Owning pet birds is a bigger decision than choosing to adopt many other types of animals. Parrots and parakeets often have very long lifespans, so the decision to welcome one of these beautiful creatures into our lives is a long-term commitment. People often think of birds as beautiful things to have, almost like a decoration for their home. All too often, pet birds are bought on impulse without any understanding or knowledge about what it means to be a bird owner or what their care, housing and feeding require, and that’s not even mentioning the noise.
Owning Pet Birds: The Pet that Owns You
When I was younger, I begged my parents for a bird. I saw pictures of beautiful, graceful, colorful little parakeets and wanted one of my own so badly. They gave in and I became the proud owner of two parakeets – one blue and one green. One of the rules to having these pets, though, was that I had to learn for myself what they needed and how to take care of them, so I visited the library and over time, took out every book they had on parakeets and owning pet birds. That’s when I realized just how much work my sweet little Pete and Jane actually were. Because they lived in a cage, they were completely dependent on me for all their food, cleanliness, entertainment and safety needs. This meant cleaning their cage daily, providing clean water and fresh food, rotating their toys regularly to keep them fresh and stimulating, and ensuring their safety. Word to the wise: my parakeets eventually learned how to open the doors to their own cages and let themselves out, so don’t think that just because they’re in a cage that they’re “locked up”. Parrots and parakeets are incredibly intelligent, and their owners often underestimate them. I certainly did!
It’s also important to consider where you live when deciding on what type of bird best suits you. If you live in a quiet apartment your neighbors might not appreciate lovebirds’ shrieking or a large, loud parrot. Larger birds like cockatoos and macaws will also need need a considerably larger cage than parakeets or cockatiels.
Types and Species
Once you’ve made the decision that you want to adopt a bird, you’ll want to consider what type of bird you want, but also what type the space of your home allows and how much time you’ll be able to spend with it. If you’re looking for a more “decorative” bird, a canary or finch is what you’d want. Parrots and parakeets are highly intelligent animals that will not do well to spend hours and hours alone in a cage, without much attention.
Many of the larger species like macaws, African gray parrots, amazons and cockatoos bond strongly to their owner, so you’d need to spend a tremendous amount of time with these birds or they will become lonely, frustrated and potentially engage in self-harming behaviors as a result. The smaller species such as budgies (parakeets) and cockatiels are more social with each other and easier to care for, especially if they have a companion. One thing to note, however, is that a bird with a companion is more likely to bond to the other bird and want to spend less time with you. If what you’re hoping for is a very personable pet bird and you have the time to spend with it, adopting a single bird is most likely going to provide the friendly companion you had in mind.
Care and Feeding
A common misconception about caring for pet birds, and especially parrots and parakeets, is that they only eat birdseed. While seeds do make up a large part of a bird’s diet, especially the smaller species like parakeets and cockatiels, a seed-only diet will leave a parrot deficient in several vitamins and minerals, and it’s overall health will be poor. Better-quality seed mixtures will also have high amount of pelleted food mixed in, and some birds are on a pellet-based diet rather than a seed-based diet. Pellets are to birds what kibble is to dogs, it is specially designed to be nutrient-balanced and able to meet a parrot’s basic dietary requirements on a broader spectrum than seeds are. Pellets are available in array of brands and sizes for most bird species. A truly rounded diet, though, will include fresh fruits and vegetables that are safe for your bird to eat. Many even enjoy sampling from their owner’s dinner plate!
Fresh water must be available at all times, and hygiene is a must. Parrots use their bills like we would use our hands, to touch, feel and explore, as well as tasting and eating. Developing and maintaining a regular daily cleaning schedule will help keep droppings out of inquisitive bird mouths (yeah, gross!).
Birds need daily exposure to direct sunlight or full-spectrum lighting, specifically for the UVA and UVB rays, so that their bodies can produce adequate amounts of vitamin D. Besides being critical to their immune and respiratory health, egg-laying females require enough of this vitamin to produce strong-shelled eggs and healthy young.
All birds produce feather dander, but some species produce a considerable amount of dust, such as cockatiels and cockatoos, and are called “powder birds”. The dust is natural, is made up mostly of keratin, and is produced by the bird itself, but this dust can be a challenge to clean up after. HEPA filters can help control it as well as frequent cage cleaning. People with breathing problems or allergies should not keep powder birds since it can aggravate these issues.
Toys and Accessories
Parrots and parakeets are extremely intelligent animals, in fact researchers studying African gray parrots found their intelligence to be equivalent to a 2 year old human child. Because of their intelligence, they’re also likely to become extremely bored without enough to keep them occupied. Parrots love to chew things, and rest assured if it’s not chewing up the beautiful toy that you bought for it, it’ll be chewing up your beautiful furniture, anything within reach of it’s cage, your power cords, and all of your beautiful house plants. A parrot’s instinct to shred things is very strong, so providing toys that are designed to be ripped and torn apart will satisfy this need deeply, and can help prevent self-harming behaviors due to frustration.
A fact of life when owning pet birds is that you’ll need to by lots of bird toys, and keep them fresh and interesting. There are lots of different kinds of toys available for different sized birds and their various needs. Small birds like parakeets will like things such as beads, mirrors, plastic rings, bells, and so forth. Large birds like macaws will need much sturdier toys leather strips, Manzanita branches, colorful, bird-safe blocks, dumbells they can hold with their feet, and knotted ropes. Many parrot owners like to create their own bird toys from various parts and pieces that can be bought from specialty stores for just this purpose.
