Animal lover, which bird should I get?

[birdgirl94]

Hi there!

I'm new to the forum, I have been reading threads for a while and thought I would finally join!

I have owned budgies, cockatiels, quails and finches in the past.
Between us, my boyfriend and I have 5 horses and 4 dogs. We compete in the sport of Rodeo and travel away of a weekend every month or so. We are also busy caring for and working with our existing animals.

We recently travelled to a bird sanctuary, and my love for birds that I had in the past was completely reignited.

I'm wanting to purchase a larger parrot species this time around, maybe a GCC, IRN, Cockatoo, Alex, or Macaw. I understand they take a considerable amount of time and work, and need lots of socialisation. Money is no object! And I was thinking in the instance we do go away, maybe I could put the parrot in a large outdoor enclosure.

Let me know what species you think would work best with our lifestyle! I want to make sure we do right by whatever we get and give it the time it requires.

Thanks

 

[Laurasea]

Hi welcome! Probably not a Cockatoos as they probably won't fo well with you leaving, are the most rehomed Parrots. Parrots aren't very self sufficient they need a lot of time and interaction,, more like adopting a child..I suggest reading up on all the types and reading the threads of the species you fancy. Glad to have you here.

 

[SilleIN]

I would say if you need to leave them for days at a time, you should not just get one. Think about getting two, so they'll have each other, when you're gone.

If you don't want them to breed, you can get two of the same sex.

I would not get greys or cockatoos. The greys don't to well with changes and the cockatoos really rely on daily interaction with their humans and both species might be plucked when being left alone for a few days.

To help further it would be nice to know what you wish to get from a parrot. Also what are your expectations regarding time spend with the parrots? Are you interested in training them or should they "just" be pets?

 

[ChristaNL]

Oke, I am going to be awfully blunt here (it is the way I am, so nothing against you as a person, really!!)

Keeping and training horses is already a fulltime job, competing in any way even more so.
(WOW btw!)
Keeping a parrot happy (esp the fanatically pairbonding ones, but parrots in general): they need their flock almost all day, certainly every single day- so that is another fulltime job!

I do not see how you can possible combine the two.

I *love* that you love animals, and especially since you are open for adoption as well, but (as my dad always used to say) If you take on an animal (any animal) make sure you can treat it right.

If you decide to take on ( maybe multiple) parrots... give them a flock of their own, so they have a safe homebase when you are away from them.
Just one would be (I am looking for another word that means cruel, without using that one because it is not a nice word..always sounds like someone is accusing another) "not good" for the wellbeing of said parrot.

So: find the species you like most (smaller birds are easier when it comes to aviaries, finding people willing to take care of them in your absense etc.) read read read read and then read some more (this is a great place for it) and have a group of them.

There is timewise no way- with your very full and challenging life- you can fill the role of "the significant other bird" in the solo birds life (actually no human really can- we are not birds) or give it all it needs.

Parrots are soooo needy when it comes to interaction (keep 3 hours a day parrot-human-time as an absolute minimum, every single day, so everything else (cleaning, prepping food etc.etc. is extra! Unless you can make it a joint adventure, but that is hard to do each and every day, that is why I count it as seperate time).

So if you want a solo-parrot: plze dont
If you (and a regular birdminder) want to adopt and care for an entire flock... I'll be a fan for life

 

[SilleIN]

Oke, I am going to be awfully blunt here (it is the way I am, so nothing against you as a person, really!!)

Keeping and training horses is already a fulltime job, competing in any way even more so.
(WOW btw!)
Keeping a parrot happy (esp the fanatically pairbonding ones, but parrots in general): they need their flock almost all day, certainly every single day- so that is another fulltime job!

I do not see how you can possible combine the two.

I *love* that you love animals, and especially since you are open for adoption as well, but (as my dad always used to say) If you take on an animal (any animal) make sure you can treat it right.

If you decide to take on ( maybe multiple) parrots... give them a flock of their own, so they have a safe homebase when you are away from them.
Just one would be (I am looking for another word that means cruel, without using that one because it is not a nice word..always sounds like someone is accusing another) "not good" for the wellbeing of said parrot.

So: find the species you like most (smaller birds are easier when it comes to aviaries, finding people willing to take care of them in your absense etc.) read read read read and then read some more (this is a great place for it) and have a group of them.

There is timewise no way- with your very full and challenging life- you can fill the role of "the significant other bird" in the solo birds life (actually no human really can- we are not birds) or give it all it needs.

