some thoughts to help me decide on an amazon please????

[goldy]

i have been looking into getting a pair of eclectus ,for the last year,but am slightly put off by the females reputation for being moody things when they get older, and all the hullabaloo surrounding birds laying eggs constantly etc.

i also love amazon parrots, so was considering the idea of getting one male eclectus baby and one male amazon baby, handreared together, as company birds, instead of a female ecckie.

- what are peoples thoughts on this? if they are handreared together, would they most likely be good company for each other?

the amazon would either be a blue fronted, or a yellow fronted (crowned) . the yellow naped are too expensive in australia for me to consider.

i am interested in knowing peoples thoughts on the following things:

-blue front or yellow front?
-what is the difference apart from looks, in personality.does one type make a better pet than another?

-male or female amazon?
does one make a better pet than another?
-are all males fierce when they mature? would a female be less moody as a pet?

i have read some males become insanely jealous with their favorite person and hardly tolerate the rest of the family? is this true?
as we have two kiddies, we are hoping that the male ecckie and amazon can have fun with us all...

i am going to buy a large macaw cage that has the removable divider down the centre to house the birds in.
would they be fine in the cage together, if they were handreared from babies together, or should i use the centre divider and give them one side each?


what do people think about my idea of having an amazon and an ecckie, instead of a male and female ecckie?

the breeder i have been discussing this with is excellent, and very well respected in australia, but i just want to get some other thoughts on this too...

[debbielabella]

Male blue front would likely be more of a challenge than a female blue front. Blue fronts I've heard are better talkers than yellow crowned, yellow crowned however have a reputation for being less aggressive when mature.

I'm suprised that you would consider a male zon over a female eckie. I think they maybe similar in difficulty to handle, a male blue front possibly more difficult. It depends greatly on the individual bird though and how you raise it.

The divider may or may not be enough. I would not expect you not to be able to keep them in the same cage. My male amazon, a panama zon, which have the reputation of being less moody and aggressive, can't be anywhere near my other bird's cages because he picks fights with them. If he were on the other side of a divider there would be some beaking going on, he deffinetly likes his own space and nobody even near 'his' stuff, which is everything. I would need plexiglass divider to have him anywhere near another bird and even then he would be menacing and unhappy about sharing the cage overall. My son will not go near any of the other birds because he knows Tiki will be mad, which is probably why he is the favorite.

As far as insanely jealous, my zon loves my son best but he also needs and depends on my attention. He is however upset if he feels he is not the center of my attention and is jealous of my attention to other birds, or if he feels slighted in any way. He does lunge at me if he's with Kyle, but if Kyle's not around he'll hang out with me. I still love him to death. Go figure. Zon's are worth it.

[Greycloud]

I think BFA are great birds! Females especially are very sweet and they can talk very well. I had one for many years before she passed. I know several people with BFA and they love them, esp. the females. Male ekkies are great birds and less moody then females. Females as they get older tend to become more territorial.
I think even if raised as babies they should have their own cages that are their private territory. If you have a side by side I would put plexiglass divider in. This way no beaks or toes can get bit off if a scuffle results. Because there will be scuffles.
I would basically let them have time out together on a playstand on top of a cage or a singular playstand. That's only if they were raised as young together. Birds need to be watched all the time. Remember you are dealing with two birds from different areas in the world. They eat different and have different behaviors.

[ThreeX]

In Sweden the absolute no contest most rehomed/up for sale birds are BFA's (usually males in the 3-7 year old span. Go figure..
IMO that is for a good reason as they (males at least) do become a handfull at that age and by that time are spoilt and have managed to train their owner to obey them instead of the other way around. The females are generally less aggressive than males but can be very cage territorial and throw a wobbler if you disturb them when they are "nesting" on the couch or in bed (the reason i tell people "DO *NOT* go AWW at birds playing peek a boo in bed with you as young.) That behaviour can turn around and literally bite you once they are sexually mature.
Personally i would get birds of the same species as i am against "mixed marriages" due to the fact that
1/ I firmly believe they are happier with someone who "speak their own language" and act/react the way instincts tell them they ought to.
2/ In my experience, mixed couples more often than not end up in separate cages and separate "quality time out of cage with owner.
No matter how cute it may be with a grey and a zon together i believe it's better to concentrate on one species and get a couple, because no matter how much time we humans spend with them it's but a poor substitute for a partner of the same kind.

