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Question:

I found another website that I think will be advantagious to this NG. It has articles on feather picking, lead poisoning,(did you know that brass is toxic to birds?),adding a bird,safe plants, etc. http://www.multiscope.com/hotspot/birdhome.htm  RKeith – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > I currently have a cockatiel and am considering adding a senegal to our > household. I’m wondering if/how adding a new bird will affect our > delicate ecosystem at home. > Anyone have any experience with having a cockatiel first and then adding > another parrot?

Response:

We have two birds: a lutino tiel and a peachfaced lovebird.  The tiel has been with us for about 4 years now, and the lovebird just 6 months.  The lovebird immediately exerted dominance over the tiel (like within 10 minutes), and continues to do so.  Before anyone gets excited: yes, they’re in separate cages, yes, they have different food and water sources. The most noticable change is in the tiel (Romeo): while before Max (the lovebird) came on the scene he was affectionate, he was also occasionally aggressive and noisy (I mean, maybe once every two weeks he’d spend an hour screaming or nipping our fingers).  now with Max around, he’s rarely aggressive, NEVER screams, and all he wants to do when he’s alone with one of us is cuddle and scratch.  It’s like he’s learned to appreciate his "alone-time" with us, and wants to make the best of it.  We try to discourage Max abusing Romeo, of course, but he’s still dominant, and likes to chase Romeo for fun, it seems.  We give Romeo the advantage of flight, though, by keeping Max’s wings clipped, so he can get away when Max gets too aggressive. It’s hard to predict what effect a new family member will have on a pet’s behaviour.  In our case, I think dominance roles came into play, as lovebirds are known to be assertive, and can kill tiels if put in the same cage.  In retrospect, we regret buying Max… he has disrupted Romeo’s life a little too much.  Don’t get me wrong, he’s a great bird: acrobatic and lively, funny and sweet, cuddly and cute… just a little too harsh towards Romeo for our liking.  We probably should have got another tiel for Romeo to play with, and run the risk of him bonding with it. Regards, Tim – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > I currently have a cockatiel and am considering adding a senegal to our > household. I’m wondering if/how adding a new bird will affect our > delicate ecosystem at home. > Anyone have any experience with having a cockatiel first and then adding > another parrot?

Response:

I currently have a cockatiel and am considering adding a senegal to our household. I’m wondering if/how adding a new bird will affect our delicate ecosystem at home. Anyone have any experience with having a cockatiel first and then adding another parrot?

Response:

If your bird has bonded with you and wants a lot of attention it will probably not like the new bird at first. Over the years i have had birds a new one was allways accepted in time. You would not want to start both birds off in the same cage. If they are both tame you should have no long term probs as long as they both get plenty of your attention. Good luck. "Always keep your clothes and your weapons were you can find them in the dark." – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->Lazarus Long

Response:

Hi!  We had cockatiels for years and then purchased a Senegal and later an Umbrella cockatoo, not to mention a few more cockatiels, finches, pigeons, doves, etc… I can’t say that any of our cockatiels are unhappy at what we did.  Most of them are handfed and bonded to us, as are the Senegal, Cockatoo, etc. They all get their time with us, and although we can’t spend as much ‘individual’ time with them as we did when the flock was smaller, they all are doing very well, and wait their turn… Our Senegal and Cockatoo are both within view of the cockatiel aviary (actually the cockatiels are in an aviary that separates the Senegal and the U2), so they all see each other all day long.  All are in our kitchen/den area, so we have a chance to work with all of them each day, and to do ‘birdie junk food’ each evening! So far, no problems.  Sidney, our Senegal gets jealous when we take the U2 out.  When we take Sidney out, the U2 gets jealous, the lovebirds get jealous, the cockatiels get jealous, etc… All in all, they all do well, but we DO keep the different species in separate cages… Best, Dave. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > I currently have a cockatiel and am considering adding a senegal to our > household. I’m wondering if/how adding a new bird will affect our > delicate ecosystem at home. > Anyone have any experience with having a cockatiel first and then adding > another parrot?

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