i need advice!

[jessica313]

i would suggest a conure.. maybe a sun or jenday... although everyone elses suggestions are good as well!

[Lori L]

Originally Posted by jessica313

i would suggest a conure.. maybe a sun or jenday... although everyone elses suggestions are good as well!

I would not recommend those birds for an apartment as they are VERY loud. Very lovely birds but VERY loud

[cpryslek]

a meyer parrots are quiet birds,too. im owned by one.her name is cuddles. meyers are of the african speices. she can immatate alot of different sounds. like my cell phone,mircowave, and alot of different noices. they are not to big on talking. btw,we live in an apt,too. and am also owned by a bh caique,sassy.

[GlendaNS]

My Amazon is a screamer. She can match a Too any day.

My CAG never screams... well.... she screams "SHUT-UP!" at my Amazon when she gets on a roll. LOL

[jessica313]

i didnt know conures were very loud, although i have a green cheek is is soo well behaved he never screams.. i suggested a sun or jenday because they are more of a medium sized bird, however if those are loud, i take back my suggestion

[Lori L]

Originally Posted by jessica313

i didnt know conures were very loud, although i have a green cheek is is soo well behaved he never screams.. i suggested a sun or jenday because they are more of a medium sized bird, however if those are loud, i take back my suggestion

A green cheeked is the quieter of the conures. The loudest conures are jenday, nanday and sun. As you just proved, loudness really depends on the actual bird so it's really hard to make generalizations. Senegals, meyers, red-bellied are also great med size birds that tend not to be loud.

[GlendaNS]

Check out a parrotlet. They are small, but they are an awesome little bird. Just like having a minature big parrot! My Son just bought one from a breeder. It is the cutest, friendly, and smart!!!@@!@!!! They can talk too!

[homebird]

All birds are noisy - some are worse than others. Some can sing but they're not parrots [although my Budgie kind of sings/twitters to music- at least he can keep time & followthe beat.]
The problem is they are often more quiet at first as they size up their new environment. My parents' Tiels can really belt it out in the morning - especially Mo the male. Tiels come in lots of mutations now & some colours - they aren't a terribly colourful bird - the pearls [especially the hens] are lovely.
Grass Parakeets can be very colourful. The Bourke’s [a distinct grass parakeet] is a little gem & has mutations like the rest. There are a lot in this category. They aren’t known for being cuddly. I fell in with a little Swift Parakeet at the pet store but found out that like a lot of Rosellas they are happiest in a aviary setting even though they are small.

I spent years working on this. I was very surprised to end up with a Budgie [I really thought a bigger bird was what I wanted & I still love them] - in the end it seemed the best idea & now I'm as happy as can be. Laker is a hoot & very fun to have around an apartment. Because he’s small he can go on tour in his cage everywhere & his out times are controlled to our closeable rooms – away from the balcony. This would be an issue with any bird but because he’s small & his cage is too it is easier to handle. He is also very easy to handle even when he’s in a bad mood as Budgies aren’t able to hurt you like the rest. [check out all the colours in the photo threads]

However the choice is not always clear & I appreciate what you’re going thru.

Another idea came to me when I was looking - older animals show their personality right up front – the changes in larger birds as they mature can be extreme as they loose that sweet baby cuddliness & then again when they reach sexual maturity - so research is very important. You can post questions in each section to get specific answers about species.

I read tons of Bird Talk & British Bird Mags. I got every book I could out of the local library as well. The internet is good to look at species but beware - each breeder will tell you how great their birds are - & no offence to them but they are very prejudiced & driven by sales. Bird Rescues will open your eyes to the type of birds most often abandoned or need a forever home due to no fault of their own. They also offer bonded pairs – something that might work for you if you think your bird will need a buddy due to your availability.

Quakers, Lovebirds, & Brown Headed or it’s close relative the Meyers might be OK. All these birds can be cuddly but can be a handful if you have no experience. Green Cheek Conures GCC [& their wide variety of sub-species or closely linked species???] are also a great little Parrot. They may be the best for you to check out.

[kathleen]

I'm so glad to hear African Greys are apartment suitable. I RREEAALLYY want one and I'm slated to inherit one. I also live in an apartment and have a Quaker who I absolutely adore. He's noisy sometimes but no one seems to complain. He's near the window and I think he kinda just blends into enviornment noise. He's quiet at night, after I cover him. He's not so exotic, though, since Quaker's can be found in NY, NJ, CT living free. Some states they are illegal so double check that where you live. Good luck with your search. This forum will be a wealth of information for you.

[Valo's Moirana]

I have a green cheek conure (GGC). I live in an appartment as well (1 bedroom - and that's all I have left and still need to share it with the fid, but Valo successfully took over the living room ). I have to say I love green cheeks - they are quiet (don't make much noise if you give them sufficient attention), they are funny and entertaining , full of character and absolutely adorable. As a little bonus, they're also very cuddly - at least Valo is. But be prepared that they're quite a handful which needs work and time.
I used to have Tiels and I have to say that the volume of these birds exceeds the loudness of GGC by far. However, they are cute cute cute. With respect to conures, stay away from sun and nandays since they are quite vocal and let you AND your neighbours know when they want attention.
Parakeets (Budgies) are great companions too, and their noise level is appropriate for an appartment living situation. And their size allows having multiple ones too.
I've never had a parrotlett, but my BF is considering getting one. From what I came across so far, these birds are great too but a little more difficult to get.

Hope my little opinion helps.