Need Advice on Rainbow Lory

[Rosiedoll]

Hi all! :) I'm new here.. I'm from Nashville, TN and currently have three parakeets. I have come across a Rainbow Lory that is in need of a new home.. I am not familiar with Rainbow Lories, but have done quite a bit of research and know the basic information. I am going to meet this little guy Friday evening and possible adopt him.. He's two years old and the owner moved into an apartment and didn't want to pay the pet deposit and his wife will be having a baby soon, so they don't want extra responsibility. Now, on the the questions:

What is the average lifespan of a Rainbow Lory?
How big are they, on average?
Are they typically loud birds (do they scream often, etc.)?
How capable are they of talking?
(The guy mentioned that he can mumble a few words, but how successful would I be in teaching him a number of words to say clearly?)
I have been told that he nips at times (current owner said due to lack of attention lately). How hard will it be to overcome this?

Ok, Sorry for all of the questions.. I just want to have a better understanding of what to expect. I'm sure that I will have additional questions soon. Thanks for any/all help.

[LGood22573]

I'm in Nashville too! I saw that ad for the Lory. Did you see it on Craigslist? You can get a rainbow for about $250 from a breeder or a bird show and I'm thinking they were asking some outrageous amount (if it is the same people).

Rainbows are not that big, fairly small really.
My lory was L-O-U-D and screamed on a regular basis. I'm sure it differs between species. I had a red lory.
He was quite the talker
He lived to be 16 years old, but it really depends on the species. The life span is debatable, I seem to come up with something different everywhere I look or who I ask. Feel free to email me if you want to chat more about it.

[Rosiedoll]

Thanks for the reply! Yep, that's the one from Craigslist. I gave the guy a call and we are going to go out there tomorrow to meet him. I have to admit that I am a little nervous that he's going to be too loud. We currently live in an apartment and I don't want to risk disturbing the neighbors. But I guess we'll ust have to meet him first to get an idea of his personality. With the "adpotion fee", we would be getting the bird, his cage, a travel cage (not too sure what this will consist of), and all of the supplies.

[BiiRDiiELuV805]

Lorikeets can live to be 35 (so my books say)
They are a bit bigger than a sun conure
They are VERY LOUD, they have diffrent shrills ( i would not recomend buying one if you live in an apartment because they are really loud, but then again i wouldnt be able to resist lol)
Mine can talk way better than my african grey, Monkey can say "you be nice", Come here, come on", "Give me a little kiss, muahz muahz", "hey buddy", "Whaaaaaaaaat", and he whispers oh my my my baby, he also kisses his teddy bear its adorable.
I think all lorikeets nip, both Monkey and Frenchy were handfed and are friendly but still bite (especially when excited)
Also i would recommend that you try using toys that dont have cotton rope or sisal because they love swinging from toys and can get their fat toes tangled up, also cotton and rope toys are very hard to clean considering lorikeets shoop wet liquid poop, i try to use plastic,acrylic and leather toys.

[LGood22573]

I think lories are "nippy" in general too, but I wasn't sure I should post it. LOL I'm sure some people will disagree. Mine when he got excited -WATCH OUT- attack bird! But occasionally just out of the blue, he would NAIL me for no reason, and then return to his "sweetie" mode. I would hate for you to get him and then have to rehome him because he was too loud in the apartment. It's hard to explain, but they have a shrill that will knock your socks off. But I've never had a rainbow, so not sure if they have that same scream. Ashling would know.

I just noticed birdie has 2 rainbows- so she should know!

[Rosiedoll]

Darn.. I am a little worried now about the noise. We're going to meet him tomorrow, so I guess we'll just see. One good thing about our apartments are that they used to be condos, so they are well insulated and don't have the typical thin walls that most apartments have..
As for the nipping thing.. My parakeets also nip at times, but they are, of course, smaller.
I had to take one of my parakeets back to the vet today and was able to speak with him for a few minutes about his opinions on Ranbow Lories, etc.
Guess we'll just have to see how the meeting goes tomorrow and take it from there! Thanks for all of the advice! :)

[LGood22573]

Who do you use for a vet? I use Dr. Lutz, but I'm thinking about switching.

Lisa

[BiiRDiiELuV805]

Oh a budgie bite is nothing compared to a lorie, their beaks are unbelievably sharp, i dont want to discurage i think that if you really want him and are willing to work with him GO FOR IT, and if you have questions or need advice feel free to ask, mine just had their first clutch (only 1 baby) and are now sitting on 2 eggs
P.S i dont think you will ever meet another bird as playfull as a lorie 9their like kittens who shoot poop lol

[Rosiedoll]

I use a vet in Bellevue. He's at Belle Forest Animal Hospital. For the life of me, I can't think of his name at the moment.. But it'll come to me. I think he's the only regular Exotics vet. They have one that fills in at times, but the one that I can't think of his name is wonderful! I spent quite a bit of time talking to him yesterday when I took my parakeet in.. We discussed Rainbow Lories for quite a while.
The guy that has the Rainbow is supossed to call me this evening after an appointment for me to go out there and meet him. For some reason, I have a feeling that he won't call.. but we'll see.
My vet said that I should be able to learn alot about the Rainbow's personality within a few minutes.

[Rosiedoll]

Dr. Talbott! That's his name! At Belle Forest Animal Hospital (615) 662-1700. They really are great there! Let me know if you have any questions.. :)