Birds - Therapeutic Animals by Emily S.

To start off, I think birds are good therapeutic animals for people who need it. Unlike service animals, emotional support animals are not protected by federal laws. But, they are protected under the Fair Housing Act. There are many more reasons why birds in general are good emotional support animals for people who need it!

One reason why birds are good support animals (more specifically emotional support) are because they show really high levels of empathy. They can learn phrases to cheer up their handler when they’re going through an episode. This episode might include emotional anguish. In the text “Can My Bird Qualify as an Emotional Support Animal?” it states, “Birds are exceptionally intelligent and can learn words and phrases they they can use to help soothe their handler before or during an emotional episode.” This helps the handler talk to the bird and they can respond back to the handler. This makes people feel comfortable and feel more connected.

Another reason why birds are good therapeutic animals is because they take little effort to take care for. This makes it easier for the handler if they can’t physically treat a bird like you treat a dog correctly. Dogs are high maintenance, while birds are not. In “Can My Bird Qualify as an Emotional Support Animal?” it says, “Having to take their support animal out can become inconvenient to handlers depending on their disabilities . . .” So basically, if the handler is having an episode, it’s impossible for them to take care of their service animal. Honestly, I would DEFINITELY pick a bird as a support animal.

Also, not to mention that birds are unbelievably intelligent!! You can teach your bird to say phrases whenever you’re going through an episode. You can teach it to say “it’s okay” or “it’s gonna be alright” or whatever makes the handler comfortable. Just don’t forget to bring them everywhere you go! You don’t know if you’ll end up having an emotional episode in the middle of eating that McWhopper at Burger King… But in my opinion, I would ABSOLUTELY and DEFINITELY pick a bird to be my support animal. Teaching your bird to say comforting phrases just proves how smart birds can be. I mean, no offense to the dogs and cats but, birds are an animal to consider when looking for emotional support.

So, in conclusion, birds are a great selection if you’re picking an emotional support animal. To restate why, they are easy to take care of, show high levels of empathy, AND lets not forget… they can learn phrases to comfort you and maybe even HAVE A WHOLE CONVERSATION with you!!  So, if you want an animal who can comfort you and are easy to take care of, birds provide plenty of benefits to handlers.