Parrotlets the Good the Bad and the Ugly

[allison]

The attributes listed in this thread are the experiences of each individual and your experiences may differ with your individual bird.

I'm a copy cat.
Here's what you need to know about parrotlets.
The good: Parrotlets have huge personalities. They are so funny and a complete joy to have around. If they like you they can be very cuddly and hands on. They are extremely social and love to be involved in everything. If you like your birds to have a touch of spiciness/feistiness than this is a very good species for you. They are also small, but they are very active and require large cages. The are highly intelligent and males can learn to talk (if that's important to you). Even though they are a small species they have the capacity to live fairly long lives (15-20 years), though most will die long before their natural lifespan. They are one of my favorite species (obviously).

The Bad: Parrotlets are very feisty. They love to communicate by biting. They also love to use their beaks for other things, like chewing...a lot. They don't just chew toys, however. They also love to chew on your hair, finger nails, skin, clothes, etc. And did I mention the biting? They love to bite, especially when you are doing things inside their cage...or talking to their boyfriend/girlfriend. If you have a pair, they can get extremely aggressive. Not just with you, but with any other bird or pet that they think is in their area. They will attack them with no fear, even animals 100 times their size. They will go after big birds too, which, as you can imagine is not safe at all! They are best to be kept in completely separate rooms from bigger birds or better yet, be kept completely by themselves or with their mate. Once a pair is formed, they will attempt to drive any other birds away. And they may attempt to drive other birds away even if kept single. Sometimes they will even attack their mates, and are even known to kill their mates on occasion (I speculate this happens from being caged in too small of cages). They require very large cages. They need single flight cages at least and for a pair I would even say a double flight cage. They are also very prone to feather destruction. They may start plucking for what seems like no reason. I believe they are just a very sensitive species that requires a perfect combination of enrichment, exercise, social interaction, a great diet, and daily baths. Not all of them will pluck, but many of them do. This species also loves water and bathing. I leave a Lixit bath out for mine all the time and they bathe several times a day. They are also very messy birds. They love to throw their food out of their dish and fling it all over the walls. They are much messier than any other species I've had (pionus and budgies). You need to clean their cage about every other day at least. Some have said that this species is likely to turn wild if not handled regularly. I've never had this problem because the parrotlets that I've had were either wild to begin with or I handled them every day. I believe that this species really should be left flighted. They are so active I think that clipping their wings may lead them to feather destruction out of frustration. They are also amazing acrobatic fliers.

The Ugly: On top of feather destruction, parrotlets are also known for developing kidney problems. Especially in mutation birds. Some speculate that these kidney problems are caused by a diet high in pellets. The link to pelleted diets is still not well understood and they might not even be the problem at all. In any case, I would air on the side of caution and keep pellets to a minimum. Parrotlets love fresh veggies, especially sprouts, so I believe these things should make up a large portion of their diet. They are also prone to dying in accidents. This is because they are so small and have a knack for getting themselves into trouble. Their aggression also may play a factor in them being prone to accidents (i.e. attacking a dog or larger bird). Females are also prone to egg laying complications. Especially egg binding and laying too many eggs.
Also because they are so small, vet care for them can be dangerous and difficult. It is very dangerous to draw blood from them. For most disease testing, you can swab test them but these results are less accurate. If your vet accidentally takes too much blood they can die very quickly.

I'm adding another thing.

Strange: Almost every parrotlet gets mad at the sound of rustling paper or plastic bags. They will go into attack mode at the sound of it. If you have a parrotlet, try it, I have never met one that doesn't hate this sound.

Feel free to add your own. I will also be adding a few more personal experiences from owning them (or should I say them owning me) in a separate post bellow.

