Thinking of joining the community

[ashraful]

Hello
I am Ashraf From bangladesh.
I have been thinking of buying a parrot recently. and after getting my turtles without any kind of previous knowledge about them. I love them but i think it would be less painful for them if i knew about how to keep them.

So i am here to get some ideas and share my thoughts that if they are correct.

So i live in a apartment. i have a room for about 10'x12' . this same room holds my turtles and some exercise equipment( treadmill and stationary bike).
I can accommodate a 5'x4' Height 9' cage in the room. So with the information ( i can give more later if needed ) my questions are.
PS: birds i would like to have are ( Cockatoo, Eclectus,Something bigger than cockatiels but not big as Macaws.

1. what birds have lower lifespan?
2. Which are good with other pets? and does UV-b lights and constant motor noise ( very mild noise ) problem ?
3. which are not very much loud them self?
4. Which need less attentions ? ( i cant give more than 2h to them a day ).
5. Good speaker in my range .
6. i live in a tropical country which in summer can go upto 40+deg Celsius and in winter around 15-20 deg.
Well cannot think of any other points if any one have question they are welcome to ask.
Also if you guys think that i should not get a parrot with my situation please feel free to say it. it was hard for me to accommodate the turtles to their needs and am still trying to get things for them ( my country its kinda hard to get good things ).
Thanks in advance .
And sorry for the bad engIish

 

[Kentuckienne]

Welcome, Ashraful. Your English is fine, don't worry about that. But maybe you will have trouble finding a bird to fit your situation. Most parrots are loud sometimes, especially if the are in a room by themselves, because they have the instinct to call the flock. Also they need a lot more time than two hours a day. They are more like children than pets, because they are very intelligent and need a lot of social interaction. If they don't have enough attention they can go insane, or start pulling out their feathers, or worse. The talking parrots are most needy! Also they have special needs for diet and exercise which can take a lot of time, because a diet of seeds is very bad. They should have high quality pellets and fresh fruits and vegetables.

I don't know what pet would be suitable for your situation but a bird is not.

 

[plumsmum2005]

Hi and welcome.

I am a bit concerned about mixing Turtles and parrots in the same room and the following link will hopefully give some useful information which also applies to you and your well being.

Salmonella in Turtles, Lizards, and Snakes, and the Risk to Humans

I have a friend who has parrots and a Turtle but they are kept in separate rooms. Any chance you can wait until you are able to have bigger living space? One or other species IMO.

 

[YUMgrinder]

If it was hard accommodating a turtle I am sure a bird might not be what you want.

maybe a budgie? they are small, live like 10ish years, and if there are two, not as needy as some bigger birds in my opinion. They can be fragile though.

 

[GaleriaGila]

Agreeing with above.
I humbly think a bird is not what you need.
How about a cat, rabbit or rat? They make wonderful pets.

 

[texsize]

One other thing to consider is the availability of an avian certified vet.
Is there one in your area?

 

[gavagai]

As other people have said, there isn't a parrot that meets your description, mostly because you want a larger bird with a shorter lifespan. Parrots are naturally long-lived, and even budgerigars should live at least ten years with proper care. That doesn't necessarily rule out birds entirely, however it does suggest you want a softbill, many species of which are shorter-lived.

It sounds like what you want is a finch. They're quiet, don't need much attention, don't live for very long, and tend to be native to tropical countries. The fully-domesticated society finch has the shortest life expectancy of around four years, with many wild species such as Gouldians and zebra finchs averaging around eight. Unfortunately, finches also not very interactive, and you said you wanted something larger than a cockatiel, which finches ain't.

My suggestions would be either smallish landfowl or pigeons. Pigeons have a lifespan of around that of a budgie, but are larger than cockatiels. And there are a lot of pigeon fanciers around to give you advice on keeping them. The best fowl to keep in a house are probably buttonquail, but those are barely larger than cockatiels. If you have 20 square feet I think that's large enough for something partridge-sized. I knew a Turkish guy who kept a partridge as a pet in Turkey, and apparently it's somewhat common there, and they do well in apartments. In personality, they seem to be basically like larger buttonquail. Partridges also don't live longer than a decade.

