Companions

[Samael]

Hi, it's me again.

 

You might all think this is a dumb question, but I'm gonna ask it anyway.

 

Is it possible to get another bird to be a direct companion for a CAG, i.e.:

living in the same cage together?

 

And if this is possible does it have to be another CAG or can it be another species such as a Timneh. I have seen a photo in a CAG book that suggests that you can pair a CAG up with an Amazon Parrot or maybe a Cockatoo.

 

I just wondered because I'd love Bertie to have a friend with maybe out the possibility of lots of Baby Berties, if you know what I mean. And I would quite like a Timneh.

[Guest phishbook]

african greys yyou need to know a lot about feeding and caring for a breeding pair. Then you need an aviary. You canot expect to simply put 2 african greys together in a cage in your living room and hey presto they produce babies worth loads of money. If it were only that simple, everyone would do it. Do you know how to hand rear?

If you want a companion for Bertie, are you sure he would accept one? A lot of hand reared parrots are so bonded to their humans they don't like other birds. I happen to keep an amazon and a disabled grey together in one cage but I am an experienced birdkeeper, I know my birds, and would not have risked it unless I had time to sit in the room all day to monitor them. I would *not* have put a cockatoo in with them.

Think long and hard.

Do you want to breed parrots? If so, you have an awful lot to learn about parrot husbandry. You will need to buy a proven or sexed pair, not hand reared.

Do you want a companion for Bertie? If so why? Are you not spending enough time with him?

What will you do if Bertie hates the companion you have bought for him? What if the cpompanion has a disease you cannot see and ends up giving it to

Bertie?

What if the other bird attacks Bertie, or he attacks it?

What if you have Bertie sexed, place a bird of the opposite sex in the cage and they hate each other on sight and refuse to breed?

I have lots of birds here who have never bred. I generally don't breed from pets. I have my breeders in an aviary, and II have my indoor pets. Breeders need privacy, african greys more so. They need quiet, they need to fly, and chew wood and work the nestbox, and they will become very noisy. Oh and did

I mention that while they are rearing a clutch, you will have lost your pet?

If he is a successful breeder he will be more concerned in providing for his mate and protecting her, than being your pet, and may even go as far as to attack you if you get too close.

[Guest phishbook]

'benny'. In a seperate cage of course, but he loved him all the same and would mope and sulk if he could not see or hear him.

I understand what you mean though, it is nice to have birds interacting, but being caged seperately will still be fine for him. A small birdy as his own pet, but not so that he can actually share a cage will be ideal. A couple of my birds will imitate my canaries from when I had them indoors too.

[Samael]

Well, Bertie has already shared my attention and a room with dozens of

Japanese Quails I have bred and up until recently a Kakariki and we have had no problems so far. He seemed to interact with the Kakariki very well, he copied his calls, jumped over to his cage and just sat with him. They even once ran around on the floor together and Bertie didn't show the Kakariki any malice at all.

 

Unfortunatley Marley (the Kakariki) was born with birth defects and didn't make it past a few months old. Now Bertie is on his own for a few hours a day, so having another bird in the room gives him something to interact with. I was just wondering if it was possible for him to have some direct companionship with another bird without the complication of either bird trying to mate with the other.