Unique housing situation, can’t make a decision!

[Dukebird21]

Hey everyone! I joined the forum today to get advice as to which bird will be my next..
I had a cockatiel (Chi) until January 29, 2016 that was truly the love of my life. She was the cuddliest cockatiel I have ever known - we did everything together. It was heartbreaking when she passed away from cancer, and I am admittedly still mourning 2 years later.
I have thus began the search for a new bird and am so incredibly excited! As much as I adored my cockatiel, I don’t think I could emotionally endure a daily reminder of my Chi. I would feel like I’m replacing her.
My current options are a Senegal, Caique, and maybe a sun conure. I have an abundance of time and love to give, price is not a concern, and my father is a veterinarian, meaning I will have easy access to a vet for any concerns. I’m so ready. However, I will be living in Europe for a few months at the end of the year. I cannot bring the bird with me, so it will be staying with my parents. They don’t have as much time to give, and I am concerned by the presence of a cat and a dog in the house (although they were wonderful with my cockatiel and played together often). I am heavily leaning towards the caique for its playfulness (and I am aware of its hormonal fluctuations at puberty), but given a caique’s high demand for time, would it be satisfied being out of the cage for only about 2 hours/day while I am away in Europe? Which bird may be most adaptable to behaving and socializing well with other caretakers? It could easily be offered that I adopt the bird following Europe, but I am too committed to the idea now and already in contact with several breeders I trust!

 

[iamwhoiam]

Welcome to AA. Sorry about the loss of Chi. You have a void and want a new bird to fill that void and I fully understand that. You do have concerns, though, about what will happen when you are in Europe so, even though you are ready to bring another bird into your life, if I were you I would wait until after your European trip. You have no control over what will go on with the bird when you are gone.
There is no way to predict how a bird will do while you are gone. One can generalize based on stereotypical characteristics but every bird is an individual so who really knows.

I have no experience with Caiques or sun conure but I do have a Senegal. I had to leave him with my mom for about 2 weeks when I had carpeting replaced but that's a lot less than many months and I also brought his bird "brothers" and "sisters". He was very familiar and comfortable with my mom. She had no other pets.

You need to do what you feel comfortable with but "concerns" = best to wait and have fewer worries.

 

[Garet]

Have you told your breeders that you'll be away for that long? It might not be fair to the bird (or your parents, for that matter) to buy a bird now and then just leave it for months at a time, especially if it bonds to you. It sounds more like you're committed to the idea of getting one now for yourself and not because it's what best for your potential bird.

If your pet gets used to being out and about all day and suddenly can no longer have that socialization and out of cage time, it can be very detrimental to its health. There's no telling if whatever bird you pick winds up becoming stressed and depressed in this kind of situation. All animals are different, and they react in different ways, regardless of their species. What one caique might take in stride will cause another bird of the same species to self-mutilate and scream all day.

Your breeders will still be there when you get back.

 

[TikiMyn]

Welcome to the avenue. I understand how exciting it can be to welcome a new friend home, but I don’t expect any bird to be happy when they just arrive in their new home, and then their most trusted person leaves for a few months. Couldn’t you wait? Or possibly find a way to bring her with you?

 

[Crazy4parrots]

My concerns are with the bird getting out with the dog and cat outside... i'll say wait until after your trip to europe is over... meanwhile you can investigate about which specie will be better for your home.
Welcome to the avenue..
I lost a male lovebird to a dog 3 years ago... having dogs/cats with birds is a time bomb... just because they play today doesnt mean tomorrow it will be the same... i pet sitted that dog for 1 year without nothing happening and then on march 31st 2015 the dog killed him...