Parrots and Rabbits

[Nyx]

I own two house rabbits, and love them dearly, to say the least. I have a motherly instinct to protect them.

Which brings me to the question: could a parrot potentially harm a rabbit, in any way?

I know, at least, that the noise will bother them, but they can get used to it. The attention the bird gets will make them jealous at first, but they will continue to get plenty of pettings anyway. My real concern is whether the parrot could/would actually harm my rabbits.

My boyfriend and I have long wanted a pet parrot - a Quaker or Indian Ringneck, in particular, since they are so talkative and intelligent. I've watched many YouTube vids of them, and they are simply enchanting. I don't want to keep it caged up; how can a parrot be happy that way? Yet at the same time, I would never get a cat or dog because of my two bunnies. I would freak if anything happened to them.

All that said, can parrots be safe around rabbits?

[Shelby]

Well, I am not entirely sure how to answer your question. Parrots and rabbits are both prey animals. Parrots also do not attack and eat small mammals the way raptors do, so I don't think you need to worry about your parrot swooping down and killing your rabbits. It has been my experience that if a bird can fly, it will prefer to fly away when it is frightened, rather than going on the attack and defending itself. That being said, you would probably want to keep your parrot's cage in a separate room than the rabbits' cages because they may not get along with each other. A ringneck is much smaller than a rabbit and if they did get a bit aggressive with each other, the parrot would be the loser.

I don't want to keep it caged up; how can a parrot be happy that way?

You don't want to let your parrots roam free ALL the time. It's just not safe for them. It's impossible to make your house so parrot-proofed that a bird could go wherever he wanted and be safe. If you did that, you wouldn't be able to live in your house. Besides, a parrot is like any other member of the family in that they need a place to call their own. A place that they can play and forage and sleep in, where you don't have to worry about them getting into something that will hurt them, or them pooping all over the furniture. A flighted parrot that gets plenty of out-of-cage time and meaningful individual interaction with you will be very happy.

[liz]

Now I am an authority on this.

Parrots, dogs and cats can cohabitate. They can even learn to play together. My cats and dogs play together and even sleep in a pile. Rambo runs with the dogs to greet people at the door. Myrtle plays with Jasimine, a chunky chihuahua.

Rambo will raise his wings and squack if he gets bumped around in the croud and the others will back off. I have had no concern about them.

Myrtle on the other hand will sneak up on a sleeping critter and grab it's tail. She does not do it to hurt but it does scare them.

I have no fear of leaving all of mine loose even while I am gone, but then nothing in my house is like a normal.

With close monitoring it can be done.

The furies don't get jeleouse of the parrots but the parrots do get jeleouse of the furries and demand attention.

[Nyx]

You don't want to let your parrots roam free ALL the time. It's just not safe for them. It's impossible to make your house so parrot-proofed that a bird could go wherever he wanted and be safe.

Thanks for your advice! I'm excited to say that I may be buying two quakers, a bonded blue and green with their cage, provided that they're still available from the previous owner. I'll keep perusing the forum and learning all I can, and I will keep in mind that the parakeets will need monitoring while they fly free!

Now I have to learn more about training...

[Shelby]

Check out Michael's training blog! It's awesome (and free). He puts so much thought into the articles and includes videos demonstrating everything. And he makes everything stupidly simple so you know you can do it. I suggest starting with his Taming Article.