Bird Barn

The Bird Barn is a bit of an Auckland institution. Well known across the city, even I — a kid from Mt Eden — have spent a lot of time there over the years. Rare and exotic birds, lorikeets, finches, bantams — the Bird Barn stocks them all.
Upon entering the Barn you are confronted with a giant pink cockatoo and a few cages down is Snowy, a talking cockatoo that will happily greet you before asking you about your day. He actually gave me a huge fright the first time I went there — I couldn’t figure out who was talking to me!
The rainbow lorikeets are my favourite, and with an entire cage of these beautiful birds located outside, The Bird Barn is somewhere I admit I go when I’m having an average day. It puts a smile on my face.
Though first and foremost a place to purchase birds, today the Bird Barn also incorporates a pet store — something that further delights me, especially when I’m feeling down. Puppies, kittens, fish, guinea pigs, rabbits and an entire barn of birds — how can anyone leave this place without a smile on their face?!
Next time you’re on Lincoln Road, stop and take a minute to be wowed and impressed by all the cute animals. Don’t worry about buying anything — staff are used to people window shopping!
Bonus: The Bird Barn is locally owned and locally focussed — my boyfriend’s family even used to breed budgies and sell them to the Barn!

I’ve got a soft spot for Bird Barn because we got our dogs from here, and they are perfect. They’ve always got a huge variety of puppies available, and they are well taken care of in decent sized pens with toys and blankets, and they change their litter paper often. As well as pups they’ve got kittens (when they are in season), bunnies and guinea pigs, a whole outdoor section with fish tanks with gold fish and turtles, as well as a massive pond outside filled with giant fish. Next to the pet store is the bird barn, a whole separate building dedicated for birds. Parrots, finches, love birds, budgies. The staff are knowledgeable and friendly, and they always ask you how your pet is going. They give you lots of advice when purchasing a pet, including giving you vouchers for food and microchipping. Both our dogs are friendly, healthy and behaved well, and we haven’t had any health issues with them, which is reassuring.