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Cockatoo as a first bird... I know, I know.

Which one to choose?

  • Starter Bird

    Votes: 7 53.8%
  • Cockatoo

    Votes: 6 46.2%

  • Total voters
    13

AvianCrew

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The price of a cockatoo is determined by the following factors:
  • Age of the bird
  • If the cockatoo has any problems or causes problems in its current household
  • If the seller has a commercial interest or is a pet owner / bird enthousiast without commercial focus
  • Species of the cockatoo
If you find an amazingly good deal on a cockatoo, you should be beware that it could mean the bird has some behavioral problems or health problems. Of course this does not happen all the time. Sometimes a low price just means the owner was not sure what to charge or wants to find a good home for the bird instead of a well-paying new owner.

The age of the cockatoo is a strong determinant for its price. A very young baby cockatoo is often cheaper than a young adult cockatoo because it takes a lot of work to raise the baby. If you buy it as a baby, you will take all this work on you and this will save the seller valuable time. You also take all the responsibiliy and risk on you, because of the baby cockatoo gets sick you will have to pay for the vet. A baby cockatoo is much more vulnerable than an older cockatoo.

The price of a young adult cockatoo is the highest of all the ages. A cockatoo that has just been weaned of its formula is young, strong and usually still a pretty docile and sweet animal. Buyers like that and pay a good price for it. As the cockatoo gets older it will generally become less expensive over time. Because it develops problems, it won’t live as long any more or because people want to get rid of their pet when it starts to become louder and more assertive. Only cockatoos of breeding age of popular species can still increase in value if a breeder want to buy it.

If you encounter a very low price and decide to buy the cockatooo, always ask for a written declaration of health and visit the cockatoo at least two times with its current owner. By visiting twice or even more you can asses the different moods of the
cockatoo better and could find out if it has some behavioral issues like excessive screaming, aggression or anxiety.

The umbrella cockatoo is one of the popular big species of cockatoo. Breeding success in captivity is pretty good, making it a common species to find in pet shops or with pet owners. Because of this the prices vary a lot. An umbrella cockatoo will go for anything between $1000 and $3000 USD.

Like the umbrella cockatoo, the Moluccan cockatoo is also a common and popular cockatoo species in the United States. In nature it is rare, but in captivity the breeding efforts are successful. In most parrot pet shops you could find a Moluccan cockatoo.
There are also a lot of pet owners looking for a new home for their M2 cockatoo. The price is a bit higher than for the umbrella, usually around $1400 and $3500 USD. Of course you can find large variations on this depending on the birds age and commercial focus of the seller.

A goffins cockatoo is one of the smaller species of cockatoo. It breeds quite easily in captivity and is a pretty popular cockatoo pet. The price of a goffins cockatoo is around $1000 and $2000 USD for a weaned young adult.

The Galah cockatoo, the pretty pink Australian species, is also a small species than can be bred pretty easily. That’s why the Galah cockatoo is not that expensive. You could find a Galah cockatoo for $700-$2200 USD in the US, depending on age, temperament and who is selling it. In Australia this species is actually really cheap as it is a very common bird there.
 

AvianCrew

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To own or keep some species of animals you need a permit or CITES papers.

CITES stands for Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora. Only 7 countries in the whole world do not participate in the CITES program. All European countries, Australia, the USA and Latin America are part of the CITES program. This means that owning a species that is on the CITES list will require you to have CITES papers with it.

If a cockatoo species is on the CITES list, every cockatoo of this species needs to have a fixed ring around the foot and/or microchip accompanied with CITES papers. This is to prevent trade in wild caught birds. There are two CITES lists: the CITES I list and the CITES II list. Only species on the CITES II list can be traded as pets.

CITES II form
A CITES II form is nothing but a form that states the identity of the cockatoo, the previous owner and the new owner. You can read more about CITES on the official website www.cites.org

Which cockatoo species are on the CITES II list?
At the moment, 2012, the following cockatoo species are on the CITES II list:

  • Cacatua goffini – Goffins cockatoo
  • Cacatua haematuropygia – Red-vented cockatoo
  • Cacatua moluccensis – Moluccan cockatoo
  • Cacatua sulphurea – Lesser sulphur-crested cockatoo
  • Probosciger aterrimus – Palm cockatoo
The species Cacatua sulphurea (the lesser sulphur-crested cockatoo) has many subspecies, like Cacatua sulphurea citrinocristata and Cacatua sulphurea parvula (timor cockatoo). All subspecies of a CITES II species fall under CITES II law too.
 

