Mixed species in one cage?

[Ratsratsrats]

Hello! I don't own birds yet, but plan to in a few years(ranging between 3-10 years, really depends on a lot of things in my life). I plan to keep them in a modified triple critter nation cage. I was wondering though, would it be okay to keep mixed species together? I want a conure, a parrotlet, and a cockatiel. I couldn't settle on one species. If they can't be housed together I'm willing to roll some dice to pick just one species to keep.

 

[noodles123]

You should not house multiple species together in a cage (in a MASSIVE, zoo-sized aviary, MAYBE). Even 2 birds of the same species often will fight and injure or kill the other...
Plus, you need time for each bird in the event that they don't get along (e.g., 3 hours each, minimum). Housing a trio is also generally a very bad idea.

Then there is the serious risk of symptomatic (but deadly) disease- hence the necessity for new birds of unfamiliar/non-cage mate birds in a persons house to be quarantined for 45 days (each as far from the other as possible--- rooms if necessary, but entire houses/building= safer (due to ventilation and dust transmission).


Unrelated suggestion-Read up on Teflon/PTFE/PFOA/PFCs- they are a big deal for future bird owners and have killed birds on different floors with temps as low as 350F.
Also, fumes, candles, standard cleaners, scented oils, wax warmers= very bad for them.


Oh-- and if you decide to construct an aviary, it is VERY important that you avoid galvanized things, zinc, nickle, lead etc...Stainless steel, aluminum in some cases (debatable), or some iron with bird-safe powder coating. Chicken wire and treated lumber (including the majority, which are sprayed for insects) can be deadly. Parrot will chew out of wood but can also be poisoned by it, plus it is impossible to clean properly when pooped upon.

 

[Laurasea]

Green cheeks are allopreeners abd cockatiels are not. This can cause friction.

Green cheeks can nip off toes of smaller species like a parrotlet. Mine nipped off toes of my budgie.

I don't think it's a good idea to house mixed species together.

My birds have seperate cages. It took time and management to have them out together.

Things to keep in mind with parrots, tgey take a lot if time and sacrifice, and are so messy and can be very loud. They are amazing and so special. But the mess is real.

 

[Ratsratsrats]

Things to keep in mind with parrots, tgey take a lot if time and sacrifice, and are so messy and can be very loud. They are amazing and so special. But the mess is real.

I know how messy they can be and I think I can handle the mess. I own 22 rats in two dcn cages and two destructive rabbits as well as five cats in the house. I plan on starting to limit how many rats I own to 10 in the future and I don't plan on owning anymore rabbits or cats in the future. Hopefully I'll just be sticking to 10 rats and two birds(possibly one dog) in the future.

And it seems like I'll be rolling a dice on what species to own in the future. And no matter what species I'm going to get them from a rescue.

 

[noodles123]

Very good to hear that--if you get 2, know that you can't really tell how 2 will get along until after both hit sexual maturity (and even then, it will take a few months because there is that "honeymoon"). Also, certain species can't safely be housed together due to respiratory sensitivity to dander.

 

[Noahs_Birds]

You should not house multiple species together in a cage (in a MASSIVE, zoo-sized aviary, MAYBE). Even 2 birds of the same species often will fight and injure or kill the other...
Plus, you need time for each bird in the event that they don't get along (e.g., 3 hours each, minimum). Housing a trio is also generally a very bad idea.

Then there is the serious risk of symptomatic (but deadly) disease- hence the necessity for new birds of unfamiliar/non-cage mate birds in a persons house to be quarantined for 45 days (each as far from the other as possible--- rooms if necessary, but entire houses/building= safer (due to ventilation and dust transmission).


Unrelated suggestion-Read up on Teflon/PTFE/PFOA/PFCs- they are a big deal for future bird owners and have killed birds on different floors with temps as low as 350F.
Also, fumes, candles, standard cleaners, scented oils, wax warmers= very bad for them.


Oh-- and if you decide to construct an aviary, it is VERY important that you avoid galvanized things, zinc, nickle, lead etc...Stainless steel, aluminum in some cases (debatable), or some iron with bird-safe powder coating. Chicken wire and treated lumber (including the majority, which are sprayed for insects) can be deadly. Parrot will chew out of wood but can also be poisoned by it, plus it is impossible to clean properly when pooped upon.

Over exaggerating in regards to aviary construction and mixing species noodles.

First of all, you can easily mix species in a cage.....but.....the species that have been mentioned (parrotlets, cockatiels and conures) are NOT an appropriate mix for their aggression. If say they wanted to mix cockatiels with members of the Neophema family for example I’d say ‘Go ahead, no problems at all’ because they are both quiet natured species band I know for a fact they do well together. It’s all about the balance of mixing species with other compatible species, not like you’re saying instead that you can’t mix species whatsoever unless “you have a massive zoo sized aviary”. An appropriate sized cage that caters enough room for the species OR an outdoor aviary that also is not a ridiculous size are both suitable options. Also, if you quarantine birds and get them vet checked properly there is no risk of disease if they are kept indoors.....can’t get sick if there’s nothing to get sick from!

With aviary construction, galvanised products that you have said to avoid are the best materials to use. Galvanised dipped products create a protective layer over the material to prevent harmful rust that IS harmful for birds. There’s two different forms of ‘galvanised products’ used. There is the ‘hot dipped’ gal metals that are the ones to use, and then there is the ‘zinc plated’ galvanised materials which are not safe to use.

 

[noodles123]

Unless someone knows exactly what he/she is doing, mixing is generally risky (especially for someone who hasn't had a lot of experience). I would not feel comfortable doing it in general (due to the risk of injury--especially when size differences are significant).


When I said "zoo size", I didn't mean like the 50 ft tall aviaries-- I was referring to a walk-in style though. It occurred to me as I read your comment that we probably are envisioning different things with regard to "zoo size".

Where I live, you would be hard-pressed to differentiate between galvanized products at the hardware store. I suppose if you shopped online or made a bunch of calls, you might be able to tell what is what, but labels are generally vague.

 

[Noahs_Birds]

Unless someone knows exactly what he/she is doing, mixing is generally risky (especially for someone who hasn't had a lot of experience). I would not feel comfortable doing it in general (due to the risk of injury--especially when size differences are significant).


When I said "zoo size", I didn't mean like the 50 ft tall aviaries-- I was referring to a walk-in style though. It occurred to me as I read your comment that we probably are envisioning different things with regard to "zoo size".

Where I live, you would be hard-pressed to differentiate between galvanized products at the hardware store. I suppose if you shopped online or made a bunch of calls, you might be able to tell what is what, but labels are generally vague.

Yeah ok, when I hear the term ‘zoo size’ I think of at least a 10 metre long aviary and compared to a normal backyard aviary which can be at least 1.5m long

Where I live our steel manufacturers provide the exact details regarding what you are buying, but telling between galvanised dipped and zinc plated is easy anyway because galvanised dipped is always the most shiny