Pionus vs. Eclectus

[Husker001]

Ok, I've been researching for several months and hoping to buy/rescue either an Eclectus or a Pionus. I'm sure some on here are thinking how could one come to that conclusion. I've read all of the special diet needs of an Eclectus and could recite them all, but I'm 50/50 right now.

Part of me says if I'm going to have a bird forever that I'd prefer one that can talk and is a bit flashier, obviously the Eclectus wins that category.

I work from home and would hope to have the bird in my office a great portion of the day and I've heard that both are relatively quiet for parrots. Obviously that could depend on the individual bird.

I understand cost is more on an Eclectus, not an issue.

I have a 4 year old child and a 6 year old child. I'm not looking for them to necessarily hold the bird, but I also don't want them to be fearful of approaching the cage. We have a dog (boxer) and my daughter would like to get a cat sometime in the future. We have 4200 sq foot of space in our house, so there is room for them to have their space.

I'm looking for any pro's/con's on one over the other, especially if anyone has owned both. I COMPLETELY understand that each bird would be unique and that a blanket statement doesn't always suffice, but I've read so much and there is a lot of conflicting information out there as well that a real world experience probably would mean more.

The one thing I'm noticing with rescues is that there tends to be more Eclectus and more of them with issues (feather plucking). My hope is that it was due to nutrition issues and they will be able to hopefully reverse that issue. I don't see Pionus in rescue situations with that same issue, so I'm wondering if that may just be the ease of the diet in comparison to the Eclectus.

Thanks

[KDK241]

I have very limited experiene with Eclectus so I'm not much help there. While I don't have a ton of experience with pionus, I have only had mine for 3 weeks now, I did do a lot of reading about them before hand. I can say that I absolutely adore my white capped pionus. He's very calm, laid back, easy going...so unlike my tiels and keets. He is quiet, the loudest noise he makes is still quieter than my keets. He likes to hang out on me and loves to cuddle but he is also happy on his playstand and cage. He's very undemanding most of the time and he can be stubborn when he wants to be. I actually like that about him. He is 10 years old but so far he has not had a problem with going to other people in the family as long as I pick him up first and hand them to them. He has been around my cousins who are 5 & 8 and had no problems with them petting him. The only thing about pionus is that they generally don't give a warning before biting. At least that's what I've read and heard from other people, Monty hasn't bit me yet so I can't speak from experience. Some species of pionus are more likely to talk, Maxi and blue headed are a couple of them but of course, keep in mind that no matter what kind of bird you get there is no guarantee it will talk.
If you can, I would try and find breeders in your area that breed the species of birds you are interested in and go handle them. See if you can handle the babies and the adults. If you are looking at getting an older rescue then contact the rescue and go see the birds that they have. Bring the whole family, that way you know how the bird will react to everyone. A hand fed baby that is well socialized with everyone from the beginning is a great way to go but there are a lot of great older birds as well. That might be the way to go since you will know more about how the bird acts. That being said, Monty's original owner said he was a one person bird and absolutely hated her son and husband from day one. His last owner did not have a problem with that and so far neither have I so birds can change. A bird that loves everyone might become a one person bird and a bird that is a one person bird might decide to love everyone. Sometimes you will go see birds and a certain bird will just "click" with you and that's the one you have to have. (That's why I don't go look at birds anymore, lol)

[danforth3]

I have a maxi pi and she is great with my son. She is totally unflappable around my son (who has ADHD). I have fostered an ekkie and it did not like the activity level of my son and did not like him being around.

[flyingfluff]

I don't own either species, so what I say could be totally off. But from what I can tell, eclectus parrots are not quiet! But they can be great talkers. And yes, they are known to become pluckers, which unfortunately isn't always due to the wrong diet. They can be sensitive birds and tend to be one person birds. (I think... someone correct me if I'm wrong).
Pi on the other hand are relatively quiet. They can learn to say a few words, but they aren't great talkers like eclectus and african greys. They are also a lot more independent compared to an eclectus. They like attention like any bird, but they aren't really cuddly.

Both are great species, but keep in mind every bird is an individual. Lots of luck!

[Dani#2]

Originally Posted by KDK241

The only thing about pionus is that they generally don't give a warning before biting.

Not so. Pionus body language is totally different from most other birds. Macaws will usually smooth their head feathers down, and pin, hold out their wings.....whereas a Pionus will usually fluff up the head feathers, a slightly open beak, and their eyes move very deliberately, it's hard to explain. I have a picture of my pi, VERY ticked off, on my webpage.

