Looking to introduce a feathery friend to our family

[hotrodhc]

Hi everyone. I'm sure threads like this have popped up many times...time for mine :)

I am a stay at home mom with a 1 yr old son and a 6 yr old daughter with Down Syndrome. My husband is an over the road truck driver, so he's not home very often. We are home bodies, but we do take the occasional 1-3 day trip to Grandma's house.

I just got the OK from my landlord to get a bird or two...now what kind of bird, where to get it, and how many?? We don't have an entire room to dedicate to the birds, but we have a large, open living room/dining room/kitchen area where we hang out the most. I'm not too concerned with the level of noise they make. We don't have any light sleepers that might be bothered, but we don't really want LOUD constant noise. I have a lot of time here at home to spend with a bird or two, we would love the companionship.

My first thought was a parakeet(budgie) because they are relatively cheap to purchase. I've done tons of reading over the past few weeks and have talked to people at pet stores. We are kind of stuck on the "should we get one or two" question.

Recently someone suggested a cockatiel...Now, I didn't consider them before because out of a pet store they are rather pricey. But, I just found a pair for sale in my local paper for a decent price, cage included. I haven't done much reading on them, so any info you have would be greatly appreciated!

I was wondering if anyone had any opinions or advice? We had a parakeet when I was a kid, but I don't remember much of it. We are looking for something that will be a good companion for me and my family. A bird that will get to know my kids, but probably won't be handled by them until they are older.

In your opinion...
Which one is more social with their human family?
Is there much difference in care and maintenance?

Thanks so much!!

[kare_bear]

I would recommend a cockatiel, compared to a lot of birds they arent pricy at all. I would find a hand fed baby or tame adult as opposed to a pair that way your children and touch and handle them, supervised of course.

They are also IMO a more mellow bird and quieter than a lot of conures and such. Keeping a single allows them to bond more with you as compared to a pair where they can bond with each other and not want to have anything to do with you.

[hotrodhc]

Thanks

Like I said, we are really struggling with the 1 or 2 issue. I would like it better if the bird bonded with us rather than with a cage mate, but I would worry about it getting lonely if we are gone for a few days. Would it be worth the occasional lonliness to have a closer bond??

[loyallyroyal]

If you want a pair I would suggest linnies, they tend to stay very friendly in pairs: Lineolated Parakeets / Barred Parakeets or Catherine Parakeets: Species Information and Photos

[hotrodhc]

Those are VERY pretty!! But I didn't see any at our local pet stores :(

[loyallyroyal]

what state are you in? Breeders tend to be the cheaper route than pet stores.
At least here in CA, I know ekkies cost around $1600-1800 at our local bird stores, while mine only cost me $800 from a breeder.

[hotrodhc]

I'm in South Dakota. I haven't checked out breeders yet, I'll have to do that

[hotrodhc]

Well, I found a local gal who breeds cockatiels and should have a batch ready in a week or two!! They are cheaper than the pet store ones, and it sounds like they are raised in a family/home environment.

She said the next batch coming up are a darker grey with yellow/greenish heads. She is willing to let us come check them out before we pick one! I guess we'll be gathering our supplies over the next week or so!!

Is there anything anyone can think of the we should have that most books don't list. Or maybe something books recommend that a person doesn't really need??

We are getting so excited!!

[Razzle]

Hi hotrodhc!
Definitely go with this breeder you've found! ONE cockatiel baby, hand-fed and hand-raised, but fully weaned before you take it home.

Grey cockatiels are (generally) somewhat smarter than the lighter colors, but most people don't consider them to be as pretty. For myself, I think plain grey cockatiels are very pretty. They are also usually the cheapest. One cockatiel will not be lonely if you put it in the busiest room of the house, such as the living room, and if you leave the TV on when you are gone for the day. Any bird you own will need care every day, not like a cat or dog that you can leave at home with plenty of food and water for 2-3 days, so on long trips away from home you will need someone to stop by the house in the evening to cover the cage and in the morning to take the cover off so your bird can sleep properly, and to change the water every day as well as feed the bird. Better yet, ideally, you should take it with you (in a small travel cage is fine for the occasional few-day trip, just like a hotel room is fine for you for that amount of time) to grandma's house or wherever you're going. Birds need care every day but the care they need is simple compared to a dog. Some people may consider cats to be easier to care for, others may consider birds to be easier to take care of -- to me they're about the same.

As a general rule, your bird should be getting a minimum of 1-2 hours out of the cage every day. If you don't take it out on the occasional 2-3 day vacation or something then I doubt it'll freak out or anything, but then handle it more when you get home. You can handle the bird out of the cge for as many hours of the day as you'd like, but the important thing is to NOT close the cage door when the bird is out! If you leave it open, the bird can go back in the cage when it gets tired.

Tell the breeder your situation, and ask her to pick out the best cockatiel baby for your family in each available color and let you see those to pick between. One grey cockatiel will look pretty similar to another, one lutino will look pretty close to another, and so forth. Of course they are individuals like us, but it's probably best to let the breeder pick out the best example of each color, personality wise, for your situation. The breeder is probably more qualified to pick your bird than you are, but the FINAL choice should come down to you and your kids!

Feel free to bring your kids with you. They will be around the bird, so if the bird can't handle whatever behaviours they have while you're picking it out it probably won't be very happy in your home. You should narrow it down to the final choices, each one of which you'd be satisfied to go home with, then tell the kids it's up to them and let them make the decision. They aren't paying and don't have a concept of price, so they will make the best decision without being biased on pricing (which isn't very much difference, just a few dollars one way or the other usually.)

[hotrodhc]

Thanks everyone. I'm gonna go look for a cage tomorrow. There is a place I know of that's going out of business, so I'm hoping to get a good deal. Another idea my mom had was to look at second hand stores...of course it will need a good clean, but any cage will :)