Caique or rainbow lorikeet

[Exe1ans]

Hello. I am wanting to ask a question
I would like to buy parrot but ı can't decide
I live in istanbul and parrots are very expensive.
1-Lorikeet-358,33 USD
2-Caique-716,66 USD

1-Which parrot is smarter and more naughty? (rainbow lorikeet or Caique)
2-What are the differences between Caique and rainbow lorikeet ?

 

[chris-md]

The lorikeet will be much higher maintenance due to their dietary requirements. I’d probably recommend the caique.

 

[LaManuka]

I've never had a caique or a rainbow lorikeet, but I have had two purple crowned lorikeets in my lifetime. Purple crowns are everything that the bigger lorikeet species are, just on a smaller and more manageable scale.

Lorikeets and caiques are both very smart. They both are SO smart that they do not do well if they are stuck in their cage all day, or if their human flock is absent from the house for long periods of time. Because they're so intelligent they quickly become bored and lonely which could lead to self-destructive habits like feather plucking or even self mutilation. Of the two species I would suggest caiques might be a little easier to keep given they don't have the kind of specialised dietary requirements that lorikeets do, to say nothing about their liquid projectile poop! Many owners of lorikeets do not understand hygiene standards that are involved with them and lose them to bacterial infection if those standards are not met. The other issue, apart from initial cost of purchase, is the cost of ongoing veterinary care which is generally more expensive for birds than your average dog or cat.

Lorikeets are hysterically funny excitable little goofballs but can easily be over-stimulated into undesirable aggressive or hormonal behaviours. This is the main reason why I have always stuck to the smaller species - my little Lilly is smaller than a budgie but when her hormones are raging she can bite very hard indeed, *almost* to the point of drawing blood. An associate of mine about 20 years ago had a rainbow that became extremely bitey upon maturity and was inflicting some real damage with his beak, so she decided to get him a mate. Let's just say her biting troubles only doubled when a second lorikeet was introduced!

Rainbow lorikeets are funny, endearing, playful little fuzzballs that can become mad, bad and dangerous to know in the blink of an eye, and can inflict quite serious and deep wounds with their very sharp beaks. They can undergo a complete change in personality once they reach sexual maturity. Some owners have reported their rainbows have become so aggressive that they need to either rehome them or build them an outdoor aviary and possibly even get them an opposite-sex mate because they simply cannot handle them as an indoor pet anymore.

I have included a link for you which will give you an idea of the good, bad and very ugly of lorikeet behaviour ...

The Lory Link

I'm sure other members will be along soon to advise you on the finer points of caique ownership too.

I wish you the best of luck with your decision.

 

[DestinyCall]

Here are a set of articles that go into detail regarding these two birds:

https://lafeber.com/pet-birds/species/rainbow-lory/

https://lafeber.com/pet-birds/species/caique/

I recommend doing plenty of research before making your decision. Parrots can live for over thirty years with proper care, so getting a parrot is a long term commitment.

Also, one thing to consider before buying a lorikeet - they have special dietary needs. Unlike most parrots, they primarily eat nectar and fruits, rather than seeds or nuts. They are beautiful birds, but not recommended for first-time parrot owners due to their unique challenges.

 

[Noahs_Birds]

I've never had a caique or a rainbow lorikeet, but I have had two purple crowned lorikeets in my lifetime. Purple crowns are everything that the bigger lorikeet species are, just on a smaller and more manageable scale.

Lorikeets and caiques are both very smart. They both are SO smart that they do not do well if they are stuck in their cage all day, or if their human flock is absent from the house for long periods of time. Because they're so intelligent they quickly become bored and lonely which could lead to self-destructive habits like feather plucking or even self mutilation. Of the two species I would suggest caiques might be a little easier to keep given they don't have the kind of specialised dietary requirements that lorikeets do, to say nothing about their liquid projectile poop! Many owners of lorikeets do not understand hygiene standards that are involved with them and lose them to bacterial infection if those standards are not met. The other issue, apart from initial cost of purchase, is the cost of ongoing veterinary care which is generally more expensive for birds than your average dog or cat.

Lorikeets are hysterically funny excitable little goofballs but can easily be over-stimulated into undesirable aggressive or hormonal behaviours. This is the main reason why I have always stuck to the smaller species - my little Lilly is smaller than a budgie but when her hormones are raging she can bite very hard indeed, *almost* to the point of drawing blood. An associate of mine about 20 years ago had a rainbow that became extremely bitey upon maturity and was inflicting some real damage with his beak, so she decided to get him a mate. Let's just say her biting troubles only doubled when a second lorikeet was introduced!