Parrots are soooo needy when it comes to interaction (keep 3 hours a day parrot-human-time as an absolute minimum, every single day, so everything else (cleaning, prepping food etc.etc. is extra! Unless you can make it a joint adventure, but that is hard to do each and every day, that is why I count it as seperate time).

So if you want a solo-parrot: plze dont
If you (and a regular birdminder) want to adopt and care for an entire flock... I'll be a fan for life

I am going to disagree a bit with you. I have 4 horses, ducks, geese, cat and dog along with a whole bunch if parrots. It can be done, but I am also very much aware, that I would never be able to be the "significant other" for any of my birds, as I will not be able to be there as they need me to be. That means every bird here has a friend of their own species. Some of them have mates of the other sex, some has a friend of the same sex, as I am not interested in getting a lot of chicks (however the cockatoos has to have a mate, as 2 males will most probably kill each other). Only in the off chance, where I have tried to get them to bond with a bird of the same species, will a bird not have a mate. It will though live in close proximity to others of the same species.

If they have a farm (as I do) they will be able to build large aviaries and probably not have any close by neighbours to complain about the noise.

 

[ChristaNL]

lol, in that case we really *do* agree.


(except I would never give a male cocatoo a mate, because they still will kill the females most of the time anyway- because if they are not matched perfectly the female does not stand a chance...hence all the mutilated females/ the lucky ones that survived/ trying to find homes..once they are mutilated by the males to the point they can no longer succesfully breed or be bred they are useless to breeders. I would just give the females a safe forever place, more of them together if possible.)

 

[EllenD]

Hi, welcome to the community!

I'm going to kind of follow-up on what has already been said...First of all, I've owned and bred parrots literally my entire life (my mom was a breeder/owner) and I grew up with a Congo African Gray for a brother, and I wouldn't even consider bringing a Cockatoo, Macaw, or Gray into my home right now, simply because they are very much like having a 4-5 year-old human child, that's their level of intelligence...There's a reason why you see so many hundreds and hundreds of these larger parrots up for re-homing and adoption, and why most are pluckers and self-mutilators.

If you've already owned Cockatiels and Budgies, then you've got a bit of parrot-owning experience...However, what you have to realize is that owning any species of Conure, Amazon, Alex/IRN, etc. is going to be as much work as your horses are, simply because of the amount of time they require of you each day to stay happy and healthy. I don't agree with you going away for days at a time and leaving them behind unless you board them with a bird-boarder/breeder or Certified Avian Vet who boards birds and gives them some out of cage time each day. You cannot take a parrot that is living indoors and bonded to you closely and then leave it outside in an enclosure by itself for a few days at a time, that's exactly what causes them anxiety, stress, and then eventually Feather-Destructive Behavior and Self-Mutilation...

As Laura said, it's more like bring a young child into your home due to their level of intelligence and their need for interaction and affection. So if you could take them with you on your weekends away then that would work, or if you could board them at an appropriate place.

Other than that, the best advice I can give you is to do a ton of research about each and every species you're interested in before doing anything. And again, Cockatoos, Macaws, and Grays are probably not species that I would consider, they take an enormous commitment and are not for the faint of heart, nor are they parrots for people with little experience.

I will say that the other birds that you mentioned are very, very different from each other...Conures are known as being "Velcro Birds", all species, as they just want to be on you/with you 24/7 and are the cuddle-bugs of the parrots...And then the Alex's/IRN's are very different than the Conures, they aren't "Velcro Birds", though they can be loving and affectionate, they can also become very standoffish and even revert back to wild personalities if they aren't getting enough attention...So it really is a matter of what you're looking for in a bird...but again, if you have 5 horses and 2 dogs already, and you go away for days at a time each month, then your hands are already very full, so I'd keep that in mind while looking...

Please don't hesitate to ask any questions you may have, and I'd check-out some of the "stickies" at the top of each forum for great information and advice about each specific species.

 

[SilleIN]

lol, in that case we really *do* agree.


(except I would never give a male cocatoo a mate, because they still will kill the females most of the time anyway- because if they are not matched perfectly the female does not stand a chance...hence all the mutilated females/ the lucky ones that survived/ trying to find homes..once they are mutilated by the males to the point they can no longer succesfully breed or be bred they are useless to breeders. I would just give the females a safe forever place, more of them together if possible.)

I follow advise from a bird park here in DK and it seems to work. However it usually takes 6-12 months to get them to cohabit peacefully- so not taken lightly and the aviaries are specially designed for their safety.

 

[Scott]

lol, in that case we really *do* agree.


