easiest vs hardest bird?

[Legend88]

It's also not good for our long term respiratory health to sleep in the same room as our birds

Welp I usually have my two caiques in my bedroom next to me and when I am not home I put them outside on the patio I live in Florida so the weather is usually good enough for a parrot to be outside..

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[birdy.929]

i’ve only ever had experience with one lovebird and one green cheek conure. but i will point out that my gcc is very difficult. he was hand-fed, but only recently i have felt comfortable to handle him to long periods of time, pet him, feed him from my hand, etc. i’ve had him for almost a year and there are still some things we need to work on. it’s all relative! a budgie may be difficult and an amazon may be “easy”. my suggestion is to go out and handle the species of birds you are interested in and see what fits you best. also, maybe look into pigeons and doves!

 

[Legend88]

i’ve only ever had experience with one lovebird and one green cheek conure. but i will point out that my gcc is very difficult. he was hand-fed, but only recently i have felt comfortable to handle him to long periods of time, pet him, feed him from my hand, etc. i’ve had him for almost a year and there are still some things we need to work on. it’s all relative! a budgie may be difficult and an amazon may be “easy”. my suggestion is to go out and handle the species of birds you are interested in and see what fits you best. also, maybe look into pigeons and doves!

An Amazon easier to care for then a budgie? In what universe? Lol

 

[Destiny]

An Amazon easier to care for then a budgie? In what universe? Lol

If you desire a bird that enjoys a lot of handling and you get a pet store budgie who is very timid and flighty, it could be a struggle to tame him down. He might never enjoy the level of interaction that you seek. If your next bird is a rescued Amazon who is already hand-tame and looking for a new friend, your experience could be exactly what you desire from a companion parrot.

Budgies are great little birds, but they are not the perfect fit for everyone. Every parrot is an individual and each person goes into parrot ownership with different expectations.

Easy is a relative term.

 

[Legend88]

If you desire a bird that enjoys a lot of handling and you get a pet store budgie who is very timid and flighty, it could be a struggle to tame him down. He might never enjoy the level of interaction that you seek. If your next bird is a rescued Amazon who is already hand-tame and looking for a new friend, your experience could be exactly what you desire from a companion parrot.

Budgies are great little birds, but they are not the perfect fit for everyone. Every parrot is an individual and each person goes into parrot ownership with different expectations.

Easy is a relative term.

Even so you can get a tame Amazon that's friendly and a timid budgie from a petstore , An Amazon is still harder to take care of then a budgie , their is alot more that goes into taken care of an Amazon parrot then rather or not its tame , Also budgies arent that hard to tame I have owned quite a few budgies over the years when I first got into wanting to have parrots as a pet , budgies are usually the most available birds at pet stores so long story short I have had my fair share of them when I was a new bird owner , I have since moved on to many other challenging parrots , I currently own two caiques my favorite type of parrots ever , But I say all that to say budgies were by far the easiest birds to care for..

 

[flyzipper]

What a few of us are trying to express when we say easy and hard are relative to expectations, can be illustrated in the butchered Einstein quote, "...if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree...", you'll struggle.

 

[dandruff]

What a few of us are trying to express when we say easy and hard are relative to expectations, can be illustrated in the butchered Einstein quote, "...if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree...", you'll struggle.

thats one of the many reasons i want to adopt a bird instead of buying from a pet store or breeder, so i can know what their temperament is like before deciding on a bird!

 

[Destiny]

Even so you can get a tame Amazon that's friendly and a timid budgie from a petstore , An Amazon is still harder to take care of then a budgie , their is alot more that goes into taken care of an Amazon parrot then rather or not its tame , Also budgies arent that hard to tame I have owned quite a few budgies over the years when I first got into wanting to have parrots as a pet , budgies are usually the most available birds at pet stores so long story short I have had my fair share of them when I was a new bird owner , I have since moved on to many other challenging parrots , I currently own two caiques my favorite type of parrots ever , But I say all that to say budgies were by far the easiest birds to care for..

I think you are missing my point. The OP didn't ask about care requirements for different parrots, but rather "In your opinions, how would you rank your birds from easiest/friendliest to hardest?"

This is a different question entirely, because there are many ways for a bird to be "easy" or "hard", especially when you are talking about behavior/temperment. I am a big believer in the idea that there are no beginner birds. It is better to do your research and find the bird that is the best fit for you and your situation, rather than practicing your skills on an "easy" parrot until you are ready to move up to a bigger challenge.

