Monthly costs for a new Parrotlet

[Dreaming]

I decided to poke around in the various ads near me for parrotlets and have sent tentative e-mails out to these sellers:

Sweet Parrotlets for Sale! Hand-fed Babies! Lifetime Health Guarantee! | Malibu | eBay Classifieds (Kijiji) | 5218597

Sweet, Hand-Fed Blue Pied Pacific Parrotlet Babies | Malibu | eBay Classifieds (Kijiji) | 4938808

Sweet Handfed Baby Blue Pacific Parrotlets for Sale | Malibu | eBay Classifieds (Kijiji) | 3968101

Adorable Handfed Pied Parrotlets | Los Angeles | eBay Classifieds (Kijiji) | 8371726

Hand fed Parrotlets | Garden Grove | eBay Classifieds (Kijiji) | 8582557 *****

That last one is just adorable...I find I'm leaning towards a pied blue male. I've left $150 of wiggleroom for the bird itself in my budget--any warning signs or people you guys have used and found didn't treat the birds right I should know about?

 

[Aisell]

Here's a FANTASTIC cage for a p'let: HQ Flight Bird Cage - Presented by BirdsComfort.com

I'm pretty sure somebody recently on the forum got one of these Marvelous cages as well in the large size: Marvelous Gable Large Cage - Presented by BirdsComfort.com

The information I have is that Marvelous Brand and HQ brand are made in the same factory so the cage quality is similar - HIGH

 

[lotus15]

The information I have is that Marvelous Brand and HQ brand are made in the same factory so the cage quality is similar - HIGH

Really?? Where did you learn this? I know that HQ, A&E, and King's are all in the same factory, which makes sense because they are all very similar for the most part, but I have not heard that about Marvelous.

 

[Aisell]

Really?? Where did you learn this? I know that HQ, A&E, and King's are all in the same factory, which makes sense because they are all very similar for the most part, but I have not heard that about Marvelous.

The information I know is that Marvelous Line cage owner is HQ Bird cage owner soon. And this line - Marvelouse is made in the same factory but for HQ owner soon. Just new cage line.

A&E and Kings are made in different factory - not HQ.

 

[teagal]

I would say a lot less. I got started spending about 150.00! That includes cage, play gym, toys, perches and seed.
My little guy is priceless and his cost is not in that total.

 

[Trice]

Hello Taylor,

Welcome! I have Baby, Missy, Mimi, and Sky. They are all Parrotlets. I also have a baby bunny Buggs , Angel (my precious little conure), and hishe (Gecko).

The start up cost can depand on how much you are willing to invest. They are priceless. I love my parrotlets so much.

For me: Baby has a kings cage Flight cage $ 250.00 aprox. kingscages.com,

Economy Line Flight Cage ELF 3221
Avian Veterinarian Recommended Flight Cage
32 inches wide, 21 inches deep
5 ft 1 inch high, Inside Height 34 inches
1/2 inch bar spacing, 2.5 mm bar thickness
Cage weighs 80 Lbs.


Food: She gets small fruit and veggie by Higgins.

Hope that helps some.

What color parrotlet are you thinking about getting?

 

[Sky]

You could buy your cage on craigslist. I found a almost brand new HQ single on craigslist for $80. Theres always great cheap cages in my area, except I can't find the HQ Double on CL

Of course, you'll have to clean it really well then in case of disease if you buy a used cage. But better to spend some time cleaning it than spend a lot more money.

 

[lotus15]

The information I know is that Marvelous Line cage owner is HQ Bird cage owner soon. And this line - Marvelouse is made in the same factory but for HQ owner soon. Just new cage line.

A&E and Kings are made in different factory - not HQ.

I would be really interested to know where you learned this... I have not read this but have read in several places that HQ, A&E, and King's are all made in the same factories (in fact, from some of their own representatives themselves). This seems true to me given their very, very similar designs as well as their common lack of clear instructions. Marvelous, on the other hand, has very different designs, different textures of paint, and excellent and clear instructions from what I have heard. But if they are just another branch of HQ I would really like to know where you found this out?

 

[Trice]

Hello Taylor,

Watch Out Lead Poisoning! How much lead is too much lead in bird cage paint?

Kings cages are lead free/ toxic free for birds. All of mine have been tested.
There is a significant difference between A & E, Kings , and HQ. The quality is different, type of paint and materials used in manufacturing the cages, and other things. It is so easy to copy a design of someone else or make it very similar in nature. I selected kings cages for my little ones because they are free of toxics that can harm birds.

I’ve got a number of friends of mine who have had their A & E cages tested for lead in the paint. The results showed highly toxic levels on all of the cages.