AvianCrew

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Where are you going to buy a cockatoo?

There are three questions you need to ask yourself when you are about to buy a cockatoo:

  • Is this cockatoo healthy?
  • Does this cockatoo behave normally?
  • How was this bird cared for before?
  • Will I get honest help and advise after buying this cockatoo?
You can buy a cockatoo at the following locations:

  • A cockatoo breeder
  • The previous owner
  • A pet shop
  • An animal trader
  • An animal shelter specialized in birds
Don’t feel bad to check out a few cockatoos before you choose to buy one. Of course you don’t want to bother sellers or owners with too much questions and visits, but remember that the cockatoo you buy could be yours for 70 years. Better make an informed choice!
 

AvianCrew

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The main diet or staple diet for cockatoos is the food that is needed for them to live a healthy life. All other foods are just extras. It is divided into two caterogries; dry foods and fresh foods. This page is about dry foods, you can find the page about fresh foods here. One in not complete without the other, you cannot exclusively feed dry or fresh foods to your cockatoo.

Seeds or pellets
As a main dish you can feed your cockatoo seeds or pellets. A mix is not recommended as your cockatoo will pick and choose.

Pellets as food for cockatoos
Pellets are uniform pellets made of ground seeds, nuts, protein and with added vitamins and minerals. They are made specifically for feeding to parrots or cockatoos. Your cockatoo cannot choose which part of the food to eat, because all of the pellets are uniform. Therefore he has to eat all ingredients of the food in the determined percentages instead of selecting only the tasty parts, thus obtaining a balanced meal. The only problem is that if the manufacturer does not select his ingredients well, your bird has no option to choose something else to eat. Also it can be argued that eating the same food every day can become boring for your bird, even though you feed him fresh foods as well.

Seed mix as food for cockatoos


Instead of pellets you can feed your cockatoo a mix of seeds. Many manufacturers have mixes of seeds especially made for cockatoos that can be bought in pet shops. Ideally the mix of seeds is determined scientifically to provide your cockatoo with all his nutritional needs, besides fresh foods like fruits. However, you can also find many seed mixes that are poorly designed and contain mostly cheap seeds for the manufacturer instead of nutritional seeds. Do not buy seed mixes with a lot of fatty seeds (like peanuts, sunflower seeds and nuts) or seed mixes with a lot of inedible seeds (uncooked corn and uncooked grains are inedible to cockatoos).
If you give you cockatoo too much of this seed mix, it does not matter which seeds are in there or how diverse the mix is. He will exclusively eat the seeds he likes and leaves the rest. This makes his diet very limited and can result in nutritional deficits.

This main food, pellets or a mix of seeds, is the most important food of your cockatoo but cannot be fed exclusively. It always needs to be accompanied by fresh foods like fruits, vegetables and others foods. Here you can read all about that.

The main diet or staple diet for cockatoos is the food that is needed for them to live a healthy life. It is divided into two categories; dry foods and fresh foods. This page is about fresh foods, the page about dry foods can be read here. Ideally your bird will eat 60% dry foods and 40% fresh foods and get something extra now and again.

Vegetables and fruits
The fresh foods consist of vegetables or fruits. The fruits can be given without cooking or other treatment, the vegetables generally need to be cooked before feeding them to your bird. Fruits and vegetables will give your birds the necessary vitamins and fibers.