Alternatively, if you're set on having a larger parrot, you could try to find an older bird, preferably one at least two or three decades old. However cockatoos are some of the noisiest birds, which rules them out regardless.

 

[ashraful]

If it was hard accommodating a turtle I am sure a bird might not be what you want.

maybe a budgie? they are small, live like 10ish years, and if there are two, not as needy as some bigger birds in my opinion. They can be fragile though.

Well actually accommodating problems for my turtles are my own fault . I wanted to do something different so went to make plywood aquarium. Else there wasn't any problem rather than getting a specific UVb lights

 

[ashraful]

Hi and welcome.

I am a bit concerned about mixing Turtles and parrots in the same room and the following link will hopefully give some useful information which also applies to you and your well being.

Salmonella in Turtles, Lizards, and Snakes, and the Risk to Humans

I have a friend who has parrots and a Turtle but they are kept in separate rooms. Any chance you can wait until you are able to have bigger living space? One or other species IMO.

Thanks for the caring . But it's almost like 1.5 years for my turtles and I haven't got sick yet . I actually spend quiet some time in pet stores around bird to see if I am allergic to them . Seems like I have no problem on that part . But if I.am to put the birds out in the room, would they dive in the water ? That might be problem .

 

[ashraful]

One other thing to consider is the availability of an avian certified vet.
Is there one in your area?

I will have to look for them around my area . It would be hard I guess . Thanks . That would be a big problem I think . Seems like birds need lot more care on veterans part then fish.

 

[ashraful]

Agreeing with above.
I humbly think a bird is not what you need.
How about a cat, rabbit or rat? They make wonderful pets.

Not really a cat person . Rabbit smells . Rat umm no too . But if can't get bird will think about squirrel if conditions are meet .

 

[ashraful]

Thanks all for the advice .
Well actually when I said shortest lifespan I meant some around 30-40 years . Cause as I read large to medium parrots loves 70 to 100 or more accordingly to their species and keeping arrangements.
What started my facination for birds were eagles and owls . But I can't let them out in my area. (I am more than happy to provide as much food they want ) but what I felt like was not letting them out on hunting while being a bird of prey might not be good . So moved towards to macaws but their sounds gave away , also lifespan ( had no idea about petting part till then )

Now what I really wanted is eclectus . But guess from the above comments I think I might not go for birds at all .

 

[wrench13]

Vet bills are quite high anywhere. I budget $1000 a year for vet bills. My little amazon parrot Salty just hurt his beak playing around on his gym, and the bill as over $200USD. The inital cost to get the parrot is actually small compared to the upkeep on them. If i was going to recommend any parrot to you it would be one of the smaller amazons, but an older one. Keeping a parrot is a life time commitment though. They are so smart. They will suffer emotionally if they become attached to an owner, only to be rehomed.

 

[gavagai]

Birds of prey don't actually need to hunt to be happy. They hunt to eat, and in the wild try to conserve energy as much as possible. People in the US don't usually keep them because most species are banned under the MBTA except for falconry, and many states ban even the few foreign species (like the Eurasian eagle owl) which are sometimes kept. That said, I'm under the impression that birds of prey are basically the opposite of parrots in that the larger they are the easier they are to care for. If you want a bird of prey, you might look into joining a falconry forum and finding out whether any of the ones you can get where you live would be in your capacity to care for.

If you want a parrot, most mid-sized parrots live in the 30-40 year range. While I know that this goes against orthodoxy which says that they aren't really beginner birds, I recommended an acquaintance who was considering getting a parrot get a Senegal from a rescue as her first parrot, which she did. I suggested it because they're quiet, can tolerate periods with little or no attention (though they'll hold a grudge if you ignore them for too long), love as much attention as you can give them, and most importantly: in my experience they tend not to be possessive of one person and tend to warm up to new people very quickly (since that time, I've seen at least two people say the opposite, however she fortunately had the same experience I did). Properly cared for they'll live around 35 years, so it's definitely not a commitment to take on lightly.

And if you do want a bird, raptor or parrot, an avian vet is a must. That said, I once broke a tooth in Turkey and got dental work that would have cost over $3k in the US (though with insurance covering half) done for about $350 out of pocket. While vets make a lot less than doctors and dentists in the US already, I imagine that if you can find an avian vet in Bangladesh that they would cost less than in the US.

