# Introducing....



## Bryony2205 (Jun 12, 2010)

...Benji the Beautiful!!!

Here is Benji the 6yr old semi-tame Australian King Parrot. He has been living with us for a few weeks now and we recently upgraded him into a palatial new cage and it has been the making of him - he is becoming more adventurous and brave, and is constantly on the go -playing with new toys and clambering about.
He is settling in with us and has started to let us stroke him on the beak and head, and will take food from our hands so hopefully that's a sign he likes us! He is a little on the podgy side as he rarely had time out of his cage in his previous home and is a clumsy flier as a result. He recently decided that the clothes airer would make a great perch for him so this weekend we bought him a stand and he is getting better and better at flying back and forth to his cage. He is quite the chatter box - saying Benji, Benjamin, What you doin? Get in your bed (he previously lived in a home with dogs), he barks, meows, whistles the MacDonalds theme tune, and various other little ditties! He has shrieked a very few times but it has only been a few times - last night for example he had a tantrum when Jayme didn't open up his cage quick enough. He is out every morning before work, and every evening once we are home. He loves Eastenders, and if he sees the dragons roaming around on the floor he will throw a seed out of his cage for them! 
He loves his food, but we would like to slim him down just a little, so any birdie diet advice will be appreciated! We give him fresh fruit and veg everyday but he is used to grazing on his nut and seed mix which we are reducing daily. 
He _has_ learnt where the Pistachios and monkey nuts are kept though!

We were looking for so long to find the right bird for us, and although he isn't what we planned we are completely in love and couldn't imagine having something else now. Maybe one day we will get him a friend, but for now we a quite happy having him all to our selves! 

Anyway, here he is...



























Setting up his new home...


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

Wow, Benji is a bonny lad! King parrots are amazing & beautiful, males especially. There aren't many breeders of this species, so you are a lucky beggar hehe.


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## Bryony2205 (Jun 12, 2010)

Zoo-Man said:


> Wow, Benji is a bonny lad! King parrots are amazing & beautiful, males especially. There aren't many breeders of this species, so you are a lucky beggar hehe.


Yeah, when we saw the advert for him, we tried to find out as much as we could on the species, but almost everything on the internet is about them as wild birds in Oz, with virtually nothing about them as pets! The lady that bred him no longer breeds them apparently.
If we ever decided he wanted a girlfriend, I don't know how we'd ever go about getting him one!


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## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

He is gorgeous.

If you contact the Parrot Society they might be able to point you in the right direction of a breeder - I think its Jim Hayward who runs the lost parrot section that breeds them. There were around 9 breeders who listed successful results in this years breeders directory. Only issue you may have is if you wanted a hand reared one - all the breeders listed produced parent reared birds.

Also, do you know which sub species he is so that you could pair him up? Saying that, he does not necessarily need another Kings Parrot as a friend for company.


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## Bryony2205 (Jun 12, 2010)

Thanks Carlycharlie, I don't know if we ever will get him a lady friend or not - we will see how he is, but it is good to know we could track him down a girlie if needed! Jayme has a friend at work with a CAG, and we are thinking about introducing them so that if either of us go on holiday then we will know the other can holiday their bird, and it will give us a chance to see how Benji is with another bird around. 

I don't know what Sub-species he is unfortunately, but there is a good chance that if he gets a buddy it would be a Green Cheek rather that another Kings Parrot anyway, as I still think they are lovely little birds and would definitely be next on the list. If we ever do get him a friend of another species would he be better with a female rather than male or would it not matter?


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## rach666 (Dec 12, 2006)

awwww he is beautiful.you are really lucky!:flrt:


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## SilverSky (Oct 2, 2010)

what gorgeous colours!


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

carlycharlie said:


> He is gorgeous.
> 
> If you contact the Parrot Society they might be able to point you in the right direction of a breeder - I think its Jim Hayward who runs the lost parrot section that breeds them. There were around 9 breeders who listed successful results in this years breeders directory. Only issue you may have is if you wanted a hand reared one - all the breeders listed produced parent reared birds.
> 
> Also, do you know which sub species he is so that you could pair him up? Saying that, he does not necessarily need another Kings Parrot as a friend for company.


John Hayward runs the National Theft Register, his brother (I assume) is Jim Hayward who breeds Ambiona King Parrots.


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## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

Colin u are right, thats shows if u rush to type things u should check your facts first lol :blush::blush::blush: I read Jim, wrote John & hey presto.........:whistling2::lol2: Blond moment or senility............:bash:

Either way, there are other breeders that can be contacted lol


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

carlycharlie said:


> Colin u are right, thats shows if u rush to type things u should check your facts first lol :blush::blush::blush: I read Jim, wrote John & hey presto.........:whistling2::lol2: Blond moment or senility............:bash:
> 
> Either way, there are other breeders that can be contacted lol


Don't worry you old buggar, I remember I was confused when I first saw the ads for Jim Haywards Kings :lol2:


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## theyoungaquarist (Jun 28, 2011)

Wow!!


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## Bryony2205 (Jun 12, 2010)

I am after any tips on getting this pretty boy to be a bit more handle-able please?
He is very clever and will easily take food from our hands, even licking it off our fingers delicately. However his previous owners never handled him and so far we have only managed to get a few strokes to his beak and the top of his head for a couple of minutes before he decides he has had enough and gives us a "warning screech" and goes into a bite stance. He has never bitten me but he has had a go at Jayme a few times, although I think Jayme pushes his boundaries a lot more than I do so thats probably why! 
He does know 'step up' but is very temperamental about when he wants to do it and bribery doesn't work! When he does step up it is only to a stick rather than skin. He has a stand opposite his cage which is right next to the sofa so he can sit there next to us and watch tv with us. He tends to fly home after about 10 minutes, but while he is sat there he is quite happy being next to us. The few times that he has been out and ended up pottering around on the floor, he normally struts around and then goes home by himself too. 

I know we have only had him a few months so need to be patient, and at 6 years old if he hasn't been handled before he is unlikely to ever be a 'cuddly' bird so not to expect miracles, but is there any hints for ways that we can build his trust and encourage him? 

Cheers


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## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

Time, patience & bribery with fave treats : victory:


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