And I honestly think that budgies get the short end of the stick far too often in this respect. They are small, inexpensive, readily available, and tolerant of poor handling. That doesn't make them easy ... it makes them easily exploited. Budgies deserve a lot more than they get in most homes. We are just lucky they don't ask for much to be happy.

 

[Legend88]

I think you are missing my point. The OP didn't ask about care requirements for different parrots, but rather "In your opinions, how would you rank your birds from easiest/friendliest to hardest?"

This is a different question entirely, because there are many ways for a bird to be "easy" or "hard", especially when you are talking about behavior/temperment. I am a big believer in the idea that there are no beginner birds. It is better to do your research and find the bird that is the best fit for you and your situation, rather than practicing your skills on an "easy" parrot until you are ready to move up to a bigger challenge.

And I honestly think that budgies get the short end of the stick far too often in this respect. They are small, inexpensive, readily available, and tolerant of poor handling. That doesn't make them easy ... it makes them easily exploited. Budgies deserve a lot more than they get in most homes. We are just lucky they don't ask for much to be happy.

I completely agree with you in that respect, I dont believe in beginners bird myself in fact I hate that term.. No such thing, Any bird/parrot deserves the respect to be researched on and properly prepared for ..

 

[Sparkles!]

Even so you can get a tame Amazon that's friendly and a timid budgie from a petstore , An Amazon is still harder to take care of then a budgie , their is alot more that goes into taken care of an Amazon parrot then rather or not its tame , Also budgies arent that hard to tame I have owned quite a few budgies over the years when I first got into wanting to have parrots as a pet , budgies are usually the most available birds at pet stores so long story short I have had my fair share of them when I was a new bird owner , I have since moved on to many other challenging parrots , I currently own two caiques my favorite type of parrots ever , But I say all that to say budgies were by far the easiest birds to care for..

I can see what you’re saying. Consider this though; does the lowly budgie not have the same needs of the Amazon?

In much smaller quantities, but hopefully you’re still preparing fresh foods and chop daily… same as for Amazonia.

Still providing engaging foraging opportunities and enrichment activities, as well as the correct amount and type of toys… same for Amazonia although smaller in size.

Still providing supervised outside cage time and socializing… etc. The list goes on and on.

Bird care is bird care. And even with hands off birds such as finches in an aviary type situation, care should be relatively the same. Time and money are the only variables for me- I spend less money on tiny bird toys and less time making up their food.

My hardest birds ever? (@Zara @Peachfaced don’t laugh!) LOVEBIRDS. I got a call from the sheriff’s office one day saying they had 3 “parakeets” that were abandoned as part of a forced eviction and that they were delivering them to me. What I got were 3 really dirty lovebirds that smelled like marijuana with whopping case of a hatred of people. These birds were ANGRY. At the same time, I had 6 large cockatoos with hormonal aggression issues and 3 macaws that were habitually abused, as well as 3 Amazons who turned over to the veterinarian to be euthanized because they attacked their owners living in my house…and all of those birds were sweet kittens compared to these Lovebirds. Those lovebirds were the most stubborn, opinionated, bite first ask questions later birds I have ever lived with! If one could ever feel bullied by a bird, surely I was a victim once or twice.

My easiest bird? A blue crowned conure who was treated magnificently by his owner. The owner was elderly and entrusted the bird (who was also elderly) to me in his will. Both the gentleman and his conure always had perfect manners. It was a pleasure knowing them both. But the blue crown conure got the exact same amount of care that each of those knife beak wielding lovebirds did.

 

[Legend88]

thats one of the many reasons i want to adopt a bird instead of buying from a pet store or breeder, so i can know what their temperament is like before deciding on a bird!

That's really not a good way to determine a parrots behavior, a rescued parrot behavior is gonna depend on how its previous owner treated him/her..

 

[Sparkles!]

That's really not a good way to determine a parrots behavior, a rescued parrot behavior is gonna depend on how its previous owner treated him/her..

Respectfully disagree. I’ve had birds treated like absolute royalty by their humans- given up into rescue because they were just ill tempered birds the humans couldn’t handle. Not every sweet baby grows up into a beautifully tempered adult. And it’s not always due to ill treatment. Some of the most abused and human battered birds have been my sweetest. Breaks your heart when those birds are so sweet and kind and trusting when you know the horrors they’ve experienced at the hands of humans.

The great thing about adult birds is you pretty much get what you get when you meet them. Bird really messy and a screamer? You can help the bird try to learn to be quieter, but no promise you’ll succeed. But if the loudness and mess that you just met doesn’t bother you? Congrats! You just found a good match.

