Getting another kakariki

[emilymai44]

i currently own one male kakariki, ive had him for about a year and a half and i’ve had no issues so far. he has a indoor cage and i let him out to fly around anywhere from 2 hours to 5 hours a day. my only worry is that i’m going off to college soon so i’ll be out of the house for the majority of the day, this worries me as i don’t want him to get lonely. i’ve been off of school for months due to coronavirus so he’s had me to keep him company but in September i’ll be going to a new school which is further away meaning i’ll get home a lot later. i’ve been wondering whether to get another bird to keep him company during the day, his cage is very big and definitely has space for another bird but i’m not sure whether he could get protective over his cage and become aggressive. could getting a new bird at this point cause lots of issues? does anyone know what would be best?

[Pajarita]

Hi, Emily, welcome to the forum and thank you so much for worrying about your bird's happiness! DEFINITELY get another bird - a female kakariki. Your bird is a juvenile (kind of like a teenager) so he is at the perfect time to get him a mate but do not get a baby, get an older female - it doesn't matter what age because they do not care, all they care about is that the bird that you introduce is at the same age group (meaning, baby with baby, juvenile with either juvenile or adult and adult with adult). Introducing birds of different age groups is very iffy because their social and physical needs are different. You will have no trouble whatsoever about him protecting his cage. Parrots, with the ONLY exception of quakers, do not live in 'homes' so they are not really aggressive toward any other parrot that might end up sharing it (you will need to quarantine the new bird). And even quakers share their nest, only each pair has an apartment in the big 'building'). Parrots are social animals, not territorial and, as long as they are kept at a strict solar schedule (so they do not produce sexual hormones all year round which is always unhealthy and ends up being painful for them) and have enough feeders with the right kind of food (meaning no free-feeding of protein food) and produce, they are fine sharing because that is what nature evolved them for: to live in pairs all their lives and within an extended family (flock).

He will be very happy with a mate... much, much, much happier than living alone (kakarikis are not companion parrots, they are aviary parrots) - I promise! I believe in getting mates or, at the very least a companion, for parrots so strongly that I actually look to adopt/rehome a second one (I don't buy babies, all my birds came from somewhere else) when I adopt a bird of a new species.

[emilymai44]

thank you so much for the advice ! i’ve researched this lots in the past but i get lots of conflicting information. lots of websites ive seen say never pair birds together of different sexes as they fight, this is why i’ve been hesitant to get another bird .kakarikis aren’t very common in the uk and i haven’t found any up for adoption only people selling baby kakarikis. most of the birds up for adoption tend to be budgies, lovebirds or cockatiels. is it not good to pair different types of birds together? also if i did get a female kakariki would this mean them breading? thanks again for the advice !!

[Pajarita]

Yes, there are LOTS of conflicting information out there... But, when in doubt, always look to nature. Mother nature took millions of years to evolve and fine-tune to perfection a species so if the bird lives with other birds in the wild, it's a given that they will not only not fight but that they will find comfort and happiness with a companion and do even better with a flock. When people have trouble with their birds it is always (and I do mean ALWAYS) because the conditions the birds are kept under are wrong. People don't do it on purpose... most people do it because they do not know better but some do it because it's the easy way. I'll tell you a story: I used to run a bird rescue and a lady wanted to give me nine peach-faced lovebirds which had belonged to her deceased husband. These birds were show and breeding birds (they were what we used to call 'cherry heads') and had been kept in small cages in pairs and never allowed to interact as a flock but I kept a cage-free birdroom and wanted to let them all out so, not having any previous hands-on experience with lovebirds, I consulted in forums with the 'experts'. Every single one of them told me it could not be done - that they would fight and hurt each other if not kill. It made no sense to me because these birds live in flocks in the wild so I did not listen to them and slowly released one pair at a time. Once that pair had gotten used to the birdroom, I would release another pair. And, guess what? It worked like a charm! Before I knew it, I had a small flock of lovebirds flying, perching, roosting and eating together and interacting with each other as if they had done it their entire lives! The truth of the matter is that we tend to be arrogant about our knowledge and think we know better than nature - but we don't.

Now, as to how to get another kakariki that is not a baby. Do try whatever you have in the UK that is similar to our Craigslist (an online forum where people post different stuff for sale and animals for rehoming). I have found that if I look every day not only where I live but also nearby, eventually, one shows up. But also ask the breeders if they don't have an adult female (ex-breeder) that they would be willing to rehome. Breeders tend to overbreed their birds and the females become depleted while they are still very young which forces them to use a younger bird instead and, in most cases, they are more than happy to rehome the 'older' ones at a much lower price than a baby. A good diet, flight and some extra multivitamin/mineral supplement puts them in good shape again - they just need rest and a bit of TLC.

As to their potential breeding... Well, I tell you, the way I look at it, breeding to an animal is not only the most natural thing in the world but also the strongest drive they have (survival of the species) and nothing to be afraid of. I do NOT breed my birds (I rescue and, to a rescuer, breeding for the pet trade is anathema) but I do allow them to go through all the motions: courtship, nesting, laying and incubating BUT what I do is switch every real egg the female lay for a fake egg (you can get them online). This way, they are happy because they are doing what their body and mind is demanding they do - and I am happy because they are happy and I do not end up with babies. And, as long as you feed right, provide them with the necessary vitamins and minerals they need and allow them flight (important because the females use the same muscles to lay an egg than they do for moving their wings), there is no danger so, all in all, it's a win-win situation.

