Ot: Any Bird Keepers out There???

[gemini aquarius(t)]

i would like to know if there are any bird keepers out there if so what kind of bird is it.

im getting african grey and cockatoo egg for free:D

[drake66]

i got some cockatiels, i know they arent 'exotic' but they're so neat I had em since they were b abies, and they eat from my hand and sing whenever me or my dad come around :D

[buddyzs]

I suggest you do ALOT ALOT ALOT of info on the birds, specially on the egg.. I know that the babies required alot alot of care...good luck

[gemini aquarius(t)]

thx ive been reading and it sounds very advanced but heck ill do what i have to untill i have to pull out the wallet then i will hesitate

drake thats cool ive not had good results with cockateils becaue they were either afraid of males or the other one had been neglected

[lesniewv]

If you have had trouble with cockatiels in the past, I suggest you do lot of research on the larger parrots before taking this on.

We have a grey and we absolutley adore him. Very interactive, loves to talk to us and hang out (even though he will poop on you still) and has a different bond with all the members of the family, including the 2 dogs. Truly a smart pet that grows and adapts as the family dynamics change.

However, please do a lot of research. Greys are loud, dirty and demanding pets. They are also very destructive if not constantly supervised (picture a puppy in the chewing phase for the rest of their lives...you can't leave them alone for a minute, ever!). If we were to compare the attention demands of our dogs and the bird, the bird is 10x as much work and demands 10x as much attention. If you don't give it to him when he wants it, he'll pepper you with the most obnoxious screams and god awful sounds until you leave the room or pay attention to him....they won't be ignored. A clean house is almost impossible as well. Feathers, water, lots and lots of poop and various remnants of food are everywhere.

Hate to be a party buster, but we have a friend who is a key member of a parrot rescue in PA. It is sad to see how many people don't do their home work and end up getting rid of their birds after a short while. There seems to be a flood of birds in shelters and papers, and no one wants to pay for someone elses problems, so they're hard to get rid of.

Please make sure you understand they are not a typical pet. Having a dog or cat is not even close to the commtiment you need to make for a grey. If you're ready for him, you'll be rewarded for many decades, but I have seen the opposite the majority of times, and its really sad.

[BrookR1]

I have a Sun Conure and a Canary...and I'll echo lesniewv's comments. They are demanding animals. I wouldn't even attempt a grey until you've had success with something easier like a cockateil, budgie or conure. Without proper attention, many of them go insane and begin to pull out their feathers.

There's an excellent resource in OC called the Parrot Education and Adoption Center (PEAC) that provides free education seminars to members (membership is like $20 per year). They hold these seminars in OC. Check out www.peac.org for more information. At the very minimum, buy and read the Parrot Companion Handbook by Sally Blanchard. This book will help you understand what's involved in keeping a bird.

[gemini aquarius(t)]

ohh i have had success with the cockatiels and a lot of budgies its just that the cockatiels didnt like me

[1FatBlenny]

i'll be the third to relate to the 2 previous guys.
i had a conure as well. mango was his name because of his green/yellow/orange colors.
yes they die for attention and are very very loud, but fun as heck to play with.
to get my bird to shut up, i stuck an odd object like a pencil in the cage. it was afraid of it so it kept him quiet.
letting them out of the cage will shut them up too. they'll usually hang out on top of the cage. my bird was smart and since i didnt have a lock on it, he figured out how to open the door by watching me do it.
another thing is to keep their wings clipped. mine didnt really care for flying, but he like being near people. so instead of just chilling on top of his cage, he aways flew to me and most of the time land on my shoulder and stay.

parrots are awesome companions and you'll have lots of stories to tell. but just remember you'll have to deal with the constant noise. and poop cleaning, and food changing everyday.make sure you hide anything thats valuable, because they love to destroy anything they can get their beaks on. i guess thats my advice.

[1SickReefer]

I agree with les and brook,
I have an African Grey and he is the greatest pet I have ever owned he is 6 and will likely live for 100 more years, well after I am gone. . Very smart and has a vocabulary of over 500 words and sentences. including many bad bad words that he has picked up "here and there" lol. his name is brody and he has 2 LARGE iron cages with playtops, 1 on each floor we spend most of our time on. His cage is never locked (except for nighttime) and he is not loud, he does not make annoying sounds at all. his sounds are words and the noises he picks up around the house, he loves to bark and meow as we have a dog. he tells my dog on a regular basis to "go lay down" in a nice stern voice lol. Brody is the first to answer the phone when it rings, first ring he says "hello" and if it continues to ring he will repeat our entire answering machine recording lol (even though we have not had a answering machine for 2 years, got VM now). They are very messy though and require ALOT of maintenance they are like children, they want to be in everything you are doing and cant stand to be left alone. If my wife and I are in the basement and he is upstairs in the living room the next thing you will hear is toenails across the floor as heads our way.
Our bird beg's for food worse than my dog, you can find both of them sitting side by side and the foot and the dinner table waiting for scrapes. Spaghetti is his favorite, or any noodle type for that matter. he also loves to take showers, and times when we go upstairs he says "wanna get a shower babe". I could go on and on about him. they are truly fascinating creatures. I wish you the best of luck.