 

[EllenD]

Hi, and thanks for asking questions first. Honestly, and I'm going to be completely up front with you, you should not have any pet bird except maybe a finch or canary that does not need human interaction. There is no parrot that you can keep as a pet and only give 2 hours a day to, least of all an Eclectus. And you also cannot put the bird and it's cage back in a room away from your main living room, they are all like having a young toddler or human baby, they need to be in the same room as you if you or anyone else is home, even if you're not directly interacting with them, otherwise they will hear you and start screaming constantly because they can not see you and they want to be in the same room as you. 3-4 hours a day, every day, of out of cage interaction with you is the absolute bare minimum for even a budgie or cockatiel. An Eclectus, any Cockatoo (the most difficult bird to keep, like a 4-5 year old human child) African Grey, Macaw, Amazon, these parrots require you to not only commit most of your time to them (2 hours only to a Cockatoo or Eclectus while the rest of it's day off in another room would be an absolute disaster) but you also have to rearrange your life and home for them. They must have their very large cages in the room you are in the most, and you must have stands/perches for them in pretty much every room of your home or be able to move one to each room, because if you are home then they must be in the same room as you or they will not only constantly scream but they will start to self harm and pluck if you aren't with them enough. Honestly, the fact that you said you want a Cockatoo or an Eclectus and then said you could only give the bird 2 hours a day and would keep the bird in a room with your turtles, this itold me that you need to hold off and do a lot of research about having pet birds. I have a Senegal parrot, a Quaker parrot, a Green Cheek Conure, and a cockatiel, plus several budgies (which live longer than 10 years, average with good healthcare is 15 and I had one that lived to be 18). All of my bird's main cages are in my living room, and then they all have sleeping cages in my bedroom. They have playstands in every room of my house. The ONLY time that my birds are ever locked inside their cages is when I'm not home. As soon as I get home from work they are all let out of their cages and are out the rest of the day. If I'm in my living room watching TV or reading they are there. If I'm in my office on the computer they are there. If I'm playing my guitar in my basement music room they are there. They sleep in my bedroom in smaller sleeping cages, we get up together, I cook them breakfast, prepare them their food for the day including pellets, supplemental seed mix, fresh veggies and fruits, oatmeal, eggs, grits, etc. I come home from work at noon and let them out for an hour until I have to go back. When I get home at 5:00 I let them out of their cages and they are out the rest of the night until we go to bed, and they are constantly with me. And I skip a lot of social events because I can't leave them alone in their cages all night. But it's my choice to do so because they are my family. And my birds are happy and healthy, and you'll find that my schedule and lifestyle is the norm for most of the members on here. And if I were to take on a Cockatoo, African Grey, Macaw, or other larger, more needy bird (needy meaning needing to be with you, on you, be held by you and petted by you constantly, cannot ever be left in a room separate from you) I would have to commit even more time. 2 hours a day doesn't even cover the time I spend every day making their food, cleaning their cages and stands, toys and bowls, clipping nails, giving them showers after I finish my own shower, and putting them to bed. That's more than 2 hours a day without even playing, scratching, holding, or talking to them. You get what I'm saying. The avian vet thing is always a problem, it's a problem here in the U.S. in a lot of places too. That is a must, as birds and their delicate, specialized healthcare is another topic you need to do a lot of research on before even thinking about getting any bird.

What our member was pointing out to you about housing a bird in the same room as your turtles is that it's a huge no no that you could not do. Turtles and reptiles in general carry a slew of bacterial and fungal diseases that do not make them sick, and may not make humans sick, but will surely make a bird sick or worse. I also have a Bearded Dragon that I love dearly, she is housed in a very large vivarium in my tv room in my lower level only because I don't want her vivarium anywhere near my birds or their cages. Humans can contract certain illnesses from reptiles, such as salmonella (most commonly known bacterial disease carried by turtles and other aquatic reptiles), but for the most part we're OK, where as birds can contract a host of bacterial and fungal infections as well as some nasty viruses from reptiles, specifically from an aquatic reptile. The bacteria and fungi that naturally live in and on your turtle's tank can kill a bird. And this isn't even discussing the potential dangers of just having a parrot and turtles together, birds are not to ever be left alone, unsupervised with any other pets, not dogs, cats, lizards, turtles, rabbits, not anything. They are prey animals and will automatically try to defend themselves against most any other animals, and if the animal is larger than the bird they can easily be killed. It happens all the time because you can't even leave two birds together unsupervised yet people think that you can. Your turtles would likely be injured by a large parrot, unless you have large snapping turtles. Any type of water sliders, map turtles, etc. cannot be left alone with a parrot.

