benefiel@wyse.wyse.com (Daniel Benefiel xtmp x2531 dept234) (07/21/90)
I'd like to get a pet bird. I had a pre-tamed cockatiel before but don't
know much about raising birds. Another cockatiel would be good, but I'm
also interested in slightly smarter & affectionate birds such as I believe
a conure would be. Whatever I get will cost < $100.
I have a chance to buy an untamed maroon-bellied conure which is ~8 months old
for $70.
1. Is this bird likely to be more difficult to tame and train because of
its age?
2. How and when can I sex a conure? What are the differences between the
sexes?
3. What are good sources for conures and cockatiels in the South (San
Francisco) Bay Area?
All other helpful info will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!jackiec@hprmokg.HP.COM (Jackie Christopherson) (07/27/90)
/ hprmokg:rec.birds / benefiel@wyse.wyse.com (Daniel Benefiel xtmp x2531 dept234) / 2:12 pm Jul 20, 1990 /
I'd like to get a pet bird. I had a pre-tamed cockatiel before but don't
know much about raising birds. Another cockatiel would be good, but I'm
also interested in slightly smarter & affectionate birds such as I believe
a conure would be. Whatever I get will cost < $100.
I have a chance to buy an untamed maroon-bellied conure which is ~8 months old
for $70.
1. Is this bird likely to be more difficult to tame and train because of
its age?
2. How and when can I sex a conure? What are the differences between the
sexes?
3. What are good sources for conures and cockatiels in the South (San
Francisco) Bay Area?
All other helpful info will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
----------jackiec@hprmokg.HP.COM (Jackie Christopherson) (07/27/90)
/ hprmokg:rec.birds / jackiec@hprmokg.HP.COM (Jackie Christopherson) / 8:21 pm Jul 26, 1990 /
/ hprmokg:rec.birds / benefiel@wyse.wyse.com (Daniel Benefiel xtmp x2531 dept234) / 2:12 pm Jul 20, 1990 /
I'd like to get a pet bird. I had a pre-tamed cockatiel before but don't
know much about raising birds. Another cockatiel would be good, but I'm
also interested in slightly smarter & affectionate birds such as I believe
a conure would be. Whatever I get will cost < $100.
I have a chance to buy an untamed maroon-bellied conure which is ~8 months old
for $70.
1. Is this bird likely to be more difficult to tame and train because of
its age?
2. How and when can I sex a conure? What are the differences between the
sexes?
3. What are good sources for conures and cockatiels in the South (San
Francisco) Bay Area?
All other helpful info will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
----------
----------mary@dinorah.wustl.edu (Mary E. Leibach) (08/01/90)
jackiec@hprmokg.HP.COM (Jackie Christopherson) writes: >I'd like to get a pet bird. I had a pre-tamed cockatiel before but don't >know much about raising birds. Another cockatiel would be good, but I'm >also interested in slightly smarter & affectionate birds such as I believe >a conure would be. Whatever I get will cost < $100. >I have a chance to buy an untamed maroon-bellied conure which is ~8 months old >for $70. I have both a cockatiel and a 1/2 maroon bellied conure (the other half is green-cheeked, which we are not discussing). Both birds were hand raised. Cally had repeated problems with broken blood feathers as a baby, and thus does not like to be petted (the conure preens her). She still likes to be near me though. She is a beautiful bird, and a great flier. She is more intelligent, by a little bit, than the conure. She can untie knots, unscrew wingnuts, talk in complete sentences (in a very clear voice), and is the world's greatest stunt flier. Vila (the conure) learned knot untieing from Cally, loves to cuddle, thinks I am either his chew toy or his mate, mistakes my ear for a microphone and yells in it, and is great at acrobatics, including hanging from a curtain rod nine feet in the air by his toenail! He talks too, with a one word vocabulary ("Pretty!"), and loves water and noise. He is very disconcerting to scold, he yells right back at you! Both birds, particularly Cally, love to watch TV, Cally recognizes her name when it is spoken on TV (Blake's 7). They share a large cage, and either like or hate each other, they haven't decided which. If they aren't fighting, they're preening each other. They've lived together for nearly a year now. >1. Is this bird likely to be more difficult to tame and train because of > its age? Probably, but it would depend on the bird. If you want a lover, a hand raised bird would be better. Price-wise, that gives the cockatiel an advantage. For the price of a parent-raised conure, you can get a hand-raised cockatiel. I paid under $200 for Vila, and haven't regretted it. (Except when he was into attacking my parakeet, that is.) He's worth a million bucks to me now, bites included. >2. How and when can I sex a conure? What are the differences between the > sexes? Conures must be sexed by a vet, usually surgically. Conures are not sexually dimorphic. Unless you want to breed the bird, you probably should not have it cut open just for curiosity. Talk to an avian vet. (You are going to have whatever bird you get examined by an avian vet right after you buy it, aren't you? Having an avian vet (not a dog and cat vet) is really useful when you have a question or an emergency. You can also get either a conure or a 'tiel vaccinated for certain diseases (parrot pox?). >3. What are good sources for conures and cockatiels in the South (San > Francisco) Bay Area? Check the "Buy, buy birdies!" section of a recent issue of Bird Talk for breeders. >All other helpful info will be greatly appreciated. If you end up getting a young baby, you will want a cage with low perches until the youngster learns to perch reliably. Otherwise, you want the biggest cage you can afford with properly sized perches and bar spacing. The bird will probably want a good playgym when he is tame enough to be out of the cage with you. Parrots can be destructive, you know. The best advice I can give you is to subscribe to Bird Talk magazine, or at least pick up a few issues. It will teach you all you need to know about birds (and more), as well as entertain you. The birds and I look forward to each issue, I read it, they chew it up! Good luck. I hope you find a little bird who will be as precious to you as the "Terrible Twosome" are to me! -Mary, and Cally the Precocious Cockatiel(tm), and Vila the Cudly Conure(tm), and Blake the Beautiful Budgie(tm), and Dayna and Del, the Fertile Finchies(tm), and introducing Blake's Babies(tm)! Better known as Blake's Birds(tm)! Dedicated to the memory of the British SF show Blake's 7, and the liberty and rights of pet birds!