The right bird for me.

[LookEzra]

I had a very jealous cat for the past 15 years so I was never able to get a bird. My cat passed away about a year ago so I think it's time. I don't know a whole lot about birds but my father was raised by parrots lol
One of my coworkers has a Sun Conure which is when I fell in love with them. Just yesterday I visited a petco just to look around. I saw one that cost about $750, are they really this expensive? or these are pet shop prices? This bird was amazing. So funny! I love it lol He would come when I asked him to and give me like a side look lol He then would hide his face and let one eye out then hide. IT was the funniest thing ever lol

So here is the problem. I work mon thru fri.
I leave at 7 am and return at around 6 pm some days 8pm latest.
My neighbor is an older man and does not like much noise after midnight but hes up by 5 am.
I love birds that cling on and are comical. love multiple ppl that come by. I can spend 700 and down. thanks!

 

[Violette]

Hey, I'm not sure what bird would be good for you as "birds that cling on and are comical" describes a ton of breeds!

I can say that no bird will be up past midnight making noise... I would not worry about that.

Pet stores (at least in my area) really drive up the prices. I bought a Green Cheek Conure for roughly $300 from a breeder and later went to a pet store to find another for sale at $600...

 

[Mozzie]

Violetta is definitely right. Pet store prices are usually very high. Sun conures fit the comical description for sure. My Sun is an absolute clown! They love to cuddle usually too. But be warned they can be loud. However not late at night. They generally like to go to bed early. Good luck with your decision.

 

[Ann333]

My closest pet store is petco. They are selling a "normal" GCC for $400 and a "fancy" (pineapple) GCC for $450. I got my yellow sided GCC from a breeder for $200.... so thats less than half the price of a "fancy" which is what petco would have considered Pumpkin....

Off topic, but that really bugs me that they call them "fancy" If youre going to sell them, then you should know enough about them to know the names of the mutations youre selling.....

 

[sonja]

Please carefully consider the noise factor with a sun conure. So many of them are given up for being loud. And, if you are at work all day and your neighbor is home, he may not appreciate the noise, even though he isn't sleeping.
You can also check out rescues - they will help match you to a specific bird that is a good match for you and your lifestyle.

 

[weco]

Both suns and green cheeks can be funny birds, with suns generally being the noisiest of the two, but like both have mentioned, you would be wise to look around & see if there are any breeders in your area with available birds.....

Sun conures can usually be had for $300 to about $450, with green cheeks running about $175 to about $300, depending on where you live...

Before you are ready to buy a new feathered friend, you might want to make a list of the other things a new bird will need...cage, toys (be careful not to go overboard cause some of the toys you buy might be ignored) suitable commercial bird food (not plain bird seed), though many around here serve fresh foods to their feathered friends, veterinary well bird examination...you might want to check to see if there are any avian veterinarians in your area because some veterinarians do not see avian patients...if you were to post your location, the members around here may be able to recommend a vet or two.....

Once you've decided on a particular specie, you may want to read up on the information the forum has in its archives about that species, especially how to stay ahead of creating a screaming bird.....learning all of this is better before bringing the bird home than trying to contend with it after the fact.....

As Sonja mentioned, you might check out any area bird sanctuary/rescue...sometimes both suns or green cheeks can be found there.....

Good luck.....

 

[LeaKP]

I have a green cheek and he is great. Loves cuddles but also can play in the cage while I'm away. I just have to make sure that I give him as much time out as possible when I am home.

Another species to consider is a parrotlet. Truly a parrot but quiet. Smart, cute, cuddly, full of personality (can you tell I wish I had one of these too?).

 

[LookEzra]

Thank you very much for your replies

I live in the soho section of Manhatttan NY. I did find a breeder who is selling a Sun Con for $275 but I don't know what to think about this. He said that they are required to be hand fed 3 times a day for another week or so and after I told him my schedule he said "When you wake up ...feed it 1 time When you get back at feed it again. And later around 9-10 feed it again" then I asked what would I need and he said "A box or a tank and paper or wood shaving. And the food. Thats all you need for 3-4 week's . after that get a cage"

What do you guys think?

