Bird species?

[Saravp]

Hi, i am planning to buy a parrot egg to hatch and raise. I have done a lot of research and will soon be talking to breeders and bird carers for advise, but i thought i would ask here first. I have always loved birds and for the first time mum has agreed to let me buy one. I want one that is good natured, and so with good training it won't bite, needs to be bigger than a cockatiel, and of course must be relatively easy to hatch and look after as a baby, though i know this will always be difficult and a full time job. If you know of any species that sounds a bit like this please comment.
I especially adore African greys, do you think they might be the right bird for me?
Thanks

 

[LaManuka]

Please do not buy a parrot egg online, it is 100% a scam. I was a moderator on this forum for a while, and both I and the current mod team will all tell you that the moment anyone shows up here selling parrot eggs, their account is immediately banned. Why? Because they will purport to be in a Western country like US/UK/Australia etc, but when they turn up here (and the Mods see them here all the time!), a quick check of their IP credentials will show they're usually based somewhere like Cameroon or China. The usual experience is that an unsuspecting buyer will send them money and maybe they might get a chicken's egg in return, or often get nothing back at all and may end up having their credit card hacked or their identity stolen as part of the scam. Plus no ethical local breeder will sell parrot eggs either, because they know that raising parrots is not the simple matter that the online scammers would have you believe. It does not guarantee the parrot won't bite, nor does it guarantee that the parrot will bond with you. You are much better off saving your money towards a healthy fully weaned baby, or perhaps if you have a parrot rescue near you, you could visit them and have the parrot choose you - they tend to be MUCH better at making that choice for a lifelong companion than we are anyway.

 

[Saravp]

Please do not buy a parrot egg online, it is 100% a scam. I was a moderator on this forum for a while, and both I and the current mod team will all tell you that the moment anyone shows up here selling parrot eggs, their account is immediately banned. Why? Because they will purport to be in a Western country like US/UK/Australia etc, but when they turn up here (and the Mods see them here all the time!), a quick check of their IP credentials will show they're usually based somewhere like Cameroon or China. The usual experience is that an unsuspecting buyer will send them money and maybe they might get a chicken's egg in return, or often get nothing back at all and may end up having their credit card hacked or their identity stolen as part of the scam. Plus no ethical local breeder will sell parrot eggs either, because they know that raising parrots is not the simple matter that the online scammers would have you believe. It does not guarantee the parrot won't bite, nor does it guarantee that the parrot will bond with you. You are much better off saving your money towards a healthy fully weaned baby, or perhaps if you have a parrot rescue near you, you could visit them and have the parrot choose you - they tend to be MUCH better at making that choice for a lifelong companion than we are anyway.

Yes i wouldn't buy one online. Thanks for your comment, I'll have a think about it.

 

[LaManuka]

Pleased to hear it, but I hope you also noted that I mentioned it's not a good idea to buy a parrot egg from a breeder. There are a thousand reasons why no reputable or ethical breeder sells eggs, raising baby parrots is not a simple process and sometimes it goes heartbreakingly wrong even for the most experienced of them, and I would hate to see that happen to either you or your bird. Some of the difficulties encountered are outlined in the sticky linked below:

So you bought an unweaned baby...

Today I spent several hours trying to help someone save a baby bird they had purchased unweaned. The baby died; they are usually almost dead by the time the new owner realizes something is wrong, not because the owner doesn't care but because they are not educated about what to look for or...

www.parrotforums.com

 

[saxguy64]

I'll have to agree with LaManuka above. An ethical breeder will never sell a viable egg. They're in the business to make money. They are set t, and have the time and experience to raise their parrots themselves. (And would generally leave it for the parents for at least the first several weeks) Why then would they sell an egg for a relative few dollars, when the parrot, once ready, would sell for hundreds of thousands, depending on species and location? Short answer, they won't. If by chance you find a breeder that would sell you an egg, it's likely because they know it's infertile, or there's otherwise something wrong with it. When it doesn't hatch, they've already taken your money, and they can point the finger at you because you lack experience, didn't keep the temperature right, or any number of reasons. It's a losing situation all around. Often, people will still believe it, and spend the money several times over, thinking that "THIS time, I'll get it right." They won't. I promise.

Might I ask why you would want to hatch from an egg? Commonly, it's a financial thing, and anyone that would sell you an egg knows that, which is why the scam works so well. Please, don't fall for it. As they say, you don't get something for nothing.

If you have the belief that it will guarantee a better bond with a bird, it's a myth. Actually, it's fairly common for the one who hand rears a parrot to be pulled away from after a while, as in nature, the babies decide to get away from their parents and move on with their own lives. Puberty is a common time for these things to happen. Not that anyone has done anything wrong, it just... Is, sometimes. An adult bird that chooses you is, in my opinion, the way to go. I have wonderful bonds with all my birds, but probably the strongest from my YNA, who was 17 when she adopted me.

 

[LoveOfallAnimals]

I also want to add that even with training, there is no such thing as a parrot that does not bite. It can be reduced, but it still will happen on occasions.

No baby will be easy to look after. Handfeeding is not something that you learn from a YouTube video. There are so many things that can go wrong. Plus, I don't know of anyone that immediately takes a baby bird away from the parents and starts handfeeding. Most don't pull them from the parents until around three weeks old as this is healthier for the baby. You can search in this form and find that there have been multiple people who have bought a baby parrot that was still handfeeding and ended up losing the baby. You owe it to both yourself and the baby bird not to do it.

I, personally, think the best way to find the right bird is to go and look at different birds. Play with them and see which one likes you the best. Even among the same species they all have different personalities. Just like with humans. Please don't discount older birds, while baby birds are so cute. Parrots that are older are easier in my opinion.

Also, while looking into which type of parrot, you would like. You need to take in consideration the cost of the cage and toys. The bigger the bird the more expensive that will be. The noise level maybe something you should think about too. Should you narrow it down to a few specific species, please let us know and we will try to give you information on that species.

 

[Saravp]

Pleased to hear it, but I hope you also noted that I mentioned it's not a good idea to buy a parrot egg from a breeder. There are a thousand reasons why no reputable or ethical breeder sells eggs, raising baby parrots is not a simple process and sometimes it goes heartbreakingly wrong even for the most experienced of them, and I would hate to see that happen to either you or your bird. Some of the difficulties encountered are outlined in the sticky linked below:

So you bought an unweaned baby...

Today I spent several hours trying to help someone save a baby bird they had purchased unweaned. The baby died; they are usually almost dead by the time the new owner realizes something is wrong, not because the owner doesn't care but because they are not educated about what to look for or...

www.parrotforums.com

Thanks for the link, ill check it out.
Also, is it still possible to teach an already weaned bird to fly to me on command, enough for me to be able to free fly him outside?

 

[Owlet]

Thanks for the link, ill check it out.
Also, is it still possible to teach an already weaned bird to fly to me on command, enough for me to be able to free fly him outside?

Yes but you also need to consider heavily the risks for free flying.

 

[Saravp]

Yes but you also need to consider heavily the risks for free flying.

Yeah ive thought about all that. Thanks

 

[onamom]

Thanks for the link, ill check it out.
Also, is it still possible to teach an already weaned bird to fly to me on command, enough for me to be able to free fly him outside?

Unweaned vs weaned will not have any impact on how easy it is to train the bird to do anything. Younger, weaned, birds are typically easier to train than adult birds. However, raising a bird from an egg has no advantages over buying a weaned baby in terms of training. Highly recommend viewing the link posted above.