TinyTimneh Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 hi all! anyhoo, in a few months time i'll be moving into an apartment with a friend. with tihs comes the thrilling yet worrisome task of blending our two flocks. i have the boys, Sully the 'tiel and Jacko the rescued TAG, she has Mango the parrotlet. we were thinkng of setting up their cages in opposite corners of the living room, with a large playgym in the centre, sort of neutral ground. the question is then, how are we going to schedule playtime for everyone (the TAG is not wing clipped and cannot be)? we were thinking of having 'small bird' playtime and 'big bird' playtime so that everyone is safe. also, i might be bringing another fid into the house in a couple of months (i've already started picking out names hehe) was wanting another large bird and i realized another grey might be the best option in that my first TAG might be more accepting. should it be male or female? TAG or CAG (does it matter? i was leaning towards a TAG like them better) any suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest briansmum Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 hit there, firstly i wouldn't get any bird in hopes your TAG is accepting, doesnt really matter what bird it is, theres no saying they'll get on. also if you do get another grey and they do bond it's possible they'll become less bonded with you. as for you're idea of little bird playtime and big bird playtime, i think thats a good idea if your smaller birds get on together. just maybe put a towel or something over the top of whoever isn't out playings cage so that if the other bird lands on it theres no chance of any toes getting nipped Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 Beccy gives great advice. The introductions and play times will just need to be done in a safe, controlled and closely supervised environment to ensure all are safe from damage. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 TinyTimneh, have they ever met before? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 If they have never met, a quarantee period may have to be established to insure that no disease is passed on to one of the flock if one is infected or carrying a disease. I agree that play time out of the cage separated by small birds and large birds is a good idea and Beccy's idea of putting a towel on top of the cage in case one lands on the cage to prevent bitten off toes is excellent. Supervision is key here with you being there to handle any conflict that may happen and you may just have the solution. As far as getting another bird, just get what you want for the grey is probably not going to get along with it whatever it is even if it is another grey. Maybe they will get along but don't count on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TinyTimneh Posted October 19, 2007 Author Share Posted October 19, 2007 the boys, FairY, have 'met' and live in the same room in seperate cages and altho i would NEVER EVER let them come into contact with each other they co-exist well as long as nobody feels that the other one is coming too close to their cage. I can get the TAG to step up even when he lands on the 'tiels cage so everything is fine there. the 'tiel and parrotlet have never met but they are both young and the 'tiel is submissive so seeing as the apartment will be new territory for all and the first meeting will be on neutral ground i am not worried. The TAG will not be allowed near the parrotlet so that's not a large concern either. As for a new bird, i want to get another grey A) because i love them (who doesn't?), B) the TAG was possibly bullied by a large amazon in his past (so i want to avoid large green birds, and specifically Amazons because they are loud and thus i would find myself homeless in a very short time if i got one) and C) i remember coming across a theory that african birds are less tolerant of mixed species flocks than south american birds who must often share ressources to survive so whereas an Amazon will accept another species bird in time a Grey will not... would a new female parrot be better than a male? (I have NO intention of breeding them and they will be housed in seperate cages) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TinyTimneh Posted October 19, 2007 Author Share Posted October 19, 2007 OH OH OH LOL, I JUST thought of this, does sub-species matter??? If i were to get another grey, would it be best to get another TAG or does it even matter? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loviechick Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 First I don't think it will matter what kind of bird you get...neither of my Greys like the other birds including eachother. Just because you get another Grey doesn't mean they will get along. Would you get along with someone that looked just like you? Secondly if it were me I wouldn't put a playground for them all to play on in the middle, assuming they would all be playing on it at the same time. All my birds have their own space, and I think it's good for them to have it. All mine have their own little play gym near or on their cages. I've noticed when I put all of them in a small area to play, all 4 of mine get really nervous and jumpy. This way you can have all 4 out playing at the same time and not have to worry about letting one play for a while, then switch to another. