Quiet 'too?

I want to start this off saying I know that it's all very specific to the bird and 'toos generally like to make noise AND that I won't be getting a new bird anytime soon (unless my mother decides to buy that amazon that amazon that she is in love with). I don't mind screaming unless it is 24/7 ear shattering screeches. I'm thinking a galah someday or maybe a goffins, but I've heard that goffins have SO much energy they need a giant cage to run around in, I'm not sure I could provide that so I ruled out that possibility a long time ago. What I've heard about Galahs is that they aren't as active as the goffins but they can be bipolar and snap in a second. I've seen the baby U2s and how amazing they are, but don't they make lots of noise? This is a decision far off in the future but I'm just wondering your opinions, and if maybe there is a 'too I haven't thought about.

U2s make TONS of noise. Rocky could make your ears bleed with his decibels when he wants to, and occasionally goes off on a rampage of shrieking and nothing seems to make him want to stop.

Cockatiels are 'toos, too, and have all kinds of personality. They make a lot of noise, but at a much lower volume than U2s, which is the only other 'too I have personal experience with. My two tiels are funny and smart and entertaining and I wouldn't trade them for the world. I wouldn't trade my U2, either, but he IS loud.

RB2's are probably the quietest...

I had a neurotic as hell Goffins at one time, who rarely made a peep, but don't count on THAT happening with most of them..

Generally speaking, a quiet too is probably up to something... that's when you start to get worried!

I h ave a rare, mostly quiet U2. She has her moments, especially when left alone in the other room, (not near her flock) but even then, she screams much less than the average Too. She can be a bit bipolar, but for the most part, she is very sweet-tempered, as long as she's in the general vicinity to her flock and/or being held. They ARE ATTENTION HOGS! And quite destructive, I know Willow absolutely LOVES to chew, especially wood. Here's a pic of her catch tray, after LESS THAN 10 MINUTES on her stand before bed last night.



The stinker herself:

My older tiel sprung into life when my RB2 arrived! She became a different bird - it was incredible!

Back on topic. My RB2 is the loudest of the three - but my IRN is the noisiest. He goes on and on and on...and on. My RB2 has a good ol' scream, but only a couple of times a day. I was quite worried about him coming in to our home, (it was a long term foster/change of circumstance type situation for a family member) but he's been a smooth addition. He has a lot to do in his cage and a lot of time outside of his cage though - they're the 'too you want to look at, and it's a good idea getting a variety of 'real life' opinions from other owners - but they're still a too.

Good luck!

Today when I went to volunteer at the bird store (I help socialize baby birds so they aren't as stressed once they graduate from the nursery) and they were weaning the 5 U2s. I now have a massive headache and my ears are bleeding...not getting one of those. I plan on going to college online (once I figure out what I'm going to do!) so I'll be able to spend time with the lil guy and everything. My experience with peppy is that he has a small 5 minute fit a few times a day and has a large personality...to me that doesn't seem like too behavior for some reason lol

My galah is probably the quietest parrot I've spent any length of time with, certainly much quieter than other toos, conures and ringnecks. She's capable of very loud noises, but she doesn't use them in general communication - her contact call is quite shrill and gets a bit waring if she does it constantly but it's nowhere near what I've heard from corellas or LSC toos, and other then that we get the occasional full on tantrum, which can also be just blowing off steam, and an ungodly shriek that generally means you've just lent back on the sofa and taped her two against the back rest, but neither are even a daily occurrence. Everything else is just squeaks and whistles. You regularly see generic reports online of galahs being loud but everyone I can think of who's owned one says more or less the same thing: they have their moments but the general noise level is pretty quiet for a bird of their size.

Personality wise galahs seem to be widely regarded as the steadiest of toos, but they are still toos. Mine is easily stressed and upset, although she deals with it by shutting down and refusing to engage with people rather then tantrum throwing. It's purely based in anecdotal evidence but the impression I get of them is that birds that were well cared for from birth seem to be pretty steady and outgoing but those from less secure backgrounds take a long time to bounce back. Alice is a different bird to how she was three years ago but she still struggles outside of routine and familiar surroundings.

From my experience the umbrella cockatoo is the loudest. And they scream till your ears bleed. and they are the type of bird which easily learns to scream to get attention and its not easy to teach them to stop it too. My moluccans are very quiet but the umbrella is always active. but she's very cuddly aswell. Probably the most affectionate parrot I suggest a galah as they are very beautiful and calm. btw a foraging toy for a cockatoo is the best toy for them.

Goffins can be like little wind-up toys set to maximum performance. Lots of energy with big personalities. Mine are prone to screaming at times, but the decibel level is lower than bigger Toos.

My Moluccan was generally quiet, while the Citrons are a bit noisier.

I think what I'm going to do is bail out on my GCC before it's too late ( she will still go to a great home!) and think about my decision a lot more. Maybe a galah... I have limited info on galahs so there is probably an incoming question post on them...

