Questions about panic attacks/shyness in Red Bellied Parrot

Hello Everyone!

I have been researching Red Bellies and have read that they are prone to panic attacks. If anyone wouldn't mind sharing a real life story of the panic attacks I would really appreciate it.

A little background on me I do not have any parrots at the moment. I am trying to decide the best fit and not give into temptation I do have prior bird experience. I lost my Quaker about 6 years ago and have waited until I was fully settled and out of college (i'm older - was a non-traditional student).

There is a Red Bellied Parrot that I have only viewed (he is in a petshop) I had never seen one in person before...amazing! Absolutely beautiful. However, I was in an out of town pet store and was speaking to a worker there and he said he doesn't suggest a Red Belly. I'm looking for other's opionion who have one. Right now I'm between the Red Belly and an Amazon.

All information is very much appreciated and I thank you all in advance.

Hmm Sam does not really have panic attacks. When he was younger he was kind of scared of different objects, which was a short phase. He can kind of day dream or space out sometimes i have to talk to him to get his attention. When he was younger i had to leave toys out that i was planning on having in the cage until he got used to seeing them, or at least make sure i placed toys in the cage early enough in the day for him to get used to them. One thing i learned is to never put a mirror in his cage, that is guarantee for a night fright. Sam is actually pretty fearless and the things i am mentioning were things that happened when he was probably not much over a 1 1/2. But he does space out to this day which i think is pretty common in a lot of parrots, eclectus are a good example of another bird that likes to day dream.

Sam was a little nippy when he was younger, but now he never bites. He is very loving although he is my bird only. He can get jealous of the people that are closest to me but he basically excepts them well enough. He does talk and laugh with other people. He is way more layed back than an Amazon.

Thank you so much! I really appreciate your input Parrotdise. This is a really hard decision!

Your Welcome, Here's a head shot of Sam. I have some others that show his full coloring better. Maybe this weekend i can get a video of Sam & Sierra playing peek a boo so you can kind of see the personality difference.

Not heard it be called panic attacks before, just phobic phases/responses, I'm guessing they're the same thing? If they are, then read on! If not, scrap all this

If they are then I've heard most poi's are phobic birds by nature, senegals, red bellies, meyers, etc. The best thing you can do for that is to socialise them early and get them used to new things happening on a regular basis.

Birds are great for routine, but before phobias set in you need to be exposing him to things all the time, which means shaking things up, so the unexpected item you've just given to him, isn't scary, because he gets unexpected items all the time!

Same with situations, Merlin (senegal) is taken out a lot during summertime more than anything in his travel cage. He's been on buses, trains, care journeys, out for walks, sat in fields, in shopping malls. He's used to it now but we need to keep up the time he spends out in those environments to stop him freaking out about it.

It's basically all about exposure! Merlin still has phobic phases about some things, a new random toy. He has a yellow one that sets him off each time now. You just need to give them time to calm down and realise there is no threat. Sit yourself down, give him space, if you try walking around or going over to him to 'comfort' him, he may find that intimidating until he's calmed down. So give them the chance to make the first steps back to you.



They're pretty easy to deal with if you kinda get a head start with the exposure stuff. Merlin has been out and about since he was around 11/12 weeks old, journeys here, vet visits to the city center for his leg when he was young etc.

Heck, he even joins us to the pub on occasion! The locals love him! But we can only do that because he's well socialised and his phobic phases have been ironed out

Can I ask why a red bellied over any other of the poi family? Or is it just availability?

There's a hugeee difference between a poi and an amazon too (as I'm sure parrotdise knows too well ) so it's interesting to see why you'd be drawn to two completely different species

Parrotise I would love to see a video!

Mayden thank you! I would love to join you at the pub as well the reason I am asking about red bellies is bc I saw one at our local petco. Thought he was the cutest thing and I have been wanting to get another parrot for a long time. I was unfamiliar with them so I began researching and thought they sounded fun and a good fit. I have loved amazons since I was a kiddo and have met some amazing ones so when I saw the red belly it threw me for a loop. He is so cute! I'm in no rush but I feel bad for that red belly at the store and when researching them they sounded like a great companion. I live in a relatively small town and we don't get parrots very often so when I saw him I wanted to know more. Sorry I'm rambling I hope that explains it.

Tomorrow i will put the videos up. Tonight Sam & Sierra were playing peek a boo really good then i went to get the camera and i couldn't get them to do it anymore. I think tomorrow morning i will try to get it. I did get two videos though- One has Sierra doing the Grudge noise and She drags out her nickname with it. It sounds terrifying lol. Then Sierra calls the Kitty & Sam Says "meow". The 2nd video is taking them out of the cage and getting treats. They did really good considering they have never seen the camera i was using before =)

Thank Parrotdise I appreciate it! And looking forward to seeing the video.

Tiki does not or at least has never had a panic attack as far as I know. She doesn't really seem to be afraid of new toys or even when I put her in a new cage. She just explored the whole cage and all the new toys. My quaker on the other hand will freak out with a new toy and with him it works if I leave the toy where he can see it for a few days first.

I put my videos in the off topic section of the forum if you want to look. I was not sure where to put them...