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 TinyTimneh wrote: the boys, FairY, have 'met' and live in the same room in seperate cages and altho i would NEVER EVER let them come into contact with each other they co-exist well as long as nobody feels that the other one is coming too close to their cage. I can get the TAG to step up even when he lands on the 'tiels cage so everything is fine there. the 'tiel and parrotlet have never met but they are both young and the 'tiel is submissive so seeing as the apartment will be new territory for all and the first meeting will be on neutral ground i am not worried. The TAG will not be allowed near the parrotlet so that's not a large concern either. As for a new bird, i want to get another grey A) because i love them (who doesn't?), B) the TAG was possibly bullied by a large amazon in his past (so i want to avoid large green birds, and specifically Amazons because they are loud and thus i would find myself homeless in a very short time if i got one) and C) i remember coming across a theory that african birds are less tolerant of mixed species flocks than south american birds who must often share ressources to survive so whereas an Amazon will accept another species bird in time a Grey will not... would a new female parrot be better than a male? (I have NO intention of breeding them and they will be housed in seperate cages) U r a person with brains in her head - sweetie. I'm 100% confident this is going to turn out ok. Believe in yourself and your grey will believe in you as well :kiss: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Connie Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 judygram wrote: If they have never met, a quarantee period may have to be established to insure that no disease is passed on to one of the flock if one is infected or carrying a disease. You took the words right out of my mouth Judy! When I was putting Spanky and Darla together, my 2 CAGs, I started by putting the cages together, and every couple days, I would get them closer and closer. They would go to the tops of the cages and every so often would lock beaks, (ALWAYS SUPERVISED) and now, they will share the same perch. This took about 3/4 months. Hope that helps. Fourtrap has a large mixture, you should pm him. He has a CAG beside a Macaw...CAG rules the roost!, and a TAG beside a sun conure. Also in the room are teils, quackers, and ringnecks. I might add, that they all have separate play time with mom and dad.<br><br>Post edited by: Connie, at: 2007/10/19 19:08 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jujubechan Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 Hello TinyTimneh! I don't know if this might help but a friend of mine adopted a adult TAG and baby CAG at the same day from the same pet shop, though they've never met or been in one cage while they were at the pet shop but she brought them home in one carrier and then into a big cage, the baby CAG is a slightly larger than the TAG but she cling to it all the time and they don't have any problem, but it might be different when you have one already at home who feels secure and think its the only one that really matter at home then bringing another one it will only feel threatened even if you don't keep them in one cage, and yes also please consider the quarantee for 40 days whenever you bring a new bird at home so they won't get infected. Good luck and please keep us updated - Jujube Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MARIR Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 Can I ask a dumb question regarding quarantee period? What if I'm taking my birds to the vets and the vet has birds? What about other patients at the vets? Is this safe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwibarb12 Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 Not a dumb question at all. In an ideal world it would be safe. In this world, keep your bird in his carrier, wash your hands before taking him out , wash your hands putting him back, wash your hands taking your keys out of your bag, wash your hands when.... do you see a pattern here?:laugh: AS for quarantine at home - as a nurse, home quarantine is only effective if you change clothes and wash hands after being with the new bird - and even then, if they have an airborne disease, your flock could still catch it. In hospitals we have positive pressure rooms and halls so air flow goes only one way, and bugs don't get out. Obviously, in homes it doesn't work that way, so we do the best we can and hope for the best! I think it says a lot for the health of the general bird population that more birds don't get sick from birds bought into the home. and on a personal note, I have a TAG, who doesn't like other birds. He has been known to lean over her cage and growl at the budgie if she makes too much noise. Get additional birds for you, not your AG. And make sure you greet the first bird first ,and let him out first, and pet him first . All other birds should be second birds - that way, your first bird will retain his position as top bird. I have heard of birds starting to misbehave, and pluck because of pecking order confusion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwibarb12 Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 sorry - can't figure out how to delete the second post.:blush: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest briansmum Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 admin or mods will sort that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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