 

[allison]

Personal experiences:
My first parrotlet, Harper, was very happy for about the first year I had her. She was bonded with my budgie Miracle and got along just fine with my pionus Kei. These three were a pretty good flock for a long time. Then Miracle died from Gout. I thought I was doing the right thing by getting another parrotlet to be friends with Harper. I got my 2nd parrotlet Maddie. After quarantine, things seemed to be going ok for about a week or so. Then all h*ll broke loose. Harper and Maddie couldn't stand each other. Then Harper started to pluck her feathers. I immediately brought her to the vet and her thought was hormones. I, on the the other hand, believe that the plucking was brought on by bringing Maddie into the flock. I tried to rectify things by getting another budgie in hopes for them to be friends. This thankfully worked out and things went well for a little while. Maddie basically ruled the roost and things were going pretty well. Then, Maddie started laying eggs. She laid about 4 eggs in a month and a half. Nothing too concerning, but then she started to act off. I brought her to the vet who could tell their was something off in her digestive tract from the Xrays she took but couldn't tell exactly what. Since she was so small, the vet couldn't really do anything about it because surgery would have been basically a death sentence. She put her on antibiotics and hoped she would get better on her own but a few days later, she started going down hill. We made the hard decision to put her down. My vet performed a necropsy and discovered that her ovaries had twisted, apparently from her laying eggs. After Maddie died Harper became increasingly aggressive with my pionus Kei. I had to start keeping her in her cage most of the time (I used to let them all be free reign together). Due to my living arrangements I couldn't keep them anywhere but in my bird room. I thought that her being caged was fairly safe, but I was sadly mistaken. I came home one night to find her dead on the bottom of the cage with a bite to her head. I later found a bite on Kei's toe and believe that she had bitten her and Kei reacted by biting her head.

After these experiences I swore never to get another parrotlet again. Then, over a year later, I found an ad on Craigslist for baby parrotlets. I decided to get one male. I wasn't able to spend much time at the house when I picked him up so I just trusted that he was tame. I got him home and put him in his cage and it was clear that he was very wild and fearful. I gave him several days but it was clear that he was not a human bonded bird. Not only was he not tame, but also seemed extremely depressed and obsessed with his reflection. So I decided to go back and get his brother. They were very fun to watch and I attempted to work with them on being more accepting of me but it was obvious that they had no interest in me and I didn't want to force myself on them. A few months later, I lost Kei to asper. A few weeks after that, I saw an add for a special needs female parrotlet with twisted feet. This reminded me of my budgie, Miracle, who also had twisted feet. I felt very strongly connected to her and still didn't have a tame parrotlet like I had wanted to begin with. Toady tested negative for asper, so my vet and I assumed it was just a fluke and we didn't have to worry about the rest of the birds getting it. My dad agreed to letting me keep Kendalyn in my room and the other parrotlets could live downstairs. They would never have to see each other, and I wouldn't have to worry about them fighting. It seemed perfect. Kin and Keeper could be bonded, and Kendalyn could be bonded to me. Several weeks later, we discovered that Toady indeed had asper, but his test had come back a false negative. I then deduced that my walk out basement must have mold. It wasn't visible, but we had had a water leak the spring before so it made sense. After Toady died, I freaked out and moved Kin and Keeper into my room with Kendalyn. They were all only a few months old at this time so I was hoping that they would just accept each other and live happily as a flock. At first, they all got along. Things were great. Then, Kin and Keeper decided they hated Kendalyn. I was not in a good place emotionally or mentally after losing Kei and Toady so close together and really couldn't take Kendalyn getting picked on. Not only that but I was still paranoid they were all going to get asper and I knew I wouldn't be able to afford it if they all got sick. I had decided to rehome both Keeper and Kin. But then, they started getting along again. I was confused, but had regained some composure and decided not to rehome. (For a while I had thought about rehoming all three actually because I really didn't think I could go through Asper again and wasn't even sure if I wanted birds anymore). Anyways, things were going well. Kendalyn didn't like Keeper but Kin went back and forth between the two of them. Things were going ok for a while. Then Kin decided that Kendalyn was his #1 and started being aggressive towards Keeper as well. I then found out that I was going to have to move, and was surprised when my dad decided that we were moving to California (finally!). I had some concerns about Keeper because he seemed really depressed but I was hoping things would change again and he would be fine. Then, on the road trip from MN to CA he started chewing off his wing and tail feathers. When we got to California, he could no longer even glide. He just fell straight down like a rock. Not only that, but he was still obsessed with Kin even though Kin was very aggressive towards him. I had to start having separate times out of the cage but Kendalyn and Kin would always harass Keeper through the bars of his cage. Keeper just seemed so depressed and his feather destruction continued to get worse. I moved him into my bathroom (we have a small 2 bedroom apartment and my dad is allergic to birds so places to move him were very limited). He seemed to do ok for a while, especially because he loved his reflection but it was obvious that he wasn't happy. I considered getting a fourth bird but at this time I was unemployed and had no idea when or if I would be getting a job. I knew that his feather destruction and depression would only get worse so I decided to rehome him to a person with a large aviary with budgies and cockatiels. He was not a super aggressive bird so I'm hoping he is doing well there. I attempted to email the person but they have not responded. I'm still concerned about him and still regret rehoming him sometimes but at the time I thought it was what was best for him. I now know that I can not get any other birds unless I can keep them in a completely separate space from Kin and Kendalyn. They are just way too territorial.

