# What to get???



## Bryony2205 (Jun 12, 2010)

Hi everyone (sorry for the book), 

My partner and I have been looking into getting a parrot for ages, have been doing plenty of reading and have been to meet a few different birds, but we still can't decide what to get as everything we see, we fall in love with!!!

Jaymes main objective is something that will talk back to him so originally was looking at a Congo or Timneh (not daft enough to jump straight in with a Eclectus or Macaw!), while my bigest concern was something pretty! We have been and looked at a couple of Greys and Senegals as well as a few other birds and have come to the conclusion that the middle ground for us would be a Caique, Conure or Pionus (although I would also love a Hahns or Quaker). We have ruled out the smaller noisier birds like parrotlets, lovebirds etc 

We live in a huge flat above a closed shop so although we haven't got a garden to build an aviary, we do have large enough rooms for a reasonable amount of flight time, and our only neighbour is my sister who lives in the flat above, so noise level isn't a major concern but does need to be considered in case we move in the next few years. 

We will both be out during the day (another factor against getting a grey), so it will be on its own for 8 hours unless we get a pair, but we are both at home all weekend and are more than willing to spend all evening on 'playtime'. I tend to spend most of my time 'singing' to my boyfriend and although he is very much not a fan, I think our birdie will love it! :blush:

We have booked 2 weeks holiday in October and are now thinking that instead of going away we will use this time to bring our baby home and get him settled in, so we have plenty of time to prepare and get the cage etc sorted for his arrival. We just have to decide what to get...

We saw a lovely pair of Green cheeks for sale in a petshop relatively near us that were awesome, although I would prefer to go to a breeder than a pet shop. I haven't seen a Caique in the flesh, but have read such good things about them that we are definately considering one, and the same goes for a Pionus. Realistically I have ruled out the Quaker and Hahns because we are not around enough and it would be unfair on either bird. 

Also in the petshop that had the Green Cheeks (now sold) there is a Galah that is extremely friendly because it had a liver problem needing treatment and is therefore used to lots of handling and human interection. I had originally ruled these birds out but this one is soooo friendly that it made me reconsider! :flrt:


Arghh! Everything that we, see we want!!! Obviously we want to do the best by whichever bird we get so it has to be the one that is best suited to what life we can give it, and there is no point in us getting something that will be unhappy. 

Help and advice please?

Bryony


----------



## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

> We will both be out during the day (another factor against getting a grey), so it will be on its own for 8 hours unless we get a pair


I don't see why this would prevent you having an African Grey? You could say the same thing about ANY parrot........so it should be no different with a Grey.

Correct socialising when first home will set the rules for you - this means NOT spending the 1st week at home 24/7 to settle the baby in as that is when it will get used to that being the norm & possibly become a problem later. My rule with new Grey owners has been start as you mean to go on.........don't change the routine when the bird comes home because that is not the norm.

If you go out to work, plenty of toys & things to keep baby occupied; radio or TV on for vocal & maybe visual company or of course get 2 birds so they grow up together & have company. (does not have to be 2 greys either)

Others will disagree with my advice but its worked for the many Greys (parrots) I have hand reared & still in touch with most of them :2thumb:


----------



## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

Also, what was your first choice of bird that you BOTH wanted? It might be best to go for that otherwise whatever u get wont ever meet up to that "want" and it will only mean you ending up with a multiple bird home - which no doubt you will end up with anyway once you start :whistling2::lol2:

I started with 1 & now have 20+ :gasp::lol2::lol2:


----------



## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

I agree with Ken. My parrots are not with us all day, but then again I do have 3 of them all in the same room (1 Amazon in her own cage, & a Caique & a Sun Conure sharing a cage). If you & your OH both want a Grey, for example, then there is no reason you shouldn't get one. You could even get a Cockatiel or Budgie (for example again) in a seperate cage for company for the Grey. 

Personally, I am a big fan of Caiques & Conures. They are beautiful looking parrots, can learn to talk (though in a squeaky little voice), can be fantastically friendly, & don't need a cage the size of a garage! They can be a bit noisy though.


----------



## rach666 (Dec 12, 2006)

the best advice has already been given.when you bring the baby back try not to spend 24/7 with it and then get on with your normal life as this will lead to a clingy noisey bird who will just crave your attention constantly.

my fave birds are conures! HUGE parrot personalitys in small bodies,come in a beautiful arrange of colours and are so much fun! 

i have had a couple of different conures,sadly last year i had to rehome my birds due to an allergy which was wrongly diagnosed by my doctor.i was devastated.


but i now have a blue cinnamon conure who is AMAZING. so playful,funny,loving etc. he has been named pinky due to a new pink calci perch i bought that he decided to swing round like a little monkey when he was wet so he now has a slight pink tinge to his feathers!:lol2:
he loves my dogs sits on simba preening his fur :flrt:

im team conure can you tell? lol

heres a couple of pics.


----------



## Bryony2205 (Jun 12, 2010)

Thanks everyone for all the input!