Fruits for cockatoos
Feeding fruits and vegetables to your cockatoo is crucial to its health and well-being. Give him at least one piece of fruit a day, adjusted to his body size. You can choose too of many different fruits: apple, banana, pear, grape, tangerine, orange, mango, strawberry, blue berry, melon or pineapple. Every cockatoo has his own preference, so please try what your bird likes best. The only exception is avocado, this is poisonous to parrots and cockatoos!
You can feed the fruits to your cockatoo in different ways. You can cut them into pieces and offer them in a food bowl (a separate bowl to the dry foods bowl), you can give the fruit to him directly, you can impale the fruits on a special fruit stick so he can eat ‘fruit kebab’. You don’t need to peel the fruits first, not even oranges or tangerines, because your cockatoo will have some fun doing this himself. Don’t be surprised or disappointed when your cockatoo will throw his fruits to the floor or will only eat half of each piece. Cockatoos are sloppy eaters. Sometimes he just does not feel like eating this particular fruit. If he always throws his food around you are probably feeding him too much.

Vegetables and legumes


It is also important and healthy to feed your bird some vegetables and legumes, like broccoli, cauliflower, beans, potatoes, peas, carrots or corn. All these food items need to be cooked before feeding them, as they cannot be eaten raw. Without cooking you can feed him carrot, cucumber or lettuce but generally cockatoos will not prefer to eat this.
You can feed your cockatoo once every two – three days a mix of cooked vegetables and legumes. Do not use salt, sugar or any other additives to the vegetables. Canned vegetables are not suitable as they are prepared with salt and sometimes also sugar.

Learning a cockatoo to eat new things
A young cockatoo should be introduced to as many healthy foods as possible. Like in humans, young individuals are willing to try new things, but adults are less flexible in that aspect. If you have an older bird and you want to make him try new foods, you will have to be patient and continue to offer the foods you want him to try. You can remove all other foods for one day to make him more motivated, but do not continue this for more than one day.
Sometimes seeing a human family member or other cockatoo or parrot eat a certain food is enough to make your cockatoo also give it a try.


Next to the dry and fresh main diet, your cockatoo needs some extras, mainly animal proteins. It only needs this once in a while and in small quantities. In this category I also list leaves, tree bark and grit / gizzard stones even though those may not be seen as actual food items.

Animal protein


A cockatoo needs small quantities of animal protein. In nature this is obtained by eating insects or sometimes eggs of other birds. You can provide your bird with these proteins by giving it half a boiled egg every week, letting him eat the last bit of meat of a pork bone or by giving him some bird food made of eggs. You can also consider feeding your cockatoo some live meal worms, non-poisonous caterpillars or locusts.

Milk, cheese and yogurt
Cheese, yogurt and milk are not natural food products for a cockatoo at all. In nature they would never eat any of these products. Cockatoos are also unable to process lactose (they are innately lactose intolerant). Some people do give their cockatoo small pieces of cheese or a bit of yogurt, because of the amount of vitamin D3 and calcium in it and because cockatoos love the taste of it. Giving your cockatoo one teaspoon of milk or yogurt a week will generally do more good than harm.

Young leaves and fresh tree bark
If you provide your bird with fresh branches of e.g. willow trees, he will pull off all the leaves and sometimes all the bark as well. When pulling off the leaves you can notice that he actually eats a very small part of the base of the leaf. This has some vitamins, but generally the real nutritional value of this is very very low. The benefit of giving your bird these branches, is that he will enjoy himself for a very long time. In nature a cockatoo will spend hours a day feeding in this way or in finding food to eat. Trees that are suitable to give branches with leaves of, are willows, beeches and fruit trees (e.g. apple, pear, tangerine).

Gizzard stones
It is not food, but it is used for digestion: gizzard stones or grit. These are small pieces of stone with sharp edges that are used to grind the food of a bird inside his stomach. The bird will eat the stones and keep them inside his gizzard, where they will grind at the food before it is passed on to the rest of the digestive tract. You cockatoo will eat these small stones if he feels like it. You cannot oversupply him with them. You can buy special bird gizzard stones in pet shops.

Calcium
Extra calcium can be given to your bird to make sure he does not have a deficiency in calcium. Food items that will prevent a deficiency in calcium are broccoli, spinach and other green vegetables, but maybe you need to give your bird some more. The best way to give it some extra calcium, is by supplying your bird with a block of grounded oyster shells. This is basically a white block that can be hung from the side of the cage. You can also buy perches made of this material or give your bird cuttlefish bones. Your cockatoo will ingest the calcium if he feels like it, be prepared to see more that 98% of it go to waste. Better waste some calcium than have your bird develop a deficit (cuttlefish bone is extremely cheap anyway). To read more about calcium deficit, please read this page.
Do not force-feed your cockatoo with calcium, for example by mixing it through his other foods, because too much calcium will also result in disease.