So that was my experiences with parrotlets. Mostly the bad parts, but there were plenty of good parts as well, perhaps I'll have to share the good parts some other time.

 

[Yoshi&Reza]

Let me start by saying I love Yoshi so much!

GOOD: Full of personality, he loves attention 98% of the time, enjoys showers, loves tasting everyone's food(even his own healthy food), adores toys. He is my shadow if his cage door is open. I ALWAYS feel his devotion to me. It just makes me smile when I think about it. Yoshi is perfect just the way he is. Oh, and he recently started talking. An adorable bonus! Personally, I think the handing upside down from the swing is cuter though!

BAD: I remember when I brought Yoshi home, I asked the breeder why was he nibbling so much. She said to put him in birdy time out. Well, I had this feeling it wasn't going to work. If I am not using my free hand to give him attention, then I get nibbled. If he is scared of something, there comes the beak. If he doesn't want to be touched that 2% of the time, the beak. Basically, if Yoshi wants something or doesn't want/like something he will let me know with his beak. He hasn't drawn blood, but once you learn their needs it becomes easy to deal with and avoidable for the most part. My hair, clothes, nails, toes, remote, and cell phone aren't safe while he is around! And parrotlets aren't quiet. Yoshi gets loud sometimes like if the doorbell rings, or if he hears running water. It's a loud, repetitive call. And while eating, he is very messy. Every bite he takes he shakes his head and flings it around.

UGLY: This is the one and only. Although, it puts a smile on my face and I think it's cute my husband hates it. The past couple months, Yoshi has been very protective of me. Once he hears the garage door open he will start his fit. He goes back and forth through his cage puffing up his wings and chirping nonstop. Once my husband opens the door, Yoshi is mad! All I think when I hear Yoshi throw his tantrum, is let me at him! Let me at him! Now if he is out of the cage, then he is on his way to my husband to kick him out of the house! I swear, he thinks he is the toughest one around. This will go on for 5 minutes or so but will start back up if my husband and I hug or are too close together.


My first bird, a cockatiel, the bond was instant between us. And while Yoshi was very hand tame, that bond wasn't really there until a few months of him being home. Yoshi really opened up to me once he realized that I understood his wants and needs. He trained me well....

And yes, any crinkling bag makes him put on a show. He waddles around with his head down, wings up, chirping non stop, and fanning his tail feathers.

Also, just like a puppy will chase your toes or any movement coming from under a blanket, Yoshi will do this too. He started it about a month ago. If he sees any movement he waddles as fast as he can to nibble it!

 

[CrazyBirdLady]

I have limited experience having only had Sprite for 3 months and she is a baby, but here is my observation:

The good: She is the sweetest little thing! She loves to be on me and she loves getting scritches. When I give her scritches she makes an adorable little grumbly noise. She is very good at flying. She is very playful and into everything. She is beautiful and super cute.

