Pancake is 4 months old - When to introduce a friend?

[Lo_Liv]

Pancake is blending into our little home wonderfully! He seems to love my husband and I both, even though he is still a little nippy with Jesse, he has shown nothing but love to me. The few nips we have, are few and far between...and usually because I more too fast or sneeze

I was wondering, now that we are bonding here and Pancake is enjoying his new home, what is the recommended wait time for finding him a friend? I would love to have two birds that can keep each other company while I work!

Any experience on when the timing is right?

Thanks!!

Lori & Pancake

 

[Flboy]

You are his family! With adding a second bird in the house, they may hate each other and hate you for what you’ve done, they may love each other and now hate you for what you’ve done, or they could love each other and love you!
To get a second bird, has to be for you, not for the bird! All that being said, there is proof that birds are indeed healthier with being with some of their own kind! Even if they don’t get along!
http://www.parrotforums.com/general...-impacts-dna-repair-long-short-telomeres.html

 

[clark_conure]

I would not consider that article valid as a reason to get anouther bird for one thing:

"In captivity, grey parrots are often kept in social isolation, which can have detrimental effects on their health and wellbeing." In all the experiments they didn't talk about a social bird living with a family or human. Just isolated "Lab birds". Later on they bring up humans and talk about humans in isolation. But it's all about isolated people or parrots. And not for nothing it's pretty obvious.

If a parrot is actively engaged with a person or family I think it provides the same substitute as living with another bird.

NOW HOWEVER.... throwing that article away; the reasons and reactions you may experience that flyboy brought up are absolutely genuine.

It's up to you but I'd think about it, at only 4 months he hasn't really even created his own identity yet. He still has hundreds of annoying habits and tricks and behaviors to try out, and to try out how they affect you!

I'd wait at least a year, more or less give him time to develop his own personality, then maybe see if you can introduce your bird to another "known healthy" prospective first.

That's my opinion...

 

[LordTriggs]

I will say always wait until they have gone through puberty. That's when most birds are given up. If you can get through that and still want one then you're gold. It's not long you'll have to wait either, just a year or so

And if you do decide to get one weigh up all those negatives that could happen and then assume they will happen. Then you'll be prepared for a bad situation and things can only go better than expected