Hello! I am not currently a bird owner, but we are hoping to change that soon, and I could use some advice.
My 10 year old has her heart set on a pet bird and would actually be great with one. Weāve been visiting local rescues/stores and watching her learn to handle the birds has been a real joy. But Iām very concerned about down the road when she goes to college/moves out since I know many of the large parrots are āone personā birds. If we got a bird, Iād need it to be one that can be socialized with the rest of us and would accept a "new" owner when my daughter goes to college. I know even the smaller birds usually have someone they prefer, but they can often adapt if that person becomes unavailable. Basically, Iām thinking of this as a bird for me that sheāll be able to do most of the training and interacting with for a while. Weāve been doing a ton of research, but I always find first-hand knowledge is usually more accurate than books and articles, so Iād love input on the species weāre considering. (BTW, I kept birds myself about 15 years ago, so I do know what weāre signing up for, but I also feel my knowledge is pretty out of date.)
The current list is: budgie (English or American), lovebird, cockatiel, green check conure, or jenday conure
We had pionus, brown-headed parrot, and Meyers parrot on the list as well, but theyāve been crossed out based off of info weāve gotten from the local breeders.
Cockatiel and conure are probably at the top of our list for the moment, mostly because of the interactions weāve been having with them at the stores. Iāve owned cockatiels before and really theyāre spot on what we want in personality, but I have big concerns around the night terrors (the bird would be sleeping in my kidās room) and the dust since my kid already struggles with allergies/asthma.
Other pertinent facts ā the youngest kid in our house is 7 years old, and while Iād describe our household as happy and lively, thereās no getting around the fact that itās loud. Right now weāre all home all the time thanks to covid, but down the road, the bird would need to be able to stay home alone for 2-3 hours a couple days a week, and for two 8 hour days each month. We are leaning toward getting a rescue/re-home bird although we all think the hand fed babies are pretty darn cute. And we are open to multiple birds if the species prefers it/we find a bonded pair weāre interested in.
So any advice would be very welcome! Iād love to hear why those species might be a good or bad choice or suggestions for birds we havenāt even considered.
My 10 year old has her heart set on a pet bird and would actually be great with one. Weāve been visiting local rescues/stores and watching her learn to handle the birds has been a real joy. But Iām very concerned about down the road when she goes to college/moves out since I know many of the large parrots are āone personā birds. If we got a bird, Iād need it to be one that can be socialized with the rest of us and would accept a "new" owner when my daughter goes to college. I know even the smaller birds usually have someone they prefer, but they can often adapt if that person becomes unavailable. Basically, Iām thinking of this as a bird for me that sheāll be able to do most of the training and interacting with for a while. Weāve been doing a ton of research, but I always find first-hand knowledge is usually more accurate than books and articles, so Iād love input on the species weāre considering. (BTW, I kept birds myself about 15 years ago, so I do know what weāre signing up for, but I also feel my knowledge is pretty out of date.)
The current list is: budgie (English or American), lovebird, cockatiel, green check conure, or jenday conure
We had pionus, brown-headed parrot, and Meyers parrot on the list as well, but theyāve been crossed out based off of info weāve gotten from the local breeders.
Cockatiel and conure are probably at the top of our list for the moment, mostly because of the interactions weāve been having with them at the stores. Iāve owned cockatiels before and really theyāre spot on what we want in personality, but I have big concerns around the night terrors (the bird would be sleeping in my kidās room) and the dust since my kid already struggles with allergies/asthma.
Other pertinent facts ā the youngest kid in our house is 7 years old, and while Iād describe our household as happy and lively, thereās no getting around the fact that itās loud. Right now weāre all home all the time thanks to covid, but down the road, the bird would need to be able to stay home alone for 2-3 hours a couple days a week, and for two 8 hour days each month. We are leaning toward getting a rescue/re-home bird although we all think the hand fed babies are pretty darn cute. And we are open to multiple birds if the species prefers it/we find a bonded pair weāre interested in.
So any advice would be very welcome! Iād love to hear why those species might be a good or bad choice or suggestions for birds we havenāt even considered.