The bad: The beak! I have gotten more painful bites from this tiny parrotlet than any of my other birds. She is not aggressive at all, but she uses her beak a lot. I don't think she even means to bite me sometimes but she has gotten my lip and chin before and it hurts! She has never broken skin or drawn blood, though. When she steps up, she uses her beak. If she doesn't want to step up, she uses her beak. It is sometimes hard to tell the difference until she bites a little harder lol!

And yes, she is loud! I was surprised by how loud she is when I first got her. It doesn't bother me at all, and isn't constant, but it did surprise me.

Oh, and I don't have as much luck with her eating fresh things as others seem to have. She is pretty picky.

The ugly: I don't have any yet, but again, I haven't had her long and she is young.

And now I am going to have to try the crinkling bag experiment!

 

[CrazyBirdLady]

Oh, one more thing, she is territorial when it comes to her cage.

 

[HelenVanessaDavies]

I've had Pepe for about 2 years+ now, I rescued him.
I love him to pieces and don't know what I'd be like without him! He is a hands off bird (I have no idea what he went through before I got him but his fear of hands has never gone away even with alot of training)

Good: He's hilarious to watch, talks very sweetly to us and has funny little patterns like he'll always sit with his favourite bell on his head.

Bad: Quite cage territorial, and has a vendetta against a couple of the budgies and likes to terrorise my RB2. He thinks he's alot bigger than he is which I worry about. And I wish I could hold him but that's an individual thing...he still loves our company and loves to come out.

I have nothing ugly to add...to be honest my bad isn't even that bad

Pepe's such a cool dude

 

[allison]

Ok, I did say that I would add my good personal experiences so here they go.
Harper: Harper was an amazing flyer before she started plucking. She was also very smart. I used to hang paper cups balled up with food in them off of some rope and she would climb down the rope to eat the food. She was also very calm for a parrotlet before Maddie came. She used to love Kei. She followed her everywhere. They were never buddies but sometimes I would come in the bird room to see them sitting a few inches apart. She was also very sweet with Miracle. She would take really good care of her when she was sick with gout and snuggle next to her at night. And of course she loved her budgie boyfriend Beau after Miracle passed away. I think some parrotlets almost get along better with a calmer species as long as they have plenty of space to fly around so they don't get frustrated.

Maddie: Maddie was the sweetest parrotlet to me. She was very aggressive with Harper though. She kept her distance from Kei but also coexisted pretty well with Beau. She might have even liked him a little bit. She absolutely loved me. She was pretty much a velcro bird. She was on me all the time. The only issue was that she loved to shred shirts. She shredded so many of my shirts. If I had been smart I probably would have just had a few bird shirts that I changed into before playing with her. She loved snuggling with me and going inside my shirt. She was super nesty though, which led to her untimely death at only 3 years old.

Kin: Kin loves to show off. He sings a lot and loves to flirt with Kendalyn which I find adorable. He'll also give me kisses and loves to climb under my blankets when I'm laying in bed. He'll even crawl into my shirt from time to time. He used to be "wild" and he still doesn't like hands very much but he's come a long way.

Kendalyn: Kendalyn is a lot like Maddie. She is very attached to me and will fly to me whenever I go into my room. She also loves to snuggle with me in bed in the mornings. She will allow me to give her scritches from time to time but that's mostly Kin's job now-a-days. She is nesty but so far not overly hormonal. She laid 3 eggs last spring at less than a year old. But she has not laid any more for almost a year now and I don't even see Kin and her mate very often. Spring is coming though so I might have to start worrying soon. She also loves fruits and veggies and taught Kin to love them too. She is extremely funny, she likes to find odd things to perch on, such as my glasses. And likes to hang upside down sometimes. Her feet which were born twisted have gotten much stronger which I attribute to flying and landing. They are out all day long in my bedroom and fly back and forth to 2 different trees.

 

[Greycloud]

I would like to comment on Parrotlets because i use to breed them. First, they are referred to as "The Amazons or big birds in a little birds body" One thing I found is that you must work with them often to keep them tame. I also know that some do not like birds being referred to as beginner birds and such. In my experience I feel the Parrotlets are best owned by people who have experience with parrots JMHO.