 

[Ann333]

As long as your baby is fully weaned when you bring it home it should be able to perch so it should be able to go right into a cage.... someone obviously correct me if im wrong. I dont think you will need a box.....

 

[Flboy]

Petco is always insane in their pricing, pet supermarket tends to be a bit more reasonable.

 

[weco]

Unless one's been opened in the past couple of years, there's no Pet Supermarket in Manhattan.....it used to be that 33rd & Bird was the bird store in the city, but the owner couldn't pay the rent & he moved the business to the Bronx & heard he finally gave up, so don't know what's in Manhattan any longer.....

You might want to ask for references & his vet's contact information.....a $275 sun conure in NYC doesn't quite sound right...and if you're saying that he wants to sell you this bird before it is weaned, I might look further for a bird & pass this good deal up.....first I don't know what he's talking about on this requirement of three feedings a day for another week...what requirement...required by whom ? ? ?

When birds are ready to wean, they generally refuse their feedings, opting to eat grown up bird foods, though there are some breeders who force wean their birds & these birds will often regress and beg to be hand fed again, after moving to a new home and unless you are schooled in handfeeding young birds, it can be dangerous for both you & the unweaned bird.....your good deal is either a scam or a breeder that doesn't care about the bird he's selling.....I'm not sure about NYC, but many states & a number of local jurisdictions have banned the sale of unweaned birds, so I think I would tread lightly around this deal.....where did you find out about it?

Good luck.....

 

[LookEzra]

Thanks. Take a good guess where I found it lol craigslist! I actually bumped into it while trying to rescue a cat for a friend. If you search Sun Conure on the NYC page I believe all listings are his.

At what age should i buy a bird? A bird I can leave alone most of the day and he or she can still love us when when my wife and I get home. My dream bird is an African Grey but not as my first bird. I might stick to the Sun Con.

 

[Surfincr]

Craigslist can be both good and bad. i've had really good luck with putting up want ads on craigslist. my grey actually came from a want ad on craiglist and she was free. the trick i've learned is through email or multiple phone calls make sure to ask a lot of questions through email and spread them out into multiple emails, from what i have found scammers generally dont like to answer a lot of emails and someone who is looking to find their animal a good home is more than happy to talk about their bird. Though this has been my experience so far other people may find otherwise.

also i started with 2 gcc's that were given to me by my aunt granted they were not hand tamed so i cant speak to comical and such but what i can speak to is when they started going they were LOUD and the pitch was just right that they could be heard anywhere in the house. i may be crazy but i actually prefer hearing my macaw scream over the gcc's.

looking back i would have gotten the grey first, she's hilarious and a lot of fun ( i may be biased due to the above, but i have heard a lot of good things about conures) Ziggy also turned my fiance from thinking i was nuts about getting a bird into really enjoying having birds.

 

[weco]

I sent the craigslist poster a message this morning & just got this reply, so maybe his birds are OK: the birds all sold. I may have new babies. For $250 they are unweaned so you have to continue feeding. For fully weaned they are $350. I don't take my birds to the vet as I have more bird experience than the vets in my area

Rob

The only problem I see that you might have is the hand feeding & you might want to pay the $50 up-chare for a fully weaned bird, but I might be inclined to buy from him...he put his phone number in the reply section of the post, so you might want to give him a call to touch base with him about when he thinks he might have more chicks ready.....

As to what age to buy a bird, I think I'd stay with weaned birds, but would read up on training & start as soon as you have the bird.....

Good luck

 

[lyricrex]

I seen you live in NY. I've been looking for a new bird myself. I've searched for breeders and most of them that I've found are in NJ or PA. I'm waiting for a pineapple green cheeked conure that will be ready in April. It's a 2 1/2 drive to PA for me but I think it will be worth it.
You can also check this adoption center called "A Helping Wing". They're based in NJ if you don't mind driving. It's a process to adopt but I've heard good things about them.