The main food, dry foods and fresh foods, and the additional foods (like animal protein) are essential for cockatoos to stay healthy. Treats are foods that are tasty and may actually contain some healthy nutrients, but they are not essential.

Nuts for cockatoos
Nuts are very healthy for your bird, but they do contain a lot of fat. Feeding too much of it is not recommended. As a treat or a reward to preforming a trick they are excellent. You can feed almost any kind of nut, as long as they are not salted or roasted. For example walnut, peanut, almond and pecan nuts. You don’t need to crack the shell before you give the nut to your cockatoo, that’s what the bill is for!

Dried fruits
Dried fruits are also a favorite for cockatoos; e.g. dried banana chips, apple chips and raisins. These dried fruits lack the healthy vitamins of fresh fruits but do contain fibers. They can be fed as tasty snacks or given as a reward when learning a trick. Check the packages of the dried fruits for added salt or sugar. It’s best to avoid those kinds and choose the most natural unprocessed dried fruits. You don’t need to look for special animal food dried fruits, the dried fruits for people are excellent too.

Unhealthy treats for cockatoos
Do not feed your cockatoo fries, cookies, candy, chocolate, jelly, soda, cola, coffee, pure sugar, syrup and salted food. These things are very bad for a cockatoo. A cockatoo is not like a human and should not be fed as such. One of the many differences between the digestive system of cockatoos and humans, is that the kidneys of cockatoos are unable to excrete concentrated salts. Because a cockatoo is so much smaller than people, people underestimate the amount of unhealthy food they give to their cockatoo.


3 different articles on this one... feel free to read as much or as little as you want lol
 

SpecialistElbru

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First I would like at AA we are a community that are detected to the welfare of the birds. We do not delight in ripping people to shreds. But, in the lingo of today, "We put reals over feels". We will tell someone what they need to know, even if it is not what they want to hear.


Also, if I do get a cockatoo it will be past sexual maturity, so I won't have to deal with all those hormones, except for seasonal of course.
I understand why it is important to rescue, I just don't want it to be scared and hate people.
I'm not sure how I can make since out of those two quotes added together. Any bird that does not come from a breeder is often called a rescue. You will not get an adult from a breeder that is an adult unless you are taking a failed breeding bird.

I suppose it depends on how one defines rescue bird. If a bird is taken out of a truly desperate or sub-standard situation then, we here may say that the bird is a "true rescue". However on AA many times a bird is re-homed, we often consider it a rescue because, if we don't act there is a good chance that a bird will end in a bad situation. Consider the following two sentences ... The original takes very good care of a bird, then dies. a relative takes the bird, they are not a fan of birds, but provide care that is adequate. I would consider the bird to be at risk because the second owner may give a diminishing level of care. The bird is also at risk at being passed from owner to owner or winding up at a hoarder.

Places that re-home birds are often called a rescue organization. But that does not mean that ALL birds that wind up there can from an abusive home. A bird that comes from there is often called a rescue bird.
 

saroj12

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and don't forget the vet costs. Depending on location, the initial well bird check costs from about $400 to $800. Also vet bills can run into thousands in a snap. I must have spent about 75-100K in vet bills at least in the last 12 years. A lot of minors find that their parents don't want to pay for vet visits or transport to and back.
 

tka

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It's also worth thinking about what your life might look like in 5, 10, 20, 30 (and longer) years time - birds have ridiculous lifespans! Do you plan to go to college/university? Do you plan to rent a home? Do you know what kind of job you might want, and what sort of training and working hours that would involve? Do you want to be able to travel or spend time in another country? Do you plan to have kids? No lies, a bird is going to affect the kind of choices you make and the life you have. Any bird requires a large cage, a high quality diet consisting of a good brand of pellets/seeds and daily fresh fruit and vegetables, toys that you buy for them to destroy, annual appointments with an exotics vet and several hours a day out of their cage playing, exploring and interacting with you. The more intelligent they are, the more you need to do to prevent them being bored and unhappy. Cockatoos are notorious for needing a lot of attention.

