Does PB miss other birds?

[Dustbunny]

It seems likely PB was raised around multiple birds (and likely other animals as well). She adores them. For all I know she was a breeder in a large facility - we have no clue. When I open the windows and she hears the birds clearly she gets so excited. She frequently wants me to open the window curtains near my computer so she can watch the birds. Robins, finches, cardinals, it doesn't matter to her, she seems to enjoy watching and chatting with them all. Unfortunately, when I do open the curtains she gets so overexcited that all of her training for using her "inside voice" can go right out the window. Then I have to close the curtains again for her to quiet down. I think she is learning that I'll close them if she screams, but she just can't seem to help herself sometimes.

Do you think her excitement for other birds is mainly due to it being breeding season (she is definitely hormonal), or does she just really miss and enjoy the company of other birds? Or both? I read that a bird raised predominately interacting only with other birds will never bond as closely to humans. Does anyone have experience with this?

I adore PB and am really hopeful she'll bond close enough to be a companion bird. However, I also realize this could very well not happen being that she's already 5-years-old without any indication she's interacted with humans much before - outside of a cage that is. (I am 100% positive she can be tamed and trained though. She's doing amazingly well with her training. I am so proud of her!) Initially, I only wanted a one-bird household. However, now I can't help but wonder if it would be possible to bring in a second bird that could be a more hands-on companion for me and company for PB. I know this may or may not work, and I only plan to try IF PB and I don't gain that companion-type bond by later this year.

I'd appreciate everyone's opinions and similar experiences. Since bringing PB home, my head feels like it hasn't stopped spinning with worries and processing huge amounts of information. I could use everyone's advice.

Thanks!

 

[MonicaMc]

Casey, my first tiel, has always been around birds. She was hand raised and she once became cage buddies with my first conure, a cherry head. She gets along with any birds that get along with her.... in a manner of speaking. She has only ever been close to the cherry head and would preen him and snuggle against him at night or at nap time. She has never been as close to any other bird since then, nor before.

Casey is however hand raised so she demands her daily scritches! Sometimes she can't decide what she wants more of - food or scritches! She's pretty social with other birds and friendly with me. Casey doesn't like my current conures because they don't like her.


Charlie and Jayde - the conures - don't get along with the other birds, let alone with each other. Charlie was, as far as I know, a single bird for 10 years of his life and he did form a close bond with a lilac crowned amazon in his foster home. However, ever since he's been with me, he has never bonded with any other bird. He loves to preen other birds, but he's also just as likely to attack them. I think Jayde could have been an only bird for 3 years of her life, and as far as I know, has never bonded with another bird. Even though the two "feed off" of each other (i.e. if one takes a bath, the other one might, too - if one takes off flying, so might the other one, etc), they don't get along. Both are extremely human orientated and I find it sad that they don't get along with other birds.


Tomi Girl I think was an only bird for who knows how many years of her life. She doesn't seem to have that 'flock instinct' and socialization that the other tiels have. She's accepted them as part of her flock, but she doesn't interact with any of them. (well, Casey is kind of the same way!)

Pistachio and Faye both had previous mates for who knows how many years and after both lost their mates did end up pairing up together. They don't really interact with any of the other birds, but at least they have each other! When I first got Faye though, Pistachio's mate was still alive, and for the most part, he had ignored her. It was rather sad to watch, because Faye wanted his attention so badly! Once she finally got it, she was rather confused at first!

My bourke parakeet has always been around other birds... first being her parents and another bird, then around my flock. She doesn't interact with any of the other birds, but she definitely prefers being around them vs being alone.




Even if birds don't get along, I do believe that they can benefit from other birds around them. This isn't always the case, but parrots are flock creatures. They are not meant to be alone.


