which breed is right for me???

[Oscars Mom]

With kids I would go with a pionus or conure.

[raddaughter]

Eclectus tend to have poor grip. Lucy is fully flighted, but have NEVER flown. She'll hope a few inches to get where she wants, but she prefers to just walk around. Eclectus are also very heavy bodied birds. I've never seen one fly for an extremly long period. From what I've heard, most just perfer to walk around. How old are your kids?

I'm 14 and have 3 younger brothers ages 6- 12. I've never had any problem with them being fearful with the boys, though the all kids need to know to respect the birds.

[Snowy]

Ekkies aren't big fliers? That's good to know. I think Pionus are heavy bodied birds too, right?
My kids are 15 and 11.

It may come down to which breeds are available near me.
I'm leary of having animals shipped to me so I've been scouring around for local outlets.
So far, I found breeders with pionus available and another one who has ekkie eggs.

[Monica]

I was 12 when I got my first budgie... I miss the little guy! 7 years certainly hasn't changed anything....

Parrots aren't breeds, persay, like a dog or cat. They are individual species, such as the various types of big cats (lion, tiger, panther, puma, cheetah), elephants (asian, african), giraffes, zebras, etc. It's a confusing subject to many, I'm sure...

Being in southern Cali, you should actually have a wide range of birds available to you.

craigslist: orange county classifieds for jobs, apartments, personals, for sale, services, community, and events
You can search around this area for quite a while... if you use the search box, use both "for sale" and "community" in the drop down menu... add in some parrot related words (one or two would do), and you ought to get quite a few results...

[4HAND]

I have vaulted ceilings too, but if you start with a handfed baby it's not likely to be a problem.They will want to be with you.While a smaller bird like a budgie can find a place to perch up there,a medium size parrot may not find a place to land that is large or stable enough.
Tena

[Kiwi1224]

Originally Posted by Snowy

Hi, I just joined the board (my first post is in the intro section).
I don't have a parrot yet, but am definitely interested in getting one.

Here are the parameters I need to satisfy...

-not too noisy (so birds like macaws and cockatoos unfortunately won't work
-can't have a one-person bird. I will be the primary care taker, but the bird needs to be receptive/friendly to my family and friends so has to be a family bird
-talkability isn't necessary, but would be nice
-I'm a SAHM so will be around most of the time, but need one that can be happy being alone for several hours in the day (I'm typically out of the house for 1-4 hrs in a given day)
-can't be high strung - we have kids, dogs, budgie traffic in the house.


The research I've done have pointed me to these choices--I would appreciate it if you could confirm these choices or give me new options.

pionus
caique
ecclectus
senegal or jardines

Thank you very much for your help!!

I'm new to this board as well...for first time birds or family friendly I would suggest budgies, parrotlet, green cheek conure or a cockatiel. I've always had budgies and recently got a parrotlet in February. the parrotlet is quite different from the budgies. she definitely loves to spend time with us. I have a home office so she will spend more time with me but also goes to the others in the family. A bowl of popcorn will make you her new best friend!

I do not personally have a conure but I work with a breeder and as I deal with them at bird shows, they are the sweetest little things.

The most important thing would be to get a baby just weaned from a breeder and has been socialized. The breeder I got the parrotlet from works with each bird with the initial step ups and ensuring they have a well balanced diet. Cockatiels are very sweet but you have to watch the dust they produce over the others. If there is anyone with allergies, you may want to avoid the cockatiel.

Another important factor is ensuring that you provide as large of a cage as you can. With my parrotlet, she is in a very large cage due to the fact that these little birds are very active and I provide a lot of toys in the cage to entertain her when she has to be in the cage.

Good luck with your choice!