Aviary companion

[schreechowl]

Hi, My adopted quaker is a schreecher and has been driving us mad despite trying all sorts to reduce the intensity.
We have resorted to building an 8' x 8' aviary outside and he loves it!
It makes me think that he used to be an aviary bird that was sold at auction as a cage bird - we rescued him when the person that bought him at auction wanted to let him go.
My question is - is there a species that you can recommend as a companion to a quaker?
I have heard horror stories of introducing different size birds.
I can sub-divide the aviary to allow introduction time.
I was thinking of budgies or cockateils.
I would only ever want 3-4 birds max in the aviary.

 

[ChristaNL]

I cannot advice you about what species combines well with your quaker, but if you want to stay at maxmum 4 birds- maken sure they are all the same sex.

Personally I would just get more quakers as companion-birds, unless you really, really want another species in there as well?

 

[schreechowl]

I would like to keep to all male birds - I think Sim is a male but he hasn't been tested.
Due to the fact that quakers need to be DNA tested it may be difficult to ensure an all male group.

 

[Laurasea]

I think you can rehabilitate your quaker, they are very intelligent and social. My rescue was a real screamer for the first month. I don't know how long you have had this bird? But rember it had gone through a very traumatic experience, everything is new. Where do you live? Do you have previous parrot experience? There are threads here on bonding with your parrot. Quakers need a lot of toys and chew stuff they are very smart and active. I am team Quaker big time, abd want you and your rescue to have the very best life! If you get a second bird it can be a big deal, you would need to quarantine it and health check both birds by a certified avain vet. They might get along or they might never get along. My rescue still isn't integrated into my flock yet.... Quakers need lots of veggies, cooked pumpkin , squash, sweet potato are good for bit A , and hot peppers bell peppers, romaine lettuce, broccoli ect... Tell us more about your situation, and parrot, is he DNA male or were you just told it is a male, do you have ideas in age? Welcome to the forum! We are here to help and share the journey, abd learn from each other.

 

[Laurasea]

Also what have you tried to reduce the screaming? This poor guy or gal has been through a lot! A bird auction???? Wow I haven't heard of that before. I'd like to think someone loved him once..

 

[EllenD]

Quakers are extremely loud and do often scream/screech all day long. My Lita will do the exact same thing if she gets bored, or has nothing to do. And sometimes for no reason too, they are just extremely vocal parrots.

As far as a companion, there's no way to know what birds will get along with your Quaker, not even other Quakers. There are absolutely no guarantees whenever you bring home a second bird that they will get along at all, they may be aggressive and violent, or they may just tolerate each other, or they may bond closely. So regardless of the species of parrot you get, it goes right down to the individual bird and your current bird...

The only tip I can give if you want something other than a Quaker is to keep them the same size...By chance my Quaker bonded closely with my Green Cheek Conure when I brought him home, and the two are always together. However, prior to the Green Cheek I had Duff, my Cockatiel, and she and the Quaker can't even be in the same room together if I'm not there. as Lita (the Quaker) will start attacking Duff, and she doesn't really know how to fight back...And my Senegal hates Lita too...So it's just hit and miss, but you want them to be relatively the same size...

***If you're going to get other Quakers, I highly suggest that you order DNA-Sexing Kits online, because that's the only way you're going to know what sex they are, otherwise you're going to end-up with eggs, chicks, and a problem. You can order either feather or blood DNA kits online for between $20$30 a piece from many different places, and you either pull a couple of fresh chest or leg feathers, or you clip a toenail and place a drop of blood on the card they send you, then use QwikStop to stop the bleeding...For most people the feather-kits are easiest, and it takes only a week or two to get the results online or in the mail, depending on what lab you use...much cheaper than having an Avian Vet do it, and a lot less stressful for the birds too, unless you already have a CAV appointment set up, then it's easier to just have them do it, though probably more expensive...