How to convince my parents to let me get a bird??

[Emio123456789]

You seem very qualified to get a bird and I am only thirteen and when I was twelve I had to convince my parents to let me get a bird. I'm not really sure what advice to give you except just try and show your parents how wonderful birds can be ( I showed my parents a lot of bird memes lol) but it's best if you sit your whole family down and have a serious talk about getting a bird, stating all the pros and cons and this birds future. As much as you've proved your ready for a bird try and be more ready if that makes sense. Also if you are able to get a bird try getting them from a good breeder, they will be cheaper, tame, healthier and you know a lot more about there history, age etc. If you have any questions just ask me, again I went through the same thing as your going through.

 

[Minor_Arcana]

Update:
Thanks to you guys, my parents have agreed to let me get a bird! I will be getting a hand-raised baby cockatiel in June! I am so excited! My cage is 61 inches tall by 34 inches wide and 28 inches deep. It has a little play area on top of it. I’ve also ordered a playground that is 40 inches tall by 20 inches wide and 18 inches deep! The perches that came with the cage were just the regular ones that don’t look natural at all and gives birds arthritis, so I wittled it down a bit to make sure my baby doesn’t get arthritis. Our pans are Teflon free, and I have a bird safe air purifier in my room (where the bird will be) just in case. I have done lots of reasearch, and I’ve had my parents do lots of reasearch as well. I will be giving my bird a pellet based diet with millet and lots of fruits and veggies (but no citrus or avocados of course.) I am very excited! Thank you all!

 

[Owlet]

I suggest supplying them with more perches than just the ones that came with it (even if wittled down to a better shape) Manzanita, grapevine, dragonwood, etc are all good options. You can look up a list of bird safe woods and even make your own. Do you have toys set up?

 

[ParrotGenie]

Update:
Thanks to you guys, my parents have agreed to let me get a bird! I will be getting a hand-raised baby cockatiel in June! I am so excited! My cage is 61 inches tall by 34 inches wide and 28 inches deep. It has a little play area on top of it. I’ve also ordered a playground that is 40 inches tall by 20 inches wide and 18 inches deep! The perches that came with the cage were just the regular ones that don’t look natural at all and gives birds arthritis, so I wittled it down a bit to make sure my baby doesn’t get arthritis. Our pans are Teflon free, and I have a bird safe air purifier in my room (where the bird will be) just in case. I have done lots of reasearch, and I’ve had my parents do lots of reasearch as well. I will be giving my bird a pellet based diet with millet and lots of fruits and veggies (but no citrus or avocados of course.) I am very excited! Thank you all! ����

Good start and thanks for doing the research before taking on your new feather friend it is very refreshing to read. As far as perches get some dragonwood natural wood perches. You don't want to hard of a wood as Manzanita, they need to be able to chew it.

 

[Minor_Arcana]

Of course, of course. We will be getting lots of new perches (preferably the ones you speak of) when we go to the pet store. (The pet store is the one where I’m getting my bird. They have hand raised animals and they really do love them!)

 

[Scott]

Great news, you must be so excited! A bit of advice when you go bird-shopping.... once you have narrowed the choices, let the bird choose you. You many find a selection of friendly cockatiels, but one or more may be especially attracted to you.

 

[Makayla]

Hey rylyn Moore it’s Makayla from ur class! I’m dealing with the same thing can u give me some tips or how u did get ur mom fine with it! Ty

 

[clark_conure]

I was gonna say this post was from two years ago...

Makayla if you want a bird at your age, convince your parents to get a bird. You're going to be going off to college or getting married etc. Your parents are more suited to own a bird, that you all share.

 

[noodles123]

Welcome and please stick around/spend LOTTTTTS OF TIME researching.




It's like having a kid more than a pet...and I'm sure some non-parrot owners are thinking "my dog is my kid" or "my cat is my kid" but it's not the same. The classmate of yours also adopted a baby, which means that it takes time before they mature sexually etc (and they do change and become more difficult, especially during puberty, but they always have hormone swings and can't be safely cuddled without triggering those in the long-run-- even though they like them).

