Wanting to get a Parrot Don't know which one to get.

My Wife and I have been talking about getting a pet Parrot. I grow up with Parakeets, cocktails, and Quakers my wife has never had a parrot. both me and the wife work 5 days a week about 8 hours, no children and two dogs. I would like to get a bigger parrot however with work and the wife never having a parrot I don't know if is the right thing to do. So my question is what type of Parrot should I look at I have done my fair share research on many different types of parrots but want to know what others think.

Thank you

well, ease her into the parrot world, Id say go with a handraised lovebird, my aunt had one and she was vary Vary flexable, stable and calm, though they do have a huge "big bird" personally, and can get nippy.

Don't start with something you don't want, thats my first suggestion. If you wanting something larger than what you have already had then maybe try a Meyers parrot or a senegal.

If there are rescues in your area maybe take your wife to one and see what she is comfortable with, or if there are any pet stores around with parrots that you could handle. See what her comfort level is and go from there.

Just thing as follow
Do you have the time for a 5 years child the rest of your life ( a bigger perrot).
Do you want to pay for vet cost ?
Do you have the interest rainsing a perrot ( you have to spend most of your sparetime) ?
Can you cope with screaming (and your nabour) (go in to youtube and listen) ?
Is it possible for you to get a babysitter when you are on holiday ?

If yes the I could surgest a blue frond Amazon or a Greay African

I wouldn't go getting a big bird as beautiful as they are, they're a lot of time and effort. Everyone is guilty of wanting a bigger parrot (even me!) because they seem so pretty, smart and can learn to talk/do tricks etc, but they are almost 10x more work then littler parrots, who sometimes can be better.

Think of it this way... a macaw, for example, is a great big cuddly ball of beautiful feathers that eats cool things and can learn awesome tricks, maybe learn to sing or say a few words, who wouldn't want one? They're so amazingly gorgeous and absolutely adorable! But they require a great deal of time and attention, food costs twice as much, so do all the cages, toys and accessories. Bigger bird = bigger spending. Not to mention all the furniture and things they destroy when they’ve got the bigger beaks and claws to do so!

Macaws are GORGEOUS and I’ve wanted one since I was little, but there’s a reason the majority of people who own (happy) macaws are preformers, retired or don’t have any kids.

I would suggest getting a smaller bird like a conure, lorikeet/lory or caique. These birds are also cuddly balls of beautiful feathers only a little more travel sized! If a conure chews on your table, poops on your floor or bites you, it’s going to do a lot less damage then a macaw… and even the little birds provide as much fun as the big ones, if not more. They can be quieter (maybe not sun and nanday conures) and require less money spent on them. For $200 you can buy 20+ toys for a smaller bird, $200 might only get your 4-5 for a bigger bird. They also aren’t as prone to the emotional issues bigger birds like greys, cockatoos and amazons can get, some anyway.

I've only ever had little birds, (conures, lorikeets, quakers) but I don't ever regret them for a minute. They are so funny and do crazy things, they're big bird personalties in a smaller package. And some of them can even learn tunes, whistles and words.

as said above, get the bird you want, don't discount the smaller birds, but reaserch especially any calling habits, special diets etc the birds may have, nearest avian vets, where you can get good quality pellets from etc

but i do agree with the 5yr old child comment! an when these birds decide to kick off, it can be very time consuming to eliminate cause an adjust behavior! even ajusting how you go about your own dayto day life!

if you do get an older bird, you should meet with said bird a few times an watch closely how its current family handle it!

Well talking to the wife and taking her to the only place around here in alaska that has birds she likes the conures the only thing now is which one.

Northernparrot said:

Well talking to the wife and taking her to the only place around here in alaska that has birds she likes the conures the only thing now is which one.

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Of course I'm a bit biased, but if you're getting a conure, I vote for a Green Cheek Conure.

Oh you come from alaska! Hello fellow alaskan!

Good luck with the most expensive bird breeder of conures Here. she has nice birds but you can get them for half that price in the states. Alaska Parrots

Good luck with the most expensive bird breeder of conures Here. she has nice birds but you can get them for half that price in the states.

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275 for a GCC. That seems about normal price to me.

Rio Mom said:

Northernparrot said:

Well talking to the wife and taking her to the only place around here in alaska that has birds she likes the conures the only thing now is which one.

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Of course I'm a bit biased, but if you're getting a conure, I vote for a Green Cheek Conure.

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I second this!

I vote for the blue crowned conure. I have one and he is so intelligent. He talks like crazy. We carry on conversations (like I'm talking to a little kid with a sense of humor). He tells me when he has to "Ewwwieee" and is getting better at not leaving a warm gift on my back.
As for the biting, sometimes if he gets mad, he'll give me a nip, but has never broken the skin. I got him as a newly weaned baby. He will follow me around the apartment and climb up me to get to my shoulder. He loves to "help" me wash the dishes. Basically he sits on my shoulder and watches in fascination.
That's him in my avatar.

do any of you have sun conures I really like them but my wife likes the little green cheeks. So I will probably get a green cheek.

Me and my hubby are getting an african grey BUT I have been researching them since i was 14 i went to school to be a veterinary assistant and did a main focus of my course of larger parrots. We both have the time and money to get one, we could get one right now if we wanted BUT we are waiting and continuing research until i feel we are ready for one. The larger the bird the larger the responsibility.

Remember just like with dogs and cats: The bigger the creature the bigger the vet bills, some avians cost 4 times more to treat the same thing that a dog or cat could have because they are spe******ed.

Big birds can and DO destroy things. are you ready to have to buy a new sofa every time the bird decides its a good chew toy?