:flrtinky looks lovely!!! The more we look at Conures the more we like about them, but we still haven't met any in the flesh :sad: I love the fact that they seem so playful -I really want such an interective bird that will entertain as well as be a part of the family!

We would love a grey but out train of thought is that we would like to get our 1st bird as a baby and then maybe a year or so down the line when we have more experience we could look at rehoming an older/rescue Grey for its companion. There seem to be so many of them out there that we would rather take on an older bird, but would prefer to do it when we have a better understanding and better chance of doing the right thing by it.
But I think hand-on-heart the dream bird for both of us is a male Eclectus, and you are probably quite right that once we start we won't stop (its been that way with most other pets we've had!) so would eventually end up with one anyway - so maybe we will one day have both!

We'll keep you posted!


----------



## xjessiex (May 8, 2011)

when i was looking for a parrot....wow very stressful!! didnt know what to get...
i was really interested in getting an electus,senegal or pionus.. but they didnt seem to be easy to get hold of!
but on here there was green cheek conure that needed rehoming and went to see her and fell in love and she is one character! she can be a little bitey sometimes but she is getting much better! also she is super quiet, but she does have her moments!!
good luck!!!


----------



## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

If you like Ekkies, have you come across this website?
Eclectus Parrots

LOADS of great info about them on there.

I love the look of Ekkies but CANNOT stand the noise they make :gasp:
I hand reared some once & swore NEVER again lol 
My macaw makes less noise, well ok, maybe not, but it is more tolerable :whistling2:

My friend has a breeding pair of Ekkies & both are quite tame with me.....but always attack her. She is so envious of my relationship with her birds because when I go to visit I always pop in & give this pair a head sratch & some fuss, hen on one shoulder the cock on the other.......

Possibly worth trying to visit people with the various birds your interested in so that you can get an idea of what they are like.......or look on places like Yo9utube to hear the noises they all make.


----------



## Bryony2205 (Jun 12, 2010)

_I love the look of Ekkies but CANNOT stand the noise they make :gasp:
_

We are off to meet a lady that breeds Ekkies and Greys on Sunday so hopefully that will give us a much better idea of whether either is the right bird for us when we see them in a home environment! There are a couple of different breeders nearby so hopefully we'll be able to see some conures as well with any luck : victory:


_when i was looking for a parrot....wow very stressful!! didnt know what to get...
_
_ 
_I know! Everytime we think we have made a decision, we see another bird and fall in love with that one! There sems to be a lot of different information out there, so I think until we have seen seen enough in the flesh to know for sure, we just have to wait


----------



## adamntitch (Jun 17, 2007)

i have not long got a cinnemon green cheeked conure and its an amazing wee bird i say it as not got it sexed yet 

was handreared and very friendly not to loud and is happy to be out on the cage and play with toys as much as being with me can be loud but not that bad i think they make a great starter bird 

i also have an orange winged amazon but it (also unsexed) is not tame well you can scratch the neck and chin but no stepping up but then i dont now the back ground as it was a rescue


----------



## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

If Greys are on your shortlist, take into consideration their feather dust. Greys & Cockatoos produced a fine powder from their down feathers which gets everywhere! It may also affect some people with asthma or other breathing probelms.


----------



## Bryony2205 (Jun 12, 2010)

Fortunately no-one in the family has athsma so hopefully we will be alright (although my mother has said she wont come over if we get one - my partner thinks this is a bonus though!:whistling2. It something that we are aware of living in a flat and was one of the reasons we were thinking of waiting a while longer until we got a Grey, but still maybe might get another bird first that is less dusty.


----------



## Shellsfeathers&fur (Jan 18, 2009)

Be prepared for mess whatever bird you get :devil:

We have budgies and cockatiels in an indoor aviary upstairs so the seed gets spread about the house; two parrots in the living room who chuck seed about as well - one who decided to have a bath and throw water all over my tax return, fortunately it was only a photocopy and my fault for leaving it on the floor! Not to mention the African Grey who was putting his head through the bars and chewing on a wooden shelf meaning the cage is now further out in the room than ever. There is an unbelievable amount of dust plus poo in strange places.

That said, I love them dearly and wouldn't part with any of them :flrt: but they are messy.....!


----------



## Bryony2205 (Jun 12, 2010)

Ok so last week we went and met the Eclectus and Grey breeder and although I still love the Ekkies (and wasn't offended by the noise), we have decided that now isn't the right time for us to get one until we will have more room and no neighbours! We still like the greys but were still in two minds as to whether now is the right time, although she has a long waiting list and no babies at the moment which we thought might be better for us as we are in no rush. 

...THEN... today we happened to pop into a small local petshop near us that we have not been to before...and out in the back room are 3 Green Cheeks!!! Oh how we fell in LOVE!!! :flrt: Having seen them again in the flesh after a few months, and actually spending quite a bit of time with them today, we have definately decided that a Conure is what we want. If at some point in the future we are able to fit in a second bird, or if our little buddy wants a friend of his own then we will look again at maybe another Conure or a Grey, but for the time being we are deifnately happy with a Conure.

