Suggestions for companion bird?

[Freia]

Hi everyone,
I'm planning to bring home a bird over the next few months. I've enjoyed the process of learning about different species of parrot, their temperaments and differing care requirements, now I'm narrowing down which species I might welcome into my home. Next month I'm going to a bird show to gather some more hands-on information and talk to experienced bird keepers/breeders. I'd appreciate an opinion from posters here too.

My situation:
I'm a stay at home mum of one (preschooler).
I can commit many hours per day to supervised play time, long-term. I'd prefer a bird which bonds and thrives on one-to-one attention, but not a super large, jealous bird which could hurt other members of the family or be prone to very unpredictable destructive behaviour. There will be plenty of opportunity for healthy socialisation with people and different environments.
No other pets in the home (but do have experience of lots of animal care and exotics), won't be having more children, so would love to become a devoted "parront"!
I have two 20" x20"x34" cages (extra one for a quiet room at night) with narrow bar spacing, and two large metal play stands. These can be upgraded in future. I'd enjoy providing daily foraging activities, play, etc.
I would like to harness train for trips out, prefer a bird not too tiny (e.g. not a lovebird or parrotlet).
The house is quite well soundproofed, would prefer a bird with character that makes some lively noise/chatter of possible. I realise individual birds are all different and may never learn to talk or mimic, regardless of species. Prolonged screaming which could carry over to neighbouring houses or distress my little one wouldn't be a good choice if it's behaviour which doesn't respond to training.

Any suggestions welcome!

People often say to let the bird choose you. I'm a bit worried about that advice as there is a very bright and friendly young hand-reared ring neck available locally which was a joy to interact with (seemed a lot more curious and confident than the hand -reared green cheek conures, cockatiels, etc.). I'm aware these aren't considered to be beginner birds and once it grows there would be a bluffing stage, with their reputation for being quite independent and sometimes aggressive. Is this a common mistake for the inexperienced - getting a friendly baby which later becomes unmanageable? If anyone thinks a ring neck is a terrible idea I'd be greatful for the heads up or pointers elsewhere.

 

[RawPasta]

I have two 20" x20"x34" cages

With that small of a cage, your choices won't include medium sized birds. Can you get a larger cage?

 

[Lodah]

Even that size would mainly be suitable for a night or sleep cage!

 

[Freia]

Hi, yes I can upgrade the cage. this would happen regardless, eventually. Birds live a long time and I would always want to improve its set up.

One of the cages is just for use as a sleeping cage at night, I thought it would be nice for the bird to have a separate sleeping cage in a quiet room.

Would a bird the size of say, a cockatiel or conure, be suitable given that it will be free in the house most of the day, every day?

 

[Lodah]

Conures love their cages and whilst a cage of that size would be suitable short term, your going to find that once you have filled his cage with toys and perches that your fid will have no room to stretch his wings anymore, possible leading to other situations like biting ect. Even though he spends a lot of his time out of the cage!

 

[d_msparkles]

I am EXTREMELY biased because I love my little Green Cheeked Conure and from a care & socialization perspective it sounds like a good fit. Maybe try an adult though so you have a better sense of personality? A Quaker might fit, too. What do you think, @Mizzely?
I cannot speak on the behavior of a bird around children, though, as we don’t have human kids. GCC’s can be nippy to bitey, and that can lead to rehomes in families with a small child.

 

[Freia]

Thanks for the advice Lodah. I set up two metal play stands around the cage, one is very large (larger than the cage). I was hoping to spread the toys and enrichment across the two cages and two play gyms/stands so a bird would have quite a lot of areas/territory that solely belong to the bird (along with toys around the house in the more communal areas of course). I was hoping the toys could be spaced out with lots of choices leaving more room, but can certainly look for a larger cage in future if this isn’t adequate. I’d never want an animal to feel trapped or squeezed for space.

Also, some of the cages which are larger also had larger gaps between the bars which I felt could be really dangerous for a young bird. As the hand-reared ringneck is around the size of a cockatiel, it seemed like it might be okay to use a cockatiel cage for a juvenile and then upgrade as the bird grows. I was hoping it would leave me with the choice of either smaller birds or a safer option for juveniles of the medium birds.

MsSparkles - thank you for suggesting a Quaker, I will have a read about them! I’ve often read about conures being nippy and really appreciate your suggestion of an older bird, as a first timer it’s tricky for me to judge how nippy a conure might be with a young child. I’ve been searching for an older bird daily, I’m surprised how few there seem to be. Hopefully that’s a good thing for the birds, though!

