Goffins, Bare eyed, or Ducorps????

[teresa567]

We are buying our first bird (I had birds as a kid) and after tons of research we have finally narrowed it down to a small cockatoo (the other choices were an amazon or an african grey). Anyways, I was set on the Goffin, but then heard that the other 2 both have similar personalities, but usually talk more and speak more clearly!! Can anyone give us advice? Do your Goffins talk? We live in Los Angeles and I know getting the speciality birds can be tough. Any advice would be appreciated!! Thanks, Teresa

[KimBear]

The Goffins we've worked with have all been pretty good talkers. I don't have any personal experience with Bare-eyeds or Ducorps but have talked to many people who really sing the praises of these cockatoos. I think that they are harder to find, though. It probably depends on where you live.

What I usually suggest when torn between different types of parrots, is that you visit different breeders, shops, etc and get to know some individuals, babies and adults if you can. Keep in mind that whatever a seller tells you may be clouded by their own preferences, and maybe even the fact that they're trying to sell you something. If you can get references from past customers with those species, that would be great.

Also, try to keep the focus on talking ability lower on your list of priorities. A talking parrot is a lot of fun, but there are so many more reasons to choose a certain kind of bird. Look at it as a "fringe benefit". You may fall in love with an individual bird, and years down the road, he or she may never utter a single word but you won't want to trade that bird for all the talking cockatoos in the world! Wow, wouldn't THAT be a noisy house!!

[TooLover]

I have a LSC who says one word, and one word only - "hello" - however, we love him to pieces and enjoy watching him as he is our clown of the bunch!
Good luck!