Any Bird People Here?

luvmagoldn

My boys are in LOVE with the movie Rio and now want a bird for a pet.  We only had dogs growing up and our golden retriever died a couple of years ago.  DH and I are allergic to cats and DS#3 is allergic to dogs so those are out as pets.

I know zero about having birds.  What has your experience been like?  Any good "starter birds" you recommend?

TIA! 

ariel06

I would recommend parakeets as a good starter bird.  They live around 5 years.  If you get anything bigger like a cockatiel or parrot, they can live for 40 years or more. 

Parakeets are trainable, but I've never had much luck training them to do more than sit on my finger.  They like interaction, so I would recommend putting their cage in a familiy room or somewhere you frequently are. 

They're somewhat low maintance.  You can stick a food stick in their cage and leave them for 3-4 days if needed. 

I would recommend a cage with a removable try for cleaning. 

axr8111

We grew up with birds. Gross. That's my memory of them. Their cages are always dirty with poop even right after cleaning (because I swear they poop constantly) and there is always a mess of food around the cage (because they are messy eaters). Plus they always seem to chirp loudly when you're on the phone. My parents always were into cockatiels (who by the way- our's never lived longer than 10 years like the pp mentioned- we must not have been good owners- clearly) so maybe it was a breed thing but I now hate birds as pets. 

My kids do also love birds and how I get their fix is two ways..

-take them to a pet store (like Petsmart even) and let them see all birds for as long as they'd like. It's free and I can pick up dog food at the same time

-take them to the zoo. Our zoo has a Lorakeet area where you can feed the birds cups of apple juice. They love it and I don't have to have a gross dirty bird in my house.  

rescueddogmom

I'm just lurking on this board, but I have two birds, a cockatiel and a green cheek conure and I have worked at an avian veterinary clinic.  Birds are a HUGE commitment, as much as a dog or cat, IMO, or more if you consider how long they live.  In fact, I have two 75lb dogs and my birds are a lot more needy.  Unless you get a finch, your bird will require a lot of social time with you and your family.  Parrots are very social and intelligent creatures and they cannot just be left in a cage to be admired.  They want to be out of their cages (safely) with you for a portion of the day.  They need interaction, plenty of mental stimulation, and a healthy diet (pelleted diets are easy and good) to prevent problem behaviors and/or health issues.

If you get a bird, be prepared to make a commitment of many years; even a smaller species like a cockatiel can live 20 years with good care.  Veterinary care for birds is often expensive because you have to take them to a specialized exotics veterinarian.  Birds can also be prone to bad behaviors like screaming, biting, feather picking, or incessant egg laying, depending on the species.  And then there is the constant pooping, like pp said.  Mine are trained to poop on their playground when they are out of their cages, but accidents do happen.

But, there are the good things!  My conure is a complete clown and loves to snuggle and give kisses.  He loves to be around people and will completely show off for attention.  He also says a few words including "I love you."  Green cheek conures aren't great talkers, so I was surprised when I heard him talk the first time.  My cockatiel is kind of annoying, but I love her.  She's a one-person bird (me) which puts a lot of pressure on me to make her happy.  All she wants it to sit on me and get head scratches.

If you are serious about getting a bird and are willing to take the time to research different species, I would recommend looking into a rescue group from which to adopt.  Just like dogs and cats, there are a lot of homeless birds out there.  Some have issues, and some just landed in a family that wasn't willing to make the commitment and were abandoned.  You can search for birds on Petfinder. 

I hope I'm not just sounding like a know-it-all!  Even for a bird lover like me, my own can really try my patience sometimes.  I just want people to know what they are getting into.  I'm usually on the October board if you want to page me or PM me for more info.  It sounds like with the right information, you could be a really great home for a parrot because of your kids and not having other pets.  My conure is nuts about kids and nothing makes him happier than when my nephews come over and play with him.  Good luck! 

mbritto4

I agree with birds being messy. I remember bird sitting my parent's friend's parakeets Pete & Repeat and Mom making a big deal out of it being my job. I was 13 so thought I was hot ***. Until they got seeds & feathers all over my floor and one liked to chirp at 5am. Our family friends had a canary that used to sit on the top rung of it's cage to lay eggs. Not a bright bird. My DD loves Rio too but we're sticking with bird feeders in the yard and visiting the aviary at the zoo.

luvmagoldn

Ok - you all have talked me out of it.  DH is a super clean freak and having poo, feathers and bird seed everywhere would skeeve him out completely!

I also did a little Google searching and found that a lot of bird seed mixtures have peanuts and tree nuts in them.  We definitely cannot have that around because of the boys' food allergies.

{sigh} And the hunt continues.  Thanks to all for the great information.

Vattica

Maybe a stuffed rio bird? My daughter loves Rio too, but we have lots of other animals, so she isn't hooked on getting a bird specifically (she does love the two chickens though).