Should I accept another bird?

[Revill]

I have a two year old male cocky who is a 'velcro bird'. He's VERY demanding about his shoulder time. Which I enjoy, mostly. I spend several hours a day with him aboard, nibbling my beard and whistling the Andy Griffith theme song in my ear. He can be a bit of a pain when he REALLY WANTS to be with me but I'm doing something (like cooking or mowing the lawn) that cockatiels shouldn't participate in.

My brother was given a tame but not human bonded female (she lays eggs) that they keep asking me if I'd like to adopt. She's a very quiet, reserved bird that will sit on a stranger's hand for a little while, but obviously she does not enjoy it the way my bird does. Given her druthers, she'd druther be in her cage.

Do you think it would be a good idea to introduce the birds? I'd hate to lose the affection of my bird entirely, but having someone else to bond with could be good for him.

Revill
Austin TX

 

[antoinette]

Hi Revill
Tough decision to make. You mentioned he spends about 7 hours with you a day, how would he feel not having your full attention. His personality could change, he could become aggressive and dislike the other bird. Would their personalities clash?
Spending so much time on your shoulder, would you be able to do the same for the other bird.
Many people have taken a second bird, and are extremely happy with the outcome.
A suggestion, take the other bird in for a while, see how they get along, bonding etc.
If they get along and you feel you could cope with two birds then follow your heart.
Hope this little bit of info was helpful.
Good luck
Keep us posted
Take care

 

[TookieTookieBird]

Here's an idea....she's laying eggs, you could have baby velcro birds!!!! HAHA!! You never know, they may get along, they may not. I guess, like what was suggested above, follow your heart.

 

[Beatriz Cazeneuve]

The small species (lovies, tiels, budgies, plets) are not like the medium or large ones, they ALWAYS get along with a bird of the opposite gender and, with the exception of the lovies where two females cannot be housed together, with birds of the same gender, too. Especially tiels which are very mild mannered and only fight during breeding season. Personally, I think that all social birds should have mates and a flock. Nature hard-wired this need into their genes and they are simply never completely happy living only with a human. As to losing the love of your bird, I seriously, seriously doubt it. I have several bonded pairs where the birds are as affectionate with me as they ever were. It depends on the relationship you have with the bird and the time and love you put into it and, going by your posting, I would say that you will have no problem in that respect. As a matter of fact, I think that you will end up with two affectionate birds instead of one.

A word of caution, I don't know what you mean, exactly, when you say she lays eggs but, if she is a chronic layer, you will have to keep her to a strict natural daylight schedule with full exposure to dawn and dusk to break the cycle.