 

[Mizzely]

I would recommend a cockatiel with smaller children in the house. Jingo (my quaker) actually learned that if he bit my son when he started walking around with food that he would drop it so he could steal it. They are stubborn, willful birds and they would not be my first choice if I had to go back and do it again

An older bird who is used to children would be my personal choice; I won't adopt any more babies due to their changing personalities. Birds are already not the best pet with a child in the house, so a "tried and true" bird would be easiest.

A cage should be 1.5 times the wingspan of the bird wide, and at least as deep. Otherwise they can't stretch their wings which can lead to a host of issues (muscle atrophy, heart disease, etc). And once you start adding perches and toys, it leaves very little room for anything else.

Wingspan Info | Natural Inspirations Parrot cages

A ringneck has an average winspan of 19.5 inches. I try to imagine how I would like to be in a room, even for the night, that is only as wide as my armspan, and try to imagine adding a table, bed, and things to do in that space. It makes me uncomfortable thinking about it!

Keywords for cages suitable for a ringneck to cockatiel is "flight cage". They have wider dimensions with smaller bar spacing.

 

[camelotshadow]

2nd the cockatiel...Alot of bird in not such a small body...Just a go with the flow bird but they all have there personalities...I'd say a good handraised tiel...

 

[Feather]

Echoing what other's have said. Cockatiels are fantastic. Both of mine are harness trained, though they are rather flighty boys so I avoid anywhere where there might be other people lest they get scared and try to take off.

Much bigger than your current setup would permit, and of course I'm biased, but I recommend looking into pionus parrots. My boy Rowan is a hoot and I could see a bird like him being a very good fit for you. He's good around kids, trains readily and wears a harness like a champ, and isn't terribly destructive (my red-bellied on the other hand would shred the house if she could get away with it). He's got his fair share of attitude, but so long as he feels he and his space are respected it's smooth sailing.

 

[Featheredfuffs]

Cockatiels I’ve heard are great! I also have a canary wing parakeet who is pretty great, but they’re pretty shrill and nippy so you have to be careful around young kids. Mine gets scared because little kids move to fast around her and she will bite out of defense.

 

[Freia]

Thank you everyone for the replies!

Mizzely - thank you for the insight into life with a Quaker and young children! I had already been looking at various flight cages for the reasons you state. I had been considering a cockatiel and I am aware that they are ground foragers who need the space. An adult ring neck would certainly need more than 20”!! The one I met was very
little and I was enquiring as to whether this lovely baby bird might dramatically change with age. I wish I had phrased my original question a little bit differently, as really I’d like to find out which birds are the best fit for my home (personality, intelligence level, aggression, etc) and lifestyle
and then set everything up from there. I have plenty of time, space and resources I can dedicate to a new feathered family member.

Feather - thank you for your reply, it’s really promising that cockatiels can be harness trained, I would prioritise that as I’d really like to take the bird on day trips. Your Pionus sounds really fabulous! I will have a read about Pionus parrots and their space and other requirements. thank you so much for sharing!

About cockatiels:
I realise cockatiels are the most recommended birds for families, and beginners. I’ve seen lovely things written about them. Sometimes I’ve seen cockatiels recommended for reasons that worry me a little bit too though. E.g a student or person who works all day gets told to get a cockatiel (whereas I’m home all day and would actually really like a strong bond or companion, it seems strange to see a bird from the cockatoo family described as independent!), or Cockatiels are recommended as “beginner” birds (but it’s a living creature that will hopefully still be thriving for a very long time,
even after my own little one has flown the nest!). I want to make sure I choose a bird which will be treasured as member of my family (quirks, challenges and all) for very many years to come. I don’t want to make the decision just based on convenience or ease, but on the quality of the human-animal relationship, and then figure out the set up from there. to people here with cockatiels, do you feel as bonded to these little characters as you do to the birds which are more renowned for their smarts? The baby ring neck I met made me question this a little bit, as it seemed so much more alert
and curious than the cockatiels. I’d love to hear more on that. I never want to see a living creature as some sort of “starter” on the way to somewhere else or another pet. I really
want to make sure the bird I bring home will be the only one I devote my resources to for many years to come!

 

[finchly]

If you really like the ringneck and are up for the challenges, go for it. I personally do not have them because I see too many people here locally rehoming them. I did go to the local rescue to look at one 4 years ago, and Ernie (my avatar, a white cap pionus) picked me instead. He is my LOVE. However I have a different experience than Feeather. He is a grumpy one-person bird and is terrified when children come around. He starts wheezing.

Anyway about the tiels. My first bird was a cockatiel, I was about 24 and my kids were babies. Even now I have 2 females. They are awesome birds, and don’t think for a minute they’re not smart! They are very clever. Mine are extremely friendly to us, they love to hang out with us or on their play stand. My husband ‘wears’ them most of the time, although I am occasionally honored with it. We both work from home so we’re busy, but we can supervise birdville.

