Reassure me, Will Scooter be OK?

[entrancedbymyGCC]

... If we bring a(n) (Un)Cape parrot into the house? I don't mean in terms of quarantine, I mean socially. I love him to death and I'm afraid he'll somehow be diminished with another bird around. The new bird (we have 72 hours to decide) would be intended to be my husband's and he so far has been more drawn to Bill than I, but I guess I'm just afraid somehow he'll overshadow Scooter. Scooter doesn't know he's a little bird, after all... He thinks he is as big as a lion...

[Michael]

Are you asking in terms of the Cape making a snack out of scooter or scooter being disappointed there's another bird around in his place?

[Rue]

Birds are flock animals. The more the merrier.

There will be a transition period as everyone gets used to a new routine of course, but barring unforeseen circumstances, my guess is it will all be good...

[pchela]

What Rue said.

It is actually preferable to have more than one bird even if they don't like each other as they will still keep each other company when nobody is in the house. Since birds are flock animals, it is uncomfortable and unnatural for them to be alone.

Even if Scooter decided he likes the Cape, he will still be your bird. You shouldn't worry about losing the bond with Scooter at all. If you do bring the Cape home, just give Scooter some extra attention and love so he doesn't get jealous. Often, people will dote on the new baby and the older one feels left out and that can lead to feelings of resentment towards the new addition.

Capes are really cool birds and I'm sure you'd enjoy him if you end up with him!

[entrancedbymyGCC]

Are you asking in terms of the Cape making a snack out of scooter or scooter being disappointed there's another bird around in his place?

Well, I more meant the latter... I assume we'll be careful about the former... should I be worried about that????

Pchela, Rue, thanks! Yeah, I guess somehow diminishing the relationship is what worries me. Although the new bird will be Bill's, I have a sneaky suspicion I'll wind up doing some of the feeding and a lot of the cleaning up.

[Michael]

Well first off the Cape is about 5 times bigger (by mass) than the gcc. Second of all, while it may be considered one of the friendliest Pois, it is still a Poicephalus (and a parrot for that matter).

While Truman doesn't necessarily attack Kili, he's not exactly defenseless against her either. He'll stab at her beak too. It may be possible that Scooter is so small that the Cape wouldn't pay attention to him but here is the biggest concern:

If scooter is a feisty little guy and attacks or bothers the Cape, the amount of damage that a Cape could do with that beak would be deadly. Even Kili's big head could probably fit entirely into Truman's beak and a green cheek is a lot smaller. I know little about Capes (long term) and next to nothing about green cheeked parakeets so I cannot advise you about how they'd get along. In my case, all of my effort has been focused on getting Kili not to bully Truman. They are pretty evenly matched so I think they've actually grown slightly scared of each other and avoid getting in either one's way. However, the disparity between gcc and cape could be an issue. It might not be. I just feel obligated to thoroughly warn you about this. You may be lucky and they be the best of friends. But are you prepared to never have more than one bird out at a time because they absolutely do not get along?

Also a critical question here will be flight. If the birds are flighted, they can get at each other. On the other hand if they are not flighted, they may not be able to get away. Mine are flighted so I have to use a lot more caution about flock safety as they can be apart and then at each other in a flash.

I don't mean to scare you but I just hope you consider all the angles. A Cape sounds like a great idea and an absolutely wonderful bird. Keep in mind that they are pretty loud. Definitely the loudest of the Poicephalus.

[Azure Hanyo]

Well first off the Cape is about 5 times bigger (by mass) than the gcc. Second of all, while it may be considered one of the friendliest Pois, it is still a Poicephalus (and a parrot for that matter).

While Truman doesn't necessarily attack Kili, he's not exactly defenseless against her either. He'll stab at her beak too. It may be possible that Scooter is so small that the Cape wouldn't pay attention to him but here is the biggest concern:

If scooter is a feisty little guy and attacks or bothers the Cape, the amount of damage that a Cape could do with that beak would be deadly. Even Kili's big head could probably fit entirely into Truman's beak and a green cheek is a lot smaller. I know little about Capes (long term) and next to nothing about green cheeked parakeets so I cannot advise you about how they'd get along. In my case, all of my effort has been focused on getting Kili not to bully Truman. They are pretty evenly matched so I think they've actually grown slightly scared of each other and avoid getting in either one's way. However, the disparity between gcc and cape could be an issue. It might not be. I just feel obligated to thoroughly warn you about this. You may be lucky and they be the best of friends. But are you prepared to never have more than one bird out at a time because they absolutely do not get along?

I have a cockatiel and a black-headed caique and have not dared to let them out at the same time. They do enjoy one another's company, though, as they whistle back and forth to each other and at night I *have* to put Archimedes' cage next to Galileo's or Archimedes seems more prone to having night-frights. I am honestly terrified of introducing them to one another feather-to-feather however. If something happened to Archimedes I would never forgive myself. Galileo has the power to shred him to fluff.

[Michael]

Oh and another thing while we're on the topic of aggression. Just wanted to mention that Kili bit me today and drew blood all because of Truman. I just finished weighing Kili on the scale which is adjacent to Truman's tub. Truman made a quick dash in her direction from inside the tub and Kili's immediate reaction was to bite my hand because it was the nearest thing. Once again, displaced aggression is not guaranteed but possible.

[Azure Hanyo]

Oh and another thing while we're on the topic of aggression. Just wanted to mention that Kili bit me today and drew blood all because of Truman. I just finished weighing Kili on the scale which is adjacent to Truman's tub. Truman made a quick dash in her direction from inside the tub and Kili's immediate reaction was to bite my hand because it was the nearest thing. Once again, displaced aggression is not guaranteed but possible.

YES IT IS. When I first brought Gal home, Archimedes went nutso because he was actually excited about another bird. Galileo did not like the noise he was making, and lunged at me... I bled quite a bit following that.

I am very tempted to get a second small parrot, maybe another cockatiel, lovie, or parakeet, just so Archimedes can have some actual bird interaction, which he seems to crave. I will have their cages next to one another if I do, and I really think Archimedes would benefit from that. Galileo not so much... She is content with trying to regurgitate for me. (But she does love verbalizing with other birds, as mentioned. I agree: the more the merrier! Just...if you're careful.)

[entrancedbymyGCC]

YEah, I figured that we'd need to be super cautious. Neither is flighted at the moment, and we are unlikely to change that situation without a lot of preparation, so it should be relatively easy to keep them apart. I figured eventually they'd be company for each other, but in separate closed cages! IF this happens, the cages will be in separate rooms for a while even though the store guarantees freedom from the common diseases. I wasn't expecting to turn them loose together. And, yeah, it would be totally in character for Scooter to try to chase the bigger bird. He tries to chase the cat. We have to be very careful.

Michael, you might want to get to know a green-cheek sometimes. They are really a lot of bird in a small package. I know I haven't got a lot of big-bird experience, but Scooter is remarkably quick on the uptake for such a tiny bird.