So I’m thinking about getting a bird

[Rowbowkid800]

So I have been really wanting a bird for a year but I couldn’t get one but recently I now can but I’m not sure completely if I should get it and I need some help with this one

 

[Velo]

What kind of bird?

I had parakeets growing up. We've been "birdwatching" my boyfriend's parent's 3 cockatiels for about 2 years now lmao.

They have pros and cons, like all pets of course! The biggest thing is to keep their environment nice and and clean and enriching, which I think could be said about all caged animals.

 

[Rowbowkid800]

Yeah I’m thinking about getting a cockatiel I’ve done a lot of research in the past year but I’ve been busy with stuff and didn’t have the money to spend on it but I really love birds

 

[Velo]

The cockatiels are really sweet.
If you've been wanting to get one for a year and been researching for a year then I think that's a really good sign you should get one! That's a long time to think and if you still want one, then I say go for it.

Not sure where you are, but we actually have cockatiels in need of adoption a LOT too, so you could look at bird/exotic pet adoption places.

The only downside I can think of is that the cockatiels can be a bit loud sometimes, but I am also extremely sensitive to noise. And honestly we don't give them as much attention as we should (not making excuses but uh they were dropped off at our house, was supposed to be for 2 months but turned into 2 years - we didn't really know what we were doing).
And it's a long commitment (but I'm sure you know that already). The one girl we have is over 15 years old which blows my mind!

 

[JessieOfSeacowBay]

Yeah I’m thinking about getting a cockatiel I’ve done a lot of research in the past year but I’ve been busy with stuff and didn’t have the money to spend on it but I really love birds

I'm assuming by your use of the past tense, you have more time and money now to devote to a bird?

Also, I hope you plan on naming him Brewster...

 

[oranje]

Good luck! I think for me personally, I think birds are a little too much work. You have to be careful about cooking with appliances that are coated in chemicals like Teflon and be very mindful of their dietary needs. If you do get a bird, get an easier bird like pigeons or cockatiels rather than the bigger parrots. Also keep in mind whether your lifestyle would work with a bird. They're very social animals, so if you're gone the whole day at work or school, it might not be a great pet to have unless it has another bird as a companion.

Sorry if I'm being a little preachy but I've seen what happens when people abandon their parrots and it's really sad. So just make sure to do your research before you commit to a long term pet.

 

[pochy]

^^ i have to second this.

for example lots of times people on the cockatiel subreddit are really inexperienced with their birds and put them in bad environments without doing any research, and feed them only seeds instead of pellets and veg.

it's good that you've been wanting one for a while, but i suggest you look on the subreddit for a few months to see what common issues are and what advice people give, before you get one. personally i've been wanting a tiel for over five years now, but the more i learn about potential issues the more afraid i get. lol

 

[John Wick]

I don't believe in keeping pets in cages, though I had a Galah (miss you Rex!) many years ago, that was outside most of the time.

 

[Rowbowkid800]

Bump

 

[-Lumi-]

Another thing to consider amongst all the other good points above is vet care. Not all vet clinics will treat birds, they may count as “exotic pets” which means you’ll have to find a vet that does treat them vs being able to bring them anywhere.

With a pet that lives for 15+ years it’s likely that you’ll have to bring them to the vet. If you live somewhere smaller it may be trickier to find a place that can treat birds so I’d call around in advance! I’m not sure how expensive vet visits would be for a bird but at least for my kitties it’s usually around $100-130 per cat for a checkup, with the price varying when they get their needles.

Some people might say you don’t need to bring such a small animal to the vet unless something goes really, really wrong but I dunno. I’m a believer in yearly checkups Helps my cats get more comfy with our vet and it gives me peace of mind knowing they’ve been checked over.

 

[Rowbowkid800]

Another thing to consider amongst all the other good points above is vet care. Not all vet clinics will treat birds, they may count as “exotic pets” which means you’ll have to find a vet that does treat them vs being able to bring them anywhere.

With a pet that lives for 15+ years it’s likely that you’ll have to bring them to the vet. If you live somewhere smaller it may be trickier to find a place that can treat birds so I’d call around in advance! I’m not sure how expensive vet visits would be for a bird but at least for my kitties it’s usually around $100-130 per cat for a checkup, with the price varying when they get their needles.

Some people might say you don’t need to bring such a small animal to the vet unless something goes really, really wrong but I dunno. I’m a believer in yearly checkups Helps my cats get more comfy with our vet and it gives me peace of mind knowing they’ve been checked over.

I just read a article and it said that it is hard to notice if they are sick or not so you have to take them to a vet