New to the forum and need advice

[scoobie57]

Hello,
Well, this is my 2nd post. And we are so glad to have found this forum.

We are finally retired and have time to do what we want. We have 2 budgies that are not social and they are 5 years old. We realize as they are older to just let them enjoy their huge cage and take great care of them. They don't want to come out BUT are very happy, they sing, play, eat, sleep & have a great life. We recently saw a cockatiel, and it was a hand-fed baby we love how nice it seemed. Then we saw this little lovebird, a yellow peach faced baby. It too was friendly, nice and hand-fed. We would, of course, have a separate cage for whatever we get.

We are so undecided I wonder which makes a better pet?


What we would like is a bird that is friendly, easy-going and likes attention and also not inherently a biting bird. We will only accept a hand-fed baby this way it can get used to us and hopefully not become mean. We will have a few hours most every day for the bird to be with us and out of the cage. There will be days though that we won't be able to spend "hours" with it, but daily it will have interaction, clean water, food and be very well cared for.

The thing we want is a bird that is not so LOUD like a sun conure and also not aggressive and not so clingy that IF we have to leave for a day that we won’t worry about the bird. We are home most days a lot so most of the time the bird will have time with us.


We know it is a bird, it will be loud sometimes, cranky sometimes and not always "fun" and won’t do everything we want! We just want a nice friendly bird to give attention to and not have to worry if we need to go away for a few hours. The new bird will have a nice cage & all the things it needs. Lastly, we worry if we did get bit that it could really hurt! their beaks look STRONG. I sure would hate to have a love bird on my shoulder and all the sudden he gets mad and bites my ear and then I need stitches. Can they bite that hard?? the biting issue is one reason we want a just weaned baby so it will think we are its flock and will have a lesser chance to get bitten.

Again, we know it is a bird, we may get bit, and it may be loud (sometimes) we also know the joy they can bring

We are debating, do we get a love bird? or a cockatiel? any advice would be appreciated.

 

[DoubleTake]

So both a lovebird and a cockatiel do not have the volume of a sun conure but both birds cam and will be noisy. A cockatiel will talk/whistle(male usually) and chirp daily. A peach faced lovebird can be chatty and will definitely talk to any birds on the tv. I went to a breeders place who bred green cheeks, skinnies and lovebirds... the lovebird section was definitely the most chatty.

As far as "man handling" a bird, I would say a lovebird can handle that more than a cockatiel. I find cockatiels to be loving and wanting pets but a little more independent when it comes to cuddling. Biting, lovebirds are stubborn and pron to biting when hormonal, they have a bigger beak than a cockatiel. I've seen nippy cocktiels but they dont hurt that much, at least to me lol.

Personality I feel like a cockatiel is more easy going than a lovebird.

A little comparison to volume for a lovebird...
Here is my sun conure.

Here is my peach faced lovebird


I have lots of posts with my lovebird you can search for them if you want. I recently posted a few old ones here of her being mean and sweet.

Need help. Is a Peach face for me and my family?

Hello. I’m new to this site. I’m very excited to be here. I hope I’m posting in the right category. I apologize if it’s not... This will be lengthy. But I want the most honest responses and the only way to achieve that is by being as transparent as possible. The time has come to add two birds...

forums.avianavenue.com

 

[DoubleTake]

I sure would hate to have a love bird on my shoulder and all the sudden he gets mad and bites my ear and then I need stitches. Can they bite that hard?? the biting issue is one reason we want a just weaned baby so it will think we are its flock and will have a lesser chance to get bitten.

Honestly a handfed weaned baby can be more tame but you may get an angry little land shark when he/she reaches sexual maturity. It will depend on your bird experience and how it was raised, trust and bond. Female lovies can bite hard but I have never encounter anyone needing stitches. The bad part about their bites is when they bite, some will latch on and not let go and some of them will even grind their beak as they are latching on. They can make you bleed. As for your shoulder concern... I never ever let a bird on my shoulder unless I have full trust in them. They need to be able to step off or be removed without any resistance. A bird you do no not trust on your shoulder cannon read your body language nor can you read theirs so if you get bit, it's kind of your fault.

 

[Bryan Black]

Have you ever heard of a parrotlet? They are one of the quietest birds and if raised right from a good breeder can be very loving too from the start. They do have a feistiness about them but my Pip is just wonderful. Pip was a little wild and nippy when I got him but we learned mutual respect and the bond grew after that. He will still let me know then he is upset with something with a nip but I think most birds will and he never bites hard just enough to let me know he is upset.

 

[scoobie57]

Honestly a handfed weaned baby can be more tame but you may get an angry little land shark when he/she reaches sexual maturity. It will depend on your bird experience and how it was raised, trust and bond. Female lovies can bite hard but I have never encounter anyone needing stitches. The bad part about their bites is when they bite, some will latch on and not let go and some of them will even grind their beak as they are latching on. They can make you bleed. As for your shoulder concern... I never ever let a bird on my shoulder unless I have full trust in them. They need to be able to step off or be removed without any resistance. A bird you do no not trust on your shoulder cannon read your body language nor can you read theirs so if you get bit, it's kind of your fault.

Thank You for the insightful info!! I am leaning towards a cockatiel. But when I get to see the love bird I change my mind. But I think having a sweet well-dispositioned bird will be a bit easier with a cockatiel? I was impressed how the love bird was so attached to the breeder that I was going to get it from. You can see that bird really knows who she is compared to me.