 

[Legend88]

Respectfully disagree. I’ve had birds treated like absolute royalty by their humans- given up into rescue because they were just ill tempered birds the humans couldn’t handle. Not every sweet baby grows up into a beautifully tempered adult. And it’s not always due to ill treatment. Some of the most abused and human battered birds have been my sweetest. Breaks your heart when those birds are so sweet and kind and trusting when you know the horrors they’ve experienced at the hands of humans.

The great thing about adult birds is you pretty much get what you get when you meet them. Bird really messy and a screamer? You can help the bird try to learn to be quieter, but no promise you’ll succeed. But if the loudness and mess that you just met doesn’t bother you? Congrats! You just found a good match.

I could already see where this is going just because I have my personal opinions on where budgies stack up in terms of care vs other parrots like Amazon's, Macaws and caiques, Everything I say after is gonna receive alot of hate even if what I say is true and makes sense anyone who disagrees with my opinions are gonna get a thumbs up from everyone.. lol but that's okay I stand by what I say , you can agree or disagree everyone is entitled to their opinions.

 

[birdy.929]

An Amazon easier to care for then a budgie? In what universe? Lol

i think you misunderstood me. i put easy in quotations for a reason. i was trying to say that each bird is an individual and each have their own issues that owners need to work through. not every species has an exact way they are supposed to act and it’s important to recognize that. budgies are marketed as “easy” birds when they might not always be. amazons are marketed as “difficult” birds when they might not always be. sorry for the confusion.

 

[Legend88]

i think you misunderstood me. i put easy in quotations for a reason. i was trying to say that each bird is an individual and each have their own issues that owners need to work through. not every species has an exact way they are supposed to act and it’s important to recognize that. budgies are marketed as “easy” birds when they might not always be. amazons are marketed as “difficult” birds when they might not always be. sorry for the confusion.

Understood..

 

[flyzipper]

thats one of the many reasons i want to adopt a bird instead of buying from a pet store or breeder, so i can know what their temperament is like before deciding on a bird!

I've done both. My green cheek conure was a young bird from a reputable bird store, and she's great. My Severe was a rehome from an older couple who complained that he chased their grandkids (not a worry to me) and he's great. My Military is from a flock of 8 other macaws that the owner mostly left to their own devices, and he took a little more work, but he too is a great bird. I agree that I had a better sense of what I was getting with the mature birds.

My experience is that the main difference between these 66g, 460g and 900g birds comes down to expense, mess and space. Otherwise, their care requirements are extremely similar. That said, each is from the same family (Psittacidae) so perhaps that's to be expected.

 

[Zara]

This question always comes around. And there´s just no answer to it.

If we could put birds ¨in a box¨ and say that X species behaves in Y way, then we could theoretically compile some sort of list. But even at that, we then have to take into consideration the human and how they fare. And I don´t mean experience, some birdy newbies do great, fantastic even with large macaws. Others have experience with pi´s or IRNs and then run into all sorts of problems while owning a lovebird.

It´s hard to rank species when each bird is so different, and our own skill and confidence is so different.

If all lovebirds were like my Sydney, I would recommend them to everyone. Such a perfect bird.... But I wonder... How would Sydney have been had he lived with someone else? Would he still be this perfect bird? Or would others not be able to train him right and rid the undesired behaviours (biting, mating etc).

If all lovebirds were like Aldora, I´d say there´s few people who would ¨enjoy¨ having them as companions. Not friendly, likes to do her own thing, very bitey, don´t mess with her. She´s a lot of hard work to live with, just cleaning her cage and sorting food is difficult. Oh, but she´s a sweetheart with my partner, like butter wouldn´t melt. She just isn´t that interested in being friendly with me, and I´m fine with that. But I know a lot of people looking for ¨pets¨ wouldn´t be happy with such relationship, or would treat her as less, which I would never do.

 

[Sparkles99]

Budgies are great! flyzipper’s right that the mess, expense & space is less. I see some pre-cleaning pics here that are way worse!

And not all rehomed birds are hard. Pistachio & Marzipan are better every day. Marzipan yells less. Pistachio’s self esteem improves regularly. I never realized how quiet budgies are ‘till I got Aurelius & Winston.

And I’ll not believe any ill of Aldora, Zara. She has too pretty a name to misbehave.

 

[Zara]

And I’ll not believe any ill of Aldora, Zara. She has too pretty a name to misbehave.

 

[Sparkles!]

If all lovebirds were like my Sydney, I would recommend them to everyone. Such a perfect bird....

If all lovies were like your Sydney, I wouldn’t get the mental images of my own blood streaming and subconsciously hear the psycho shower scene music effects in my head when I look at them! I’d definitely give Lovebirds another go for a Sydney bird.