For me personally, I lived in seven or eight different places in three different cities between the ages of 18 and 28. In most of them, I wouldn't have been able to keep a bird due to the tenancy agreement or not trusting my housemates. I'm pretty introverted and hardly a party animal, but I'm glad I had my twenties without such a huge responsibility. Even now, it's not easy to juggle a bird's needs with a long distance relationship - I'm lucky to have a supportive family who can step in.

My recommendation is to think about what attracts you to cockatoos and see if you can find similar characteristics in less demanding birds. Go to a rescue and see if there are any birds that you get on with and who like you - and allow yourself to be surprised! The big, big plus about adopting an older bird is that you have a better idea of what their personality is like - baby birds are very cute but puberty can change both their temperament and their relationship with their caregiver: http://forums.avianavenue.com/index.php?threads/baby-to-adult-will-they-still-love-me.83455/

Bringing such a big, expensive, emotionally complex creature into your life is a huge thing. It's basically a bit like having a toddler who will stay a toddler for the rest of their life - and who also comes with a beak (aka a boltcutter attached to their face) and can fly. It's a good idea to be as prepared as you possibly can - and even then, the reality is very different.
 

Tanya

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About how much money would it cost for a cage, and the bird.

BIRD: For a hand-fed baby U2 from a (reputable) breeder expect to pay US$1750-2000 or more. You could roll the dice and hope for the best with a bird from craigslist for US$1000-1500 but understand that the bird you get will have an unknown history, possibly be stolen property, and will almost certainly be for sale due to behavioral or health issues.

CAGE: A new decent size cage will be US$400 up to $2500 depending on the materials used and quality. BIGGER IS BETTER!!! Beware of used cages! They are often sold because the bird who lived in it died and the cage may contain germs that make your new bird sick. If you do buy a used cage, check it throughly for wear, loose screws and rust. Do not buy a rusty cage! Sterilize the cage thoroughly with bleach water and allow it to dry outside in the sun a few days before getting your new bird.

PERCHES: Most cages come with a straight wooden dowel. Sitting on one dowel all day every day can hurt your bird's feet. (Imagine yourself being forced to stand on hardwood floor all the time with no shoes, and never being allowed to walk on any other surface.) You will need to get a variety of perches that fit the foot size of your bird (Manzanita wood, natural rope perches, smooth concrete, etc.). Plan to spend around $200 on perches to start out. Also keep in mind that your new parrot will LOVE chewing his or her new perches. So be prepared to replace them regularly.

TOYS: U2s are incredibly smart. They need mental stimulation from playing with toys. It will take awhile to figure out what kinds of materials he or she most enjoys chewing. Toys come in a nearly infinite variety of shapes and sizes (check out AAs vendors), and having a good stock of toys is very important. Larger birds require larger toys. Expect to spend at least US$40-75 per toy. A well stocked cage will have 4-5 toys of different kinds. It's good to have at least that many in reserve so that toys can be rotated out as they are worn or the bird grows bored with them. Since all bird beaks grow continuously, they must chew to keep it trimmed properly. A cockatoo can destroy a $75 toy in a single afternoon of chewing. Make a budget to buy or make a toy every month or so to keep things interesting for your bird.

FOOD: Usually the most affordable thing about your bird. Many of us feed a pellet diet, mixed with some seed, and a large amount of fresh food every day. I literally get up an hour earlier every morning to be sure my bird have fresh veggies, grains and fruits for breakfast each day. Birds play with their food, so expect a tremendous amount of mess. Also, since they play with their food, there can be quite a lot of wasted pellets. (I have a dunker who won't eat his pellets unless they are wet, but also won't eat them if they get too wet which means lots of soggy pellets in his water bowl every day.) Expect to spend a minimum of $50/month for pellets, seeds and fresh food for your bird.