 

[allison]

I couldn't agree more Judy. These birds are not for everyone. They do share a lot of the same characteristics as some of the hot 3 zons. For example, dive-bombing and/or attacking people or other birds they don't like. And hormonal biting. I also think they are even more sensitive than amazons. They definitely pluck much more frequently. Most of them are not easy birds to say the least. There are some that seem to stay pretty level-tempered and sweet but I would say they are the exception.

Also, I've heard many people say that females are more aggressive than males for this species. I can say judging by Kin's personality that he is the same as Kendalyn with his aggression. Kendalyn is more nippy with my hands but she is also not afraid of hands like Kin is.

 

[Love My Zons]

I have nothing bad to really say except ditto to alot of the above with biting and cage territorial. I have a normal green male pacific and he is just the cutest thing. Yes, they will attack your hands or fingers at times but once out of the cage, they love nothing more than to hang and chill (well mine does)

I cannot say anything bad because all birds bite, they are very easy like the larger Zons to self entertain.

I am also going to add that my little green bean will be with me 14 yrs in August so he definitely has a great bond with us.



As for the ugly: very small bird that often succumbs to household accidents, and a bird that is often time victim to fatty liver disease due t poor seed only diets. Say NO to sunflower seeds and you will have a healthy long lived companion.

 

[Tay05]

They are also very dusty! And maybe it's just mine but they shovel food with their little heads and it goes EVERYWHERE! Agreed they are very time consuming and tricky to keep hand tamed and a lot of them are skittish even being handled daily. Definitely nippy little buggers too. But they are hilarious to watch play and wrestle with each other and their toys. And even when they get mad and fluff up it's just so darn cute and you have to laugh at them!

 

[Peekaboo.Bird]

Peekaboo isn't dusty, but he is messy! If he doesn't get what he wants he'll chew his cuttlebone into powder. Peekaboo's also not hard to keep tame. Actually, he thinks I'm hard to tame. Slowly he's making progress, though...

 

[Tay05]

Peekaboo isn't dusty, but he is messy! If he doesn't get what he wants he'll chew his cuttlebone into powder. Peekaboo's also not hard to keep tame. Actually, he thinks I'm hard to tame. Slowly he's making progress, though...

How old is peekaboo? In my experience the first few years are easy but as they get a little older that's when it becomes tricky!

 

[Peekaboo.Bird]

How old is peekaboo? In my experience the first few years are easy but as they get a little older that's when it becomes tricky!

Peekaboo just turned two in November.

 

[luckyduckies]

Pip is 9 and he is a total love.He came to us battered and in pain yet was a cuddlebug.
Good-- Although they bite they don't take my finger off!His quirks like throwing water to get attention.
All the great parts of owning a parrot without the screeching and large poops.

Bad--You can't keep them in flocks so multiple cages are needed.Messy eaters.

 

[Bokkapooh]

My plets aren't dusty. They just molt a lot and have a lot of down feathers and chew their pellets to dust in a short time and throw food everywhere. Them and the tiels are my messiest birds for their sizes!

 

[sodakat]

Why can't you keep them in flocks? Don't most wild birds of all species live in flocks?

 

[Tay05]

Why can't you keep them in flocks? Don't most wild birds of all species live in flocks?

Pacific parrotlets at least are too aggressive. They've been known to even kill their cage mate. Add in some more extra territorial little boogers and you've got a big problem.

 

[sodakat]

Pacific parrotlets at least are too aggressive. They've been known to even kill their cage mate. Add in some more extra territorial little boogers and you've got a big problem.

Oh, you meant you can't keep a flock in one cage. I can understand that. They must be very territorial. I suppose a flock could live in a large aviary, right?

 

[Love My Zons]

A Parrotlet can live a happy life with a sole Parrotlet. Mine had been this way until the Amazons got here. He was a single bird by himself from 99 to 2008. He has no ill effects of being a sole bird, still happy and content to this very day.