I've had my parakeet for about two or three years. It's cage is large enough for him, but I feel like he'd be happier if he had another parakeet to be friends with.
If someday I decide to get a bigger cage, can I put the new parakeet in the same cage as the old one, or are they territorial like cats? I don't want to get a new bird if the old one is just going to beat it up.
2007-12-19 10:13:33 · 4 answers · asked by pbJ 6 in Pets ➔ Birds
I had a parakeet and took in another one, from a bad home. I had two cages, but left the doors open on each and allowed them to go back and forth, as they liked. They usually ended up in one cage or the other. One would follow the other. I worried about bringing a new parakeet into the house because ours was so spoiled, but it worked out fine. I had a female, the one I brought in was a male, and my female bossed his around, but taught him all kinds of tricks. Poor thing was in a small dirty cage, and he was so glad to be in a big nice cage.
2007-12-19 13:10:16 · answer #1 · answered by Joan H 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
When introducing a new bird to an existing "family member" you need to take certain steps.
First, have the new bird checked by a vet to make sure it does not have any contagious diseases or parasites that it will transmit to the existing bird. This is also a good time to get the new bird's wings clipped
Second, place it in a separate cage, close enough to the existing bird's cage so they can see each other, but not close enough so they can reach through the bars of the cage and nip at each other.
After about a week, you can let the birds have some supervised socializing, either out of the cages, or in the new bird's cage. Never put the new bird directly into the old bird's cage, because the old bird will view that as an intruder entering his territory.
If it works out that they seem to be friends, you can try leaving them in the new bird's cage for several days. Then you could place them in the old bird's cage, if it is larger, or get them a brand new cage, large enough for each bird to have their own space when they get tired of hanging out together.
Remember, though, birds are just like people - they do not necessarily like every other bird they meet. If you get a new bird, the two birds could love each other, they could hate each other, or one could love the other, but not be loved in return. You have no way to predict this.
Another word of advice - NEVER place a male and female together unless you are prepared for them to breed. By prepared, I mean you know exactly what to do if they have a clutch of eggs, and start raising babies. If you are not prepared to have baby parakeets, do not put your birds together if they are not the same sex. Remember, if you have babies, you either have to find homes for them, or keep and care for them all, and if you don't want to be overrun with parakeets, need to separate the males and females as soon as possible - brothers and sisters, parents and offspring, WILL breed together. They are not like humans - they do not recognize family members as being off limits for mating.
2007-12-19 18:27:44 · answer #2 · answered by margecutter 7 · 4⤊ 0⤋
they are territorial creatures yes So your existing will not tolerate anew bird in that cage so you must introduce a new cage big enough for them both immediately when you get the new bird otherwise war will ensue
2007-12-19 18:17:51 · answer #3 · answered by bl_fkt 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Good you asked first. The new bird must have her/his cage until hey both decide to live together.
2007-12-19 18:22:50 · answer #4 · answered by Owlwoman 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