My 13-year-old galah is very quiet. He could live in an apartment. He's even less loud than a cockatiel. A few times a week, he "squeals" briefly and it's pretty loud, so I know they're capable of volume, but he's a pretty laid back bird, and as long as he has his "job," splintering wood, he is one of the quietest parrots I've ever lived with. I sometimes wonder if he's just an exception (on the other hand, I have one of the loudest Congo African Greys I've ever known of), but it's interesting to see others post that their galahs are not that loud either. Galahs are just wonderful representatives of the cockatoo family. I wish more people kept them.

Allicastery said:

I want to start this off saying I know that it's all very specific to the bird and 'toos generally like to make noise AND that I won't be getting a new bird anytime soon (unless my mother decides to buy that amazon that amazon that she is in love with). I don't mind screaming unless it is 24/7 ear shattering screeches. I'm thinking a galah someday or maybe a goffins, but I've heard that goffins have SO much energy they need a giant cage to run around in, I'm not sure I could provide that so I ruled out that possibility a long time ago. What I've heard about Galahs is that they aren't as active as the goffins but they can be bipolar and snap in a second. I've seen the baby U2s and how amazing they are, but don't they make lots of noise? This is a decision far off in the future but I'm just wondering your opinions, and if maybe there is a 'too I haven't thought about.

Click to expand...

There are numerous posts,from ME,about Jonesy.the Goffin's I HAD! YES!! YOU READ THAT RIGHT!! HAD!!! So I am not getting going here about goffins,or 'Too's in general
YES he was a clown! YES he was VERY affectionate and lovey-dovey.. YES he could talk...AND SWEAR! ...and by all means,could he flippin' SCREAM! ALL DAY...ALL NIGHT...24 hrs at a time...for DAYS at a time!...

Ok, that's enough I guess.. :52::54:


Jim

Just a note - great that you are thinking about the time you will have to devote to a bird in college, but remember to think beyond that, too. A cockatoo is a way of life, for the rest of your life. After college you'll get a job, move a couple times, maybe have kids, live in apartments. Etc.

My RB2 is not too loud, but I don't think she'd work in an apartment. U2s that I've had as fosters are the loudest, in my opinion.

My dad's goffin has a screech that could peel paint off walls and make your ears bleed. Some days he'll really get a bug up his butt and scream for an hour straight until you are ready to put your head through the wall or have a cooked cockatoo for dinner. It's not even the volume (though he is loud for his size), it's that cockatoos make a high-pitched shrilly screech a lot of people don't do so well with.

I also don't think you should expect any parrot to be quiet. They are noisy beasts, all of them Some individuals are quieter than others, so perhaps your best option may be to get to know some toos at a rescue. Older birds who's personality and behavior is more set than baby birds. Then you'll have the time to spend with the bird to see if he/she is really the right bird and will have the time to hear a screeching fit and decide if you can deal with that in your home on a regular/daily basis.

Get a 'zon.. :54: .. Amy never..ever...EVER screams..sure she can be loud <when she is excited> but its in speech..HELLO!! HOW ARE YOU??? and I can deal with that anytime. She's the bestest!


Jim

Of course I'd always set aside time for them! I apologize if I made it seem otherwise. I may consider a galah at this point... my family believes that EVERY 'too (like seriously every single one) is going to be loud and will scream 24/7. Basically they have a thing against 'toos. I EXPECT there to be noise sometimes, its what birds DO. (I get concerned about pepper sometimes because he only gives me one chirp a day when he gets startled or exited). Expect a post about galahs...

Allicastery said:

Of course I'd always set aside time for them! I apologize if I made it seem otherwise. I may consider a galah at this point... my family believes that EVERY 'too (like seriously every single one) is going to be loud and will scream 24/7. Basically they have a thing against 'toos. I EXPECT there to be noise sometimes, its what birds DO. (I get concerned about pepper sometimes because he only gives me one chirp a day when he gets startled or exited). Expect a post about galahs...

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Not all Goffins are out-of-control screamers! Each of my 5 will scream for short periods, often "contact calls" as one lives in a different part of the house. Never had one scream continuously for more than a minute or two at a time.

AmyMyBlueFront said:

Get a 'zon.. :54: .. Amy never..ever...EVER screams..sure she can be loud <when she is excited> but its in speech..HELLO!! HOW ARE YOU??? and I can deal with that anytime. She's the bestest!


Jim

Click to expand...

You mean he?

Scott said:

Allicastery said:

Of course I'd always set aside time for them! I apologize if I made it seem otherwise. I may consider a galah at this point... my family believes that EVERY 'too (like seriously every single one) is going to be loud and will scream 24/7. Basically they have a thing against 'toos. I EXPECT there to be noise sometimes, its what birds DO. (I get concerned about pepper sometimes because he only gives me one chirp a day when he gets startled or exited). Expect a post about galahs...

Click to expand...

Not all Goffins are out-of-control screamers! Each of my 5 will scream for short periods, often "contact calls" as one lives in a different part of the house. Never had one scream continuously for more than a minute or two at a time.

Click to expand...

I wonder if having multiple goffins (so a small flock setting) offsets the desire to scream as much? On the typical day, my dads goffin screams for about 10/15 minutes in the morning and about a half an hour around the time he gets home from work. It's not that unbearable, as the majority of the day he's pretty quiet. It's those days he decides to launch into a hour long scream fest that just :52::30: