Parrots getting along

[LQEnder]

TL, DR; My bird hate each other...and suggestions?

We just moved from a two bird family to a three bird family. My Fiance works at a pet store, and we took in a little baby budgie who only has one wing. We have had her for 3 days, and she's already figured out that stepping up gets her millet spray...we are working on the general boring husbandry stuff right now.

Part of the reason I thought a Parakeet would be fun is I thought to would be fun for Dart, our Jenday Conure, to have a friend. But Dart is probably three times bigger than Lyra (the budgie). I think some of that is due to Lyra being a baby, and some of it is due to the fact that the parakeets I had as a kid seeming bigger. The bottom line is this with all three birds. The smaller birds treat the bigger birds like big brothers. They follow them around, jump to their cages, they just want to be like the big boys. The bigger parrots try to kill the little ones. Literally. Dart attacks lyra given the chance, and Rosie, our African Grey attacks dart if given the chance. (of course their is supervision, but its pretty obvious to see intent before any blood gets shed).

So, has anyone had a problem like this and been able to get past it? I was looking forward to letting Dart become flighted, but that's not going to work if he is going to continue to be so aggressive. Bombs away!

[liz]

Get you keet a keet friend then keep the species in seperate rooms.

[Grey_Moon]

No, and its extremely dangerous to continue trying to get them to interact, especially with your budgie's disability and the varying sizes.

I *had* three birds at one time, Jacko, a cockatiel and a linneolated parakeet. It was chaos and stressful for the birds and for me.
I learned my lesson and am down to just one parrot and it'll stay that way (save for if in the future she meets a parrot she likes and then I would like to get her a flockmate when money/time permit).

The linneolated parakeet died of unknown causes and the cockatiel I ultimately placed in a rescue for his own health and safety.
My grey bit and broke both his feet, escaped her cage when I was at school and tore out his toenail and ripped out his tailfeathers.

The cockatiel screamed from the stress and terror constantly and I could never give him half the attention he wanted because he was afraid to be outside the cage and the grey would attack her cage trying to get him and pluck/scream.

I don't believe in having more than one bird unless those parrots interact as a flock. In a case like this I feel like its not fair to anyone involved due to the amount of time and love a single parrot needs and how toxic jealousy and anger are. With multiple birds who hate each other you always have to juggle out times knowing whoever is in the cage is mad because you're interacting with 'the enemy'. Someone always has to stay in the cage while someone else gets to go on car rides or eat breakfast with you. Someone is always second fiddle and I find that unfair.

Its really not something you can fix, only manage and control. I don't even think Michael has managed to get Kili and Truman to get along. The difference is Truman is a gentle guy and simply retreats from Kili---your grey and jenday would attack each other and the jenday would lose.
In this scenario I would honestly do the following: rehome the budgie and either the conure or the grey. Its the easiest, healthiest and safest solution for everyone involved.

IF you cannot or won't do that, please get a flockmate (or a few) for the budgie and set them up in a room off limits to your bigger birds. He cannot and won't be a pet. Then, carefully separate and supervise your two remaining birds, however I don't feel this is optimal because there will be still danger and still be jealousy and stress.

[Eurycerus]

My grey bit and broke both his feet, escaped her cage when I was at school and tore out his toenail and ripped out his tailfeathers.

O_o holy smokes, that's unbelievable how much blood lust your parrot had for the poor little cockatiel... Glad you found a different home before he died!

[liz]

It was a grey that was terrorizing and trying to kill Myrtle. Her life was hell for the first year. She would not come out of her cage and he kept trying to get through the bars.

[Ursibear]

My god :s poor birdies...
Greys are the most popular biggish parrot here in Norway... I really didn't think they were capable of such violence

[Polarn]

I wouldn't say it's a grey problem really to be honest though. I think most birds have tendencies that direction unless having its mate in another bird so that the birds sort it themselves and you function as the third wheel. But even then you might be stuck between the beaks instead.

[Grey_Moon]

I only hung on to the little guy because he was a screamer with chronic medical issues and I knew that in terms of getting stuck on the rehome merry-go-round he was a prime target and likely to abandoned further.

As soon as I found a rescue in my area who would take him (and sign a legal contract stating in the event of the adopter not being able or wanting to care for him that he'd be returned to the rescue) I placed him. I miss the little guy, tiels are sweeties, but I am thankful now he lives with a retired couple as an only bird (part of his adoption contract due to his health and background) and is muchly loved and spoiled---and safe!

As Polarn said I don't think its necessarily a grey thing----being an old-world single-species flock bird that is highly intelligent probably makes them more likely to be perpetrators but I wouldn't say that its a grey thing or that be avoiding greys you avoid this sort of aggression.