Hello, World

[Shelby]

I'm in a similar position, so I understand how disappointing it can be to want a bird to love and train, but not be in the proper situation to do so. (I'm almost 19, heading out to college in about 2 months, and will soon have to deal with extra coursework, roommates, making new friends, a job, etc.) I totally agree with what the others have said. There are too many variables in the life of a college student, and you would feel awful if you got a bird, formed a strong relationship with it, then had to re-home it because you couldn't find a suitable apartment or something.

However, if you want to get some hands-on experience with birds and maybe practice putting to use the training methods you've learned, see if there is a bird store/shelter where you can work/volunteer. This way you will get to interact with many different species, without having to pay for their care and worry about what your roomies might do to them. You may think you really want one kind of bird now, until you get bitten by it or realize it has an attitude 10 feet long. On the other hand, you may realize that a not-very-pretty bird you hadn't considered before is actually the perfect companion for you.

[FirstPenguin]

That's a lot of trash talk about my Pois. My senegal is the opposite of what you're describing. She's neon green, bright yellow, and silver in most places. This photo doesn't even do it justice. Plumage can sometimes be sign of a birds nutrition. I would give Pois some serious reconsideration. They are small parrots, with big parrot attitudes. They also might fall into that, not the best first bird range, but the problem with that is they live so long the only way to get the more advanced birds is to end up with two or more. I'm more of the dedicate yourself to one bird type. I believe with enough research one can take on a slightly more advanced bird as their first bird. We read, and read, and read whatever we could get our hands on before we got our sennie. Turns out half of what we read was outdated, garbage, and opinions delivered as fact. Much of what was printed in the past 2 decades many people consider wrong now. So don't take everything you read as gospel.

I agree with many that as someone your age it's hard to predict where you'll end up and what you'll want to do. I live with a parrot in NYC at the mercy of land lords and my neighbors. I've been pretty lucky so far but I hate when I see ads for rehomes because someones new place won't allow pets. THEN YOU SHOULDN"T HAVE MOVED THERE!!! A dedicated bird owner commits themselves to these limitations when they take on the responsibility of owning a parrot.

I would get settled at school before making any decisions. See how demanding your classes are and if your roommate is game.



There not the best study partners!

[laducockatiel]

i wouldnt recommend cockatiel also,they are noisy and they scream several times per day.they are not really loud but to be honest sometimes its really annoy me when my tiels over scream.
i never been around one but i heard senegals are quite and they are really nice bird.

it depends on the bird, and my cockatiel used to scream, but I taught him to whistle and talk instead.

Its really easy to teach them to not scream if you have the time and they are really sweet and caring birds and they are really really intelligent and a cockatiel should definitely be a consideration.

[liz]

There is absolutly nothing wrong with a cockatiel. All they are is beautiful, perky, intelligent and a joy to have in my home. I have 2 pair and a baby in my flock.

When Myrtle unlatches their cage because I forgot to do 3 latches. They go on top of the cage to sing and chirp.