technerd3000
Moving in
- Joined
- 7/2/18
- Messages
- 5
I've got a bit of a wild story, and I'm looking for advice from some lovebird experts...
I live in Phoenix, AZ, and for those of you who do not know, we actually have a thriving population of African lovebirds (the populations started from birds that escaped from pet stores). They only survive in the urban areas, because they rely on non-native vegetation (landscaping plants) for their diets. Lucky for me, about a dozen of them are happy to call my front yard home, where they live in the abandoned woodpecker holes in my 30-foot tall saguaro cactus (like you see in the old western movies).
Occasionally, I'll find a youngster on the ground who tried to fly the nest a bit early and can't make it back to the top of the cactus. I usually put these guys under my front porch, the rest of the flock will come visit for a day or two, then they take off on their own. However, two days ago I found a very confused youngster, who I estimate to be about 3 1/2 weeks old based on the photos I've seen. I found a shaded spot for him/her on a pillar on my porch, the flock has been visiting, and they appear to be taking care of him/her for the past two days.
That said, I've also been considering getting a lovebird as a pet, and I would love love love to bring this guy in the house! I recognize that it would need formula every 4-hours for the next few weeks, I'd have to keep an eye on brooder temperature, and those sorts of things. I've raised day-old chickens, and while they don't require hand-feeding, they do have some unique temperature requirements. I've also kept exotic pets of some sort for the past 30 years. My point being - I'm not totally naive about the suggested undertaking.
What I DON'T want to do is lessen this guy's chances of survival. So, what I'm asking for opinions on here, is do you think this cutie has better odds on his own the next couple weeks, in a shady corner on my porch (with stray cats in the neighborhood), where the current weather is ~85 degrees overnight and high temps over 110 degrees, or would he/she have better odds safe in my home where I can control the temperature, but I will need to hand feed for a while? I don't know which environment would give the little guy the best survival odds.
He seems spunky enough after 2-days on the porch, and I've seen the other birds visit, so I'm sure it's getting fed. My main concerns outdoors are about physical security, temperature, and the possibility that the other birds could stop visiting.
Any advice from someone experienced with lovebirds would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance!!!
I live in Phoenix, AZ, and for those of you who do not know, we actually have a thriving population of African lovebirds (the populations started from birds that escaped from pet stores). They only survive in the urban areas, because they rely on non-native vegetation (landscaping plants) for their diets. Lucky for me, about a dozen of them are happy to call my front yard home, where they live in the abandoned woodpecker holes in my 30-foot tall saguaro cactus (like you see in the old western movies).
Occasionally, I'll find a youngster on the ground who tried to fly the nest a bit early and can't make it back to the top of the cactus. I usually put these guys under my front porch, the rest of the flock will come visit for a day or two, then they take off on their own. However, two days ago I found a very confused youngster, who I estimate to be about 3 1/2 weeks old based on the photos I've seen. I found a shaded spot for him/her on a pillar on my porch, the flock has been visiting, and they appear to be taking care of him/her for the past two days.
That said, I've also been considering getting a lovebird as a pet, and I would love love love to bring this guy in the house! I recognize that it would need formula every 4-hours for the next few weeks, I'd have to keep an eye on brooder temperature, and those sorts of things. I've raised day-old chickens, and while they don't require hand-feeding, they do have some unique temperature requirements. I've also kept exotic pets of some sort for the past 30 years. My point being - I'm not totally naive about the suggested undertaking.
What I DON'T want to do is lessen this guy's chances of survival. So, what I'm asking for opinions on here, is do you think this cutie has better odds on his own the next couple weeks, in a shady corner on my porch (with stray cats in the neighborhood), where the current weather is ~85 degrees overnight and high temps over 110 degrees, or would he/she have better odds safe in my home where I can control the temperature, but I will need to hand feed for a while? I don't know which environment would give the little guy the best survival odds.
He seems spunky enough after 2-days on the porch, and I've seen the other birds visit, so I'm sure it's getting fed. My main concerns outdoors are about physical security, temperature, and the possibility that the other birds could stop visiting.
Any advice from someone experienced with lovebirds would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance!!!