Are there any BIRDS that don't need to be hand fed?

[Junho]

I was surprised how violent and unattached parrots can be. Of course, I later learned that parrots are extremely high maintenance when it comes to socializing.

I know chickens and ducks are easily "tamable" in the sense that you don't need to hand feed them when they're chicks for them to like you. That's what I'm looking for in a bird that isn't messy like chickens or ducks, and can be caged and suited for apartment.

What about doves? Humans had been domesticating and breeding pigeons and doves for centuries. Do doves require hand feeding to be tame?

 

[41Gryphon]

I've met a few doves that liked to be cuddled, but I'm not sure if they were handraised.


Chickens and ducks aren't really well-suited for an apartment, but maybe look into quail? They're smaller and can be kept in a rabbit cage, but I don't know how friendly they can get.

 

[1Spongebob]

For someone who thinks birds are violent & so much work, I don't think you would have the patience needed to properly care for any bird. They take work, work & more work to keep happy & healthy. They are loud & messy & wonderful. People have birds because they want to bond with & hold them. My parrots haven't been shut in a cage for months. You have to train dogs too. With your opinion of birds, why would you want one?

 

[EdwardH]

Your post sounds like you want a friendly pet bird but do not want (or do not have the time) to put in the effort required to maintain the friendly behaviour. Remember that dogs, cats, birds, cows, sheep etc. are not born domesticated, they are raised around people and learn that people or at least one special person provides food, water, playtime etc. so they display normal pack, flock or herd type behaviour with that person. The person has become a member of the group.

If you want a bird without the interaction then I suggest a small bird in a large cage that you allow to have plenty of out of cage time for exercise. The bird will learn very quickly that the cage is where the food is and will essentially put itself to bed every night. In this type of situation it would be better to have two birds so they can have some social interaction as you sound less than interested in providing the social interaction a healthy bird requires.

Should you believe that some of the responses you have received are a bit harsh it is only because you have asked people who are devoted to their pet birds and they realise the amount of effort required to maintain a rewarding relationship with their pet. Every relationship needs work to form, maintain and improve it. Ask your wife and she'll tell you all those things that you really need to work on! A parrot does the same thing only instead of speaking it will use body language, vocalisation (screeching) and even bites.

 

[MonicaMc]

No bird *NEEDS* to be hand raised in order to enjoy the companionship of people... however, we live in a society of *WANT NOW* without much, if any, effort... so hand feeding is "required".


A better questions is... what is your definition of "tame"? Do you want a bird that will enjoy hanging out with you and occasionally eating food from your hands? But is otherwise happy to do as it pleases?

Or do you want a hands on, interactive, cuddly bird? A bird that demands attention?

 

[plumsmum2005]

http://www.parrotforums.com/training/62902-why-birds-so-temperamental-violent.html

I'm confused so many questions not many answers.

 

[AmyMyBlueFront]

You could get a stuffed one It wont make a mess,you don't have to feed it and you could cuddle as much as you'd like.

Jim

 

[wrench13]

BEEEP BEEEP BEEEP - troll alert.

Like Jim says, get a stuffed one. In fact, get stuffed. LOL for our Aussie members.

 

[sonja]

All birds are messy.

 

[Junho]

He's calling me a troll, and then makes a childish insult. Does he not know what irony means, or is that too sophisticated a concept for Australian education? (k now i'm trolling)

 

[wrench13]

Ah, he returns! Sir, I retract my troll comment. So, no bird needs to be hand fed, though of course you must indeed feed them. Parrots make better companions the more you socialize with them, and feeding a baby parrot is about as intimate as we can get. You can let the parents feed them until they are weaned, but most folks will say that having a human do the last several weeks of hand feeding makes the baby's more social. You do want your bird to be close with you, right? A small warning tho, if you haven't been trained to hand feed baby birds, that's best left to the breeder. If not done correctly, you can make the baby I'll or even kill it.

 

[EdwardH]

Hi Junho you might want to read posts a bit more closely. Your "troll" is from NY and other negative comments were also from US residents!

You may want to be a bit more specific in your questions so that you can receive more specific answers. By going onto a parrot forum and making derogatory comments about the pets that the people on that forum love sets you up for negative feedback.

I thought that pretty obvious but then I'm an Aussie so what would I know?

 

[plumsmum2005]

He's calling me a troll, and then makes a childish insult. Does he not know what irony means, or is that too sophisticated a concept for Australian education? (k now i'm trolling)

I think you need to remember that this site is home to many members from many different countries and what is amusing to someone in a certain country is not or totally lost, way over the head to someone elsewhere in the world. SO if you want consistent good advice stick to giving as much good info to those reading your posts as possible and probably wait to introduce humour until a more appropriate time and you are known a little better. You might want to start over in a new post if you have a genuine question/need for help. We have a good mix here so if you plan on trying to spoil things, please DON'T.

 

[NFFH]

All birds don't need to be hand fed to be finished. However a parent raised bird takes even more work than a hand raised bird to gain your trust.

All birds require a lot of attention. And in my experience the bigger the bird the more time, expense and commitment it takes.

However a budgie for example will still require at min on a very busy day 2 hours of attention.

They all require lots of interaction and time out if the cage to make a healthy well adjusted bird.


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[gavagai]

I think OP is probably gone, but I wanted to comment on 41Gryphon's suggestions, which are good ones for someone who wants a cuddly bird bit isn't willing to commit to a parrot, and is willing to accept that such a bird won't be as interactive as most parrots are. I think that one of the reasons parrots are so popular is that they have the some of the highest reward for the investment among birds. Mousebirds, for example, are reportedly at least as affectionate as the similar-looking cockatiels, but require feedings of fresh fruit several times a day. And then you have hawks and falcons, which require a high time investment (a falconer told me it's about two hours a day for the first bird and an hour for each bird after that), which will never be that into you. With most parrots, the most demanding part of caring for them is socializing them, and if you like birds, that doesn't seem like a chore.

I've met a few doves that liked to be cuddled, but I'm not sure if they were handraised.

I was able to handle wild doves (doves, not pigeons) that I found nesting in a city Starbucks. It was after dark, and they were foraging on the balcony but couldn't really see very well, so one of them let me pick it up and put it on my shoulder, where it sat for about an hour while its mate stood watching in concern from the rail. I didn't actually cuddle it though because it was a wild animal possibly carrying zoonoses (I washed my hands when it finally fluttered off my shoulder to join its mate), but doves are certainly sweet animals, and though they're not as interactive as parrots, I've heard that they'll come to you if they recognize you.

Chickens and ducks aren't really well-suited for an apartment, but maybe look into quail? They're smaller and can be kept in a rabbit cage, but I don't know how friendly they can get.

Ducks generally aren't cuddly in my experience, though they're less vicious than geese. Hens and most roosters can be cuddled with impunity, though I've never seen one that seemed interested in people except as food providers, which I think is true of all fowl. They're precocial, and don't bond the way parrots or even doves do. I knew a Turkish guy who kept a partridge as a pet, and apparently they're moderately popular over there, but I don't think most apartments in the US would be OK with poultry of any sort. Your best bet for an apartment would probably be "buttonquail," which are typically seen as pets rather than livestock. The birds sold as buttonquail are actually true quail rather than buttonquail, so it's possible that other quail species also make decent pets.

 

[Scoza]

This is going to sound a bit silly but when you see dove with a magician they seem super comfortable being handled and touched.


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