1 Quaker in the house is better then 3?

[Mama Kirs]

Hello everyone,

I'm looking for some input from fellow Quaker owners...

I have a Quaker of approx. 2,5 years. He's very tame and loving. I'm his favorite, but he and my 4 year old little girl get on great togheter as well. But now and then I wonder if he would be happier if we ad another Quaker to our household and I check out if there are birds looking for another home. And so I found 2 Quackers on a Dutch rescue site. Apparently they are quite feisty and bitey when not getting the amount of attention they want. And the current owners are reluctant to place them with young kids. This behavior started when their baby was born.

I am wondering if adding 2 birds to my flock would possibly be to much. Maybe adding 1 would be better? And my Teddy is very sweet....if they are really that feisty they might gang up on him? And of course I do have my little girl who's used to being able to handle Teddy.... the other 2 maybe to much to handle for a 4 year old....

I think we will have to take a pass on these cuties....that will probably be the smart thing to do....

Still wanted to post it here anyway and appreciate reading your experiences. Thanks in advance.

 

[Davi]

I don't have any Quakers (if I'm not mistaken, they're not legal in the US, which is where I am), but I agree with you that the smart thing to do is to keep the status quo. Introducing two new birds at once (and who seem to need a lot of attention, at least initially, to deal with the aggression issue) would be a lot for your little Quaker. Hopefully others will chime in but I do think you're doing the right thing by not adopting two new ones right now.

 

[Mizzely]

Odd numbers aren't usually a good recipe. It will upset the balance And it's hard to anticipate in what way

 

[Mama Kirs]

That's what I was thinking.... A huge flock may consist of uneven numbers as well, but in large groups I think it may not a problem.

 

[Mama Kirs]

Thanks Davi. Actually I think it depends on which state you live in in the US.

 

[Mizzely]

Yeah in a large flock it is not a problem, but on a small scale in our homes it's hard to predict the impact

 

[Hjarta5]

I only have one Quaker, but added a Senegal almost two years ago. Although my sennie loves my quaker most of the time, my quaker became extremely possessive of my attention and will squawk or, depending on what is going on, try to nip the sennie if I am paying attention to the other bird. They get along generally, but its not a guarantee and I definitely keep them in separate cages and supervise their playtime.

 

[Mama Kirs]

Thank You Hjarta5. I know that even under the best possible conditions there is no guarantee they will get along. Let alone bringing 2 attention craving birds into a household where there allready is 1 little feathered attentionseaker. Bummer....they need a home...I could provide that, but by doing so I maybe setting us all up for faillure.