 

[scoobie57]

Have you ever heard of a parrotlet? They are one of the quietest birds and if raised right from a good breeder can be very loving too from the start. They do have a feistiness about them but my Pip is just wonderful. Pip was a little wild and nippy when I got him but we learned mutual respect and the bond grew after that. He will still let me know then he is upset with something with a nip but I think most birds will and he never bites hard just enough to let me know he is upset.

Yes, we considered a Parrotlet but we can't seem to find one that likes being out and they don't seem as cuddly. The cockatiel so far seems the one to get BUT we are aware of the dust they have so that's a concern so then its back to thinking maybe a love bird. Tough choice!! I think what will happen when the time is right either a love bird or cockatiel is it will choose us and we will "know" that this is the one. It may take time but we are not in a hurry.

 

[scoobie57]

Also, I forgot to mention we like the size of the love bird better. The cockatiel isn't too big but we don't want a bird any bigger. We want a sweet loving easy-going baby that will grow up knowing who we are and be great with us for all its or our lives. I REALLY wish our budgies were not so independent, long story there, BUT they're older now and I am not going to stress them out. They get great care but we have very limited interaction with them because that is the way they want it.

 

[Leih]

My lovebird chatters all day long. I don't find her terribly loud, just constant chatter. I also have a black capped conure and two linnies. My linnies are nearly silent by comparison, but are hand shy, which is very common for the species. My conure is definitely louder than my lovebird. He doesn't chatter but he will make this loud barking noise. There is nothing sweet about the noises he makes but they're still adorable. He's the most "cuddly" of my birds, but conures do go through a biting stage.

Something to consider : do your budgies come out of their cage and fly? Lovebirds tend to be bullies and don't get along that well with other birds. However, if you got a very young lovebird that may be overcome. Loki seems to be the exception to that rule!

No matter what you choose I think the most important thing is how you raise them. Since you are retired you'll have lots of time to spend with him or her and that should make for a an excellent relationship.

 

[scoobie57]

My lovebird chatters all day long. I don't find her terribly loud, just constant chatter. I also have a black capped conure and two linnies. My linnies are nearly silent by comparison, but are hand shy, which is very common for the species. My conure is definitely louder than my lovebird. He doesn't chatter but he will make this loud barking noise. There is nothing sweet about the noises he makes but they're still adorable. He's the most "cuddly" of my birds, but conures do go through a biting stage.

Something to consider : do your budgies come out of their cage and fly? Lovebirds tend to be bullies and don't get along that well with other birds. However, if you got a very young lovebird that may be overcome. Loki seems to be the exception to that rule!

No matter what you choose I think the most important thing is how you raise them. Since you are retired you'll have lots of time to spend with him or her and that should make for a an excellent relationship.

Something to consider : do your budgies come out of their cage and fly? <<< nope they hate coming out even if I left the door open they would not come out. They have a huge cage I can almost fit in it lol... so there happy and hate it when I need to clean the cage and take them out.

 

[scoobie57]

My budgies chatter a lot too I like it!! they are tiny chips and singing especially evening time.

 

[JaclynBin]

Lovebirds are great but I find they are much more prone to hormonal behaviour than my old budgie or parrotlet have ever been (although gender should be taken into account). My hen in particular has a « bite and grind » technique that I’m still wary of, though it’s probably been a year or two since it’s been employed on myself. That being said, I find them to be really quite expressive for the most part, compared to the parrotlet at least, so it becomes easier to know when to back off. I doubt you’d ever need stitches from one, but definitely don’t put yourself in a situation where you’re likely to get bitten with a bird you don’t fully trust.

My lovebirds have nice endearing chatters but they also make a lot of obnoxiously shrill calls throughout the day if they can hear me moseying about the house. If being able to hear your bird from even outside the house is set to cause you any grief, maybe avoid these guys. That being said, my parrotlet is way louder than either of my lovebirds so I’m sure individuality will play a huge factor in this and all aspects of your choice.

Good luck finding a new little companion

 

[DoubleTake]

Yes, we considered a Parrotlet but we can't seem to find one that likes being out and they don't seem as cuddly. The cockatiel so far seems the one to get BUT we are aware of the dust they have so that's a concern so then its back to thinking maybe a love bird. Tough choice!! I think what will happen when the time is right either a love bird or cockatiel is it will choose us and we will "know" that this is the one. It may take time but we are not in a hurry.

When my friend brings over her cocktiel. Everytime she flaps her wing my air purifier goes into over drive.

 

[scoobie57]

How big of a cage do you keep for your love bird? care to show some of your cage setups ?

 

[DoubleTake]

Mine is roughly 30x18x39 without stand.

 

[Leih]

Mine is roughly 30x18x39 without stand.
View attachment 326533

I'm actually considering that exact cage.

 

[scoobie57]

I'm actually considering that exact cage.

OHHH WOW.......... That is the Exact cage I have 100% and my budgies occupy it

 

[scoobie57]

Mine is roughly 30x18x39 without stand.


Does your love bird use the blue bed I see in there??
View attachment 326533

 

[DoubleTake]

The blue thing on the side of the cage? It's in a new spot now. She leans against and sometime puts her head in it for naps during the day

 

[DoubleTake]

I specifically looked for a cage with a metal tray. I prefer those to the plastic most ones come with.