Hello!
Please excuse all my mistakes regarding spelling and grammar. English is not my native language. Hope you will still get the point that I´m trying to make and that you can help me out
I´ve been thinking about getting parrots for a very long time (probably around 15-20 years or so). I don’t have any birds yet for different reasons (you can read more about those here: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=18754) but I´m seriously considering getting some soon...very, very soon
My favorite species of all time is Caiques
I have different types of animals at the moment (for example rats, mice, guinea pigs and reptiles etc.) and most of those animals are “adopted” (or at least bought from people that could not keep them for some reasons). Animals that´s unwanted makes my “heart bleed” and I want to help as many as I possibly can.
I Want to get two birds. Most birds up for “adoption”/sale unfortunately live alone. This is despite the fact that in the country I live in, there is a “rule” (not quite the law, but close) saying that you can only have one bird if you can spend all hours of the day with it (doubtful that this applies to anyone; everybody needs to go shopping for food etc. and therefore should have two birds of the same species or at least within the same family/similar species). Some of the caiques I´ve seen up for “adoption/sale” live in the same household as other bird species and it´s not uncommon that the caique hates those birds; can they still get along with another Caique? This “rule” is however not the reason for me wanting to get two birds. I simply feel it is the right thing to do (I have two dogs for the exact same reason, social animals in the need of a companion of their own species, that speaks the same language and plays in the same way etc.).
Is it hard to get two adult caiques (that´s lived alone for years) to get along and enjoy each other’s company and live in the same household and the same cage?
I´ve only got a small cage at the moment (around 105x65x100 cm which is approximately around 41-42 inches long/wide, 25,5 inches deep and about 39-39,5 inches tall…I think, not used to inches) but I´m hoping to find a space in my rather small apartment; for either building or buying a bigger cage/aviary. My believe is that all “cage-living-animals” should have as much space/as big a cage as you can possibly get and that you have the room for.
If possible, I would prefer to “adopt” rather than buying babies from a breeder…but is it easier to get two birds to get along/live in the same cage; if you put them together as babies? Impossible/unlikely with adult caiques? Having two large cages/aviaries in my apartment won’t work, at least not in the long run (unfortunately I do need some space for a bed etc. ). Two parrots that´s not getting along will cause a lot of problems. My appartment isn´t big and I want to be able to have my birds out when I´m at home. Having one in the cage while the other fly´s free doesn´t fell good and that´s not something I would want to deal with. I would not clip my bird´s wings, so they would be fully flighted (if that somehow could affect the advice your giving me).
Best option for successfully housing two birds together and the best option for a beginner parrot owner?
1) “Adopt/buy” one adult bird and later on introduce it to another adult bird (that´s also been “adopted/bought” – both alone and unwanted birds).
5) “Adopt/buy” one adult (and unwanted) bird and later on introduce a “baby” from a breeder.
I haven’t seen many caiques up for “adoption” and the birds that´s usually “available” are birds living alone (I´ve seen birds from around two to about 6-7 years old = long life a head of them). The lonely birds are the once that really breaks my heart, and in my opinion, they deserve a friend more than anything.
Obviously, quarantine is to be preferred...but say I would find a potential friend for a bird I already have. Do I wait and have the new bird quarantined (bond with me etc.) only to find out later that they hate each other and then have to give the second bird up (after I more than likely will already have completely “fallen” for the bird)? I would prefer if there was a quicker way to find out if the birds would get along and obviously keep them both healthy at the same time...suggestions? For me the best-case scenario would of course be, if the birds immediately started playing or just seemed happy and content…but what if this doesn´t happen? “Borrowing” a bird to see if that particular bird would get along with the previous bird BEFORE adopting/buying it would definitely be better than me “falling in love” with a bird that my previous bird can´t stand…so what to do? How do you best go about buying a friend/companion/cage-mate for your bird? Best way to introduce two birds to each other?
Does it matter whether the birds are male or female? I have absolutely no intention of breeding and would prefer (if possible) a pair of the same gender…but I´ve been told that it´s often easier to get a male and female to get along; is this true and wouldn’t that mean that they will mate even if they are not provided a nest etc.?
I have an injure that prevents me from working more than four hours (50%) a day and thus I´m at home a lot, with my animals. If I get birds I plan (hope at least) to use the cage I described as a night cage/extra cage and build/buy a bigger one to use as the main cage (that´s… if I can figure out a way to fit a massive cage in my appartment). The cage I have at the moment looks like this one https://www.templeandwebster.com.au/Bon ... O1120.html (accept it´s missing the seed guard/scatter guard on the bottom and the play-area/perch on top of the roof of the lower part of the cage). My cage is a second-hand cage, so I’m not exactly sure about the model, although it looks like the one in the link above.
What are your thoughts on having the previous owner/owners come to visit the parrot (in case of an adoption)? Good or bad idea? I´m thinking only about the parrot when I´m asking this question. Will it be hard for the parrot to know where he/she belongs etc.? Will the parrot feel abandoned once again when the previous owner/owners’ leave?
Ok...so hypothetically hehe... I may or may not have found ONE parrot (nr 1) of interest. This bird (hypothetically of course ) seems just about as perfect for me and my situation that any bird can be. A few years old AKA. Passed sexual maturity and the problems related to “teen-hormones” etc. which seems easier to handle as a beginner, already used to and completely cool with dogs (great when you´ve got two of those), used to wearing a harness (which is absolutely perfect) etc.
My plan may hypothetically be to buy another parrot (nr 2) at a later time and hope to find a match to this one (nr 1). In this hypothetical situation I have only found the first bird (nr 1) and have no idea about the next bird (nr 2) …apart from the fact that I want two birds in the end. Worst case scenario: I will have to find a way to fit another cage/aviary in my small apartment…do you really need a couch? Kitchen table? Bed? I´m a 100% convinced that the best thing you can give to a parrot is another parrot so I hope to find a matching friend.
In this hypothetical situation the previous owner of the first bird (nr 1) has asked to be able to come visit “if they ever end up in the neighborhood”. Is this a good or a bad idea (from the parrot’s point of view)? This particular parrot has only lived with the current owners for one or two months, give or take (but due to some unforeseen reasons they can´t keep the bird). The owners seem genuinely broken up about having to give their bird up…so I feel inclined to let them visit... but at the same time, the parrot didn´t live with them for very long so… what´s best for the bird?
Sorry for the massive load of text, hope you have the patience to read it and help me out in my confused state of mind
/Animallover_84