A good kind of bird for me

[Aspen and Misty]

I will definitly, someday, have a bird. Not any time soon though but I just love them and I really want some more information.

I'm having problems trying to figure out what kind of bird I want. I love larger birds and have decided I do not want a small bird (cockatiel etc.). I love the look of the Sun Conure, they are so bright and beautiful. I know that they are known as screechers and I don't think this would bother me, however I would prefer a bird that did not scream 24/7. I'm worried the African Gray would be too intellegiant. I mean do I need to teach it a new thing every couple of days? I already figure that no matter what kind of bird I get I'm going to be buying a HUGE cage, so size of the bird doesn't matter.

I fell in love with a Cockatoo one time (you know the white birds with the ylloew cheeks and yellow tail feathers) I would love to get one of them! However I was told they are "crazy". If you give them 2 hours of attention one day they will expect that every day and go crazy if you don't give it to them. However when I get a bird it will be at a time in my life when my bird will only be in the cage while I'm gone, but when I'm at home the bird will always be out.

Anyways! If you can just give me suggestions on birds. I'm more then happy to do my own research. I just find that owners of certain animals can tell you so much about more about them then any book.

Ashley

[Chilli]

A good friend of mine has an Amazon, and its a pretty nice bird. It can get annoying to some people (not me, though). It also absolutely loves being out of its cage. Somewhere I heard the males are more talkative? Unsure if this is true.
One of my fathers friends owns a 4 year old macaw... I've been around it quite a bit, and everytime its just sat on its perch quietly unless my fathers friend calls it over to perch on his arm or to let it give him kisses. It does take it a while to warm up to people, and will bite if it doesn't know the person.
I know every bird differs, so the two larger parrots I've met might not act like others that other people have been around (as you already know^^).
I've never owned any bird other than a budgie and lovebird, so I can't give you any other advise other than that.
Good luck in your search! I hope to own a larger bird someday... not anytime soon, though.

[Logan]

I would start with a smaller bird. I now know that I could not devote the time and attention to one of the larger ones, although I would love to have an African Grey.

Don't forget aobut perhaps a Cockatiel or two.........(hint, hint) ;). We do have 7 eggs!

Logan

[IRescue452]

How about a gold crowned rosella. The ones I've met are pretty quiet and not crazy active. They are beautiful though and get quite attached to owners. They are about the size of a typical amazon.
http://animal-world.com/encyclo/birds/parakeets_australian/Rosellas/goldenmantle_eastern.php

[Aspen and Misty]

Don't forget aobut perhaps a Cockatiel or two.........(hint, hint) ;). We do have 7 eggs!

I would take one of your babies in a heart beat!

I have been considering a Cockatiel, expessially if I were to get a bird any time soon. If you don't mind, can you tell me more about them, there personlities and how much time they need. I do think if I were to get a bird right now, I would go with a Cockatiel because I know for a fact that I do not have the time for a larger, more intellegent bird.

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I'll do more research on them all.

Ash

[Logan]

OK, Ash, as of this afternoon, we now have 8 eggs, layed over the last two weeks..........I'm starting to get scared! :o

I am no expert, although we have had Roger since Helen's 11th Birthday (January 29, 2002) and Milly was adopted shortly after that.

Roger was a young baby when we got him from a pet store. He "bonded" with Helen, immediately in the pet store, walking right up her arm and sitting on her shoulder while she walked around the store. I had to go back and get him for her. Milly came later, actually when I had gone to buy a stand for Roger's cage, and saw her up for adoption at the pet store. It took a couple of days, but I couldn't stand it and went back and got her (her owner had gone into a nursing home and her son didn't want the bird).

Anyway, they love attention and Roger is quite talkative. He probably learned more when it was just him. He has some phrases that he says and some specific tunes that he whistles. He mostly flirts with Milly. We have two cages, but they stay together most of the time now.

Many people recommend feeding them pellets, which are more healthy. Mine hate pellets, but I've tried to add some to their diet anyway. They do cockatiel seed and also fresh lettuce, kale, boiled eggs (with some shell broken into it) and sometimes fresh fruit.

Birds are messy, though, so you need to be able to be diligent about dusting, allowing them to bathe (helps reduce the dust a lot), and changing out the paper in the cage often. They poop, like all birds, but there are great products to clean that (the one I use is called "Poop Off"). Mine love to be outside of their cages, so usually, I keep their wings clipped. I have my avian vet do this as I don't have the nerve to do it myself, but most people can do it themselves. In my experience, it needs to be done about every six months. Mine LOVE to fly, but the more freedom they get, the more mess they make! They are great chewers and can make a mess of wires and paper if not monitored properly.

