Baby or Adult Meyers

[Parrotlet]

After taking forever to decide what small parrot to get I have decided on a Meyers due to their reputation for being quiet, loving and not too deanding of attention.

I now need to make a decision as today I went to view an 8 year old adult Meyer. He has definitely been handreared and was extremely tame with his owner and family. However he made some rather nice holes in my hands when I tried to get him to step up initially, after half hour or so he did begin to chill and let me give him lots of scritches which he obviously enjoyed with his little eyes shut lol. He was equally good with my boyfriend also.

Tomorrow I'm going to view a partially handreared baby (parent reared for 5 weeks before hand rearing), I'm told he is tame but not silly tame per se but I'll find out tomorrow.

Initially I wanted an older bird so you don't have to go through the terrible twos, or finding out my bird decides he only likes men etc. However with a lot of tlc there is also the chance this baby could end up supertame and will be used to my household. Oh and maybe not pick up that finger munching habit the other has (my fingers still hurt as I type this!).

Which do you think I should go for?

 

[SilverSage]

Other people correct me if I am wrong, but aren't meyers poi's? And aren't poi's famous for their finger munching? All parrots need someone who will spend lots of time with them, and biting is not really a habit that is picked up so much as a behavior that can be caused by many many things and is a behavior that all parrots deal with at some point. Unless you ended stand biting and how to deal with it, you most likely WILL end up with a biter no matter how young it is when you get it. Also, it is not at all abnormal for a bird to nite a stranger who tries to pick him up.

 

[Parrotlet]

Well I've decided on the older bird, I think he was just a litte nervous with new people around him as he was fine with his owners.

The baby Meyers was really not tame at all and I just didn't click with the Jardine. I've put a deposit on him for her to hold him while I wait for his new cage and toys to arrive.

Just gotta wait now

 

[RavensGryf]

Other people correct me if I am wrong, but aren't meyers poi's? And aren't poi's famous for their finger munching? All parrots need someone who will spend lots of time with them, and biting is not really a habit that is picked up so much as a behavior that can be caused by many many things and is a behavior that all parrots deal with at some point. Unless you ended stand biting and how to deal with it, you most likely WILL end up with a biter no matter how young it is when you get it. Also, it is not at all abnormal for a bird to nite a stranger who tries to pick him up.

Yes they're Poicephalus . Yes Poi's are known for finger munching . You're right in that all parrots need the socialization to help curb biting so that it doesn't become habit, BUT Poi's as a general rule just tend to have that "knee-jerk reflex to bite first and ask questions later" more readily than many species. Still, in a well socialized bird it's not going to be a huge problem. I LOVE Poi's and they are still my favorite genus for so many reasons that outshaddow any biting. I think Meyer's are absolutely beautiful in coloration.

The fact that you did get the bird to cuddle and close it's eyes with you (a stranger) tells you that you'll have a good friend for sure if you take this bird home and work with him. The biting was just because you're a new person and he didn't appreciate you moving to pick him up at first.

 

[RavensGryf]

I'd get him! He sounds like a good one. Keep us posted.

 

[Parrotlet]

Yes definitely. I had a good vibe from him and despite me and my boyfriend trying to stroke him he seemed relatively laid back and was quite happy to land on us.

I went to see another Meyers some time ago and he was like a shark, ran across the cage to try and get me. This one showed no preemptive aggression, it seemed more like a stay back I don't know you kinda bite.

Anyway I'll keep you posted when I pick the little guy up

 

[RavensGryf]

Pictures too remember! We all love to see, plus I love to see Meyer's.

 

[Parrotlet]

Oh yes of course I'll get some pictures once he has settled in.

Another good thing is that this chap is used to eating pellets as I was planning on using them as a staple with the addition of fresh fruit, veg and a little seed. However he is on Nutribird at the moment and I've ordered some along with TOPs and Harrisons as I think they have more natural ingredients.

Any recommendations on decent quality pellets or what your birds prefer would be appreciated

 

[Parrotlet]

I'm going to pick the little chap up tomorrow afternoon, I can't wait go get him home.

 

[LeaKP]

So excited for you! There may be a "honeymoon" phase so learn your new birdie's body language. The less he bites from the start the better. Can't avoid all bites but we can avoid most of them. Can't wait to see pics!

 

[RavensGryf]

Oh yes of course I'll get some pictures once he has settled in.

Another good thing is that this chap is used to eating pellets as I was planning on using them as a staple with the addition of fresh fruit, veg and a little seed. However he is on Nutribird at the moment and I've ordered some along with TOPs and Harrisons as I think they have more natural ingredients.

Any recommendations on decent quality pellets or what your birds prefer would be appreciated

As far as pellets go... Pellets are not all created equal, just as people cereal range from Froot Loops to organic Steel Cut Oatmeal .

Harrison's hands down. My birds have had excellent bloodwork consistently for many years earing Harrison's. Mine have all loved it, but some birds out there don't. Dr.D's is said to be up there too and my avian vet uses it exclusively. It's not sold in stores though. Not sure how to get it.

 

[thekarens]

I prefer TOPS, but my guys won't eat them, so they get oven fresh bites.

 

[Parrotlet]

Harrisons isn't difficult to get here, in fact I've already got some as well as tops so I guess we'll find out later if he will eat them!

I didn't wanna keep him on the nutribird though as it smelt strongly and the ingredients looked to be cheap cereal mix with added vitamins. The Harrisons and tops had a full list of ingredients but with less added vits, I don't think tops had any at all actually.

In any case I intend to feed fresh fruit/veg and a little seed for variety.

 

[Grraarrgghh]

Albert's on a mix of Harrison's and Top's (my vet recommends both). He seems to have an equal preference to both.

I would recommend buying some Harrison's Coarse to mix in with the Fine though, because sometimes a parrot loves making a mess and crunching down on a big cube!

 

[RavensGryf]

Between the 3 sizes of Harrison's (Super Fine, Fine, and the cubes) I found personally that the FINE is good for almost any size bird.

I stopped getting the super fine for my budgie since he can eat the Fine with no problem, and I've had birds 500+ grams who ate the Fine too. One bag for everyone . I find that there is too much waste with the larger size even with larger birds. But if you like the large size, they have Power Treats if you want to try those too.

 

[Parrotlet]

Just got him home, he is absolutely lovely and sat on my shoulder chatting jibberish. I've got a slight suspicion he might prefer my boyfriend though, he just seems a little more chilled around him.

 

[RavensGryf]

Aw he's very cute!! What's the name? Are you going to use the name he came with, or change it?

Has he been DNA sexed? The reason I'm asking, is that Meyer's have slight color dimorphism between male and female. As far as I've read many times, females tend to have 'more' solid color of green or turquoise (depending on subspecies) on their fronts, and males have more gray "striping" through the front color. Also looks like a more petite head and beak than typical Poi male, but of course hard to tell in pics, and never know for sure without DNA. Just curious that's all

 

[Parrotlet]

No they just said he was make. I'll text the owner now and see if they actually know for sure. His name is Mister, we were thinking of calling him Michael Meyers haha

 

[Parrotlet]

Well I just asked if he was definitely a male and they said yes but then I asked if he was dna tested and she said no, the previous owner told them he was a boy so there's every chance he could be a she lol

 

[Parrotlet]

He's pretty steady with my dogs too, a previous owner must have had them. He's actually let me pick him up very gently with my hand around him too, I think he will be super handlable after a bit.