I would not suggest a parrot to anyone that does not have a stable lifestyle with plenty of home time. If you buy a parrot and cage it up and show it no attention it will very likely pull all it feathers out.

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a259/jbirdjjones10/DSC07424.jpg

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a259/jbirdjjones10/DSC07423.jpg

[tokitay]

I have a Moloucan cockatoo, and have had him for twenty years. Think very long and hard about getting a bird. They are unlike any other pet. The birds you are talking about have life spans of 50 years or more! That means they are forever!

They are also VERY LOUD!!! and VERY DIRTY!!! I have had several macaws, and our cockatoo. I WOULD NOT do it over again.

[tptp279]

haha... well, this would be the reason why not to get them at all... if you are getting eggs, the eggs have to be turned i believe every 4-6 hours, when they hatch, you have to keep them very warm/hot for about 2 1/2 months. and when they do hatch, newborns must be fed every 2 hours or so for the first like two weeks. then it's add an hour after the first two weeks. they also need to be feed at night. it's a LOT of work, i use to handfeed cockatiels and if you don't know what you are doing, then don't do it because you might end up very disappointed if you loose one.

[dragonladylea]

We raise birds to but not your indoor kind of pets, we raise Pheasants, Bobwhite Quail, Gambels Quail and Valley Quail and even these are alot of work. I have fed birds every 2 hours by hand, doctored severed feet and infected eyes.

You never learn everything there is to birding but you need to learn as much as you can before birding!!;)

[hammerhead]

I have a Congo she is 3. She likes to watch the fish

http://www.mrrobertson.com/tank-bird.jpg

http://www.mrrobertson.com/jewel.jpg

[peskyfish]

We have 2 African Grey's...one word describes them..AMAZING! I could write stories about them all night!The intelligence of these birds is something else. We also have 2 pionus...not as amazing;)

[drake66]

here's the trio ^_^ http://jaxxtonio.onestop.net/trio.jpg

[BrookR1]

Oh sheesh...since we're now sharing pics.

http://tinypic.com/fwlj6t.jpg

[drake66]

haha cute! :rollface: what kind of bird is that

[BrookR1]

It's a Sun Conure...he's very playful and loves attention/cameras.

[gemini aquarius(t)]

yeah i know about the feeding and turnings and so i asked the guy if he could wait untill there like a month onld so well see what he says nice pics every one but i love the greys on this page

[peskyfish]

Hey GA(t),
Are you getting both a Grey and a Cockatoo at the same time? I hope you know what you are getting yourself into, they are both very demanding birds, especially a cockatoo(What kind of cockatoo are you getting?) It's hard to find the time for our bird's and they do get jealous if you play with one and not the other, biting jealous! ;) These parrots can act just like a 2 year old would.

[gemini aquarius(t)]

well im getting 3 birds a umbrella cockatoo a palm cockatoo(whahoo) and a congo african grey but i will probly sell the either palm and umbrella or the palm and the congo so well see

[peskyfish]

You are getting a palm cockatoo?wow!, those guy's are big bucks $$$$$$ Sell it :)

[gemini aquarius(t)]

yeah i know
thanks you want it lol

[gemini aquarius(t)]

how much do they go for i couldnt find it online

[peskyfish]

Originally posted by gemini aquarius(t)
how much do they go for i couldnt find it online
I heard they are worth anywhere from $8-15k is the norm,not many around.

[peskyfish]

Originally posted by gemini aquarius(t)
yeah i know
thanks you want it lol
I'll trade you a whole colony of a superman danae for one.... ;)

[gemini aquarius(t)]

sounds like a deal

wow 8-15k i hope i get one

[1SickReefer]

http://www.goldencockatoo.com/birds/blackpalm.html

$14,000 WOW!!!!!.

[gemini aquarius(t)]

yeah thats what im saying

now im starting to think

why would someone give a kid a 14000 dollar palm a 1300 dollar congo and a 2200 dollar umbrella for free

i dont know if it is a scam or stolen goods or he just doesnt know what there worth but i cirtianly would keep this guy if i got him but he hasnt responded to my emails in a while so we will see

thanks
xavier

[1SickReefer]

And personally if you get any parrot in the egg stage it will most likely not live with your lack of avian experience! Newly hatched parrot require feeding at least once every 2 hours? don't you have school for at least 6 hours of the day???, I could not help but see that you are 13 years old, these parrots are NOT going to be what you think they are should be left upto the experienced bird keeper.

