PsittaWel: A welfare assessment tool for companion parrots

While parrots are popular companion animals, many experience significant welfare challenges, often resulting from not fulfilling their behavioural, environmental, and social needs. To address this issue, we developed a welfare assessment tool designed specifically for companion parrot caregivers. We involved a panel of seven experts with extensive working experience with companion parrots and in animal welfare assessment. Using an iterative process consisting of four online surveys and nine focus group meetings, the expert panel was invited to select relevant welfare indicators, rephrase selected indicators into user-friendly questions, identify missing content, and finally review the wording and structure of the tool. A preliminary version of the tool was then evaluated by four additional anonymous external experts and 69 parrot caregivers for its completeness, clarity and practicality through an online survey. Feedback from this stage was incorporated, and the revised version was subsequently reviewed again by the initial expert panel. The resulting tool, PsittaWel (freely downloadable at: https://www.vetmeduni.ac.at/psittawel), consists of 75 questions covering 145 welfare indicators and is divided into eight sections covering key aspects of parrot welfare: general information; physical health; housing and physical activity; provision of enrichment and exploration; nutrition and maintenance behaviours; social and reproductive behaviours; parrot-human interactions; maladaptive and fear-related behaviours. Further research is needed to assess the reliability of the indicators. Nevertheless, PsittaWel is already a valuable tool for caregivers to monitor welfare and identify potential room for improvement, ultimately improving the lives of their companion parrot.