Rainbow lorikeets are funny, endearing, playful little fuzzballs that can become mad, bad and dangerous to know in the blink of an eye, and can inflict quite serious and deep wounds with their very sharp beaks. They can undergo a complete change in personality once they reach sexual maturity. Some owners have reported their rainbows have become so aggressive that they need to either rehome them or build them an outdoor aviary and possibly even get them an opposite-sex mate because they simply cannot handle them as an indoor pet anymore.

I have included a link for you which will give you an idea of the good, bad and very ugly of lorikeet behaviour ...

The Lory Link

I'm sure other members will be along soon to advise you on the finer points of caique ownership too.

I wish you the best of luck with your decision.

Agree with LaManuka on this one, its a lot of work to take in with Lorikeets AND Caiques and I would personally recommend another species like Conures or something like that, something 'Bullet proof'
(By the way LaManuka, love the Footrot Flats pic at the bottom of your posts )

Cheers
Noah Till

 

[Exe1ans]

I've never had a caique or a rainbow lorikeet, but I have had two purple crowned lorikeets in my lifetime. Purple crowns are everything that the bigger lorikeet species are, just on a smaller and more manageable scale.

Lorikeets and caiques are both very smart. They both are SO smart that they do not do well if they are stuck in their cage all day, or if their human flock is absent from the house for long periods of time. Because they're so intelligent they quickly become bored and lonely which could lead to self-destructive habits like feather plucking or even self mutilation. Of the two species I would suggest caiques might be a little easier to keep given they don't have the kind of specialised dietary requirements that lorikeets do, to say nothing about their liquid projectile poop! Many owners of lorikeets do not understand hygiene standards that are involved with them and lose them to bacterial infection if those standards are not met. The other issue, apart from initial cost of purchase, is the cost of ongoing veterinary care which is generally more expensive for birds than your average dog or cat.

Lorikeets are hysterically funny excitable little goofballs but can easily be over-stimulated into undesirable aggressive or hormonal behaviours. This is the main reason why I have always stuck to the smaller species - my little Lilly is smaller than a budgie but when her hormones are raging she can bite very hard indeed, *almost* to the point of drawing blood. An associate of mine about 20 years ago had a rainbow that became extremely bitey upon maturity and was inflicting some real damage with his beak, so she decided to get him a mate. Let's just say her biting troubles only doubled when a second lorikeet was introduced!

Rainbow lorikeets are funny, endearing, playful little fuzzballs that can become mad, bad and dangerous to know in the blink of an eye, and can inflict quite serious and deep wounds with their very sharp beaks. They can undergo a complete change in personality once they reach sexual maturity. Some owners have reported their rainbows have become so aggressive that they need to either rehome them or build them an outdoor aviary and possibly even get them an opposite-sex mate because they simply cannot handle them as an indoor pet anymore.

I have included a link for you which will give you an idea of the good, bad and very ugly of lorikeet behaviour ...

The Lory Link

I'm sure other members will be along soon to advise you on the finer points of caique ownership too.

I wish you the best of luck with your decision.

Thank you so much. which parrot would you prefer ?

 

[Exe1ans]

I've never had a caique or a rainbow lorikeet, but I have had two purple crowned lorikeets in my lifetime. Purple crowns are everything that the bigger lorikeet species are, just on a smaller and more manageable scale.

Lorikeets and caiques are both very smart. They both are SO smart that they do not do well if they are stuck in their cage all day, or if their human flock is absent from the house for long periods of time. Because they're so intelligent they quickly become bored and lonely which could lead to self-destructive habits like feather plucking or even self mutilation. Of the two species I would suggest caiques might be a little easier to keep given they don't have the kind of specialised dietary requirements that lorikeets do, to say nothing about their liquid projectile poop! Many owners of lorikeets do not understand hygiene standards that are involved with them and lose them to bacterial infection if those standards are not met. The other issue, apart from initial cost of purchase, is the cost of ongoing veterinary care which is generally more expensive for birds than your average dog or cat.

Lorikeets are hysterically funny excitable little goofballs but can easily be over-stimulated into undesirable aggressive or hormonal behaviours. This is the main reason why I have always stuck to the smaller species - my little Lilly is smaller than a budgie but when her hormones are raging she can bite very hard indeed, *almost* to the point of drawing blood. An associate of mine about 20 years ago had a rainbow that became extremely bitey upon maturity and was inflicting some real damage with his beak, so she decided to get him a mate. Let's just say her biting troubles only doubled when a second lorikeet was introduced!

