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Advise please

Posted: Sun Jan 19, 2014 1:09 pm
by Sohail_b
Evening all
Greetings from West Yorkshire , uk.

Am considering buying a indian ring neck parrot and would like some advise please.

I have seen a number of birds 3-4 months old advertised but am un sure of how much I should be paying and who to buy off.

Are they easy to keep and look after ??

What size cage should I be looking to buy ?

What perpetration do I need to do before buying one ?

Sorry for so many questions.

Thank you in advance

Re: Advise please

Posted: Sun Jan 19, 2014 1:51 pm
by AJPeter
Welcome to our forum Sohail_b, a good size cage would be enough room for the bird to flap it wings, or 50% more than the wing span but check out the cages where you buy your bird. Aslo check how clean the cages are, do the birds have fresh dinking water. If there are several birds on offer look for one that is active hopping around from one perch to another, avoid buying birds that are on the floor of the cage. Birds have a pecking order and if there are quite a few in the cage the one closet to the wall probably is the dominant male sitting next to him will be the number one female and the then the number two female. Perhaps! It is just my theory.

They are very easy to look after, food costs are low, and you wil have great fun getting to know you bird.

Re: Advise please

Posted: Sun Jan 19, 2014 4:27 pm
by InTheAir
Hi Sohail,
Welcome to the forum.
Sohail_b wrote:Evening all
Greetings from West Yorkshire , uk.

Am considering buying a indian ring neck parrot and would like some advise please.

I have seen a number of birds 3-4 months old advertised but am un sure of how much I should be paying and who to buy off.
Sorry, I can't help with that question, I'm in a different country. Different Mutations vary in price, depending on how common they are. Green, blue, lutino and turquoise blue are pretty cheap here.
I like breeders that take the time to answer questions and enjoy hanging out with their birds. Make sure any bird you buy is bright eyed, has nice fathers and is active. Ragged or broken tail feather ends are pretty common in babies, as they are a little clumsy, but the rest of the feathers should look nice and smooth.
Sohail_b wrote:Are they easy to keep and look after ??
They do require a lot of entertainment, out of cage time and attention. Everyone has a different opinion on how much. One parrot behaviour consultant I know of advocates a minimum of 4 hours a day out of cage time.
If you are away from home all day, your parrot will need things to keep it entertained. Foraging for food is highly recommended. Search "foraging" on this forum. Under stimulated birds will make their own entertainment, which is usually some kind of problem behaviour like screaming.
They are highly intelligent and like problem solving type puzzles.
Parrots are pretty messy! They are quite good at getting food and shredded toys everywhere. If you enjoy the satisfaction vacuuming up a big mess, you will have a great time with a parrot :mrgreen:
Sohail_b wrote: What size cage should I be looking to buy ?
The bigger the better, but it can be hard to find a decent sized cage with the correct bar spacing for a ringneck. Flight cages are generally recommended.
I got my second bird a temporary cage which is about 82cm long by 46 wide and about 1m high and find it too small. She was meant to share our first birds mansion, but they don't get on.
Sohail_b wrote: What preparation do I need to do before buying one ?

It's a good idea to read up on parrot behaviour, foraging and positive reinforcement training. I think it is easiest to learn about this to try to prevent problems, rather than waiting until your bird picks up an undesirable behaviour and trying to fix it.
Learn about hormonal behaviour and the strategies to minimise it in advance, especially if you are planning to get a female bird.
I went to a pet store and listened to the birds vocalising, I found I can't tolerate sun conure noises but can handle ringnecks sounding off.
Read up on the pros and cons of flighted vs clipped and make an educated choice. I am pro flight and my opinion may be biased, but flighted birds are great!
Buy or build and exciting play gym to keep your bird amused out of the cage.
Budget for avian vet visits, they aren't cheap! It is a good idea to take a new bird for a health check and have it tested for psittacosis.
Also consider that the life span of a ringneck can be 30 years or more. It is a commitment and good bird sitters can be hard to find (especially if you are very fussy about how your bird is looked after like I am).
Sohail_b wrote: Sorry for so many questions.

Thank you in advance
You are welcome to ask as many questions as you like. It's great to be forewarned. I didn't do as much research as I should have and had to learn very quickly when we got our first bird!

Regards,
Claire

Re: Advise please

Posted: Sun Jan 19, 2014 5:41 pm
by zentoucan
I have a question for you
do you have the time, patients and commitment for the IRN?
if you do, then you will be rewarded with a companion bird that will enrich your life.
do your research.