Now, there are some less expensive cages out there such as this :

A friend has : 13221 HQ Flight Bird Cage Price: $ 119.00 plus shipping

HQ Flight Bird Cage - Presented by BirdsComfort.com

(Note: Other sites sell the same cages. Not sure about the price or shipping cost).

I believe some other people on this forum have this cage and are very happy with it.


I would like to share some links with everyone here: Happy Birdy - Lead In Bird Cage Paint - Lead Poisoning

www . happy birdy . com / ( http:// www .happybirdy.com / )

Is Your Cage Safe and Non-Toxic?

Any amount of lead is too much. That amount is not open for debate. Lead is a heavy metal and if ingested can and often times will kill a bird. If the ingested lead does not kill the bird - it will cause serious health problems, including neurological damage and a shortened life.

The maximum level allowed at which the US federal government has set in 1977 for ALL objects inside the home is 600 parts per million or 0.06 percent total paint content. The US government also set the max level for Hazardous Material (HAZ-MAT) at 5,000 ppm. Remember - these are maximum levels for items in the home for "human" contact.

Here are some more links...

Lead Home | Lead in Paint, Dust, and Soil | US EPA

Lead: Title X | Lead in Paint, Dust, and Soil | US EPA

http://www.nsc.org/library/facts/lead.htm

And here are recent news stories about Lead Paint Found In Bird Cages...

Target 7 - Pet Products May Contain High Lead Levels - Albuquerque News Story - KOAT Albuquerque

Itchmo: News For Dogs & Cats » Blog Archive » Lab Finds High Lead Levels In Pet Products


A bird is NOT a human. A bird's system cannot tolerate ANY lead. So - standards within the avian community are set by the consumer as - ZERO toxins in cage paint.

Importers, distributors, and retailers advertise ALL of their bird cages to be "Toxicin Free". The manufactures of bird cages, parrot cages, monkey cages and other pet cages advertise that their baked on powder coated paint is non-toxic paint.


BUT --- Some of the recent lab results for lead in cage paint that I have been involved with are:

500ppm
920ppm
1,400ppm
3,200ppm
3,700ppm
6,600ppm
9,600ppm
14,700ppm
19,300ppm

ALL but one of these results exceeds the 600ppm Federal level, and the one is close to the 600ppm level.

Other cages that were tested housed Tiels and other small birds came back with trace amounts of lead but high in Zinc.

In other words folks ------ there was not one bird cage made in China that was tested that the results were TOXICIN FREE.

Unfortunately - what I have found with most bird owners is apathy. It seems like most folks do not consider this a problem. Very few of the hundreds of bird owners that I have contacted have sent samples off to the lab for testing.

Oh by the way ----- Home Lead Test Kits - don't work. Bottom line - they are a sham and a scam. If you want details on this - click here and here.

Many Home Lead Test Kit companies will advertise something like this...

Lead Paint in Bird Cages or Lead Tests For Bird Cages

Test your Bird Cages for Lead using our Lead Test Kit

Don't believe them - Home Lead Test Kits do not work!!! “ ( Happy Birdy - Lead In Bird Cage Paint - Lead Poisoning)


Question for everyone :


What does everyone think about lead in the paint of cages?


Have you had your cages tested by chance?

 

[Holiday]

I...have read in several places that HQ, A&E, and King's are all made in the same factories (in fact, from some of their own representatives themselves). This seems true to me given their very, very similar designs as well as their common lack of clear instructions. Marvelous, on the other hand, has very different designs, different textures of paint, and excellent and clear instructions from what I have heard. But if they are just another branch of HQ I would really like to know where you found this out?

Sounds right to me. I have an HQ and a King's 32x21 flight cage. They are absolutely identical except for the door closures.

I have not had the paint tested, of course, but the paint would have to be the only thing that's different. Everything else is the same.

 

[Bird_lover]

Once you purchase the cage, one play gym, and lots of various perches, swings, and toys, I think you can get by for about $35 to $40 a month for two p'lets. If you have a good stash of toys already, I don't think you need to spend more than about $15 a month for more toys - that's two inexpensive shredder toys for my guys. The plet's just aren't that destructive.

Of course, I love buying things for them, and am on the hunt for a new parrotlet appropriate play gym to add to the one we already have.

 

[Dana Lee]

My father has two parrotlets he rescued off of craigslist. Monthly upkeep (food/toys) I'd agree it's about $30-40 a month. Also, like someone else said vet bills can be high, one of his p'lets had a problem with her feathers & it was about $300 to take her to the avian vet (that included the blood work, poop test, etc). It's always good to have money stashed away for any unexpected vet visits.

 

[Evelyn]

The information I have is that Marvelous Brand and HQ brand are made in the same factory so the cage quality is similar - HIGH

My Zack has that cage, I love it so does he.