Advice Please

Vwand123

Regular Member
Hi there


We are looking for possibly a cockatoo to join our family.


As a child we had greys, bred conures and a not so tame Amazon.


Seeing as the greys are very much a one sex bird, as is the Amazon, we were leaning towards a cockatoo.


It's my children that have harassed me for the past few years and have held them off until I thought they were of a better age.


Can you all give me as much info as poss on cockatoos and how they cope with living with a large family (who will all want to play with it) please?


Also, I am home all day everyday except for brief school run(it's opposite our house) and a walk with the dogs. The house is never empty for any length of time :)


Thanks in advance
 
Hi :welcome:

I totally understand you wanting to get a cockatoo, I love them and rightly or wrongly my first parrot was a Too  I bought an LSC.  This was years ago and sadly Henry is not longer with us.

Many folk will advise against having a Too as your first bird, and/or anyway. They can be extremely noisy and destructive,however its a chance you take.

There is no guarantee that any parrot will mix generally and like all family members , they do so often choose their favourite person some will tolerate other 'humans' some will not.

Anyway, enough from me, lets see what other members think.
 
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Hello and welcome to the forum from me and mine :)  

:biggrin: I have no experience with 'Too's myself, but from the stories I have read from others they can be quite hard work and maybe not the best of species to mix with children. How old are your children?

I may be completely wrong so wait until someone with personal experience comes along. 

Anyway nice to see you here ask as many questions as you like, we are a friendly bunch x
 
The problem with too's is if they become a one person bird they will be very demanding and also could attack others that is may see as getting between the bond it wants.  now my big worry is the toos have a very nasty bite.  I personally think a grey being brought up with all family members would be a better option.  well noise level they top other birds and they are often rehomed as neighbours complain.  Don't get me wrong I love Toos and I took buster in a greater sulphur he is fantastic with me but a stranger comes in it is constant screaming.  I can have buster on me whilst I have guest but do not try to touch him.  the strength of his feet is amazing when he holds tightly I must say it hurts me now I am used to birds bites and nail holes but for children around even a friendly too can hurt. 
 
Ooh interesting Michael.


See I've said I'm thinking along the lines of a Too as we've had greys and haven't been good family birds. I've spoke to a few people and they all suggested a Too as they seem kinder and as long as someone gives them attention then they are happy with that.


Obviously if the majority of people say steer clear then we will which is why I'm interested in everyone's opinion. And if anyone has an idea of what they think would be better then that will also be greatly received.


:)


Thanks guys
 
I think in order to have a grey as a family bird you would have to really work hard at it as they do tend to choose one person over another and no matter what, there will be bites...

I know very little about cockatoos, I always wanted one and I did some online research and changed my mind!

Do you want a large bird, have you considered something a bit smaller that was not quite so demanding and did not have such a big beak!
 
Hi Julie


We want something that we can teach to talk and not be too small.


As I said, we had greys at home and I even had a hand reared grey but he ended up all for my husband, and I was the one at home with him all day.


The people I spoke to before coming on here said definitely don't go for the greys as they are the worst ones. But like I said, if there were enough opinions who say they've kept a certain bird within their family and not had mega problems then I'm happy to go with the majority. :)
 
Hi and welcome to the forum!


I think for talking, greys are the best. However, no bird is guaranteed to talk and there are plenty of non talking greys. I think you need to go into this the with mindset that your bird may not be a talker.


Now, other members on here may recommend conures, caiques and cockatiels for being good family birds. Big personalities and so much fun even without the talking!


Though if you've set your mind on a bigger bird then the smaller varieties might not be an option for you. I only have the experience of my own grey. There is just myself and my partner at home. I'm sure given the chance, Ruby would choose my partner as her special person but with advice from our vet right from the start, we've managed to stop her so far bonding with anyone and she'll quite happily go to either of us. It's been hard work and it may not last but she's quite independent. Saying that, she'll still bite with no warning given the chance!


Are your children confident around birds?
 
Hi Bradders


I understand there's no guarantee that our chosen bird will talk. How did you go about that? That could be very helpful.


My daughter isn't confident but the boys are. It's the boys that have harassed me the last few years.


Thank you
 
Do you mean how did we go about to prevent over bonding? Well, there were a few things we did. If she did show any potential signs of bonding such as regurgitation, she was returned to her Java tree. We also avoided stroking her down her back and tickling her under her wings. We both handle her equally. She's not allowed to pick and choose. So if she goes to my partner for attention quite a bit, he'll ignore her and eventually she'll see I'm not so bad then sit with me.


The main thing was though, we taught her to forage. We're at work during the day so I spend a good amount of time wrapping her food in little parcels and hiding them in foraging toys or egg boxes, kitchen rolls etc. this could be anywhere in her cage and never the same place twice on the run. She has toys to chew too. This keeps her busy and stimulated and happy.


In the evenings, she has a Java tree in the living room and she sits there chatting away to us. She's not one to sit by you constantly though she does have her moments. She's quite feisty and likes to be in control so if I want her to do something and she doesn't want to, then she'll nip me. Sometimes her bites are hard and draw blood.


I wouldn't trust her near my nieces and nephews but she hasn't grown up around them. I think you'll need to encourage your children to handle any bird but also respect that the bird has their own mind too. If your parrot and children do not get on, will the bird still be able to have time out of its cage when the children are not allowed. I worry about your daughter as Ruby takes full advantage of visitors that show they are wary of her and will take advantage!


I've given you the experience of my bird and how it's worked for us. There is still a chance she could bond with one of us, she's only two and a half but if that's the case, we will just have to get on with it. All parrots are individual. Im sure you're aware that parrots are very time consuming and need a lot of attention. The worst thing you can do is take on a bird, realise it isn't how you wanted it to be then pass it on. Birds need stability in a loving home. If I were you, I'd think of all the worst scenarios and if you have a plan B, C right through to Z to make it work for you, then you'll be fine. :)
 
I must be really lucky because I have 3 greys and they love everyone lol they sing with my dad and dance with my mum and sit on me for hours for cuddles. :)

Sarah-Jane
 
Maybe one of the mods could link my cockatoo post as I seem to be useless at that sort of thing I'm sure it was a pinned post somewhere
 
I would never ever trust a cockatoo at all!!


They have a real nasty bite nothing at all like a grey!


Maybe one of the admin could link my post on cockatoos I'm sure it's a pinned one somewhere??
 
I would advise against a Too.


Have you looked into cockatiels? Males can talk and they are normally brilliant family birds. Likewise your green cheeked conures though they can be nippy. And although often overlooked the humble budgie is a brilliant family bird and can talk really well. My Munchkin will go to everyone and has no problem demanding kisses off strangers or asking people what they are doing lol. Hes extremely entertaining and doesnt mind having to entertain himself when he cant come out. Plus hes nowhere near as destructive as my bigger guys lol
 
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