what kind of bird to get?

[bjbberkey]

I have a cockatiel now but have thought about getting another small bird. I would love to get a bigger bird but I don't like the bigger poop factor. I've heard to the bigger the bird the more emotional problems they can have if they don't get enough attention because they're so smart. The bird I have now gets alot of attention. Someone told me Quakers(?spelling) make a nice bird and you take care of them the same way you do cockatiels.

[Chrisanne]

Quakers are cool. So are conures.

[Mygala]

Quakers are very cool!

However, they are really a conure, and they are a completely different bird than a cockatiel. Noise is a big difference, so is diet.

I'd look into a small conure called the Green-Cheeked Conure. They aren't much bigger than a cockatiel, aren't all that loud (mine is quieter than my cockatiel) and can be very sweet, affectionate birds. There are other members of that genus (Pyrrhura), like Dusky and Maroon-Bellied Conures that are equally sweet and quiet birds.

I would recommend you look into purchasing some good parrot books and find read up on some of the species. See what might fit in with your lifestyle ...and your pocketbook!

Budgies make great pets, as do any number of the Australian Grass Parrakeets species.

Parrotlets are a small species that lot of foks breed, as well as quite a few of the Ringneck Parrakeets.

Getting a little larger, you can look a Pionus, Caiques, Jardines, Meyers and Red Bellied Parrots too.

As you can see, there are a great number of options out there. I'm sure some research will help you find the bird for you!

Good Luck..

[RondaNC]

Yes Quakers are sweethearts but boy they can be loud,when ever i walk out of the room she has full conversations of blah blah in a real loud voice.As far as the poop factor ,i think it depends on the bird,my Quaker is the worst out of my two birds and my brother had 12 birds and my mother 8,i take care of alot of them for long periods of time,but id have to say out of all of them my Quaker (Gabriel) is the poop queen,i call her my lil chitter lol
But that could just be her personality,i think birds have certain traits yes that pertains to thier species,but i think there much like any other group of animlas,much like us they have there own personalitys.We have a baby nandate on the way,my boyfriend wants it and although i was not overly happy about getting one of them because thier parents voices can induce headaches,i know that although this baby will have the ability to ring my ears ,it still will be different and unique to itself.
So good luck and mygala is right the best thing you can do is research before you buy.
One last thing though the bigger the bird the bigger the poop,so yeah that inevitable lol

[Noo1home]

I like Quakers. I've heard they are pretty loud at times. I dont mind sound because Picasso is so loud I am use to it. Out of my 2 birds Joey needs more love than Picasso. I am not sure why. But thats just hows she is. I think it might be because we use to only own Joey and she was all spoiled then we got Bing and he got spoiled and then we gave Bing to Jeff's Girl Friend. Then we got Picasso. So I am just guessing its because she has always been spoiled.