Do we have any parakeet owners here?

DisneyObsessed

<font color=green>Walking is not an option<br><fon
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Oct 21, 2000
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Hi. As if we didn't have enough animals here with the dog, cat, guinea pig, 2 dwarf hamsters and 2 aquariums, we just got a parakeet. Does anyone have any words of wisdom to pass along?
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Dawn
 
Ohhh yeah. Parakeet owner here. :teeth:

Owner of more parakeets than I intended too!

Started out with one.. he looked lonely - got another, then another.. then another... ended up with 6 and a cockatiel.

THEN it happened. An egg plopped out. Momma birdy (aka Whirlybird, named for her helicopter type flight) decided she wanted to be a momma.

Fast forward a month later and we have 5 bouncing bundles of pink joy that look like little tiny ETs. They quickly grew up into 5 absolutely beautiful birds - 1 denim blue and 4 white with spots of blue.

Before they were old enough to fend for themselves - PLOP! Out came some more eggs. SEVEN this time. So far 3 of them have hatched and momma has roped the babies into helping her babysit! :eek: So, if they all hatch I will own 17 parakeets (one of the first batch of babies was sickly and died :( )

Umm.. anyone want a parakeet? Blue and White - beautiful! Anybody? Anybody?

Seriously though, they can make awesome pets when tamed. Females bite a heck of a lot worse than males. Males actually can be trained to mimic sounds with some hard work. They (and all birds) are susceptible to human diseases so you don't want to handle them when you have things like colds. They will moult 2 times a year so don't be alarmed when they start dropping feathers all over the place. Keep them away from other pets unless you are absolutely POSITIVE they won't hurt them (never take it for granted) and clip their flight feathers when taming them so they won't fly all over and hurt themselves. :)

Hope that helps!
 
Another bird Mom here. Be careful, because as Laureen said, they begin to multiply - and I don't always mean on their own! We started out with two parakeets...then got one cockatiel...then two more parakeets..then another cockatiel..then two more parakeets...then another parakeet...and then another cockatiel. If you lost count there, we now have 7 parakeets and 3 cockatiels.

I have them housed in 3 cages in the big room we have above the garage - our second family room. I allow the birds to fly free during the day. There is a "play pen" on top of one cage with branches and toys and food - that's where they like to hang out. 5 of the parakeets will come out on my finger but 2 are scared. They are harder to tame if you get more than one at a time as they bond to their flock. I knew that and I am ok with that - I love watching them interact with each other - much better than a soap opera! :)

Two of my 'tiels are tame (they are sitting on my shoulders as I type this) and one wants to be tame but he's still a bit timid.

Give your bird plenty to do as they get bored with the same ole stuff. Talk to him/her all the time. A bird will sell it's soul for millet so stock up on it - very good to use to try to tame. Change the water EVERY day. I have one of those plastic bath tubs with the glass on the bottom that a couple of my birds like to bathe in.

Birds can be very messy - I need to vacuum near them every day. My flock gets very noisy starting at 5:30 a.m. and they have their noisy and restful times throughout the day. As a flock they tend to eat, groom, socialize and sleep at the same times. They also get VERY noisy at dusk - which is now. (I have NO IDEA what they could be talking about...but they just go on and on..)

Good luck with your little birdie. I just love my birds and they bring me hours of enjoyment. :)

Jill

P.S. We also have two (indoor) cats who, most of the time, could care less about the birds. I still can't believe that one day one of the 'tiels was on one of the cats backs pulling fur out! :eek:
 
The story above sounds very much like what happened to me. I had a couple single birds when I was a kid. Then a friend of the family asked if we would take their bird since they could no longer keep it. Well, the new bird was female and she took a STRONG liking to my male. She actually squeezed through the bars of the cage to get to him. We ended up buying a breeding box and eventually had two breeding pairs. We had 13 birds at one time, I also gave away one, in three big cages.

Besides the birds we had a cat. He had to be taught to stop jumping on the cages or swat at the birds. Yes, he'd often try when we weren't looking either. Eventually we could allow the birds to fly free in the same room as the cat without an incident but it took a while.

Together they can be very noisy and dirty. Besides the feathers ours loved to flap empty seed shells all over the floor and fling droppings on the wall. :crazy2:

Our parakeets were a joy to watch and interact with. Each one had a different personality. They ranged from Sammy who was an elegant lilac bird to Filabuster the nonstop talker and general pain in the rear for his cagemates. One lived to be 16 years old.


Here are a few suggestions:

- Get a basic parakeet care book. Read up on what a healthy bird looks and behaves like, illnesses and treatments, general care and what to expect from your pet.

- Buy high quality seed for general feedings and supplement with seed trees, treat sticks and cakes and special seed mixes (color tone, honey treat, moulting food, etc.). I'd often mix some of the special seeds in with the regular food otherwise they would only eat and fight over the treats.

- Set up a cuttlebone and/or a calcium block in the cage. Your bird will need this for their bones and feathers.

- Parakeets also need some gravel, either from the cage floor covering, perch cover or loose in a treat cup. This is for digestion.

- Buy some chew toys or sticks plus toys like swings, ladders and mirrors. Birds love to and need to chew. The other toys are for general amusement and exercise.

- Get a bird bath. These hook to the outside of the cage. I'd prop a door open with a twist tie and then attach the bath. Fill with about a 1/2 inch of lukewarm water. They love this especially on a hot day.

- Buy a few general medicines plus vitamins and have them on hand. The vitamins you can add to the drinking water. The meds are good to have just in case you need to treat an illness. The quicker the better for treatment and we had a few situations over a weekend and having stuff on hand was terrific.

- Keep them out of drafts and cool temperatures! Parakeets aren't as hardy as outdoor birds and can quickly get sick if exposed to these conditions. Remember, these are tropical birds. I'd put my birds "outside" in our enclosed porch, with the windows open a bit, only when the temperature was about 78 or above. Don't put them directly outside or in a window. Sometimes they can get "spooked" that way too.

- I never clipped any wings. I know many people do it as a taming tool. I preferred to leave them as is so they could actually fly for exercise (in a small, enclosed room of the house). Plus, it was for their protection if they ever did get loose while the cat was being trained not to touch them. Just make sure no windows, shades or drapes are open or mirrors exposed if your bird gets loose. They will fly towards it to get out and will either find an opening or smack their head or neck trying.

Have fun with your new pet.
 

one last summer and he likes to be in view of everything. he love to watch me cook, he is churping new song every day and sometime he will copy our whistles.. he is just now sitting on our fingers,, the only sad thing is I wish i new some one who trimmed nails and feather Im scared to do it my self .. that is the trouble with living in a small area. we live in a town that has 60,000 people in it and only one person who does it that i know about everytime i calll I get the machine and no one returns my call. the next Major. town is 25 miles away and that is only 6,000
 







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