Rainbow lorikeets are funny, endearing, playful little fuzzballs that can become mad, bad and dangerous to know in the blink of an eye, and can inflict quite serious and deep wounds with their very sharp beaks. They can undergo a complete change in personality once they reach sexual maturity. Some owners have reported their rainbows have become so aggressive that they need to either rehome them or build them an outdoor aviary and possibly even get them an opposite-sex mate because they simply cannot handle them as an indoor pet anymore.

I have included a link for you which will give you an idea of the good, bad and very ugly of lorikeet behaviour ...

The Lory Link

I'm sure other members will be along soon to advise you on the finer points of caique ownership too.

I wish you the best of luck with your decision.

Agree with LaManuka on this one, its a lot of work to take in with Lorikeets AND Caiques and I would personally recommend another species like Conures or something like that, something 'Bullet proof'
(By the way LaManuka, love the Footrot Flats pic at the bottom of your posts )

Cheers
Noah Till

Why are you preferring conure ?

 

[LaManuka]

Thank you so much. which parrot would you prefer ?

Out of those two ... probably none of the above!

This is going to boil down to your particular situation and lifestyle. How much time will you be able to devote to a bird of this intelligence level and emotional neediness? These are creatures with intelligence equivalent to a human toddler with (arguably) just as many if not more emotional needs, and every bit as demanding of your time, love and attention. Noah's suggestion of a smaller conure is a good one but they also require a huge emotional investment from you. This is not a decision to be made solely on upfront cost, but more in terms of the quality of life you are able to offer, and whether indeed this is your first foray into parrot ownership or not. While there is no such thing as a "starter bird", there certainly are species that are easier to manage than either a caique or a lorikeet, or a conure for that matter.

I would invite you to do all the reading and research you possibly can before taking the plunge but all the research in the world will not prepare you for the lived experience. Once you do have a parrot in your home you will quickly discover that they are totally different from any other type of "pet", and much more a "companion" animal with all the rewards and demands that go along with that status.

 

[Noahs_Birds]

The big questions are:
Do you have the time to put the effort into giving a parrot the HIGHEST possibly care and attention?
Do you have the proper facilities and lifestyle where you can keep a parrot?
Do you have the experience to keep such expensive parrots?

 

[Noahs_Birds]

Just because you want a parrot doesn't mean that you should have one I must mention, Parrots are like children, once you have one you must give it the best treatment, and shouldn't get one if you aren't ready

Do your research - That will be your best friend

and....

Take a good hard look at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself if you are ready

 

[wrench13]

Caique. Lorikeets are hard to maintain properly as previously stated, and are way more messy that any other parrots ( eating nector - liquid, produces the same as poops). Caiques are no easy bundle either, as they have tons and tons of energy that has to be burned off. They love to create mischief and mayhem, but that is a part of their charm.

 

[Exe1ans]

Thank you so much. which parrot would you prefer ?

Out of those two ... probably none of the above!

This is going to boil down to your particular situation and lifestyle. How much time will you be able to devote to a bird of this intelligence level and emotional neediness? These are creatures with intelligence equivalent to a human toddler with (arguably) just as many if not more emotional needs, and every bit as demanding of your time, love and attention. Noah's suggestion of a smaller conure is a good one but they also require a huge emotional investment from you. This is not a decision to be made solely on upfront cost, but more in terms of the quality of life you are able to offer, and whether indeed this is your first foray into parrot ownership or not. While there is no such thing as a "starter bird", there certainly are species that are easier to manage than either a caique or a lorikeet, or a conure for that matter.

I would invite you to do all the reading and research you possibly can before taking the plunge but all the research in the world will not prepare you for the lived experience. Once you do have a parrot in your home you will quickly discover that they are totally different from any other type of "pet", and much more a "companion" animal with all the rewards and demands that go along with that status.

I am working from home so ı want to buy a friend but can't decide

 

[Exe1ans]

The big questions are:
Do you have the time to put the effort into giving a parrot the HIGHEST possibly care and attention?
Do you have the proper facilities and lifestyle where you can keep a parrot?
Do you have the experience to keep such expensive parrots?

Yes, ı am working from home, ı had a quaker parrot before 1 year

 

[Exe1ans]

Caique. Lorikeets are hard to maintain properly as previously stated, and are way more messy that any other parrots ( eating nector - liquid, produces the same as poops). Caiques are no easy bundle either, as they have tons and tons of energy that has to be burned off. They love to create mischief and mayhem, but that is a part of their charm.

Thank you so much 😊