New Parrot Suggestions

Hey There,

We are looking to add to our avian family. We currently have a bonded pair of conures (black hat and green cheek) but would like to add another to the mix. We would like something that is a little more interactive, slightly bigger and with speech capabilities.

We were looking at an Indian Ringneck, pondering some bigger conure breeds and even an Amazon.

If you have any suggestions on some breeds, that would be much appreciated. I know there are hundreds.

Thanks,

Rachel

hildey89 said:

Hey There,

We are looking to add to our avian family. We currently have a bonded pair of conures (black hat and green cheek) but would like to add another to the mix. We would like something that is a little more interactive, slightly bigger and with speech capabilities.

We were looking at an Indian Ringneck, pondering some bigger conure breeds and even an Amazon.

If you have any suggestions on some breeds, that would be much appreciated. I know there are hundreds.

Thanks,

Rachel

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Almost all parrots can be interactive with socialization. What type of interaction are you looking for specifically? Playful? Cuddly? a calm shoulder bird? I'm partial to the mustache parakeet.

Conures are wonderful little birds but I understand the desire to have something a little more cognitively advanced. I have a Caique and he is a trip and super loving, but not a good talker and definitely not as deep a thinker as my larger birds.

As for speech capabilities, that's a hard one. I've had a caique who talked and an African grey who didn't say a word. The only guarantee you can have is an older bird who does talk, but sometimes they stop talking after changing homes.

Amazons are great talkers and highly intelligent. I've never owned one but they have always intrigued me. I have an irrational fear of their bites so I've never even held one. The great thing about them is their body language. My foster Grey is a vicious biter and gives NO warning. At least with an Amazon you know exactly what they are thinking as they give plenty of outward signs.

Are you wanting a baby bird or an older bird?

Hi Don,

Thanks for the suggestions. We looked up the mustache parakeet and that one caught our eyes. It looks very similar to the ringnecks and also a mix between two birds we were looking at - rainbow lorikeet + indian ringneck.

And we are looking for a bigger, playful bird. Our conures are playful now and so much fun to intereact with, so we definitely want something along those lines.

Thanks for the suggestions. With so many breeds in the world its hard too look for them all.

Rachel

I am very partial to my current birds.
I have a GCC and a zon. I love both and they are super birds. I think I got lucky with my girl though because I adopted her a year ago at age 4. She hasn't bit me, is a very sweet bird, not a huge talker though.

On a side note my girl is a dyh/yn hybrid (although sold originally as a blue front).

Hi Brittany,

Thanks for the reply. I totally agree with you that it how all you raise the bird if it talks/plays or not. Everyone tells us our conures won't talk or being able to live in the same cage... and they do both. Mimic more than talk but they chatter haha.

And we are looking to adopt an older parrot if possible. I think a mustache parakeet could be something we could find as a baby, but if we can find an amazon or another older, bigger breed for adoption that would be perfect. Our older conure was a rescue and we love seeing the developments he has each day.

I love that you have Eclectus's... I find those birds soooo pretty and interesting looking! Are they nice birds to have?

Rachel

Eclectus are wonderful, just not the playful sort usually. Parkers idea of a good time, as described above, is calm shoulder time. Not super energetic, flip on the back and beak wrestle kind of bird, which is fine with me since I'm not a "take the dog out to play fetch" kind of owner.

Have you looked into mini macaws? Hanhs macaw, illigers macaw to name the few.

We have a mustache parakeet and she is a riot. We just got her about 3 weeks agao (about 11 months old, they were unsure). I will try to capture video of her and post it for you. She throws balls and wood off the top of her play place and looks at us to get it. She will walk around and "talk". Not sure of all the words, but it's just wonderful to hear. We also have 2 conures and the mustache is definitely a bigger bird, so just watch them with the bigger beak. ;-)

chris-md said:

Eclectus are wonderful, just not the playful sort usually. Parkers idea of a good time, as described above, is calm shoulder time. Not super energetic, flip on the back and beak wrestle kind of bird, which is fine with me since I'm not a "take the dog out to play fetch" kind of owner.

Have you looked into mini macaws? Hanhs macaw, illigers macaw to name the few.

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Hi Chris,

Thanks for the suggestion! Those macaws look so cool. I feel like there are so many more breeds to look at now.

Thanks again!

Rachel

2greenconurestostart said:

We have a mustache parakeet and she is a riot. We just got her about 3 weeks agao (about 11 months old, they were unsure). I will try to capture video of her and post it for you. She throws balls and wood off the top of her play place and looks at us to get it. She will walk around and "talk". Not sure of all the words, but it's just wonderful to hear. We also have 2 conures and the mustache is definitely a bigger bird, so just watch them with the bigger beak. ;-)

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That makes me even more comfortable that you have one that gets along with your other conures. How long did it take them to get along? The seem like a fun bird to add to the household.

Thanks for the suggestion!

Rachel