So now my question is, what cage is best? I have read that width is more important than height with Conures, but presumable bigger is still going to be better. I have seen a couple in the shops locally but guess the internet will prob be cheaper and have a wider range. Is something like this ok?
Liberta Drake Medium Parrot Cage and Stand

or does it need to be more like one of these?

The two tier-LIB

African grey Amazon Chile cage 20 Free toys star buy

Any other input and handy hints for Conures would also be appreciated : victory:


----------



## adamntitch (Jun 17, 2007)

Bryony2205 said:


> Ok so last week we went and met the Eclectus and Grey breeder and although I still love the Ekkies (and wasn't offended by the noise), we have decided that now isn't the right time for us to get one until we will have more room and no neighbours! We still like the greys but were still in two minds as to whether now is the right time, although she has a long waiting list and no babies at the moment which we thought might be better for us as we are in no rush.
> 
> ...THEN... today we happened to pop into a small local petshop near us that we have not been to before...and out in the back room are 3 Green Cheeks!!! Oh how we fell in LOVE!!! :flrt: Having seen them again in the flesh after a few months, and actually spending quite a bit of time with them today, we have definately decided that a Conure is what we want. If at some point in the future we are able to fit in a second bird, or if our little buddy wants a friend of his own then we will look again at maybe another Conure or a Grey, but for the time being we are deifnately happy with a Conure.
> 
> ...


good choice any of the cages you posted are fine aslong as the bar spacing is ok so they cant get there head stuck

the top cage is what i have for mine 

are you buying the baby from the shop or from a breeder


----------



## Bryony2205 (Jun 12, 2010)

Well... we fell for the one in the shop but we will probably try and find a breeder, as although the guy in the shop said they were all hand-reared, I doubt they will have had much handling since being in a pet shop. I would prefer to find a breeder and baby then be able to visit it a few times before bringing it home too. 

The 1st cage (Liberta Drake) is for sale in a shop near us where as the others would have to come from the internet, so if it is suitable it would be much easier for us :2thumb: I just wasn't sure if it would be big enough which is why I asked about the other two larger ones.


----------



## carlycharlie (Jan 16, 2008)

As Adam says, the cages are fine as long as the bar spacing is not too wide - green cheeks have a habit of getting their heads through small gaps & getting stuck!!


----------



## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

The first cage is fine for a Green-Cheek, & obviously given enough exercise out of the cage to fly, will make for a happy lil Conure.


----------



## adamntitch (Jun 17, 2007)

as long as the baby is allowed out everyday for a play and fly then the cage will be fine if for example you would be out more during the day and baby would be in for a while then a larger cage would be better so you can add lots of toys and things to do


my gcc is only in there at night and for a few hours during the day and copes fine


----------



## rach666 (Dec 12, 2006)

awwwww yay! best choice.you wont regret it they are such fabulous little birds!
id deffo go with a breeder rather than a petshop:2thumb:


----------



## Bryony2205 (Jun 12, 2010)

Hi guys - more questions again! :whistling2:

Would a Montana Haiti cage be ok for a CCG or are the bar spacings too big? There is one for sale locally 2nd-hand but at quite a good price and we would obviously like to get the biggest cage we can for our baby, but are not sure if its ok. The adverts we have seen on the net say it is suitable for larger conures so I am doubtful but don't want to miss the opportunity if it would be ok. The person who is selling it had a Caique in it and I didn't think there was a huge difference in size between them - one of the ads say the bar spacing is 2cm, another one we have seen says it is an inch. Does anyone have one to say for sure? 

Cheers,

Bryony


----------



## rach666 (Dec 12, 2006)

Bryony2205 said:


> Hi guys - more questions again! :whistling2:
> 
> Would a Montana Haiti cage be ok for a CCG or are the bar spacings too big? There is one for sale locally 2nd-hand but at quite a good price and we would obviously like to get the biggest cage we can for our baby, but are not sure if its ok. The adverts we have seen on the net say it is suitable for larger conures so I am doubtful but don't want to miss the opportunity if it would be ok. The person who is selling it had a Caique in it and I didn't think there was a huge difference in size between them - one of the ads say the bar spacing is 2cm, another one we have seen says it is an inch. Does anyone have one to say for sure?
> 
> ...


i think its just short of an inch hence the 2cm/inch. should be ok hun! im currently on the look out for a new bigger cage ebay and preloved are great places to look for bargin bird cages!


----------



## *mogwai* (Feb 18, 2008)

you've decided on a conure, nice one. i love them. never had any myself but a friend of mine had 2 and they were adorable. 

it's good to see someone looking into lots of different birds to find the right one. too many people want a hand reared cuddly baby african grey that'll learnt to talk. there's so many parrots out there i sometimes wonder why greys are sooooo popular.


----------

