Soon-to-be bird owner

[halogen]

Hello all,

I'm Tara and hopefully I'll be getting a bird in the near future. I'm hoping to learn as much as I can about this new pet here before I dive in headfirst. First off, I'm thinking about getting either a budgie or a cockatiel. There's a rescue near me with both, so any of your personal experiences/opinions would be helpful. I've never owned a bird before, but I've had dogs, and cats and babysat a bird once. Anyways, I'm glad to be here!

Halogen

 

[BirdBrains2233]

First off, welcome to the forums. Glad to hear you are gonna get a bird from a rescue. My first suggestion is to keep an open mind. The birds got to be at a rescue for a reason.. good or bad, and thats what is usually unknown. With that in mind, realize that the bird may or may not have the same temperament compared to one you get as a baby. Long as you realize that some rescue birds could take months and months of time and patience to be the companion pet you are seeking, than you might be ok. Tiels and Budiges are great starter birds. Both are usually pretty easy to handle and do not require the same amounts of attention that a Macaw / Grey / Too need. But with all pets, the more attention you give them the better they usually are. Also, make sure you maintain a healthy diet for what ever you choose. Just throwing some pellets in a cage is not the route you want to take. Experiment to see what he/she may like, and try to come up with a good balance for all around nutrition. Check out other areas of the forums, there are tons of great people here who are always willing to help.
Glad you can join us on the forums and GL in your decision.

 

[ShellyBorg]

For a first bird you can never go wrong with a hand tame cockatiel. It was my first bird and my favorite . I would go down and spend lots of time with them all, see if you can help out and one will chose you.

 

[halogen]

Thanks to you both for your advice. As far as diet goes, I'm waiting on my bird to see what the favored greens are. Also, how much of the diet should be pellet? Or do I neef to give pellet at all?

 

[Birdlover1]

WELCOME!!!

My first bird was a cockatiel except she was not hand fed or tame in anyway.She was quite feral and savage but she had an extremely good bond with me after working threw her hate and fear of me.She liked to attack my family but was good friends with my dog and my goat lol.

I like to feed seeds with alot of fresh fruits and vegetables daily.Some people chose pellets but I think every one agrees on the fresh fruits and vegetables.

 

[lotosha]

I have 2 cockatiels and they are fine and gentle birds. I can defenetly advise you to pick one! Good luck.

 

[antoinette]

Welcome to our awesome forum
Enjoy

 

[JerseyWendy]

Hi Tara, and welcome to the forum. You've come to the right place if you're looking for info or advice. GREAT bunch of people here.

 

[Kalidasa]

Hi Tara. If they're used to each other, perhaps get both?

 

[BirdBrains2233]

Thanks to you both for your advice. As far as diet goes, I'm waiting on my bird to see what the favored greens are. Also, how much of the diet should be pellet? Or do I neef to give pellet at all?

For all my birds (others may and will disagree...) I keep a good pellet/seed mix down for my Tiel at all times. He LOVES his oats and millet so much that when its near his cage that is all he wants to eat. I try to give him as much as he wants when it comes to greens/treats with hopes his diet will expand, but have not had to much luck. Birds can be picky about what they like, so when he comes home you will just have to go by the trial -n- error method to see what works for yours.