Learn more about bird toys and accessories.
Attention
The amount of attention a bird needs varies depending on the species. But above all, a single bird will always need more attention from you than a bird with a companion. The decision to get your bird a partner should include not just the type of relationship you expect from it, but also the amount of time you’re realistically going to be able to spend with it.
Small birds like parakeets are extremely gregarious and social. Many times, having a companion bird will satisfy all of it’s socialization needs and you will probably be an afterthought. With cockatiels, once the bird has formed a strong relationship with you, a bird friend will keep it happy but it will still crave attention from you. When I was 13, I had a cockatiel named Missy. He (to our amusement, I didn’t know at the time that all young cockatiels have female colouring) was my only cockatiel until a friend gave me their female lutino, Julie. Their relationship was pretty rocky at first, Missy wanted nothing to do with Julie, all he wanted was me and to hang out with me. She kept trying, and would him to preen her crest, which he’d respond by plucking one of her feathers! Over time, they got along better and better, and eventually even successfully raised a brood together. But Missy never stopped being bonded to me foremost, which probably interfered with his acceptance of Julie. This is something to consider if you’re hoping to introduce a companion at a later age.
Larger parrots like macaws, amazons, African grays, and cockatoos need and demand a lot of socialization and interaction with their owners, if they’re tamed and bonded. Cockatoos especially love cuddling with their owners. But when these birds are confined to a cage for too long, or lonely or bored, they exhibit that frustration by feather plucking, screaming, with aggressive behavior and biting. Once started, feather plucking is a very difficult habit to break in some birds. These birds literally chew, bite off or pull out their own feathers leaving bald patches that may be isolated to one part of its body, or in every area the bird is able to reach. Usually a vet or a parrot behavior specialist can help identify the reason a bird is self-harming.
Bird Cages
When owning pet birds, this is the single most important item you can buy for your bird. Its cage is where your bird will spend most of its time. Cages come in all shapes and sizes for almost any size bird or need. You’ll probably need two of them, one daily cage that your bird will live in, and a travel cage for vet appointments and such.
There are a few important basics to know when buying a cage for your feathered companion. The most obvious is — the larger the cage the better! Your bird will most likely spend most of its time here, so to ensure that it gets enough exercise, for larger birds the cage must be large enough for it to at least fully extend its wings. For smaller birds that are more active, it should be able to jump from perch to perch while flapping its wings.
Horizontal bars, while not a necessity, will make it much easier for your bird’s feet to maneuver and for it to climb around. And for large birds with powerful beaks that can rip through thin, flimsy metal, the bars should be thick and made of wrought iron. A nice cage feature on large cages is a built in metal “skirt” that helps contain messes.
Finally, and importantly I want to stress that you should avoid decorative cages. These were not designed with the bird in mind, but instead to look a certain way. While a functional cage CAN be nice-looking, most importantly it needs to be functional, safe and sturdy. Some decorative parakeet cages are made with plastic tops that can lift right off and sit precariously on a 3-legged stand. Imagine if something were to bump into that cage, it would knock right over and the top would fall off. If you happen to own other pets such as cats or dogs, and the room wasn’t safe for them to play in, the result could be tragic. Above all, invest in a well-constructed cage that is safe and created specifically for your type of bird, by a reputable company. Look for one that is well-reviewed by other bird owners, so you know what you’re getting.
Find out what to look for in a good cage.
Breeding Pet Birds
Occasionally, bird owners will want to try to breed their pets, especially the smaller varieties like lovebirds, parakeets and cockatiels. When male and female are kept together, it may be nearly impossible to keep them from attempting to mate and produce young! You can make this easier for them by purchasing a nesting box in the appropriate size and shape for the type of bird and attaching it to the cage. While all parrot and parrot-like birds will nest in a box, each species has it’s own particular need as to what this box should be like or what needs to be in it. Parakeets like to nest on a bare wood nest box that only has a concave for the eggs, to keep them from rolling around. Cockatiels on the other hand, will appreciate a nice layer of wood chips in their nest box.
With larger species like cockatoos, I don’t recommend or encourage hobby breeding your pet. These species can be very aggressive toward their mates, large nest boxes with two openings, for the persecuted bird to escape from is essential. From there, nature will take it’s course, but there are some things to know to help the process go smoothly and healthy for parents and babies. You can read more about this subject here.
Safety and Dangers
Birds are vulnerable to many potential hazards in the average home. Remember how miners would bring a canary into a mineshaft to check for dangerous gasses? This is because all birds’ respiratory systems are sensitive to the smallest amount of chemicals in the air. It’s extremely important to avoid using perfumes, fragrances and scented cleaners anywhere around your bird. These can kill any bird before you’d even be able to smell them. Also, Teflon is another common yet deadly item. When overheated, Teflon let’s off fumes that are odorless to us but deadly to birds.
If your bird is still capable of flying — some with clipped wings can get much farther than the usually surprised owner even knew — be vigilant about open windows and doors. It only takes a moment for a curious bird to slip out a crack or opening and disappear forever. Safety first prevents heartache later!
Your pet bird is not domesticated, which means the birds we own are the same as the ones flying in the wild. However, taking care of its health care needs is similar in many ways to any other pet. Birds need routine veterinary care by a vet who specializes in avian care. Any other vet who has not been trained in taking care of birds will not be able to properly care for your bird. Because this vet is a specialist in birds, visits can also be expensive. When you first adopt your bird, you’ll want to bring it in for a complete physical and any other testing. After that, annual checkups will be needed, just like with a cat or dog.