Thinking about buying a parakeet

[capt_noonie]

Haha OMG that looks so ghetto and it's $13?! I'll post a pic of the fake one we have later.

[Nancy1999]

Originally Posted by capt_noonie

Haha OMG that looks so ghetto and it's $13?! I'll post a pic of the fake one we have later.

Read the reviews, I think it's his language not his looks that's a hit. This is something that would appeal to most 10 year old boys and men never mature past the age of 10!

[107barney]

I've had birds all my life.....
I currently have a Yellow Crowned Amazon who with celebrate his 10th Hatchday this Spring. He talks, asks for his favorite foods, plays with his toys, and enjoys his cage. He does not want to fly. He likes to come out of his cage and sit on top when given the choice. Birds are territorial and it is not mean to cage them. My parrot is very socialized and happy.

I do not think it is cruel to cage birds. It is safer for them so that they are not injured. They become comfortable in their environment provided they have the correct cage size and stimulation. We rotate toys and give him home cooked food along w/ a pelleted diet and he has a number of snacks. He likes to have a shower once a week too and has beautiful feathers.

I hope if you get a bird that it is the right pet for you and that you will enjoy them. I think they are wonderful pets for the right person.

[capt_noonie]

Wow a bath once a week? How does that work? Is an Amazon a large bird? How do the yorkies handle the bird? Do I need to buy the bird from a breeder rather than Petco?

[107barney]

Originally Posted by capt_noonie

Wow a bath once a week? How does that work? Is an Amazon a large bird? How do the yorkies handle the bird? Do I need to buy the bird from a breeder rather than Petco?

The bath is easy. He sits in the kitchen sink and we use the sprayer with warm water. He makes all kinds of happy chirps and spreads his wings. I think it's why his feathers are so nice. No they are smaller parrots. The yorkies are all fine with him except for one. That dog needs to be out of sight when he is out. The others don't care at all.

You are better off going to a bird store specifically or a breeder even if you are going w/ a parakeet. I love parakeets. You might also like Parrotlets, they are so adorable.

[capt_noonie]

Thanks for the tips. There are a few exotic bird shops in Vegas, and a guy at the indoor swap meet that I AVOID AT ALL COSTS!

[Dayswalters]

Bird stores that specifically sell only birds and bird supplies are usually pretty good places to go. And yes, my birds all loved to get showers. In summer I Would also mist them with water and they loved that as well. I'm also not against appropriate sized bird cages but I do feel that they need time out of the cage to socialize and stretch out. People that have problem birds often state that the bird is not allowed out of the cage, they have few if any toys and no variety in food choices. Since they are very intelligent, they get bored, scream and sometimes self-multilate, which is so sad to see. They also learn to bite in these types of situations as well. So many birds were given to me with these problems that took months to correct if they could be corrected at all.

One of my most difficult birds to rehomed was a yellow head Amazon that had been kept in a cage in a woman's bedroom when she was married. When she got divorced, she kept the bird but when she got a new boyfriend, he could not overlook the fact that the bird recalled everything about the woman's sex life with her ex husband. Anytime the boyfriend got close to the woman, the bird would start retelling lovemaking scenes with full sound effects...lol. I could not keep this bird long since my children were small. I had to find another foster that was able to work with the behavior.

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by 107barney

I've had birds all my life.....
I currently have a Yellow Crowned Amazon who with celebrate his 10th Hatchday this Spring. He talks, asks for his favorite foods, plays with his toys, and enjoys his cage. He does not want to fly. He likes to come out of his cage and sit on top when given the choice. Birds are territorial and it is not mean to cage them. My parrot is very socialized and happy.

I do not think it is cruel to cage birds. It is safer for them so that they are not injured. They become comfortable in their environment provided they have the correct cage size and stimulation. We rotate toys and give him home cooked food along w/ a pelleted diet and he has a number of snacks. He likes to have a shower once a week too and has beautiful feathers.

I hope if you get a bird that it is the right pet for you and that you will enjoy them. I think they are wonderful pets for the right person.

I, too, am a bird lover. I have a cockatiel who is around 24 now. I bought him from a private person who really cared for her birds. I lost touch with her over the years, but I know she would be thrilled to know he has lived so long. He says "pretty bird" and "I love you" and he will walk to me to give me kisses when I ask for them. Tuffy is his name and I love him so much! I also have a sun conure, Kiwi, who was found in a local garage a few years back. Noisy little thing! I had a parakeet named Blue when my son was young...the problem with them is they don't seem to live as long as the larger birds. I had many cockatiels throughout the years .. Tuffy outlived all of them.