The main reasons I wanted a second conure was so that I could have a more hands on bird, and hopefully a bird to be a companion for my first conure. Noel, the cherry head, was at least 9-13 years old when he was given to me (if not older than myself!), was previously attacked by a ferret, wasn't tame or friendly and was nothing like what conures are described to be! He wasn't goofy, he wasn't playful, he didn't talk, he didn't cuddle or do a bunch of other things conures are known for! After I saw the wild flock of cherry headed conures in San Francisco, I felt even worse! I saw what he "should" be like and to think of how he wasn't, I was heart broken. I kind of dreamed of releasing him into the wild flock if only it would improve his life and make him happier, but I knew there was no way he could survive! For starters, he couldn't even fly!

Hence Charlie... he was supposed to be a cherry head as well, but when I saw him, I knew he wasn't a cherry head but a mitred. I still tried though! Charlie was 12 years old when I got him, so also an older bird (but younger than Noel at this point - Charlie was born in '94, Noel was probably born in '92 or possibly in the 80's? Maybe even before then! I don't know!) Charlie wanted to preen Noel and Noel would copy Charlie. If Charlie bathed, Noel would watch and wait his turn before trying to take his own bath. In the end though, they really didn't get along. I ended up keeping them in separate rooms because Charlie is a human-bird where-as Noel was a bird-bird.

Noel died 3 years after I got Charlie and it just no longer felt "right" having only one conure. Even though the two never got along, it felt like there was something missing in my flock.

Insert Jayde, 3 years after the death of Noel. (Charlie being an only bird for over 6 years now) She's a red throated conure and she doesn't get along with any of the other birds, either! Granted, although Jayde and Charlie get along far better than Charlie and Noel did, they are not preening buddies, cage buddies nor do they play together! I can have both on me at the same time, but they still bicker and squabble at times. Jayde typically prefers my right shoulder where-as Charlie has taken to preferring either hanging from the front of my shirt or being on my arms. Although Charlie will sit on my shoulders, he's not too much of a shoulder bird.


I have seen Charlie copying Jayde and I think it has helped Jayde become friendlier by watching me and Charlie together. Their age difference is 16 years! Charlie is 20 years old this year and Jayde is 4 this year! I've had Jayde since last year (still a few months shy of a year of having her!), and she is the youngest conure I've ever had!

 

[RavensGryf]

Sounds fair... Since you're aware they may or may not get along. Good luck with PB. Sounds like she's responding well already, considering she was mainly wild. I've never had a conure specie, but from what I hear, they are a species that does crave and form close bonds. Even if she does bond with you, perhaps you will STILL get the urge for just one more?? LOL

 

[Dustbunny]

Even if she does bond with you, perhaps you will STILL get the urge for just one more?? LOL

Hehe. It could happen but I'm hoping my husband will have more willpower than I do and tell me no. He rarely does though. Just today I gave him 2 options: (1) Run me to the pet store so I could pick up another rope perch for PB, in which case I would require at least one toy as well due to sheer lack of willpower. Or (2) I get to put an order in at mysafebirdstore, but in that case I could not guarantee how much the total would be when I hit the checkout. What does he choose? Both! He tells me one will make me happy tonight and the other will give me a day or two of tremendous joy shopping online and the anticipation of it all arriving and then getting to open everything up like Christmas. He spoils me rotten no matter how much I beg him to, "Just say no!" Truly it's for my own good. LOL.

 

[RavensGryf]

Hmm, could be dangerous... Meaning that with that attitude, I see a good chance of another birdie down the road :11: maybe not right away...

 

[Dustbunny]

Nope. I am being strong, darn it. I did not ask to see any of the conures at Petco. It was tempting though because they had this black capped conure just shredding these wood blocks in his cage. I kept thinking, I wonder if this bird could teach PB to do that. AND I am NOT going to a nearby bird show this weekend. Not even to check for good deals on toys...Nope. Not gonna. I'm really not.

BUT boy oh boy is it sort of tempting. LOL. The only thing holding me back is today I saw a brand new side of PB. It's like she knows I really needed some feathered friend love and was so sweet today. She let me pet her and snuggled under my chin for a bit and never bit hard. Well, except for during training when she had to be certain my hand was safe to put her foot on. Now it looks like I have a hicky on the back of my hand. But she did put put a foot on my hand and chose to leave it there even after getting her treat. I call that worth it.