Questions to eclectus owners

[Sadie]

Hi! I'm new here.
I will be getting an eclectus soon (within the year) and i have a few questions for current eclectus owners. I have been doing a lot of research about them but i would like to get some input from owners.

I want a female solomon island

Being females, are the noticably more moody then the males? i am looking for a feathered child who will love being out all day and being involved in our daily life, using a cage only when we are out or alseep.
are females as cuddly?

I have been reading about their difficult dietary needs. Is it easier then i am making it out to be? Any easy guidlines?

In general, do the females make cuddly, loving, funny family birds?
I understand every bird is different and i can't generalize. I figured i can get some opinions and go from there.

And any other advice would be amazing too!
Thank you and have an amazing day!

 

[pawsfoot]

Welcome,
I have a female SI eclectus and I wouldn't trade her for the world. She is not an overly cuddly bird, but we got her as an already mature bird. She had a sketchy past, but there are others on this forum that have females that are super cuddly. I do not have a male to compare my female to, but I find that all parrots can be moody at times. She is pretty even tempered for the most part, but we all have those grouchy days.
As far as diet is concerned, our ekky pretty much eats any healthy things that we eat. On a daily basis she may eat apples, squash, oatmeal, corn, whole grain pasta, zucchini, peas, carrots, sweet potatoes, sometimes a little boiled chicken, occassionally egg with the shell, and almost any type of fruit or vegetable that she likes. If I cook it for dinner she normally can eat it before I add the seasonings to it. As treats they can have a variety of nuts, go light on the peanuts though, they are high in fat.
Good luck with your new ekky. I'm sure others will have more information as well.

 

[JensFlock]

I have a male ekkie, so I don't know how much help I'll be, but I'll try.
My boy was hand fed (by me) and he is the most wonderful, even-tempered bird I've ever met. He has never bitten anyone, or even tried. If he doesn't know you, he's a little more cautious, but he'll still step up if you tell him to.
He runs around the apartment following me if he's loose, and loves to take a shower with me.
As for the food, I feed a variety of fruits, pastas, scrambled eggs, grains, and lots of vegetables to my boys. He will try anything once, and for the most part, he'll eat anything.
He's fairly quiet, too. Occasionally he'll let out a squawk when the conure gets started, but I'm in a small apartment, so it can't be too bad, because the neighbors haven't shot at me yet.....
I'm sure others on here can help you more with the female ekkie personality.

 

[thebirdnerd]

Eclectus are great birds, I've worked with a few over the years, (both male and female). From my experience, (I'm sure others might disagree), the males seem to be a little calmer and less nippy. Both are relatively quiet birds, however they can let out a loud call every once in a while.

 

[MikeyTN]

Between the two sexes, the females are a bit more moody in my opinion. My girl is quite sassy, IF she don't want to do something, she'll tell you...My boy on the other hand is the sweetest bird in the world. I got them both as mature birds, they're 6-7 years old now. Gracie came pretty trained, but JoJo needed a lot of work. I got him trained in less then a week, a month later he was really good about stepping up when I ask him to. Two months later he stop being a closet talker and talk infront of us. It would be one year next month on the 11th since I brought them home. They're wonderful birds to have!!! By the way, Gracie prefers my partner over me and she is the sweetest baby for my partner. She is fine with me but IF we're both around, she prefers going to my partner. JoJo prefers me. You should let the bird choose you! It shouldn't matter on the sex part if the bird choose you.

 

[mygirl]

I have a nearly 3 year old female she is the most loving cuddly bird to my husband but he is the only one she's cuddly too, she's a great talker. she is 100% toilet trained only goes poops on her stand or in her cage. we have a lot of trouble with her around molting time she gets stressed, she never does the eclectus call she barks like a dog instead lol

 

[Sadie]

Thank you so much everyone for all of your information. I Have been been looking at all the parrot species and trying to find the one for me. I narrowed it down to the eclectus and i love the females colors. I just want to make sure what you read and all the youtube videos have some truth to them!
I guess the food thing just seemed harder reading about it. All of the precise needs because of the longer digestive tract scared me a bit. Being a female, i was also worried that a female would automatically take to my husband. I am taking getting a large bird very seriously because it literally is a lifelong commitment. I just want to make sure i am making the right choice.

 

[MikeyTN]

We already cut fruits and veggies for our birds anyway so it wasn't a hassle at all...once you get a hang of it, their diet needs is actually quite simple.

 

[Pedro]

Eclectus are not that hard to look after in fact most people i know with eclectus start eating a healthier diet because of their birds.

As far as temprement goes, that's a hard one because each eclectus is as individual as us humans. I have 10 of various ages & each bird is different. IMO you can get on with either male or female as long as there is trust & you respect him/her. And most of all let them be independent.

