Calling all Bourke owners please

Hi,

I just joined a few minutes ago and am glad to be here

I've been researching different birds for the last few months. I don't have any yet but have been looking at finches and canaries. But lately I have been reading more about Bourke's parakeet and have found a breeder not too far away from me amazingly. (Seems like some of the birds I inquire about are all 2 hours away)

This local breeder of Bourkes has 3 that she needs to re-home (males and a female I believe). One or two of them are Opalines (she told me in an email but I forgot). They are 2 months old, were hand fed, and tame.

I realize that canaries and finches are different from the Bourke and haven't decided on any of them just yet but not looking to build an aviary either.

What can you tell me about your experiences with your Bourke? Would this be a good pet bird for an empty-nester household? How much one on one time would he/she need? What are the advantages you see about getting a 2 month old, hand fed, tame Bourke?

Thanks!

Hi Ellen, welcome . My mother has a Bourke's. A rosy mutation male named Pinky. She absolutely loves him. She's a senior and lives alone with 2 birds in a quiet household.
Pinky was handfed, but by the time we bought him from the bird store, he had gone a little wild already. Many of the "parakeet" species have a tendency to go wild easily when not handled regularly, especially right after weaning. Pinky will step up now, but would rather be near you than on you. Some hand fed Bourke's will be much more tame than Pinky, but still, they're typically not a bird who likes much touching.

In their native habitat of Australia, these "Grass Parakeets" spend much of the time running around on the ground foraging for food. He loves to run around (fast) on the floor all over with his best friend Patches a Princess of Wales parakeet (also an Australian Grass keet).

A couple things I noticed about Pinky that are not typical of parrots... He hops instead of climbs (more like a canary or finch). He is not overly interested in toys like other parrots are. That being said, he has TONS of toys he doesn't use! He's a very happy and spoiled boy nonetheless. VERY quiet too. Just chirps, and warbles and peeps. Not very loud, and only a couple or few times a day. Hope that helps!

Edit: another thing about Bourke's is they're about the most gentle parrot you'll ever meet. Not aggressive at all, and not inclined to bite. Another non-parrot-like trait!

I enjoyed reading that Thanks!