parrot question. help needed.?

Question

Seriously considering buying a parrot, was looking on the net for info, I would like some info or just the best websites.I am not a complete amateur, I have had canaries and other small finches when I was a kid and would like a bird a little bit more intelligent than those, should I buy a budgie or cockatiel to start ?????

Answer 1

I think a cockatiel is the ideal bird for you. They have the mentality of a two-year old and can learn to talk and whistle. They are affectionate and will live longer than parakeets. (15-20 years if well kept) Your cockatiel should be bought from a breeder in the area because pet shop birds are unhealthy and unhappy. There are many types of cockatiels- lutino, which is white with a yellow head, I think, albino, which is white, cinnamon, which is brown, pearled, which has pearly markings, rimmed, which has rimmed markings, whitehead, which has a white cheek patch, pied, which has irregular white patches, and gray, which is the ordinary type found in the wild in Australia. This is the kind I have. They are more resistant to disease. But these are only a few of the types you can buy. A normal Australian cockatiel is gray with white bands on its wings, the males have bright yellow heads and orange cheek patches. A cockatiel will normally cost you from 80-100 $ but if you buy a gray it will be less. (Mine only cost 50.) I hope this helps you!:)

Answer 2

yes, you should start small. don't go out and buy a big parrot if you have no bird experience, you would be biting off more than you can chew. a cockatiel makes a PERFECT first bird. they are sweet little creatures with great personalities. and then read bird talk every month for a while. if you still want a bigger parrot 6 months or so down the road, then you will be much more prepaired to handle one. you will be a 'bird person'. good luck

Answer 3

I think the best thing to do for yourself is sit down and write out a list of your situation. How much time would you be able to devote? An hour or so a day to a tiel, or 3-4 hours or more for an African Grey? Do you have kids, other pets, and room for a 4X5 foot cage, or just enough to put it on a shelf. Could a louder bird get you evicted, do you have enough money to invest in said bird etc. I researched like this for about a year, and I ended up with 2 wonderful lovebirds. They are everything I expected, but I still wasn't satisfied, and I knew I would be able to devote more time to a 3rd bird, so I bought a Sun Conure. He is a little noisy for living in an apartment complex, but luckily he only screams when he sees me in the room and wants attention, other than he doesn't really make much noise! That would be my best recommendation! Good luck!

Answer 4

First, there is not any ascertain that a fowl will communicate. Many species of birds were nicely-known to communicate, some more effective than others. For a regularly happening-time fowl proprietor, perchance a cockatiel should be properly for you. they have a constrained vocabulary and are fairly straight forward to look after. Amazon parrots are also sturdy talkers, yet stay longer and require more effective interest. Then there are cockatoos or African Greys, or different species. visit a fowl club, like CAFA and communicate with fowl proprietors (and birds) study magazines like "fowl communicate" and books about birds. make effective you're waiting to devote the time, money, and emotional connection to a fowl. Birds are a huge dedication. Then %. a fowl which will in good structure into your existence and ecosystem.

Answer 5

Skip the budgie. Cockatiels are quite intelligent. They actuall can talk with lots of work, But the best and easiest would be a quaker parrot. Highly intelligent learns to speak quickly. I breed all kinds of birds and the quaker is my favorite. Look for the quaker home page on yahoo.com

Answer 6

I would lean towards the budgie for one big reason. Cockatiels can be very loud. Both have the ability to learn a couple of words, but the budgie will not make the loud screeching noise that a cockatiel makes. I started out with budgies and still love them so maybe I am biased towards them. They are very low maintenance and can be easily trained.

Answer 7

yes, you should buy at least two parakeets because the best way to keep one budgie happy is to have another one in there. you might want to get some from a budgie breeder so they don't mate. I have two parakeets and I did some research on parrots and they're sort of the same. cockatiels are also like budgies, but I recommend budgies because they don't bite as hard as cockatiels, and they cost less for their equipment and just to buy them. good luck!

Answer 8

The common raven is the second smartest bird in the world next to the grey parrot. Cockatiels are faily smart and they won't tear holes in you that a parrot might.

Answer 9

Go for a cocktiel or Quaker parrot first. They range in about the same price. Cocktiel are sweet little bird, mine can whistle many types. They are easy to train. I have a green yellow nape amazon that has a large vocabulary, but we started with smaller birds first. Good luck.

Answer 10

That would depned on how much time you have to spend with the bird on a dialy basis. In my experience as an owner and breeder budgies don't require quite as much time spent with them.

Are you going to allow the bird time outside of the cage? If you are cockatiels can be much more destructinve than budgies. They like to chew wood and molding, things like that.

Male cockatiels can learn to talk, so can male budgies, but a budgies skill is much more limited than a cockatiels. I have ahad a few female cokatiels that have learned a word or two as well.

One owrd of advice, if you are going to keep them outside of the cage at times, please keep their wings clipped. I have known one too many birds that have gotten out and never seen again. As they are both warm climate birds, they will die with out protection if they get out. Owners always think it can't hapen to me, but trust me, it can.