VET: Critical and expensive. Your first visit to the vet will be very expensive as it is recommended to have a blood panel for baseline information and screening for a variety of common bacterial and viral diseases. You will need to find a vet that is certified in Avian care and regularly sees birds in his or her practice. Plan on spending around $500 for a first-time visit. After that typical well-bird vet visit for us is around $250. Normally, you would only need to do this once a year. However, we have a bird that has a permanent problem, so we visit the vet every 6 months and spend almost double that per visit. The cost of $250/year does not include sudden injuries or illness, which can literally cost thousands of dollars. It is wise to have a savings account with at least US$1000 in it for vet emergencies. If you can make it happen, a savings buffer of $5000 would be optimal.

So here is my best guess at a reasonable minimum budget for starting with a baby umbrella cockatoo:
$1800 - Bird
$ 400 - Cage
$ 410 - Perches, Toys, Food (For starting, does not include month 2, 3, 4 ... for 60 years)
$ 500 - First vet visit

Estimated Total Starting Cost for an Umbrella Cockatoo: $3110 (This is an estimated Minimum Cost)
Estimated Monthly Cost for an Umbrella Cockatoo: $100-350 depending on the month, up to thousands of dollars if an illness or injury occurs



 
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Begone

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and don't forget the vet costs. Depending on location, the initial well bird check costs from about $400 to $800. Also vet bills can run into thousands in a snap. I must have spent about 75-100K in vet bills at least in the last 12 years. A lot of minors find that their parents don't want to pay for vet visits or transport to and back.
This is the most important thing, so thank you Saroj for bringing it up! :)
The price for the bird and the cage is always the cheapest cost. It is to have a bird that cost a lot of money.
 

GabeCast

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I know i'm getting off topic from the thread now, but what about a conure, cockatiel or macaw?
 

JLcribber

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You know you know. Seriously you don't know because if you did you wouldn't even be asking this question.

You're very well spoken for such young person. You're no doubt very intelligent but one thing you do not have and can not have at your age is life experience. You can't possibly know how bumpy and twisted that road is until you've travelled on it for quite a while and that's once "you" are driving and not just along for the ride.

You have many, many years ahead of you to fulfill all kinds of dreams. You are but a child that is thinking of getting another child. Imagine if you were to get pregnant now or get a girl pregnant now (sorry I don't know if you are a boy or girl?) and had to become a parent at your age. It would be overwhelming and something you will need to deal with for the rest of your life. On top of that the "child" you are thinking of getting is never going to grow past the age of 3 and is "never" going to move out. This child is going to need as much space, time and enrichment as you do. Not just a cage.

Live some of your life first and get those all important experiences under your belt. Become independent, stable and have a much more defined path before you make this life time commitment. You are going to want to meet and share your life with a special person also. This bird will be a factor in that even happening. There is no rush to do this because you are so young.

You just don't know what you don't know until you know. A lot of us old farts do know because we've been there, done that.

You sound like a very committed person but there is no rush. I say these things for the birds sake as well as yours. Hindsight is 20/20. You don't have any of that.

This isn't about the bird or what it costs. This is about you.
 
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GabeCast

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First of all, it's an honor to have you respond to my thread. :omg: And the "I know, I know" was because i've literally never seen someone recommend a cockatoo to anyone, nonetheless a first time bird owner. But I see where you're coming from, but ultimately can you recommend a less demanding bird (conure, cockatiel) or should I just wait till i'm older to get any type of bird? EDIT: Maybe add an amazon to that list?
 

Tiel Feathers

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I definitely think there is no such thing as a starter bird, and that you obviously shouldn't get a bird you don't really want. I also think that getting a cockatoo at such a young age is probably not going to end well for the cockatoo, unless your parents have researched it and are just dying to rescue one.

I think getting a cockatiel or conure would be wonderful if you really are truly drawn to them. They all need good food, vet visits, and good sized cages. They all can be loud and messy and bite, but you should probably try to meet some so you can get a feel for what they are like. I think cockatiels make the best little friends, but do your research and find a bird that is right for you.
 

GabeCast

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I've met conures and cockatiels before. I was always drawn to cockatoos because they are so entertaining, but I realize that they are just too demanding for me right now. I never had anything against tiels or conures, I just thought cockatoos where interesting. Can you list some differences between tiels and conures. As I can see you know probably alot more about cockatiels than conures lol. but any advice is welcome.
 

