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Aww they love me so much!
Blackheaded Caique is Enzo and the Whitebellied Caique is Isaac. My parrot bebehs
Blackheaded Caique is Enzo and the Whitebellied Caique is Isaac. My parrot bebehs
Category Artwork (Digital) / Animal related (non-anthro)
Species Avian (Other)
Size 1280 x 353px
File Size 285.9 kB
Most people don't realize that a bird's natural state is to be playful and sociable. They assume, because few take proper care of their birds, that a nasty, biting, antisocial parrot is how birds are supposed to be. I explain to people constantly that owning a bird is a lot like owning a dog; you wouldn't stick a puppy in a crate and leave it alone for weeks at a time with only food and water as entertainment. It's not wonder most parrots I meet are psychologically shot. And yet I HAVE rehabilitated a neglected cockatiel and know it's possible to have a loving, happy pet again. It just takes time and patience, as with anything.
I think someday, when the time is right in my life, I may want to try my hand at having some sort of bird-y pal. Happy, friendly birds have such a wonderful personality.
I feel so sorry knowing what little I do know about the psychological needs of parrots, and the amount of parrots I KNOW that are out there that never get the proper affection and stimulation that they really need. I remember a neighbor having one when I was a little kid, and not only did that parrot not get the proper attention, I can be fairly certain given their usual financial state that it also didn't get the proper medical attention, either - that, and they weren't what you call... "long term pet owners" - they cycled through animals constantly, with no remorse i could tell [they had a kitten get killed in their couch and informed me of this without any sadness. I think I would have been destroyed emotionally at that age if my dad sad on and killed one of my kittens o_O;]..erm... blah de blah. X)
Long story short, I think the bird owners I have talked to online really show what great pets they can be. I hope more people get edumacated on our feathery friends. c:
I feel so sorry knowing what little I do know about the psychological needs of parrots, and the amount of parrots I KNOW that are out there that never get the proper affection and stimulation that they really need. I remember a neighbor having one when I was a little kid, and not only did that parrot not get the proper attention, I can be fairly certain given their usual financial state that it also didn't get the proper medical attention, either - that, and they weren't what you call... "long term pet owners" - they cycled through animals constantly, with no remorse i could tell [they had a kitten get killed in their couch and informed me of this without any sadness. I think I would have been destroyed emotionally at that age if my dad sad on and killed one of my kittens o_O;]..erm... blah de blah. X)
Long story short, I think the bird owners I have talked to online really show what great pets they can be. I hope more people get edumacated on our feathery friends. c:
This is sooo adorable! ;;
Not gonna lie, i've always preferred the conures over the caiques because the ones at my old job (pet store) were very poorly socialized and were in the store for well over a year. Little monster would always climb all over the bird room and take all the other bird's foods and follow me around the room .... hell, he even learned to open the door! But I think if I hand raised one, it'd be a really great pet.
I used to handfeed baby amazons, macaws, lovebirds, conures, tiels ... and man, they would stick to you like glue. Especially the bigger guys. They really would just love all over you like a small dog. I seriously miss that job. :(
Owning birds is amazing, and its a real shame I had to get rid of my own a few years ago. Thanks for reminding me of the really colourful personalities of birds. :)
Not gonna lie, i've always preferred the conures over the caiques because the ones at my old job (pet store) were very poorly socialized and were in the store for well over a year. Little monster would always climb all over the bird room and take all the other bird's foods and follow me around the room .... hell, he even learned to open the door! But I think if I hand raised one, it'd be a really great pet.
I used to handfeed baby amazons, macaws, lovebirds, conures, tiels ... and man, they would stick to you like glue. Especially the bigger guys. They really would just love all over you like a small dog. I seriously miss that job. :(
Owning birds is amazing, and its a real shame I had to get rid of my own a few years ago. Thanks for reminding me of the really colourful personalities of birds. :)
Owning a caique is like owning a much larger bird. They're just so active and engaging. I love lovebirds and tiels, but I wanted a bird I could hug (lovies being too small) and one with a lot of spunk (I personally find tiels too mild). Then again I'm the kind of person that looks at Border Collies and wonders if they might be too tame for me. I like animals that actively challenge me.
Too cute! They sound like an endearing species, from what I just read up on quickly. I love seeing bird-owner art, and need to do some of my own of my girl Kiki, a very feisty and passionate rescued lovebird. (And I do mean passionate, she never does anything in moderation or gently.)
Okay, I'm not gonna lie. that is totally adorkable! (somewhere between dorky and adorable) I always wanted a parrot, but... well, I have cats, so I don't want bloodshed. And it's not that I can't be bothered to provide the attention they need, I just don't have the luxury of devoting hours a day to giving them undivided attention, which is sad really because I know what sweet birds they can be (even though the one I met once was a 50 year old African Grey and meeeeeean. I think he was just grouchy, his owner really loved him but he bit me). Can they get by with attention for a couple of hours a day, where you really make them the center of attention but don't literally drop everything you're doing? And of course when they go back in the cage that doesn't mean I stop acknowledging them completely
plus I heard they poop EVERYWHERE...
plus I heard they poop EVERYWHERE...