 

[Sadie]

So as far as food, you fill their bowl with the seed mixtures they sell in bags, and tons of fresh fruit and veggetables. I don't know why that was so hard for me to understand when i was reading about it.
I will be going to the exotics store this afternoon. I want to be able to spend time with one, knowing me i will end up bringing one home today

 

[c3honey84]

My female SI eclectus is not big on being touched, however, I have trained her to handle me touching her head or her belly. She won't tolerate touching for very long though. She does like to sit on my stomach for some reason though. Sometimes she will just sit there and stare me in the face for a half hour! She loves to just sit on my arm or sit near me, but I definitely would not consider her cuddly. She can also get aggressive sometimes when she is not in a good mood or when someone gets in the way of her food. The key is to start training as soon as possible so she knows who is boss. Even a bird who does not like to be petted can be conditioned to like it if it is paired with something they do like. (Treats.) Also, my bird will eat almost anything, but she also likes to shake her head a lot when she eats so food goes everywhere! Anyways, here is the best advice I can give you. Purchase a female from a BREEDER not a pet store. Find a breeder who brings their babies into their household and has them around their kids etc. These breeders usually handle their baby birds very much and get them used to being petted. Then by the time you take your baby home, she will be used to it. The other option is adopting an older female that is already a cuddly bird. Good luck!

 

[Sadie]

As i said i went to the exotics store yesterday. No purchases, they want 2000 for an eclectus! the breeder i had contacted sells her babys for 1000 and invites you to come over as much as possible before being able to bring the bird home so they already know you! wow! Anyways i did get a lot of information there, as well as spending time with both a male and female. I think i am going to get a male instead. I was told since the females are the more dominant one they have a lot of days they just do not want bothered with and are a tad more nippy. I think i am the type or person to take it personally. The male seems to be a better fit for me. Being more mellow and easy going from what i hear.
I will be visiting the eclectus breeder on saturday, i am so excited. She said she had a female just hatched available, I am hoping she will also have a male that i can stick a deposit on.

I do have another question though, How large of a cage does an eclectus need? I Want him to be out with me all day. i am maybe gone for 10 hours a week total. but in the future i will probably get a part time job just to keep busy while my kids are in school full time. I do think that will be the extent of it, and if need be and the bird needs to be in the cage more, i can always get a larger one in the future. Thank You!!!

 

[roxynoodle]

I'm not sure how active Eclectus are, but a cage sized for an African Grey or Amazon should work fine. I would think 32" wide would be good, and larger if you have the budget and room.

I definitely prefer flat top cages. Not only can you have a playtop, but the birds seem to like hanging upside down from them. And when out of the cage they can sit on top without sliding off like they do with dome tops.

 

[Sadie]

With your suggestion i found a cage online. Will this be good? I would like to get one soon so i am prepared.
King's Cages - Avian and Pet Bird Cages, Supplies, Food, Toys, Perches, Aviaries, Pluck No More

 

[c3honey84]

I believe that the cage you have shown would be good, but I would not go any smaller. Mine is 24" by 36".

 

[MikeyTN]

So as far as food, you fill their bowl with the seed mixtures they sell in bags, and tons of fresh fruit and veggetables. I don't know why that was so hard for me to understand when i was reading about it.
I will be going to the exotics store this afternoon. I want to be able to spend time with one, knowing me i will end up bringing one home today

You feed minimal seeds like half a table spoon with mainly millets and just a few piece of sunflower seeds. They need beta carotene stuffs like broccoli, carrots, sweet potatoes, etc. You can also cook chicken breast meat, egg with shell, pasta, etc.

That cage you have chosen works great. If you have it placed near by a wall, i would suggest in either hanging a shower curtains on the wall or clamp towels on the back of the cage as they can be very messy eaters!

 

[mtdoramike]

As a rule of thumb at least from the research that I have done, depending on your household would determine which Eclectus best suites your home.

For instance, if you have a fairly busy household with children, frequent noisiness, loud music and are away quite a bit during the day, a female would be best. They don't mind chaos quite as much as male Ekkie's do.

Now if you don't have children or your home is pretty quiet for the most part then a Male would be best for you.

Female Ekkies tend to be a bit more moody and hormonal than the males and thus can be a bit more nippy. I have only seen a few female Ekkies in my area and both aren't what I would call cuddly, if anything they would rip your arm off.

My Mac is very friendly with everyone he meets. He doesn't know a stranger and will climb right up your arm upon introduction. But even with that, he's not a cuddly bird. He allows petting in certain areas like beak, head and belly as well as under his wings. But he doesn't snuggle up to me. Although he does want to be with me all the time and will walk about the house searching for me if I leave him alone too long.

 

[mygirl]

when we brought mylah our vet basically told us we were crazy she would never be tamed she was so nasty at the start..she was not hand raised.. she now cuddles with my husband and he can do anything with her.. but as someone said before she would rip anyone else to pieces, you just have to remember that they have a big beak that can do damage, she crushed one of my knuckles when she was younger.. she loves me just doesn't like me touching her..just make sure before you buy a parrot you realise they have there own personality..

 

[Sadie]

I placed an order for that cage. I am so excited i couldnt resist. I understand each parrot is different but i am going by general dispostion and others experience. i did a lot of looking into the bird that was right for our family and i wanted a B&G macaw since i was 8 yrs old, turns out they just wouldnt work in our house. I love the cockatoos, how cuddly they are, but i dont think i would qualify to own one of those either.
the breeder i am going through has 2 available now, but we agreed i should wait for the next babys so i can spend a lot of time with my bird before bringing them home.
she has also invited me to come over while im waiting so she can give me a lot of information and make sure im ready for when the baby comes home.

I have been through two 2 yr olds and i am very excited to now have a permanent little one in the family!

 

[mygirl]

lol the terrible two's constantly that's the best way to describe Mylah