Comments on: How Many Parrots Is TOO Many? http://www.birdtricks.com/blog/how-many-parrots-is-too-many/ Wed, 28 Jul 2010 11:44:37 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Patty http://www.birdtricks.com/blog/how-many-parrots-is-too-many/comment-page-1/#comment-12325 Patty Thu, 27 Aug 2009 03:39:28 +0000 http://www.birdtricks.com/blog/?p=2229#comment-12325 Hi Mike, There are so many variables involved in your questions that it's hard to give a definitive answer. I think having multiple birds is great and is no more irresponsible than having multiple children IF you have the resources and patience to do the job right. Birds might experience some jealousy when a new bird is introduced into the household, but if you handle it properly, it will pass and they might become the best of friends. Feeding and greeting the birds in the order that they arrived in the house is one thing you should do. This helps to keep your first parrot from concluding that the new one has stolen your attentions. The new parrot, being new, falls in line with that routine. You have too many birds when: 1) you don't have the time or energy to give them all individual attention. You can certainly interact with them as a group, but they require one on one time with you too. 2) you have so many birds that you can't observe each one individually to assess health. Sometimes, you need to just watch their level of activity and posture of each to get a feel that something is wrong. 3) you don't have the financial resources to maintain their needs, meaning fresh foods, toys AND vet care. 4) You can't keep the mess under control and provide a healthy environment for them and yourself. Remember that some new world birds are intolerant to the dust of some old world birds. Macaws don't do well around cockatoos, the blue and gold especially. I have more cages than furniture and very limited space. However, I have great HEPA filters to keep the air quality good and I clean continuously. I have the time and the patience for another bird, but space consideration is a factor in my decision to wait on getting my macaw. I could always fit another large cage by unloading the kitchen table I never use anyways, but should my umbrella and the new bird not get along, I have no alternate place to put him. I feel it is the responsible decision. On socializing birds to other or new birds, there are ways to do it using slow, careful introduction, constant supervision, being careful that there are no resentments being built. There are some species that just shouldn't be together, and I definitely advise that you don't keep birds of different sizes in the same cage at all - or even in the same room without supervision. Even birds of the same species will not get along sometimes and need to be kept apart. See my post about the Amazon fight that took place at a friend's house. It has to be the right combination of species with the right combination of personalities to work. If they don't get along, it cannot be forced. Hopefully, they will at least tolerate each other. Patty Hi Mike,
There are so many variables involved in your questions that it’s hard to give a definitive answer. I think having multiple birds is great and is no more irresponsible than having multiple children IF you have the resources and patience to do the job right. Birds might experience some jealousy when a new bird is introduced into the household, but if you handle it properly, it will pass and they might become the best of friends. Feeding and greeting the birds in the order that they arrived in the house is one thing you should do. This helps to keep your first parrot from concluding that the new one has stolen your attentions. The new parrot, being new, falls in line with that routine.
You have too many birds when: 1) you don’t have the time or energy to give them all individual attention. You can certainly interact with them as a group, but they require one on one time with you too. 2) you have so many birds that you can’t observe each one individually to assess health. Sometimes, you need to just watch their level of activity and posture of each to get a feel that something is wrong. 3) you don’t have the financial resources to maintain their needs, meaning fresh foods, toys AND vet care. 4) You can’t keep the mess under control and provide a healthy environment for them and yourself. Remember that some new world birds are intolerant to the dust of some old world birds. Macaws don’t do well around cockatoos, the blue and gold especially. I have more cages than furniture and very limited space. However, I have great HEPA filters to keep the air quality good and I clean continuously.
I have the time and the patience for another bird, but space consideration is a factor in my decision to wait on getting my macaw. I could always fit another large cage by unloading the kitchen table I never use anyways, but should my umbrella and the new bird not get along, I have no alternate place to put him. I feel it is the responsible decision.
On socializing birds to other or new birds, there are ways to do it using slow, careful introduction, constant supervision, being careful that there are no resentments being built. There are some species that just shouldn’t be together, and I definitely advise that you don’t keep birds of different sizes in the same cage at all – or even in the same room without supervision. Even birds of the same species will not get along sometimes and need to be kept apart. See my post about the Amazon fight that took place at a friend’s house. It has to be the right combination of species with the right combination of personalities to work. If they don’t get along, it cannot be forced. Hopefully, they will at least tolerate each other.
Patty

]]> By: Mike http://www.birdtricks.com/blog/how-many-parrots-is-too-many/comment-page-1/#comment-12323 Mike Wed, 26 Aug 2009 23:46:57 +0000 http://www.birdtricks.com/blog/?p=2229#comment-12323 How do you gauge what the right number of parrots in a household is? What would be your scale of time, attention, and care required per parrot? Is it even possible to be a responsible parrot owner with more than one parrot per person? Or per household for that matter? Since you do have a bunch of birds, perhaps you'd like to write a blog about what criteria people need to meet to be able to have another bird without causing a detrimental affect on their existing birds. What would you describe as the factors in their household they should gauge to realize how many birds is too many? How much space per bird is required in a household? What makes you feel you cannot get another bird? Not enough time, space, patience? Also, another topic I'd be curious about is how to socialize birds to other birds. My Senegal Parrot hates our budgie. Since you have so many birds, perhaps you can share how to get the birds to be friendly with one another or at least not fight. How do you gauge what the right number of parrots in a household is? What would be your scale of time, attention, and care required per parrot? Is it even possible to be a responsible parrot owner with more than one parrot per person? Or per household for that matter? Since you do have a bunch of birds, perhaps you’d like to write a blog about what criteria people need to meet to be able to have another bird without causing a detrimental affect on their existing birds. What would you describe as the factors in their household they should gauge to realize how many birds is too many? How much space per bird is required in a household? What makes you feel you cannot get another bird? Not enough time, space, patience?

Also, another topic I’d be curious about is how to socialize birds to other birds. My Senegal Parrot hates our budgie. Since you have so many birds, perhaps you can share how to get the birds to be friendly with one another or at least not fight.

]]>