Well birds don't have sphincters so they don't have control over when they do their business. However unlike other animals I've kept, bird poop is fairly easy to clean, small, and either has no scent or smells exactly like what they last ate (strawberry poo smells EXACTLY like strawberry syrup).
A couple hours a day of one on one attention should be pretty good if they also are placed in the most active part of the house so they're not alone and bored. They need a big cage with tons of destructible toys, lots of natural branch perches (wooden dowels are boring) and ideally a companion so they've got someone to play and be a bird with. I had Enzo alone for over a year and the constant attention I gave her wasn't enough. This was because I was the most interesting and interactive thing in the room. She would assault my computer each time she came out of the cage just to get attention, even though I'd been playing with her all day. Getting Isaac solved that by giving her someone else to glom on to. She hasn't gotten unfriendly either (I still play with her lots) but now she's no longer obsessed. They also have a perch which they play on so they've got an area for themselves (besides the cage).
If you don't have another bird, then have a family. Parrots do well with families because multiple people are giving them attention multiple times a day. Parrots like social activity, they live in flocks in the wild and so are mentally adapted to being in close knit groups (much like dogs and people).
As far as cats go, I'd say get a bird no smaller than a caique and make sure it's feisty. Enzo chases cats, she's just big and threatening enough to make them think twice about messing with her. Cats don't like prey that fights back.
A couple hours a day of one on one attention should be pretty good if they also are placed in the most active part of the house so they're not alone and bored. They need a big cage with tons of destructible toys, lots of natural branch perches (wooden dowels are boring) and ideally a companion so they've got someone to play and be a bird with. I had Enzo alone for over a year and the constant attention I gave her wasn't enough. This was because I was the most interesting and interactive thing in the room. She would assault my computer each time she came out of the cage just to get attention, even though I'd been playing with her all day. Getting Isaac solved that by giving her someone else to glom on to. She hasn't gotten unfriendly either (I still play with her lots) but now she's no longer obsessed. They also have a perch which they play on so they've got an area for themselves (besides the cage).
If you don't have another bird, then have a family. Parrots do well with families because multiple people are giving them attention multiple times a day. Parrots like social activity, they live in flocks in the wild and so are mentally adapted to being in close knit groups (much like dogs and people).
As far as cats go, I'd say get a bird no smaller than a caique and make sure it's feisty. Enzo chases cats, she's just big and threatening enough to make them think twice about messing with her. Cats don't like prey that fights back.
Well birds don't have sphincters so they don't have control over when they do their business.
Say what?
I admit I don't keep birds, but I minored in ornithology back in the day; I dissected enough birds to know that they do, in fact, have sphincters. The structure is a little different for a bird's vent over a mammalian anus, but it's there.
What they don't seem to have the ability to do is hold back; once their intestinal tract signals it's time to flush, the voiding reflex is triggered. What at least two conure-owning friends I know do to get around that is perch/litter train them to poop on command; they're perfectly capable of doing so voluntarily if they choose to, they just can't seem to hold in for too long. So every once in a while, they go to the perch, empty themselves, and everyone's happy. I've seen Pippin the Green-Cheeked Conure quite a few times, and never seen her have an accident.
(And birdlime -- particularly from wild birds -- isn't quite as innocuous as you think, either. It can harbor some very NASTY stuff, even from a domestic parrot with a careful diet, though in a normal indoor setting the nasty stuff is pretty rare).
Say what?
I admit I don't keep birds, but I minored in ornithology back in the day; I dissected enough birds to know that they do, in fact, have sphincters. The structure is a little different for a bird's vent over a mammalian anus, but it's there.
What they don't seem to have the ability to do is hold back; once their intestinal tract signals it's time to flush, the voiding reflex is triggered. What at least two conure-owning friends I know do to get around that is perch/litter train them to poop on command; they're perfectly capable of doing so voluntarily if they choose to, they just can't seem to hold in for too long. So every once in a while, they go to the perch, empty themselves, and everyone's happy. I've seen Pippin the Green-Cheeked Conure quite a few times, and never seen her have an accident.
(And birdlime -- particularly from wild birds -- isn't quite as innocuous as you think, either. It can harbor some very NASTY stuff, even from a domestic parrot with a careful diet, though in a normal indoor setting the nasty stuff is pretty rare).
Dawww, that's so cute! Lovebirds tend to do things like that.
You should know what my lovebirds did! The father cockatiel was intending to have some "quality time" with mom, and was already stepping on her back, but suddenly their child flew on top of the dad and was like "What is this, I want in too!". The father lovebird was not pleased, and angrily tweeted at the child, but this only made the mommy scold the father and go tend to her child...
Sorry dad lovebird, no humpings for you : (
But I love this picture because it's so full of lovebird nature : D
You should know what my lovebirds did! The father cockatiel was intending to have some "quality time" with mom, and was already stepping on her back, but suddenly their child flew on top of the dad and was like "What is this, I want in too!". The father lovebird was not pleased, and angrily tweeted at the child, but this only made the mommy scold the father and go tend to her child...
Sorry dad lovebird, no humpings for you : (
But I love this picture because it's so full of lovebird nature : D
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