Birds have personalities ... each one is different. They are a joy to have.

[dawn27]

I love birds too.... We've had several over the years since I was a kid. It seems as if they always die too soon and by strange occurrences. As a kid one by being beheaded by our dog, another took flight bounced off the shower curtain landed in the toilet and than drowned. I even tried to revive it with mouth to beak and a blow dryer but it was too late. We had another one get set loose by our pet raccoon who figured out how to open his cage when we were camping. He knocked the cage over that was sitting on the picnic table and he never came back. So that was the end of that until I was out on my own. We had a cockatiel for 12 yrs who passed at the age of 18. But nope it doesn't end there. Got a parakeet that ended up dying after my sister stayed over to babysit and left the window open and it froze. That was 12 yrs ago. So yea... we don't have much luck with birds in our family. We are strictly a Yorkie family now.

I've thought about getting another one but with Miah being such a bird dog that would not be a great addition to the family. I like to get them out and hold them and chit chat but if they should take flight Miah would chase it down and kill it. So no birds for us.

So, Priscilla did you get one ?

[francis53]

As someone who shares her home with our 6 yorkies and 7 parrot type birds, I can say they all get along just fine. Our birds are allowed out of their cages every evening while I tend to the cages. They all have large cages for their size and lots of toys, get fed bird food along with lots of fresh fruit and veggies. All our birds are over 10 yrs. now the oldest is our macaw, Bristol, he will be 20 in sept. that is still young for his species, he's been with us since he was 11 mos. old, besides Bris, we have 2 congo African greys, an indian ringneck parrot (the dogs are all scared of her, she will bite them) a green cheek conure (such a sweetie) and 2 little bitty parrotlets. Because of the dogs, we do not clip the wings, so they can fly, although Bristol doesn't. A while back the Petco store near me had the cutest little blue quaker parrot, he was very tame and I came close to bringing home another bird, luckily my hubby was with me and quickly got me out of there, whew. I think birds make wonderful pets, but they are messy and can be loud, it I had it to do over I might not have gotten the macaw as he can be a screamer, but my grandkids love to face time, not with me but the birds, ha.

[capt_noonie]

No haven't gotten one yet. Still thinking and researching. If you've read my other thread, it's a toss up between an indoor bird or a pair of chickens in the backyard. Either way it's not going to be a decision taken lightly.

[Nancy1999]

You might want to read this forum, it has lots of great tips and idea for raising chickens. This thread talks about the heat and how to keep them cool. Do chickens handle high temps well?

[dawn27]

Originally Posted by capt_noonie

No haven't gotten one yet. Still thinking and researching. If you've read my other thread, it's a toss up between an indoor bird or a pair of chickens in the backyard. Either way it's not going to be a decision taken lightly.

If it were me I'd choose the inside bird over chickens any day. I don't like fowl, their are nasty, and the smell... Yuk !

Inside birds are messy and do have a smell but nothing like chickens. With inside birds you can make a cover to help contain some of the mess but still the feed does get tossed around. I loved having my birds and would love to have another one I just cant with my pups. Miah especially, she has killed several outdoor birds. A few each summer over the years. She makes the kill than will chews on them and one they get nice and smelly and decayed she rolls on them. Its discussing !!

[chickensmith]

I also had a tiel that I hand raised....got him from a breeder when he still had only quills. He was an ugly little thing that grew into a gorgeous bird. I hand fed him and he would come running into the kitchen and sit on my foot when he heard me mixing his food. Cutest little thing I ever saw! My Benny....he lived to be 14. I haven't had a bird since (almost 8 years now) but my MIL lives with us and has a parakeet. We have 2 cats and two dogs (husky and yorkie) and while the dogs don't bother with him our male cat is infatuated with it. Thankfully in our new house he has not bothered with him. I would like to get a lineolated parakeet but we are waiting because we have 6 animals at the moment....and that is enough. Or so my husband says ;-) birds are wonderful companions. I never clipped my Benny's wings....I thought it was unfair to take away flight. You just have to be sure ceiling fans are off, windows and doors are closed and the stove isn't being used when they are out. Have to be careful what kind of pans you cook with if the bird is kept near the kitchen area.

[Nancy1999]

Originally Posted by Nancy1999

You might want to read this forum, it has lots of great tips and idea for raising chickens. This thread talks about the heat and how to keep them cool. Do chickens handle high temps well?

I thought I posted this on you chicken thread.