Is it ethical to pick up cuttlebones I find in the beach to use for my birds? I live near the ocean and find them all the time, yet I still by store bought ones and never really thought about how they were harvested until now. It is safe to do this? Can they carry any diseases I should be worried about, and is it okay to take them from the beach as an alternative to buying them?

squidscientistas:

It’s certainly not unethical to take cuttlebones from the beach, and i think it’s probably a good alternative to buying them from the store if you’re worried about cuttlefish being harmed in the making of cuttlebones for birds. That being said, I honestly have no idea if they might carry diseases for your bird. The cuttlebones in stores are probably produced as a by-product of the seafood industry, so for the health of your bird it might be safer to buy cuttlebones from pet shops, but I can’t say for sure. I bet there are vets or bird rehab people on tumblr who would have better answers for you on the bird-health end of things 🙂 

Just drop the bones in boiling water and that’ll kill off any potential diseases. I doubt there would be any bird-harming germs anyway, unless a sick seagull picked it up, but boiling them would make sure. 

And it’s certainly ethical to take small items you find on the beach that aren’t currently being used by a live animal.