Hello! Researching adoption of an Eclectus!

[VAChris]

Hi!
I've been doing some research on purchasing/adopting a Parrot. From what I've read, the Eclectus sounds like a great match! I look forward to mining as much information from you folks as possible! I want to have my "ducks" in a row, so to speak, before bringing home our new family member!

A quick question if you please! Is it cruel to only adopt a single Eclectus? I plan on spending a lot of time with him/her but see that there is a lot to be said for having a pair.

 

[MikeyTN]

By getting a pair they get to have someone there with them when your not. But if your new to birds I would suggest to start out with one first then go from there as it's easier to train one then two at a time. With certain birds when you have them in a pair, it can be a disaster but with my pair and other pairs of Eclectus' I've encountered, it's not like that at all. But please do understand their diet needs as they are diet specific. IF you can't provide a daily fruits and veggies diet but resort to pellets because it's easier, then these guys are not for you.

 

[VAChris]

I've been reading about their diet. It sounds like some great stuff!! Some for the bird, some for me, some for the bird .... The one area that intrigues me is sprouting in addition to the fresh fruits and veggies.
Thank you for your answer, that makes me feel a bit better. I work a rotating shift with three to four day's off a week. My wife and two kids at home work / go to school for regular hours. Our goal would be to keep him/her in our company quite a bit!

 

[MikeyTN]

They're really wonderful birds! Can be messy, let your wife be aware of that...lol....I would not suggest putting their cage where there's carpeting or near the wall unless your gonna repaint the walls with semi-gloss where you would be able to wipe down what they throw against it. Fruits and Veggies can be very very messy....When you sprout, make sure it's not moldy!!!

 

[VAChris]

Great points!! Thanks! Lucky for us we have wood floors on our "active" floor. From what I've read you want their cage where there is maximum people coverage. Now as for the walls and furniture... time to do some noodling!

 

[MikeyTN]

IF you don't want to repaint the walls you could however get the 3M peel and stick hook things on the walls as they're removable without doing any damage to your walls, use those to hook a shower curtain behind the cage. I would cover the wood floors with a towel cause wet food can damage the wood flooring if left on too long.

 

[VAChris]

Using this site for sprouting. Hoping to do some practice runs before hand. That way I won't stressed out thinking I'm making my new family member sick.

 

[VAChris]

Great idea, although I might get more points (to store for this!) if I do some painting in the house Once we experience the mess first hand, we might opt to add your idea to the non stick walls!

 

[MikeyTN]

I'm tempted to purchase a sprout machine thing that someone I know bought awhile back. They were sprouting them to eat for themselves and it worked pretty good for them. But I think it broke after so many usage....lol....

 

[VAChris]

Lot's a health benefits to sprouting. Reading the Eclectus diet recommendations I'm think it may be a great diet for me as well... minus any pellets!