Are you ready to CHANGE your lifestyle to fill and meet the needs of a larger bird?

Larger birds tend to see plucking more often then smaller birds because somethign just isn't right.

Are you prepared to keep a room humid enough for the bird? and give it a daily "shower" of some kind?

Cages are significantly bigger for larger parrots, and play stands are to. are you ready to have your whole family room filled to the nine with bird toys, a cage,and a playstand?

Do you live in your own house? If your in an apartment are your neighbours able to hear if a bird is being loud? Will your neighbours be ok with it if they can hear it?

Are you ready to find new and creative ideas on a constant basis to keep a large bird entertained?

a really big question when dealing with larger parrots: They live for a LONG time are you willing to have a trust fund in your pets name and a plan for them put into a will in case of the event of your death.
Do you have any bird sanctuaries in your area that you can talk to about willing your bird to them should something happen to both you and your wife and no one else in your family can take or they don't want to take the bird? << this one was a big one for me and my hubby but my brother agreed should something happen he would be willing to take the bird, BUT since he is going through college still some kind a "trust fund" needed to be set up for veterinary care until he is out of school in a 6 years.



Bigger bird = bigger responsibility. everything takes longer because everything is bigger.

Conures are a good route to go (i love those little guys!) my mom had one when i was a kid that she had for years he passed away when i was 8 but he was my big reason for getting "bird obsession" as my mom puts it (if it has feathers i love it) When me and my sister were young we could walk outside and pick up random (perfectly healthy mind you) wild birds the first few times it happened my mom thought we found a dead bird LOL.

But yea look into the conures, there was one at a store i use to go to to get feeders for my lizard (crickets and meal worms not mice lol) and they had one there that was the "store bird" he was the cuddliest little thing i would go in for something that normally would have taken 2 minutes and stay for almost an hour playing with the little guy!

They have almost an addicting personality

Big birds can and DO destroy things. are you ready to have to buy a new sofa every time the bird decides its a good chew toy?

Are you ready to CHANGE your lifestyle to fill and meet the needs of a larger bird?

Larger birds tend to see plucking more often then smaller birds because somethign just isn't right.

Are you prepared to keep a room humid enough for the bird? and give it a daily "shower" of some kind?

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Parrots adapt pretty well and you shouldn't need to keep a room humind for them. I have central air here, and I don't do anything special for my parrots. Also, unless your parrot is really bored or left out alone there should be no reason your couch would be destroyed.

Abzeez said:

Big birds can and DO destroy things. are you ready to have to buy a new sofa every time the bird decides its a good chew toy?

Are you ready to CHANGE your lifestyle to fill and meet the needs of a larger bird?

Larger birds tend to see plucking more often then smaller birds because somethign just isn't right.

Are you prepared to keep a room humid enough for the bird? and give it a daily "shower" of some kind?

Click to expand...

Parrots adapt pretty well and you shouldn't need to keep a room humind for them. I have central air here, and I don't do anything special for my parrots. Also, unless your parrot is really bored or left out alone there should be no reason your couch would be destroyed.

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humifity CAN and DOES cause plucking issues with some species of parrots, for certain species you should try to keep around 45%+ humidity in the room where said parrots spend most of their time.


yes i agree that when supervised they wont destroy a couch BUT there is an off chance that you turn your back for 2 seconds and some upholsted backings on chairs and couches get riped off a bit and then later things go nuts...

I happened to catch my shirt on one once... it certainly wasn't the shirt that needed repaired after. I soon found out the cause was my aunts too who would rip the corner up a bit(around 2 inches) and stash paper in it..... so while not totally just the bird it does involve the bird.

As someone told me...

If you don't know what you want, you're not ready. When you're ready, you'll know

humifity CAN and DOES cause plucking issues with some species of parrots, for certain species you should try to keep around 45%+ humidity in the room where said parrots spend most of their time.

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What types of parrots require this? (I am really asking, not being sarcastic.)

JensFlock said:

I vote for the blue crowned conure. I have one and he is so intelligent. He talks like crazy. We carry on conversations (like I'm talking to a little kid with a sense of humor). He tells me when he has to "Ewwwieee" and is getting better at not leaving a warm gift on my back.
As for the biting, sometimes if he gets mad, he'll give me a nip, but has never broken the skin. I got him as a newly weaned baby. He will follow me around the apartment and climb up me to get to my shoulder. He loves to "help" me wash the dishes. Basically he sits on my shoulder and watches in fascination.
That's him in my avatar.

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Ooooooo that would be a nice choice too. My grandma had a blue crowned conure all through my childhood. I have lots of fond memories of "Mickey" A blue crown is on my list of "someday" birds.

Abzeez said:

humifity CAN and DOES cause plucking issues with some species of parrots, for certain species you should try to keep around 45%+ humidity in the room where said parrots spend most of their time.

Click to expand...

What types of parrots require this? (I am really asking, not being sarcastic.)

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for the most part parrot species prone to plucking due to skin condition are supposed to have higher humidity in the room/area they are in to help prevent the dry skin which can start plucking, They DON'T adapt like allot of people think some are just more sensative then others and there is no way of knowing who is going to have dryer skin then others (i'm theonly one in my familly with eczema and have to be constantly mosturizing or my skin gets itchy then swore - human equivinet of plucking i guess lol) .

generally just a regular humidifier near the cage/area the bird spend most time is good enough.

In greys there have been several people who use a humidifier and red palm oil to "cure" plucking.

just some random sources - my original sources are from my college books on avian medicine

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wow that took forever to type and its not like its that long LMAO i was getting side tracked by law and order SVU LOL