[emilymai44]

sorry for the slow response thank you so much for your help, i managed to find a one and a half year old male up for adoption he was hand reared and i’ve had him about 4 days now .i’ve caged them separately for the time being and i’ve been introducing them slowly to each other. i’ve got to the stage where they both fly around my room together and they sit together and whistle but i’ve been really surprised to see otis actually sort of scared of him (i’ve decided to call him riko). riko will fly over to otis to say hello but otis will fly off again. riko is a lot more energetic than otis and he will run over to otis and chirp but otis just stays completely still then when riko gets too close he’ll fly off. this is improving though and otis starts to actually go over to riko now, i hope otis will get more comfortable with riko over time. but apart from that there’s been no aggression towards each other and all positive so far:)

[Pajarita]

Well, that's because you released the new bird too soon and this confused Otis. For one thing, he should have stayed in his cage and in a different room for, at the very least, two weeks (quarantine!). This would not only protect your bird from contagion (if the new bird is a carrier) but it would also allow them to get used to each other gradually. First they hear but do not see each other, then they see each other but they are not 'together' (meaning: no interaction) and then, finally, they are allowed to fly together. With parrots, it always pays to go slow... when you go slow, it always works out, when you go fast, it might not and then you would have to take even longer to fix the booboo.

Also, I recommend you do not change the name of the bird you adopted. Parrots understand and use the concept of names and changing it only confuses them and sets the familiarization process back. The only time I change their names is when they are the wrong gender but even then I try to give them a name that sounds like the old one (so Nate became Naida and Elliot became Ellie). There are times when the bird does not recognize the name given by the previous owners as their own but they usually tell you what is their name (it's always the first sound that they call out when they know you are near but not paying attention to them) and, sometimes, they get real confused (Linus Too thinks his name is Hi Linus and that people are Hello )

[emilymai44]

hello thanks for getting back to me, the man i rehomed my bird from didn’t give my kakariki a name, he had lots and lots of birds all different cages and he was moving houses that’s why he wanted to rehome riko, i understand not to rename an animal because they won’t recognise the name but as far as i know he wasn’t named.
also i did do research on the quarantining but it just isn’t possible for me to do that because all the other rooms in my house have cats and dogs in. when i first got otis we kept him in the living room but my dogs didn’t react well to him and they would bark and it was very difficult to keep my cats away from him that’s why i now have him in my room. but i did buy another cage to keep riko in for the time being to keep them separate from one another.
i was letting them out separately for exercise and riko only wanted to hang around otis’ cage. i have only let them out twice together because my sister was there and she’s had lots of birds before, it was only for like 10 minutes before i put otis back in his cage. as i said otis wasn’t very keen on getting close to riko, he’s very shy and only sits to observe him. when i’ve let riko out a couple times he’ll go over to otis’ cage and then otis will come up to the bars so this is getting better, how would you recommend getting otis more comfortable with riko?

[emilymai44]

could i please message you on whatsapp or something because i’d like to send some pictures and updated to you

[Pajarita]

Ay, my dear, I am afraid that you are dealing with an old lady who is severely technologically handicapped! My children despair of me and constantly complain about my not even having my cell phone on
But you can post pictures here. All you need to do is put them in a sharing site and use their guidelines to insert them here.

And yes, Riko wanted to hang out with Otis because he is used to being with other birds and wants to make friends. Otis, on the other hand, needs a bit of time because although I am sure he remembers being with his siblings and parents, he has been all alone for a long time now. But it will happen. The best time to let them out is around noon because this is the time of the day when they stop to rest and, sometimes, even nap. It's a quiet time for them and, as they are more relaxed than, say, early in the morning when they are full of pep, it is the best time for them to get a closer look at the other bird. If you are keeping them in the same room, you might as well let them out together for a little while and see what happens (because contagion is usually from aerosolized poop so Otis has already been exposed to whatever Riko might have, if he has anything). Do pay more attention to Otis than you would to Riko when they are out together because, as far as he is concerned, you belong to him so he will not take it kindly if you prefer Riko over him. As time goes by and Otis feels less threatened by Riko's presence, you can start being more equal - and, of course, you should pay Riko personal attention when Otis is in his cage.

[emilymai44]

I have attached a photo of the two of them. Riko is the one inside the cage and Otis is the one on top. I am going to be starting sixth form in two days and getting back at 5pm so i’d have to let them out once i’m back unfortunately, however this would only be a couple days a week. But i’m hoping that now i won’t be there 24/7 they will get used to each other’s voice and be able to keep each other company throughout the day. I always leave the radio on for them when i’m out anyway but hopefully they will start to talk to each other more now.
The last time i let them out together they sat on top of otis’ cage eating millet. I found that giving them millet meant riko actually stayed still for a couple minutes which gave otis more confidence to go over and eat with him, otis always likes to do things on his terms which is why he doesn’t like that riko comes over to his cage and tries to see him. Riko has been super friendly though already trusting me, he likes to come over and sit on me and he’ll get on my hand or eat from it which is good.
I’m going to be super busy in the next few weeks so i will come back then and give an update on how it’s all going