They love company. Mine love music, too. I hate that I have them isolated in one room, but with our cats and dogs, I have to do that. But we are in there a lot and I also take them outside in their cage on nice days when I can watch them and they get showered and enjoy "talking" with their wild bird cousins.

Does this help? I don't mind driving to Atlanta! LOL!!!!! You buy the cage, I'll give you a baby or two. You might contact Amber (CamCamPup) by PM, too, as she has Bennie, from our last clutch (two years ago) and she can give you some insight. I will not be able to handfeed the babies, but Roger and Milly did a terrific job last time, and I'm sure they will this time, too. I'm just hoping that we don't get 8 babies! :eek:

Logan

PS. I'm going to crosspost this on my other thread for Kari's benefit.

[Giselle]

Wow, you want to start big, huh? LOL. Honestly, I would recommend starting smaller. If you don't like Cockatiels, you might want to look into Green-Cheeked Conures. They're often recommended as a "next-step-up" bird:
http://www.petbirdpage.com/breed.asp?breed=grenchek
http://www.parrotscanada.com/types/GCCHermes.JPG
Similarly, you'll want to look into Maroon Bellied Conures:
http://www.petbirdpage.com/breed.asp?breed=maroonbl
http://www.birdsplace.com/images/maroonbellied.jpg

Exotic birds can be fairly difficult to take care of, so it's often recommended you start small (lovebirds, keets, tiels, etc.). Eventually, with experience, you can move on to the larger parrots like Poicephalus parrots, Pionus parrots, Conures, and Caiques. If you're REALLY into birds, then, maybe, you can consider Macaws, Toos, and Amazons.

Having friends with macaws, some of the situations I see are truly atrocious. Macaws and Toos are like perpetual 2-year-olds. They are very difficult to cater to if you've never owned a bird before and I would recommend anybody looking into large parrots to have a basic knowledge of bird behavior. If you have basic knowledge of bird behavior, you can easily curb excessive screaming, which seems to be one of your main concerns. The thing with Suns and Jendays is that while they won't scream all the time if given proper attention, their screams are ear-splitting.

Please please buy Mattie Sue Athan's book, Guide to a Well-Behaved Parrot. It'll help you immensely! :D

[Argranade]

This is not your regular pet bird but so many ppl have them all over the world they can live a long life and best they can even be taught to speak very easy because in the wild they love to copy other birds songs.

I got one for my friend but sadly someone opened the window and it flew out because I forgot to clip his wings but he was a great bird and his name was Chico and know what on the first day I got her this bird it actualy sad Choo choo like a train you can also get them in pure white if your lucky.

These birds are starlings and I plan on getting one soon becase they make great pets and actualy came to Canada as pets but some where realesed by mistake.Now there are soo many which some ppl call them a pest :rolleyes: but I love them.

Heres a site where everyone owns one.
starlingtalk.com (http://www.starlingtalk.com)

Heres some pics.

You can get them from a bird rehaber or a breeder.

[Aspen and Misty]

bGiselle - I have owned parakeets before and loved them a lot. I believe they were 5 or 6 years old when we got them and lived with us for about 7 years (I may be a little bit off here). Also, while I didn't get to spend as much time with it as I would have liked to, I had a foster Lovebird for about 3 weeks and loved every moment. My mom also worked for an avian vet for 5 years so I have a great back ground there as he would teach my mom a lot. Thanks for the tips, I don't think I wouldn't mind starting smaller, such as with a Cockatiel (from Logan, lol), as I love them.

Logan - Messy doesn't bother me, lol. When I had my foster love bird I would take it in the shower with me and put it on the opposite side of the shower away from the stream so it could get lightly misted. Do Cockatiels like to cuddle? I find that’s something I love about the larger birds. Do the babies like to be held if they aren't hand fed? My friend has a cockatiel that isn't hand tame and I know I would never want to go down that route.

I'm on my way to Amazon.com to see if I can get a great deal on the book Gissel recommended!

Ash :)

ps: I really apreciate all the advise guys!

[orcalover]

having a small bird might be better but if you don't like them than don't get them i just got a hand fed conure and he is the cutes thing i could have asked for
if you like biger birds and you have the time to give them then you could give it a try but they are a life long camitment
toos are great though they are very playful one of my teachers had one and was always saying how much it loved her children and that it would wake them up in the morning by climing into their beds if it could get out of its cage
she also had a african gray that was great. they pick up everything you say, and say it. she brought it to school durning a test once and it was having a hole conversationg as if it was on the phone (even started ringing a few times) but just look them up and find the one that fits you

[Sparklecoon]

I love Sun Conures personally. I've had love birds and tiels when I was younger and if I were to ever get another bird I think it'd be a sun conure.