Are they as bonded as our others (3 larger plus 2 parrotlets)? I would say yes, maybe more so. They are trainable so you can do tricks, teach them songs, the males talk, you can harness train them andn take them around with you. Mine like to “take a bow” ...or at least Torrie did, which I would clap and cheer. So one day Spirit, the more shy one, took a bow as I was leaving their room. I was shocked but after a moment I remembered to applaud. Now every time I leave the bird room, Spirit bows and then lifts her Wingies for “big wings” which gets more applause.

 

[Lady Jane]

Please know no bird species is a "starter bird" This term is a misnomer. Each and every bird has their own individual personalities and behaviors no matter what the species. It is important to know what your expectations are and examine them carefully. People are always saying they want a cuddly bird. Birds in general are not cuddly. They are wild and retain their wildness, even if they are hand raised. Please know there are hundreds of birds in rescues or shelters because things did not work out as expected at home.
Here is some good reading: Flock Call - It's their choice

I also think a Cockatiel would be very good in a home where there are children.

 

[Mizzely]

Every cockatiel I have ever met has wanted to be my friend immediately

I honestly have tried to adopt a couple of them over the years but it has fallen through every time. went

 

[Dona]

I'll chime in with a vote for a cockatiel. We had Aja for 15 years, starting when my first child was 2. She was a lovely and sweet bird that got along great with my children. We had quality time with her after dinner every night. She came out of her cage and bonded with all of us.

 

[SandraK]

Conures love their cages and whilst a cage of that size would be suitable short term, your going to find that once you have filled his cage with toys and perches that your fid will have no room to stretch his wings anymore, possible leading to other situations like biting ect. Even though he spends a lot of his time out of the cage!

You need to post that photo of Pwally's cage.

 

[Feather]

I'm right there with you on the concern of "starter" birds. What a horrible concept when discussing animals with such a lifespan. I do feel it lands a lot of the smaller "easy" birds in homes that do not truly want them or see them for what they are. If you feel a cockatiel is not right for you, then don't get a cockatiel. I love the little fluffs myself, but they're not for everyone any more than any other bird.

It's difficult for me to compare how bonded to me my birds are since they all have another bird for companionship. Before I adopted Highrise, Skyline stuck to me like glue. He would perch on the back of my hand and preen, fly over to land as close to my face as possible to watch movies with me, wanted to be petted all the time. Wherever I was, there he was too. BUT. This has changed dramatically since adopting his boyfriend. He won't give me the time of day anymore. Which I'm okay with because he is so much happier now... Meanwhile, my other two birds who are also a bonded pair still want to be around me. So as single individuals? One could argue Rowan and Zyda would be more personable towards me than Skyline. But since I've never had them apart as adults, I really couldn't say for sure.

 

[Freia]

Thank you all so much for the replies and suggestions!

I have decided to order a nice big flight cage. Hopefully my new companion won’t be spending very much time in it (!) but it will give lots of space for flying around and all the toys inside! This should help widen my options when meeting different birds, and if I do choose a little cockatiel at least he’ll have a fabulous home! Thanks to everyone for pointing me in a good direction!

It does seem like everyone thinks cockatiels make wonderful family pets. I went back to see the ringneck again (and look at the bigger cages). This bird really captured my heart so I’m planning to meet some more IRNs and Quakers too, and get lots of information about them. I realise these birds are much more challenging than a cockatiel, so I’m going to take a little time to familiarise myself with them properly and for now enjoy setting up a big cage and lots of enrichment.

If anyone else has had Quakers or IRNs and has any thoughts about them as family pets do let me know. Particularly interested in how these birds might respond to harness training! Thanks again!

 

[Mizzely]

Any species can be harness trained. But not every bird is interested

One thing with Quakers too is that they can be fiercely cage protective. I had to build a barricade around Jingo's cage while my son learned that he can't put his fingers in there, because even I get bit simply trying to change out food and water. Away from the cage he is better, but just something to consider. I actually won't keep a quaker in a cage without food doors because of it, especially because if I ever need to go away for a night or two, it is vitally important that a caretaker is able to change food and water without being mauled.

As much as I love Jingo, knowing what I do now and living with 2 quakers over the past 7 years, I would pick a different species to share my life with. They are the most unpredictable, noisy and loud birds I have ever lived with!

Here are some threads:

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly about Quaker Parrots | Avian Avenue Parrot Forum

The good, the bad, and the ugly about Indian Ringnecks. | Avian Avenue Parrot Forum