I think you just need to do a lot of research about parrots as pets because I don't think you are familiar at all with what is involved in owning even a single, small parrot like a budgie, cockatiel, or small conure, let alone a large parrot like a Cockatoo, macaw, African Grey, Eclectus, Amazon, Pionus, Poicephalus species, etc. If you get to the point in life where you live in a house where noise and space will not be an issue, and where you are able to devote 5+ hours a day of direct interaction with them, plus be home most of the time to just be with them indirectly, then you may be able to keep a bird happy. Pets like turtles, bearded dragons, iguanas, monitors, cats, small animals like rabbits, ferrets, rats (very good pets, very intelligent and loving), etc. are the types of pets that are good for your situation, they are capable of being independent and don't constantly need you to be with them. I don't know about squirrels, lol, they aren't often kept as pets over here, but ferrets make great pets, so it's possible, lol.

"Dance like nobody's watching..."

 

[ashraful]

@gavagai thanks for the information . And yeah I remembered that I also back off cause there is a rule saying I cannot keep a eagle in my area .

If there is vet available in my place am sure I can be able to work about the bills . But problem is still around as 2 places I called don't have vet for birds . Only domestic animals vets are available . But they told me they can have a look at my bird . Donno how to react to that .
Well if I can provide timely feeding ( automatic feeders ) and loots of toys they will still have the low petting time problem? I can also turn my whole room as a cage . Just the turtles 140 gallon tank will stay . Not good enough ?

 

[gavagai]

@Ellen: Are you sure that disease transmission is an issue for turtles? The classification "reptile" isn't a genetic one, and lizards are more closely related to birds than either is to turtles. That said, your point about not leaving the birds alone with them is a good one. Turtles are often carnivorous, and I read a story once about red-eared sliders who ate a cockatiel.

Also, I think your (admittedly impressive) efforts somewhat exceed the bare minimum requirements with regards to preparing food and cleaning cages. What I will absolutely agree on is that I let my birds out pretty much whenever I'm home, and rarely go anywhere I don't have to before their bedtime. I don't know if there's any real minimum for out-of-cage time (I'm sure it depends on the size of the cage, the species, and the individual bird), but pretty much everybody I've known with a parrot has been the same way: home as much as possible, birds out as much as possible, as much interaction as the bird will permit. That said, some birds are more independent than others, Poicephalus spp. in particular. I think that a Senegal with a lot of toys would probably be fine with two hours a day of hands-on interaction.

@ashraf:
If you're going to need automatic feeders, that means you're away too often to keep a parrot. And no, the toys will allow them to be distracted when you're away and make being in the cage more tolerable, but they still need daily attention. Many birds will be angry if you go on vacation for a week.

 

[ashraful]

@gavagia hmm well kind of actually , I work and sometimes I have go overseas for few days for the job. Well I was gonna make food timer for my turtles thought that could do too. But seems it's better to stay away than torture one . Thanks all for the info .Am glad this time I didn't do a impulse purchase

 

[Flboy]

Yes, a bird is more work than a fish!
You are talking about adopting a child as opposed to acquiring a 'pet'!
Absolutely, the parrot would play in the turtle enclosure, especially if it is a large terrarium type setup! Getting sick for you is one thing, and fairly easy to avoid, but this would kill the parrot!

 

[Flboy]

@Ellen: Are you sure that disease transmission is an issue for turtles? The classification "reptile" isn't a genetic one, and lizards are more closely related to birds than either is to turtles. That said, your point about not leaving the birds alone with them is a good one. Turtles are often carnivorous, and I read a story once about red-eared sliders who ate a cockatiel.

A turtle's environment is a breeding ground for salmonella!
Many states have strict regulations about selling turtles as pets! Many people have gotten sick from handling turtles and not thinking about it, and not washing after!