Tiel Feathers

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You're right, I don't know too much about conures, but I think that they can be more active than tiels, more clownish, more loud and more nippy. Tiels are more laid back, often like scratches (I think conures, especially GCC, like scratches too), don't usually bite, usually like everyone in the family, are dusty, and are startled easily. They are very sweet, and easy to take care of.
 

Sarahmoluccan

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Honestly I think you're too young to own a cockatoo and all the responsibly along with it. That's not meant to be a criticism of you. I'm glad you're here :) It's very wise to talk to other owners. I highly recommend taking your time with the decision to get a bird and if so what kind. As @JLcribber says there's no rush :)

Cockatiels are wonderful little birds, I'm bias thou. My first bird was a cockatiel and I got him around the same age as you. One thing to really consider is how long even the smaller birds can live and where you'll be in your life. Cockatiels can sometimes live into their 20s. Mine was just shy of turning 18 when he past. Sorry I can't help you out with conures very much. One thing I do know is Sun conures and Jenday conures are known to be some of the loudest of the conures and can have a really shrill voice IMHO. They are really beautiful but probably not the best "starter bird". I wish you well on your journey and hope you'll find the right bird for you if you really want one :)
 

iamwhoiam

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Every bird is an individual. Neither my Goffin's nor my Bare-eyed is demanding (knock on wood :D). However I have several birds and even though they are in separate cages they always have company.

'tiels vs conures....really depends on the birds. I currently have two 'tiels and have had others in the past and some were very friendly and cuddly and some were nippy. Same with my conures....my maroon-bellies were a bit nippy, my female Dusky was very sweet and my current Dusky, Jaden, likes to be petted but can be nippy. He can also be very loud and noisy. 'tiels are dusty compared to conures.


It's difficult for me to recommend one over the other. Best for you to go and visit with birds up close and personal and see which one connects with you and vice versa. You may connect with a bird you aren't considering such as a budgie or a lovebird.

I don't consider any bird a "starter bird".
 
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SpecialistElbru

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I am reluctant to suggest an alternate bird because you used the term "starter bird". That is a term that raises ire around here. The term makes it sound like the creature is a stepping stone, like you might get a cheep motorcycle before getting a Harley. Unless you are willing to take care of a bird for it's entire life you should not get a bird.

I'm not saying you should not get one bird then get a second "dream bird" some time later. If you can read this POST and understand you might be ready for your first bird. But if you feel that alcmene is foolish then you are not ready for even a small bird.
 

birdashes

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I'll put my two cents in regarding tiels vs conures:

cockatiels are IMO the calmest birds on average I've met. Very sweet. Very tame. However, they have a VERY shrill voice many don't like... With that said, I've found they are quieter birds. They aren't quite as interactive as other birds ( but are great companions. to me at least, they don't bite too hard.
EDIT: hit send too quick, finished post :)

Conures are much more difficult than a tiel- or at least in my experience . I have a green cheek and a peach fronted. They are very smart little birds. They often have VERY big personalities. Some species can be very loud. Green cheeks are very nippy. When I got my GCC Gigi, I was a little unprepared ... And was only a little older than you it seems, but she fits wonderfully and I love her.

As it has been said.. I don't like the term starter bird. Please don't get a bird to fill the void until you can handle a 'too. Get a bird because you genuinely want one.
 
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Hankmacaw

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Everything that needs to be said has been said. I will just add a couple of corrections.

1. No parrot requires "grit". In fact feeding them grit may cause compaction.
2. Seeds are not a favored diet. They are far too fatty for the larger birds. Some of the smaller birds require a seed diet (with veggies).
3. Never feed peanuts to a parrot. There is a danger of aflatoxins or Aspergillosis fungus and they are far too fatty.
4. Extra calcium should not be provided by oyster or cuttlefish bones - They both have the potential for carrying streptococcus and have none of the trace minerals needed by bird. A commercial mineral/calcium block is far better.
5. A very few fruits are fine, but they have far too much sugar for a parrot, so keep the fruit to veggies ration low.

There were numerous other errors in the information posted above - which just goes to show that there is a lot of inaccurate and/or very old information out there. Your vet (assuming he/she is a good one) is your first trusted line of information. Then people who you trust and you know keep up on the latest and scientific papers are then ext bet.


 
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