Hey there Bunnicula! What kind of questions do you have? Ask away and I will answer. Is the bird that you are referring to a parakeet? If so they are fairly easy to take care of if you have time, money, and patience. Most parakeets that come from petstores are not tame, which means in order to play with the bird you must tame it down yourself. Parakeets are flighty birds and can scare fairly easy. We will talk about taming if you decide to get the bird. However if you are lucky and you come across a baby who is allready tame then we can skip this all together.
Here is some general care guidlines for parakeeets as well as some helpful info.
First off you must know that all exotic birds carry an organism that can cause "parrot fever". This goes for cockateils, parrots, keets, lovebirds etc. This can kill a bird and is highly contagious. People are also infected as well through contact with bird fecal material. It can however be treated in humans with antibiotics through your doctor. Don't get discouraged, this is just a fact and most likely you won't have this problem but it is a good idea to know about this so you can be prepared.
Most parakeets in pet stores are fed only a seed diet. This is very unhealthy for the bird as it does not provide the neccesary vitamins and minerals a bird in captivity should get in a daily diet. I would recommend a pelleted diet. THis is a lot healthier for the bird. I would recommend Harrisons pelleted parakeet feed. They can be giving seeds as a treat in a seperate food dish.
They must be given fresh water daily. Keets are prone to respiratory illnesses. Try to place the water dish where they are not sitting directly above it. This helps illeminate waste from being deposited into the water and helps it stay clean longer. I keep a stockpile of Ornacyn-Plus (treatment for respiratory diseases of pet birds. Also corrects diarrhea and vitamin dificiencies) just incase my keets look like they are getting ill. I would advise people who are not familiar with bird illnesses to first see a vet to make sure you know the exact cause of illmess. I am familiar with bird diseases and can spot them easily (comes with vet training) because of years of experience.
If I buy a new bird from the petstore I usually give it a weeks worth of this Ornacyn-Plus to boost the immune system which is weaker in times of stress (moving to a new home, vet visit, attack by cat etc.) and to also make sure that they have all the neccesary vitamins and amino acids a bird needs to be healthy. I do this because most birds are not fed the pelleted food and tend to be unhealthy.
A bird who is sitting on the bottom of it's cage, has ruffled feathers, who only sits on both legs and who has loose stools is a sick bird and should not be purchased.