Bird Care Tips
- 1. Household Items Dangerous to Pet Birds
- 2. Flights of Fancy (Parrot Companions)
- 3. Physical and Mental Needs of Captive Birds
- 4. What to Feed Your Bird
- 5. Bird Poison Prevention Tips
- 6. Common Parrot Companions, a Chart
- 7. How To Trim a Bird's Wing Feathers
- 8. Why Does My Bird Bite?
- 9. Why Does My Parrot Scream?
- 10. Average Bird Lifespans
Common Parrot Companions, a Chart
Sam Foster and Julie Weiss Murad
| Name | Advantages | Disadvantages | Average Life Span ** |
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Small-sized parrots
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| Budgerigars | Easy to tame, affectionate, some can talk very well, inexpensive, practically domesticated | Susceptible to fatty liver and/or tumors | 15 to 20 years |
| Cockatiels | Easy to tame, affectionate, good mimics, inexpensive, readily available | Very shrill call | Up to 25 years |
| Lovebirds | Inexpensive, many color mutations | Not tame unless hand-reared, best kept in pairs, seldom mimic, less exciting personalities than larger parrots, susceptible to feather plucking, females dominant in some species | 8 to 10 years |
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Small/Medium-sized Parrots
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| Conures | Very affectionate, playful and intelligent, low priced in some species, moderate talking ability (excellent talking ability in the Quaker parakeet) | Loud voices, except pyrrhura species such as red-bellied and green-cheeked | 10 to 25 years, depending on species |
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Medium-sized Parrots
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| African Greys | Not noisy, make pleasant whistles, highly intelligent, excellent mimics and talkers | Nervous temperment, shy with strangers, very susceptible to feather plucking, picky eaters, excessive feather dust | 40 Years or longer |
| Amazon parrots | Colorful, extroverted, good eaters, good mimics, can be good talkers | May be noisy, may call loudly, can be destructive, mature males can be unreliable in behavior for 2 to 3 months a year | 50 years or longer |
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Medium/Large-sized parrots
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| Cockatoos | Beautiful, affectionate, intelligent | Too demanding for the average person, likely to become feather pluckers and screamers, destructive, expensive, excessive feather dust | 35 years or longer |
| Small macaws | Affectionate and playful if hand-reared, like to be handled, learn to talk and mimic | Noisy, destructive, susceptible to feather plucking | 25 years or longer |
| Large macaws | Beautiful, highly intelligent, responsive, can be extremely affectionate | Loud, destructive and expensive, demanding, totally unsuitable for inexperienced owners, can be aggressive and bite very hard, susceptible to feather plucking | 40 years or longer |
Re-printed from Flights of Fancy ASPCA Animal Watch Fall 2000
by Sam Foster and Julie Weiss Murad
Sam Foster, Avian Consultant - Cockatoos@tooinfo.com - www.tooinfo.com
** Chart based on material in The Loving Care of Pet Parrots by Rosemary Low
© 2000 ASPCA
Courtesy of
ASPCA
424 East 92nd St.
New York, NY 10128-6804
(212) 876-7700
www.aspca.org
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Pet Care: Bird Care Tips:
How To Trim a Bird's Wing Feathers
