Newbie question

[mindi]

We have a female sun conure and we wanted to get a male as a "companion". We arent really interested in breeding, I mean if it happened great, but our main goal is they are our pets and we love the companionship of them. I was told by a gentleman today who is breeding his that if we get a male, they will bond with each other and will no longer be friendly with us. Is this true?

 

[GaryBV]

Hi mindi, yes it is very likely that the birds will bond together and may become less friendly towards you all. It's a trade off and one I myself have made as I have a bonded pair of lovebirds and a bonded pair of parrotlets. The trade off is that the focus of my birds is each other and not on me, and they are not so dependent upon me for attention and affection. Also, my female parrotlet has become outright hostile to me, trying to bite me every time I come near their cage. It doesn't bother me in the least as I'm happy they have each other - after all, they can't sleep pressed against me like they do each other, etc. I'm sure other's will weigh in on this one as well. Good luck.

 

[Nathan1]

Yes, that can happen and I wouldn't recommend it either if you're just looking for a pet. They may still be tame, but they'd much rather interact with whom their bonded with than you. Although it's kinda to late to tell you this...Caiques aren't like that so they're often kept in pairs.