What makes a good pet bird?

Question

Read this CAREFULLY: I want to know if there is a type of bird in the world that is: small, friendly, likes to be handled, requires only a SMALL cage, queit, and most of all INEXSPENSIVE! Please tell me someone!

I'm not getting a bird, but I'm just wondering.... (I'm talking about a cage at least 2 feet wide and 2 and a half feet tall.

Answer 1

Female lovebird. They LOVE to be around you, are small, relatively inexpensive, and usually quiet. Since you mention the price, be sure you can handle the ongoing costs of a bird! They need good perches of different shapes and sizes to keep the feet from getting sores on them. They need lots of different toys and need them switched a lot. Bird food is also expensive. Don't buy it at walmart because the food there has been cooked and all the nutrients are gone so the bird will soon die from fatty liver disease. It costs about $10 a month for toys (unless you make them yourself) $15 a month for food-the kind that WONT kill your bird. Don't skimp on costs because that can kill your bird or cause the bird to start mutilating itself. Good luck finding a bird!

Answer 2

There is no such thing as an animal that doesn't require a large cage. Also, you will end up spending a lot of money on all animals. If you research right, if someone were to get hermit crabs, they'd have to spend a lot. Some people who are reading this are probably thinking "That's IMPOSSIBLE! FOR A HERMIT CRAB! SHE MUST BE FREAKIN' NUTS!" But it is true. I know that you are not talking about a hermit crab, but I'd like to explain how a hermit crab CAN be expensive if you care for them correctly. First, you have to buy the TANK WITH PLEXIGLAS LID. That's about $20-30 dollars if you use a plexiglas lid like you're supposed to for the humidity. Then, you have to buy humidity and temperature gauges (about $12,) salt water ( $6) fake plants ($1) spring water ($1,) hidey huts ($4-10,) shells ($4 min.,) and a lot more. So that's at least $30. And then there is substrate and a ton more things.

All birds deserve a big enough cage. Heck, it's better if they are free-range ( it IS possible; I've seen it.) Though, the places that train the birds to stay in one place usually treat their birds badly. In my experience, free-range birds are the nicest. Usually, if you get your bird from a pet store, it is not tame at all. You should try to adopt. www.petfinder.com

Answer 3

Q:OK what makes a good pet bird
A: A king and loving and knowledgeable owner.

All birds with care and attention and affection will become friendly ONce you gain the trust of a bird you gain its love also and that is all the reward you will need for being a birdkeeper
The cage has to be the biggest you can afford to make your bird happy.
If you want silent then choose a female canary. Otherwise all bird make noise they're flock creatures so as you make noise such as the tv or radio or stereo your bird will also make noise as its Flock Noise.
If your worried about cost what happens when you need to visit the vet how are you going to pay for that treatment ?

Answer 4

Cockatiels are the best for tameness, personality and affection to their owners. However, they can be extremely noisy and perhaps need a bigger cage than you are looking for. I'd then look at parakeets who can be just as loving and entertaining and are smaller. Budgies make good pet birds and can be very cute! Certainly tameable and don't have shrill whistling, and they are very small and inexpensive to buy and maintain.
As for lovebirds, I owned a very cute one but he was untameable. If you want to go for a lovebird, take a handreared one and remember they are "supposedly" better in pairs but pairing of birds means they are more interested in each other than you, so lovebirds you should probably miss out.
Avoid finches, canaries etc, although cute they aren't companion birds really (sorry if anyone knows different from them).
Best bet would be parakeet/budgie.

Edit: sorry, read your additional details, I see you aren't actually looking for a pet. Hope it helps anyway!

Answer 5

I would recommend a female parakeet (budgie). Keets are wonderful pets and they can become very bonded to their owner (if the owner is kind, caring and patient). The females are more silent than the males but some say that the males are more active and playful. I have a female keet and she's quite silent (she usually chirp and sing a bit in the mornings) but she's also alert, playful and a lot of fun.

A cage for a pet bird should always be as big as possible - for ANY type of bird. They should be able to fly-jump between perches.
A cage for a single budgie should be close to 18"x18"x18" and bigger is always better.

Parakeets are inexpensive but as a caring owner you should always have a budget set aside for vet visits and such.

Answer 6

From the details you supplied I would say a budgerigar fits the description nicely. With proper care and nutrition budgies can live a good number of years (within the range of 7 - 12 years). They don't have to be hand-reared to be tamed/trained. When I was a kid I was given this lovely female budgie. She was at least 5 years old, not hand-raised, shy and nervous. With patience, common sense, and more patience, she was perching on my hand within two weeks! I still have photos of her sitting on my shoulder!

For someone considering buying a pet bird (or any other pet), please consider the needs of that particular pet BEFORE assuming responsibility for taking care of him/her. Your circumstances will dictate whether or not the pet you want will live a happy life with you. No-one should get any pet on impulse. Pets are living creatures that have feelings too. One should also do some reading prior to buying the pet and provide all its needs beforehand. You cannot buy fish without having a fish tank already set up. The same goes to all types of pets. We should all strive to spare undue stress and cruelty to pet animals.

Answer 7

I've got an african grey but I used to have a little cockatiel. That little cockatiel was amazing. She used to sit on every stranger coming through the door. When my boyfriend played XBox she wouldn't leave him alone, tried to use the controls too. Everyone that met that little bird fell in love with her! She was tiny but as much parrot as any larger parrot and there was never a peep out of her. She never bit anyone, unlike my grey, and had such a great personality. If you wanted her attention all you had to do was turn your back on her and start playing with something else and she was there in a flash! Please go find out more about them, they are super little birds.

Answer 8

Small-a cockatiel or parakeet

Quiet-um... I don't think a bird is for you if you absolutely need quiet.

Requires a small cage only-A parakeet, but they're not quiet.

Inexpensive-You want inexpensive? Either get a budgie [which are usually very untame and loud] or get a sick bird.

Answer 9

I agree a cockatiel is a good choice, although you'd need a bit larger cage. Just make sure you are ready for the mess, noise and maybe occasional bite. Birds are very messy. They are also one of the most rehomed animals because they are more of a impulse item.

Answer 10

My sister and her husband have a Love Bird she is sweet, small, and cute. The main thing is to give it a lot of attention outside of its cage, holding and petting it.