Any bird people have a Rose-ringed Parakeet (Parrot)

[JCMach1]

Are these a good bird to get? Here, at least, there is no ecological impact (they are very common).

But, are they a good parrot to keep.

Will my 10 yr. old daughter be able to handle him, or her? Of course, parents will be there to help too. :)

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. If this is your first parrot

Four things.

They are very intelligent and will bond to people... (there are times the children shock us, a nanday, a cockatiel and a sun conure)

they need to eat all you eat, seeds are akin to chocoloate, and if they are used to seeds it is almost impossible to break them away from them. (OTOH if they eat from your plate, they have NO CLUE what to do with seeds) Oh and no chocolate or avocado for the little ones

I'd recomend a hand raised cockatiel and have it checked by a vet, psitachosis is comon and deadly for birds and at times for humans

Birds can be a tad destructive, but they need some time out of cage, (clip wings).. adn expect a mess... the nature of the beast

[JCMach1]

2. We had cockatiels in the past (before the kids)

and know something of what to expect.

Some things are difficult to check out here in the UAE, but the health ministry is pretty good at checking for disease in the bird market.

I also probably should check if these are mature captured, or hand reared.

One plus, they are very inexpensive here-- around $20... as are cages.

These are from Pakistan and are suposedly quite fond of eating green chili peppers

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. Lucky tyou , our last child

the sun conure, ran us close to 500 but she was hand reared. She is going though the terrible teens right now. She was hand reared though, which was good

[pitohui]

12. psittacula is not like cockatiel

cockatiel is a very social bird

your rose-ring parakeet may need space at times where your cockatiels probably preferred to always be near you or another cockatiel

on the plus side i would expect psittacula to be better at eating a varied diet (yr chili peppers!) than most cockatiels

[Ladyhawk]

4. Do you mean an Indian ringnecked parakeet?

The males are very good talkers, much better than the females. Males get the rosy ring; females don't. Male ringnecks are among the top ten parrots when it comes to talking ability. They come in several color mutations, but the cheapest is natural green.

Ringnecks have a different personality from most parrots. I understand that they don't form as strong a pair-bond with their mates and if I remember correctly, the female is usually dominant. That's another good reason to get a male. You'll want to check up on this because it's been awhile since I've been in aviculture.

There is another subspecies called the African ringnecked parakeet (it has a darker bill) that is supposed to be a little bit calmer. I have no experience with this, so it's another thing you should check out.

Also, it's important to get a hand-raised baby from a reputable breeder and know what to expect when your bird goes through puberty. A good book to get you through this stage is Guide to a Well-Behaved Parrot by Mattie Sue Athan. In the meantime, read everything you can find on Indian ringnecks and parrots. Parrots are highly intelligent and very different from dogs and cats. You have to train them differently and know what to expect when they go through the terrible twos and puberty.

Good luck.

[nadinbrzezinski]

5. {Puberty is fun, really

third bird we are going through with, and it ain't no fun... she is spending a lot of cage (discipline) time

[Ladyhawk]

6. It can be really interesting. My parrot used to say, "Ow, that hurts."

Now he's very well-behaved toward me, but other people are liable to lose body parts.

[Ladyhawk]

7. Which species is going through puberty? :)

Amazons are little hellions. :D :D :D :D

[nadinbrzezinski]

9. Sun conure and she is a little helion

[Ladyhawk]

10. Sunnies are beautiful...and FIERY! :) hehe

[pnorman]

8. I started Googling them and was fascinated.

It seems that there are feral populations of that bird in California, Florids, and even in England. Here's what appears to be a closely related species, Alexander's Parakeet: http://www.geocities.com/khanbirdfarm/parrots/alex.htm

Years back, I had a couple of parrots (Phillipine Green Parrot and Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo) that I still remember with great fondness. They were more companions than pets. The Rose-Ring Parakeet sounds like a good choice for a child old enough to have some sense.

But in addition to precautions against Parrot Fever, be advised that they can snap at a carelessly poked finger and draw much blood.

pnorman

[pitohui]

11. this is a beautiful, talented , and hardy bird

however some ppl feel they are not pair bond birds, therefore
it may not be interested in being touched or handled or petted

it will interact by words or songs, these birds can learn to speak

these birds are hardy, they have colonized europe w. breeding populations in netherlands, britain, france, january in amsterdam is no problem to them, yet they can tolerate a hot climate too, as a small population is now seen in new orleans area

to me this is a good choice of a pet for the busy person who likes an independent bird w. the ability to pick up sounds

if yr daughter has her eye on an older or pre-owned rose-ring parakeet, she can get a better idea of that specific bird's personality by talking to previous owner & interacting w. the bird

bird talk magazine has regular cover of psittacula, suggest looking thru some back issues for more info

i feel the bird can be an excellent choice for the right person

but it is a true bird, not a dog w. feathers on