This HAS to be a whole-house, lifestyle changing decision. They are VERY sensitive to cookware (even on different floors) and certain chemicals, as well as household cleaners that most people use daily. They get SUPER attached to people as well, so now isn't the greatest time to get one, because if it gets attached to you, you will be leaving and it's very hard (and a bit dangerous) to have them in apartments due to neighbors smoking, using certain chemicals, landlords spraying for insects or doing maintenance etc...Plus the noise and the schedule they need--- 10 hours of sleep nightly, like a kid...and a place to sleep where people arent up at all hours. I know you don't know what your life will look like in 5 years, but it will likely be a challenge to keep a bird, as it would be a challenge to keep a kid (only kids can breathe what we breathe, like perfumes, candles, cleaners, air fresheners, ****PTFE/PFOA/PFCS****do not even use PTFE/PFOA/PFCs in the same house...kitchens are full of it (toasters, pots, pans, drip trays, toasters, griddles, popcorn poppers and even the bags, roasting trays, poachers, ovens, ...and then, outside the kitchen, space heaters, curling irons, straighteners, heat guns, heat lamps, certain light bulbs etc, without going into respiratory failure).

They also cost A TON to care for. Do you have a certified avian vet near you? The cost of the bird and the cage is nothing compared to long-term. They also need far bigger cages than what you will find at PetCo or pet-shops--- they need more horizantal space than vertical, but this cage should take up a chunk of a room-- not just some table-top 2 footer...that's too small.


You will also need to cook for them.. and the 10 hours sleep is key for their immune system etc-- you can't leave their cage partly covered too long either, or you will mess with hormones.


If you do get one, DO NOT give your bird shadowy space or snuggle huts---no matter how cute they look at the store. Those huts are super dangerous and shadowy spaces mess with their light cycles and hormones (impacting behavior as adults)--- they will always be looking for them, but you have to prevent that access..You also should only ever pet on the heck and neck for sexual reasons.


For food, they need more than seeds and even seeds and pellets are not enough- you have to make chop etc.


They also need hours out of the cage per day...despite dates, college, a job etc (and making that work on a work schedule is TRICKY).


Last thing- if you bond with your bird and then leave it with your parents (or, if it bonds with them and not you, but you take it with you) the parrot suffers and can scream more, pluck, get depressed, aggressive etc.


Plus, when you are older, you will want to stay out all night etc-- really rough when someone is depending on a 6AM wake-up (if not earlier, depending on your job and when you have to leave for work---they aren't cool just sitting in there when they know you are up and can hear you-- they need to be out of the cage a lot--especially if you plan to keep them cages for 8 hours or something). On top of that, they don't like the whole family usually, so while they may TOLERATE, it's hard to assume that your parents or even you (if the bird prefers them) will always all be able to interact with the bird in the same way after puberty.

 

[Scott]

Hey rylyn Moore it’s Makayla from ur class! I’m dealing with the same thing can u give me some tips or how u did get ur mom fine with it! Ty

Rylan hasn't visited the forum since November 2020. Unfortunately you cannot use the PM system to contact members until reaching 20 posts. However, any moderator (we're purple) can forward a message to Rylan's mailbox. He/she (sorry, not sure!) receives email notification and copy of each PM.

 

[bug_n_flock]

Hey, good luck! I got my first bird when I was around 8. A lovely little parakeet hen from Petcosmart whom I named Tweety and shared 3 wonderful years with. She passed away because my parents did not take it seriously when I told them she was ill and needed to see a vet. It absolutely devastated me. On that note I agree completely with Noodles. It *must* be a full family commitment or it will only end in tragedy and heartbreak. My parents bought Alex(cockatiel) for me about a week after she passed away as I suppose some sort of peace offering. He is still with me today, nearly 19 years later. We went thru college together, a very very "messy"(to put it lightly) breakup, we moved together many times, he has stayed with me when I got married, and Gods willing, will be with me when I have children and beyond. The oldest official tiel was nearly 40! We hopefully have many more years together ahead of us.


If you and your family are suffeciently dedicated, it absolutely CAN work out! Just make sure you are totally, completely, utterly, and fully dedicated to doing what it takes to take care of your bird. And that your family supports you in this and will be willing to make changes to enable it to work.



I simply do not know where I would be today if I had never gotten my best friend in the world when I was just a kid. He has helped me thru so many difficult times and was always there to support me.




He is every bit as attached to me as I am to him, tho. When I go out of town and leave him in the care of someone he knows and loves he mopes, pouts, bites, and just generally sulks. He is clongy and demanding when I get back, screaming when I am out of sight but not letting me touch him at all. It really does psychological harm to birds to be rehomed when they are bonded to you(and even if they "only" see you as flock and are not super bonded). So really, only proceed with getting a bird if you genuinely believe that you can make a commitment *fully* to the bird.