(except I would never give a male cocatoo a mate, because they still will kill the females most of the time anyway- because if they are not matched perfectly the female does not stand a chance...hence all the mutilated females/ the lucky ones that survived/ trying to find homes..once they are mutilated by the males to the point they can no longer succesfully breed or be bred they are useless to breeders. I would just give the females a safe forever place, more of them together if possible.)

I follow advise from a bird park here in DK and it seems to work. However it usually takes 6-12 months to get them to cohabit peacefully- so not taken lightly and the aviaries are specially designed for their safety.

Cockatoo mate aggression is serious and can arise at any time despite a long bond. My wild-caught goffins "Peanut and Popcorn" came to me in 1987, yet it was roughly 8 years until they reproduced. Nest box was removed after three* offspring. By 2008 there were signs of unrest though no overt hostility. In 2009, Popcorn viciously attacked Peanut and she was removed, taken to the CAV, healed, and was permanently separated. She now lives with two of her three adult children.

*All three chicks were abandoned after roughly 3 to 5 days of feeding, thus they were pulled and totally hand-fed round the clock!

 

[Scott]

Welcome, thanks for joining! You'll find a wealth of information and opinion to assist the decision making process!

 

[chris-md]

Cockatoos aren’t great pets, fully agree, but I the only one thinking this would actually be a perfect home for a cockatoo? OP has experience with a different animals, and more importantly has key training experience as a result. Active lifestyle, great for active birds. Big aviary for protracted absences? Even better.

Not owning a cockatoo - and never will - I wouldn’t exactly know, but my spidey sense is tingling here. Except galahs, they aren’t great pets. But I do feel like if anyone could do it, and do it well, it’s be someone’s like this OP.

 

[Scott]

Cockatoos aren’t great pets, fully agree, but I the only one thinking this would actually be a perfect home for a cockatoo? OP has experience with a different animals, and more importantly has key training erorcinece as a result. Active lifestyle, great for active birds. Big aviary for protracted absences? Even better.

Not owning a cockatoo - and never will - I wouldn’t exactly know, but my spidey sense is tingling here. Except galahs, they aren’t great pets. But I do feel like if anyone could do it, and do it well, it’s be someone’s like this OP.

And so we have the full spectrum of opinion for the OP, which is a good thing! While I cannot imagine life without a house of cockatoos, every situation differs. I believe we all agree contemplation and deep research is desirable before adopting a bird.

 

[ChristaNL]

This is quickly turning into one of the most interesting "hello and welcome here"-threads in a long time.


Grinnn, someone with money and space...when can we start planning your aviaries? (It is almost irresistable)

 

[SilleIN]

I just thought of something- Lorikeets!!

I have a pair of rainbow lorikeets in a large outside aviary. They jump on me every time I go out there. I free fly the female (Monet) during summer and they are really a hoot. They have the same playfulness as caiques, but don't have the aggression.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vNZnAU4Qms"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vNZnAU4Qms[/ame]

This one is not mine, but it could just as easily be mine. They do such funny stuff all the time. Yesterday I went out there to top up their LoryDry and one of them was sitting on the bucket I keep it in. I asked him to get off and instead of just stepping of, he rolled off.

BUT 3 things that are not fun about them. 1. Their diet is very special and needs some attention. 2. They are very noisy, when happy, which is basically all the time. 3. Their feces is very liquid, high speed and full of sugar and therefore very sticky. If kept inside prepare to clean about 2 hours a day anywhere they've been as the sugar squirting out the other end will attract flies like nothing else.

 

[Scott]

I just thought of something- Lorikeets!!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vNZnAU4Qms[/url

Best bird video I've seen in a long time! I could watch that cute Lorikeet for hours!

 

[EllenD]

Cockatoos aren’t great pets, fully agree, but I the only one thinking this would actually be a perfect home for a cockatoo? OP has experience with a different animals, and more importantly has key training experience as a result. Active lifestyle, great for active birds. Big aviary for protracted absences? Even better.

Not owning a cockatoo - and never will - I wouldn’t exactly know, but my spidey sense is tingling here. Except galahs, they aren’t great pets. But I do feel like if anyone could do it, and do it well, it’s be someone’s like this OP.

The only thing I can say to that is what happens when the OP is suddenly gone for 3 days? They're going to come back to a plucked Cockatoo and probably the cops because of the constant screaming...That's my worry...well, that an not having enough time for a Cockatoo in-general due to their other daily obligations...

I kind of got the impression that they are looking for a parrot that is more independent and can be happy just going into an outdoor enclosure for a few days at a time, then coming back in to the house again, etc...Maybe an IRN would be a good choice? Definitely not an Alexandrine, but specifically an IRN...