New to the forum

[sighthoundlover]

I'm new to the forum. I have been extremely interested in owning a parrot for years and have done a lot of reading on the subject as well as visiting birds wherever they are whenever I can. I have not yet gotten a bird because I am fearful that I may not give the bird all the attention it needs and inflict some psychological damage on the bird. I've visited several rescue organizations and seen so many birds who have plucked their feathers - even self-mutilated - and I would never want that to happen to an animal under my care. As soon as I explore and fine what is here I will be posting additional posts and questions.

[zazanomore]

Welcome.

I love sight hounds as well. I'd love to have a greyhound one day.

[Kathleen]

Welcome to the parrot forum! Glad you found us here!

I think it's very admirable for you to do all the research before choosing to get a parrot. People like yourself who make well planned decisions and make an effort to learn are much more prepared for possible problems like plucking and can do everything possible to try to prevent these things from happening.

Plucking seems to be related to a lack of mental stimulation/interaction, as well as physical/health issues. There's a bit to it, but in summary, if you take your bird to a vet to get a wellness check every once in a rare while (many people do it yearly), give it showers/let it bathe sometimes and keep it mentally stimulated/give it lots of interaction (through training/foraging/keeping it flighted) then you will most likely avoid plucking and self mutilating.

Hope that you enjoy the forum and please post any questions you may have because we have quite a few members who enjoy helping out.

[GlassOnion]

Welcome! And I agree that it's AWESOME you are doing your research.

When looking for a bird, it works better if you list the qualities you want in a bird then match those to a species, rather than looking up various species and then reading on their characteristics.