How much time do lovebirds need?

Hi all!! Newbie here! Never really had a bird before other than budgies my parents took care of as a child. Considering adopting a lovebird from a rescue. He’s currently caged with his sister. My question is would he be better off if I adopted both of them so he can have a companion when I’m not home? I would be more than happy to take both but again, have no bird experience. Also I will be starting residency in a few months with 40-80 hour work weeks depending on the month (most likely it’ll be about 50-60 per week most weeks, but our max cap is legally 80). I know intern year is busy but even once I become an attending several years down the road, doctors still chug out 40-80 hours work weeks. It’s gonna be like this until I retire. I’m looking at getting the AE flight cage so they have a ton of room. When I’m home, all my attention is focused on my animals (I have other exotics, snakes, tarantulas, geckos, but they’re super low maintenance) and my 2 dogs. Once the birds are tame and trusting of me I plan to include them with pretty much everything I do around the house (minus cooking). I do get a weekend (or at least part of a weekend) off every few weeks, and most weekends end up being short days where I get to come home early afternoon. What are people’s thoughts? Am I in over my head here? Also I haven’t even started the adoption application process yet (it’s pretty hefty and long) so I still have time to decide.

Also note, these 2 birds were a surrender due to a family emergency so they don’t really have any abuse/neglect history. From what I can tell, they were likely in an aviary setup since their parents were in one and all 4 birds are still learning to interact with people. I figured this should play a role into my decision as I am in no way capable yet to care for a bird that has seen worse days.

And last question, can a clipped lovebird do ok in that large AE flight cage with the lack of horizontal bars? The other cage I was considering is the larger Park Plaza cage from Prevue.

I think a huge cage with lots of toys is great for two love birds owned buy a busy person. I have never owned a love bird myself but I think what you might run into is that they prefer each other over you-especially if you are very busy. This might work out fine for you, it just depends on what you want out of this. If you are fine with them preferring eachother-and you can provide them a large cage and lots of toys that are rotated regularly and a great diet then why not. If they do become very tame and love spending time with you-all the better! I think if you do adopt them, the pair would be best.

As far as being in over you head, that's completely up to you-only you know what your lifestyle is but if you are willing to commit to the next-however many years they live-then it might work out great. Just remember that if they are going to be caged for long periods of time, the larger the cage-the better.

Birds are more closely aligned to having a child than having a dog or a cat. In my humble opinion, 3 dogs= easier than one bird. They are very high maintenance pets, and dogs/other animals can pose a safety hazard to birds. Also, think about the hazards in your home due to the other pets (I am guessing there are lots of cords and heat lamps etc). Heat lamps get hot and can contain teflon/pfoa/ptfe (hundreds of chicks died at a MO college due to heat lamps coated in the substance), cords can be chewed. If you plan to let your bird hang out with you outside of the cage (a daily essential), then you will need to do some very serious bird-proofing (easier said than done).

Never get 2 birds under the assumption that they will get along...2 birds will likely bond together and you will be the 3rd wheel. Also, there can be aggression and babies which can quickly turn into a complicated mess.

Little birds often get short-changed because of their size, but their intelligence is very high (despite their lower prices). If you are not going to be able to provide interaction and enrichment, as well as a schedule, then it wouldn't be fair to the bird. 2 hours a day is pretty much the very bare minimum (in my opinion) and that is less than ideal...

You are going to be exhausted and your routine will be all over the place. You may have to do things late at night and sometimes you may be called at random hours without warning... You are your bird's flock, so it's your responsibility to be there to fill that role if you take this plunge. Also, consider that an unhappy bird will often scream, pluck and become aggressive. Happy birds can also do these things, but if you can't make the commitment fully, you will also suffer.

Oh... one more thing (if you are squemish about these things, we all know birds arent!):
brother and sister kept together *will* have sex when the reach a certain age
(or kill each other trying to mate with *anything*)

- if they like each other and you do not let them lay eggs/ let them breed aka go through the whole proces of producing offspring that is fine.


Just in case of agression later on: get them a large cage you can devide into two (removable whosname, insert-wall-thingy, cagedevider?)
Remember: lovebirds can and do kill each other if they are not a match.

Hi again! Even a single lovebird needs to be handled daily to remain friendly!

Thanks for all the replies! I definitely should be able to get a good 4 hours of free time each day before I have to go to sleep. Also the crazy 40-80 hour weeks only last for a month each time. The hospital tries it’s best to balance the months so we get one easier month alternating with more rigorous ones. All my heating elements are contained within the reptiles enclosures so I’m not worried about it landing on something hot. As for any release of fumes, I’ll have to look into the heat tape and radiant heat panels that are installed in my enclosures. Reptiles have sensitive respiratory tracts too and a lot of the heat elements are similar (if not the same) used at farms for chicks. But I’ll definitely look into it more. I’m terms of cords, they are all neatly tucked away behind the enclosures and there’s no way I would let the bird(s) roam on the floor without my direct supervision since I do have 2 dogs as well. Just as I do with my reptiles, I would never leave the birds alone with my dogs. I actually don’t think they will have any out of cage time if I’m not in the same room directly supervising them. I’m ok if the birds bond with each other more and I end up as the third wheel. That’s totally fine with me. As long as I can get them tame enough to get out of the cage so they can have some out time to play and be included in my life.

I don’t know if these siblings are bonded to each other. The rescue is just calling them a boy and a girl for now but I doubt they know the sex for sure since haven’t DNA sexed the other birds that are available. My only concern is if this is a true bonded pair, in which case I would definitely adopt both. But if they’re just living together, that’s where my concern is. What if they start fighting in the future, need to be separated, etc... if I get approved for adoption I can always ask the rescue what they think will be best since their foster mom knows more about the birds than the rescue coordinators. But the application process can’t start until I move back to California and settle into my home in June, so everything is stil, up in the air for now. I just wanted to get a head start on researching more in depth. Thanks again for the replies, if you want to add more tips/advice please do so! I want to know everything I can before I commit to an animal I’ve never kept before.

In terms of them bonding with each other more than you...it sounds okay now,but if you are attacked when you try to touch them, how will you get them in and out of their cage? I just think you may be underestimating how much less flexible your life will be...and you already have so many animals and a very demanding job.