Cockatoo?

[Spiritbird]

After a childhood parakeet I wanted no more birds because when the bird died I was a sad little girl. As an adult my Rosie, TAG, has been the best bird I could every have in my life.
If you do your homework first you can be a very good guardian. They are high priced as babies but well worth the money.

 

[Ducorp]

i wish parrots were as cheap here in the UK as they are in the US.

my 5 year old ducorps which is my 1st parrot cost my mate (who bought it a baby) £1300 uk pounds

which today exchanges to $2061 :11:

umbrella cockatoos here (if you can find a breeder) are about £1400 uk pounds
which is aprox $2200

 

[Ducorp]

Wow , a Umbrella Too isnt what i would consider the best choice for a inexperienced parrot owner.
Just saying....

why not ? theres only one way to get experienced with these big parrots and thats get one. a pet is for life and you may only ever want 1. so why buy a small parrot as a "first" bird and then find yourself not wanting what you wanted in the 1st place because you dont want 2 parrots.

my advice would be just do it and get which you want 1st no matter what its size is. there are to many videos and information on the net nowadays so you cant go wrong.

my 1st parrot which i got 3 weeks ago is a ducoprs. absolute fantastic parrot and as tame as you can probably get a parrot. few people said its too big for a 1st parrot but i found that info nonsence (my opinion)

a few people i know own african greys and they seem to bond to only 1 person. which to me is no good as a family pet.
my mum has a 14 year old grey and no1 apart from her can go anywere near it. its a nasty little thing .

dont get me wrong i love the greys. and my next parrot in the summer time will be an african grey. hopefully i will own a new baby in about 8 months time. because in the UK they are not cheap , they cost £895 which is around $1400

so as my 1st parrots i got a ducorps Too & in 8 months (hopefully) i will own an african grey

 

[MikeyTN]

Ducorp is not a aggressive Cockatoo really! And you got lucky to find a sweet baby. If you have no prior experience in birds, a problematic Cockatoo is hard to deal with!!! Even with experience they can still can still be dangerous to deal with. Once you've been bitten by a large parrot then come back to say it's nonsense. Your saying that now cause you really don't know how bad it can really get. Unfortunately the bigger toos are harder to deal with then the smaller toos like a Ducorps, Goffin, Lesser Sulphur Crested, Rose Breasted, etc. We're giving the poster a headsup if he wants to accept then it's fine. But what we say is no nonsense!!!!

 

[Safira]

I have to agree with Mikey. The problem with people buying the large cockatoos as well, is many don't do the proper research. So I applaud the poster for asking questions and looking into it.

An large cockatoo can be very sweet and cuddly, and loud and destructive and dangerous, especially when they reach an age where hormones are involved.

And a person doesn't have to buy a big bird to get big bird experiance, they can volunteer at any local rescue if there is one close enough and get plenty hands on with cockatoos as most bird rescues are full of them.

I swore I would never get a cockatoo after working with two Umbrellas, one of which bit a toe off 2 different birds. However, I am rather fond of the Galah's. If I ever do get one, it'd be one of them!

 

[Ducorp]

ye i hear what your saying .. sounds fair enough ..
mikey i did not say what you say is nonsence. and didnt mean that to any1 from this forum. i was told in person not by any1 here.
so apolagies if it sounded that way

 

[ann]

its so sad people no them as "those big white birds" or the "i knew someone that had a parrot, all it did was scream, it didnt even know how to talk!" if people only knew why these birds do what they do and educated themselves they could be known as "that gorgeous cockatoo" or the "i know someone that has a parrot, its so well behaved and sweet!" birds.
marctoo- i think once your ready, and prepared to have a bird for potentially 80 years ( there as smart as a two year old child with a can opener on their mouths that never grows up) then go for it ! be one of the cockatoo success stories! good luck!!!

 

[Mare Miller]

I love the traits that umbrellas possess, their bravery, cunning, expressiveness, loyalty to a fault but loyalty none the less. Sometimes it might take a while to discover these wonderful layers of personality but they are there and if you are willing to put your time in, you may realize them.

 

[roxynoodle]

The worst bite I ever had did come from a large 'Too, lol! However, if it weren't for my asthme, I would probably find one to be a very unique and entertaining companion. It was worse than the bite I got from my ex husband's pit bull when she got into a fight with my Dalmatian and I was breaking it up.

 

[roxynoodle]

Oh,and someone needs to go advise Kevin in the Behavorial section because his 'Too is chasing his wife around now. Being single I'm not the right person, and I know 'Toos can be more challenging behavior wise than the others, and I haven't had one.

 

[Mare Miller]

Oh,and someone needs to go advise Kevin in the Behavorial section because his 'Too is chasing his wife around now. Being single I'm not the right person, and I know 'Toos can be more challenging behavior wise than the others, and I haven't had one.

Oh yeah, that is another dazzling part of their personality that I tend to forget about! You know how moms can be about their own kids...