although, freak accidents of bands getting stuck on items and the specimen undergoing serious injury isn't as uncommon as one would want. I personally remove all bands from my birds to account for the small possibility of freak accidents.
Now how does the bird react to band removal. Most go momentarily wide-eyed seeing the free foot, then licking of the foot takes place for a while. Then back to normal birdy life. The birds do seem to remember in the early days after removal and seem relieved. Then the comfort thresholds changes and the band is a thing of the past and the lack of it is no longer a relief.
So all in all, the specimen is concious of the band, but more often than not ignores it most of the day. Bands run a small risk of freak accidents. Removal of the band shows some relief in the bird, but the problem wasn't so problematic that the bird was in serious stress anyhow.
Now substitute tigers for birds. Most mechanisms are the same, make your conclusions.
Eyes on or hands on? A discussion of human interference