I haven't been bitten by my Jezebel in 4 years, because I learned very early that a mini macaw with a puffy head is usually wants physical contact, and a pionus with a puffy head is warning you.

Tail flare is a good warning too. They are similar to Amazons in their body language.

Sorry, didn't mean to hijack the thread, just wanted to point out the warning signs.

As far as Pi's vs. Eclectus, I can't help ya much there, but I would absolutely recommend a pionus if you want a quiet bird.

Remember, just because an ekkie has better ability to speak, doesn't mean it will.

[loyallyroyal]

"to be one person birds"
Ive never heard of ekkies being one person birds or experienced that. Mine LOVES everybody.

Ive definitely heard of Pionuses being quiet birds, thats why I originally looked into getting one.
I wouldnt describe an ekkie like that, they tend to match the noise level of the room. Mine is louder in the evening when all the little wild birds fill up the ficus tree in front of his window, he will sit and talk forever! He talks up a storm in his baby gibberish.

This is what Dewey sounds like this: YouTube - Taj chattering

[Halo]

I haven't met a pi yet... but I have met an ekkie who came to visit us with her owner and she liked everyone here even though she had never met us before. She stepped right up, gave kisses, talked up a storm, even with my six year old children. So I don't think they are really one person birds.

[FoxersArtist]

I think the most notable difference between Pionus parrots and eclectus is that pionus tend to be much more easy going and relaxed. They roll with the punches so to speak and are very adaptable birds. I think I have seen one plucked pionus in my entire life and imagine that diet played a big part in that behavior. As far about being more bonded with one person in the family - yes, I have seen this trend with Pi's but socializing him or her with the whole family right away will help. I think a pionus parrot would be an excellent choice with a family who has smaller children.

Eclectus are a bit introverted. They are somewhat shy and they can be a bit high strung. They are very thoughtful and almost kind of day-dreamy at times. Their diets are much more complicated than some other species of parrot but I doubt that plays a *huge* role in why they are known for plucking. Nearly all eclectus become very hormonal when they hit maturity and females are renound for egg laying and plucking due to hormones after the age of 5. Many female eclectus become so nippy once they reach maturity that they are unmanageable. Males do a little bit better, but they still have a very high ratio of plucking and I have known people who have kept their eclectus in fantastic condition only to be heartbroken when they start plucking anyway. I have never known eclectus to be one person birds. If they are friendly, they tend to like everyone. It's kin d of an all or nothing with them!

Both pionus and eclectus are known to be more quiet than some of the other parrot species, but I would not suggest adopting an eclectus if you have a very active household with small children as this could be very unnerving for an eclectus parrot. Good luck.

-Anna

[loyallyroyal]

Ive never heard of pionuses plucking either. The plucking factor really scared me too, I almost skipped the ekkie for a pi just for that reason. I havent met to many pionuses though, all I remember was this one had a very distinct smell, as was a little cuddlebug.

"active household with small children"
I guess Im out of the question lol

"introverted. They are somewhat shy and they can be a bit high strung"
I read a lot about that myself, ahh, Laura Desborough (dont know if that is how you spell it) who wrote all I believe 4 major articles on eclectus in Bird Talk says this too. She also makes them out as kind of lethargic and not very playful.
My experiences with ekkies isnt quite what Ive read about though.

I myself, when I got Dewey, came with very wrong expectations on what I read, I expected a very sensitive bird, that liked everything very quiet, who wasnt very active or playful, and rather than be the center of attention liked to observe from the sidelines. This was the impression I got from the 4month old ekkies at our local bird store, who were very lethargic and slow moving. Also a lot of books on ekkies and articles described them this way.
Little did I know how wrong I was when I went to go meet Dewey at the breeders...

I really do think the problem is there is a lot of misinformation on ekkies and each individual bird is different.

I truly think if you go ekkie or pi you really should look into a good breeder who really well socializes their birds. I mean you could end up with an ekkie or a pi who is a screaming, plucking, biting mess. It really depends on that bird and their personality.

So why not go meet breeders who breed pionuses and ekkies, play with thier babies and make a decision from there.

Good Luck in your decision.

[ilovetoby]

I've known pionus to be good with kids (generally). Not an expert on ekkies, tho. :)