[Giselle]

I can't believe you shower with your bird. That's fantastic!!! :D I shower occassionally with Bailey and he LOVES it. It's such an inspiring bonding experience and it really speeds up the training process.

I think a Green-Cheeked Conures are going to be the best bet here. They're about the same size as a Sun/Jenday Conure and their colors are just as beautiful in real life. Plus, their screams are more tolerable and they're comparable to cockatiels. Good Luck! They're fairly inexpensive, too.

[Aspen and Misty]

Giselle - "Ollie" my little lovebird would dance and fluff up his feathers the whole time. When we took our first shower he tried to fly on me but ended up getting drenched, lol. I put him back on his side of the shower and he never left again but he loved every moment of it. That has to be one of my fondest moments with him.

I have been looking into the green cheeked conure and many others you posted and I have been very impressed. They seem like great birds! I have always liked Sun Conures and after reading about the green cheeked conure I have just fallen in love with them to.

I'm really exited. I wish I could convince my mom that now would be a wonderful time for a bird! LOL.

Ashley

[buttercup132]

Why dont you get a love bird?

[Aspen and Misty]

Why dont you get a love bird?

I did love Ollie a lot and if I would get a bird right now, it would most likely be a love bird or a Cockatiel. However, in the future I want a big bird. I just am fascinated by them and love them a lot. I associate big birds with cuddling, playing and many other things that I have never experienced with smaller birds. I don't know if thats only my experince or what.

Ashley

[Jods]

Well I dont know what you mean by cuddleing but I have a lovebird and she lets me do whatever I want to her like put her on her back in my hand while I kiss her belly, pet her head she nestles in my hair on my shoulder I can kiss her beak she will let me do anything. Mind you it was HARD to train her I had a lot of time on my hands my mom got her for me the month my high school boyfriend moved away so I was spending alot of time in the house with Olive. She still lives with my parents but she knows my voice and as soon as I enter the house she screams for me its a bit hard but I just dont have the time to bring her here to my house. We got her a little friend love bird and he just adores her she desn't liek him if I am there but my mom says shes does when I;m not hahah maybe she thinks shes cheating on me. If you were to get a lovebird I highly recommend two its not fair to just get one they are HIGHLY social birds and dint do well on their own. You already said you didn't have time for a larger bird. WHat about a budgie??? They can be friendly ours talks too! We have teil also he talks as well LOL the budgie actually learned from our tiel. I suggest a budgie as a first time bird owner my lovebirds are REALLY REALLY LOUD!

[Aspen and Misty]

Jods - I don't plan on getting a bird any time soon (although I would love to!). For right now I'm at my limit. When I do get a bird though it will be at a point in my life when I have more then enough time to spend with it. That day may not be until I retire, but someday I do want a bird but will only get one when it is fair for the bird to live with me. With the Cockatoo I fell in love with - she would sit on my hand and I would hold her to my chest and she would put her head under my chin and I would hug her while she nibbled on the top of my shirt. That’s what I mean by cuddling. I have considered the you should get two because I was told that with most birds enjoy the company of another bird (weather they share a cage or not) I mean they are flock animals and should live near at least one other bird. However, I have a question. If I get two at the same time I've heard they don't bond as strongly to you. So I was told to get one, bond with it, get another, bond with it and then move them in together. But what if they don't get along? Now I have two separate birds who both need friends, lol. Okay and this may just be me because I have 3 rabbits who were all got as friends for each other who now live in separate cages, but I still wonder about it. My budgies AJ and JJ used to meow, make the telephone noise and many other things, they never picked up on words but loved to mimic. As I said in a previous post I lived with a Love bird for 3 weeks (it was a foster) so I certainly know how loud they can get! LOL. Ollie loved to "scream" when he heard dog's bark, I don't know if he thought it was fun or if he was scared, although he didn't act scared at all. Lots of noise doesn't bother me. I know with any kind of bird you can get a screamer but that some tend to be quieter then other.

Ashley

[Logan]

Ashley, I am sort of late responding to your last question to me. What I believe is that Cockatiels can be very cuddly if they are handled a lot. Roger loves to perch on us and preen and at times, he loves to have his head scratched, especially by Helen. I probably have been remiss in trying to encourage that sort of behavior.

Today should be the day if the first egg is going to hatch, but I have listened closely and I can't hear anything, so maybe that one won't hatch. I wish I had marked the eggs, somehow, as she layed them, but hindsight is always 20/20. I allowed myself, as usual, to get too distracted, and didn't pay enough attention.

Logan