Are these birds really for your parents and you just calling it yours? I would hope this is the case.

[gemini aquarius(t)]

no it would be mine but i asked him if he would give them to me when they are like a month old or older

[gemini aquarius(t)]

but i do know what parrots need and i am willling to give them it !!!!!!!!

[peskyfish]

jbirdjjones10 is right, it does take a lot of time and experience.

FYI- In California, it is illegal to sell just anybody unweaned birds. A recently passed law.

[1SickReefer]

That's is better at least. But listen my friend, birds are ALOT of work, more than an reef tank could ever be. They require ALOT of attention and specialized and varied diets. Vet check ups etc. I just really want you to know what kinda of responsibility you are going to take on if you acquire one or all of these birds, it is a massive job IMO not to be taken on by such a young person as yourself.

They are loud, messy, destructive, annoying, persistent and very demanding animals.....but I do love mine dearly and would never give him up....and he is in my will for when god calls my name.

Best of luck
Jbird

[peskyfish]

At least you are getting them when you are at a young age, since most parrots out live their owners. The bird-shop I go to has a Amazon that is 101 years old!!!

[gemini aquarius(t)]

peskyfish
well hes giving them to me so hes not selling them
where do you go
jbird i am aware of that as the last 2 pages have been "dont get a bird there this and theres that"

[tptp279]

well, not to get your hopes up or anything but palm cockatoo's are on the endangered species list, i think they are actually illegal to keep without a permit because they are trying to breed them to put back into the wild. If it is a palm, be very cautious because if the state finds out, you will either be fined and have it taken away or just have it taken away. The only way you can actually get one is through smuggling since it's suppose to be extremely difficult and demanding to breed in captivity, so i doubt this is a palm cockatoo. the guy that you are speaking with, is he legite because you said you were emailing him. another thing is that you want the chicks when they are 2-3 weeks depending on the size. if you get them any older, they don't accept you as the new parent sometimes and will starve. if any younger, as in eggs, their immune system will generally crash from lack of nutrience. i mean, it's possible for a kid to do it even with school because at 2-3 weeks, the feeding cycle is about every 3-4 hours, you just have to have someone feed them when your at school. that's how i did it when i was in 7th grade till my senior year of graduation when i was breeding birds. But if this is some guy emailing you from like out of state or something, then it would be a scam.

[peskyfish]

Originally posted by gemini aquarius(t)
peskyfish
well hes giving them to me so hes not selling them

ga(t), I'm not sure how it works if he is giving them to you.

I was also wondering about the palm cockatoo and its status in the trade. I thought they where Illegal. I belong to the South Bay Bird Society and have not seen anybody who owns one.

[gemini aquarius(t)]

whats the sbbs?
is there a web site?
whats your opinion?is it good?
in this case it probly is a scam

[peskyfish]

http://www.sobaybirdsoc.com/
There are very knowledgeable people at this club. Its a very good club. How do you know this person who is giving you these birds.
It could be a scam.

[golfish]

When we first got married we bought a Nanday Conure at the swap meet, mean bastard it was. We used to put the bird in the backyard when the weather was nice. It didn't take long till we had a wild one fly down on the cage. The first one was clipped so I just opened the cage and the wild bird went in. Once we had two it was too much to handle so we gave em both to my father-in-law. He had a bunch kids so I figured they could handle it. One years later they had 5 birds, they got em then same way we got our second one. There are tons of wild parrots flying around So Cal..I've seen flocks of 50+ Mexican red heads in Rosemead and Temple City.

We had a neighbor in Temple City that used put his Blue N Gold Macaw out on a perch in his front yard. He came home from work one day and guess what? yup, there were two on the perch.

[birdman204]

Originally posted by dragonladylea
You never learn everything there is to birding but you need to learn as much as you can before birding!!;)
Sounds like another hobby I know about...


From that page about the bird...
These birds are amoung the highest level of endangered species for two reasons. First, their native country,Papua-New Ginea, is rapidly being developed, thereby displacing the prime breeding grounds for these reclusive, fantastic creatures. Second, ABRC, the largest breeder of Black Palm Cockatoos, (and the breeder of our birds) has recently been sold off by the original owner's son. Their breeding stock has been shipped all over the world, and without this source of Black Palms, we believe there chances survival has been decreased significantly. We encourage anyone with the resources to put together breeding pairs of these birds to assist in their domestic reproduction.
If you do get the bird.... I suggest the above.....
Funny how the page continues on about being able to get more though.. and just a breath before, making the above statement.
Makes you think about the motive of some people. I assume the majority of the $$$ would be going toward continuing the species.
Birds are cool, but I appreciate my sleep more. Anyone wanna buy 2 Black Masked Lovebirds ? :D