[goldy]

thanks for all the replies!

threex, do you think that i would be better off getting a male and female eclectus then?

i can't afford to buy 2 amazons or 2 hahn's macaws,( i was looking at the hahn's too, seem like really nice birds, and good company?), but i could afford to buy a male and a female eclectus.
eclectus here are approx $800 aus each, yet and amazon bf or amazon yc or a han's macaw are all in the $2500-$3000 aus range each, so i could afford pone ,but not two...

eventually, when all my kids are older, i will get a few more parrots and be a crazy "bird lady" but for now, 2 birds will be enough for the family, so i have to make the right choice , with what is going to be best.

we are doing a bird behaviour workshop teaching positive reinforcement and all that, with jim mckendry, at currumbin sanctuary at the end of the month, to gain some extra skills, and we will be dedicated to working thru issues with a future pet, as we are not the sort that could willingly rehome a bird, (we had to do that once moving overseas, and it breaks your hearts!) , however, we still need to consider all things BEFOREHAND to make the best educated guess at what will suit...

how about the hahn's macaw?

what are they like as pets, and what bird would they get along with well, if we couldn't get two....? i saw a video of one playing happily with a sun conure, but i don't think a sun conure is for us at the moment...

if it is best to have two birds from the same species ,then maybe we should either get a male and female eckkie, or two males???

any other suggestions to consider would be appreciated!

thankyou....

[ThreeX]

I'd say that absolutely the best would be a pair of eclectus (i don't know how two males will intreact/get along though)!
Quite funny how BFA's can be that ridiculously more expensive where you live?! Here it's almost the opposite, that is, eccies are if anything more expensive. (Guess the abundance of out of control "second hand" BFA's play a part in it.
RE: Hahn's i have only met one IRL and that was a "kid" barely 1 years old, and like most youngsters he was very friendly with no bad habits, territorial or one-man bird *yet*
on the other hand, as Barbara Heidenreich says - you get what you train.. Granted all species have their quirks, but generally speaking i am sure she's right.

[goldy]

i guess the exotic birds are expensive down here, because there are not many people breeding them yet- supply and demand!
blue and gold macaws are about $6500 and african greys are around $600 too...
not that i would consider keeping either of those as the b&g are so big they almost scare me :) and the african greys seems to be very needy,more so than some of the other sorts...

the most commonly kept eclectus in aus is the redsided and they come from new guinea nearby, so i guess thats why they are cheaper!

we are going to work hard with our next lot of birds to train them very well, so we all get them ost out of the relationship!

[Alan]

I don't see why you can't get a bfa and an ekkie. I have 5 babies coming home soon. 1 of them just happens to be a female bfa. Tocarra was hatched July 10 her friend, Skye was hatched on July 22 is a severe macaw. All of the babies are coming from the same breeder and Skye and Tocarra are getting along with each other. I know that they will have to have their own cage but atleast they will be able to play with each other outisde the cage. In my home I have 9 different species right now and bringing home 3 big macs and then these 2. Here is a pic of Tocarra and Skye.

skyeandtocarra.jpg

[ThreeX]

Originally Posted by Alan

I don't see why you can't get a bfa and an ekkie. I have 5 babies coming home soon. 1 of them just happens to be a female bfa. Tocarra was hatched July 10 her friend, Skye was hatched on July 22 is a severe macaw. All of the babies are coming from the same breeder and Skye and Tocarra are getting along with each other. I know that they will have to have their own cage but atleast they will be able to play with each other outisde the cage. In my home I have 9 different species right now and bringing home 3 big macs and then these 2. Here is a pic of Tocarra and Skye.

Attachment 36048

Come back in 3-5 years and tell us how they are getting along then :)
Babies are seldom a problem to keep together..

[bronsvingad]

I have to agree with 3X. I definetly think you should have 2 birds of the same species. They have the same needs(food etc) and they "talk" the same language.
It´s not a guarantee thet they will love eachother just because they are both eclectus, but it never is no matter what kind of birds you put together.