I'm New here... thinking of buying a ringneck

Pioneer · Post by **Pioneer** » Wed Dec 12, 2007 7:24 pm

Hello all, My name is Adam I'm from Australia (yes! another Aussie :lol:

)

I've really liked IRN's for quite a while and I am currently thinking about buying one. I have read quite a bit of information about them on the net, but today when I went to an aviary to get a bit more information I was left feeling rather confused so I thought I would sign up here and ask you guys first hand.

He said IRN's don't make very good pets at all (!!?!) because they don't like being handled (something I was going to do a lot of), they constantly bite even when you hand raise them from a couple days old, and about the only thing they are really good for is sitting in an aviary to look at and talking to.

This aviary I went to has over 25 years experience, I have purchased many birds from them, so I trust what they say. But after reading so many positive things on the internet about IRN's it made me wonder if they were talking about the same bird or not.

I have hand raised quite a few birds in my life... love birds, cockatiels, budgies etc but I've always like larger parrots. So was going to try hand raising a ring neck.

any comments you make to this would be really appreciated because I am really confused now.

Thank you for your time!

Clare · Post by **Clare** » Wed Dec 12, 2007 7:46 pm

Hi Adam

I am also from Australia and have 2 ringnecks. I got them both when they were six months old. Petey, my first, came straight from an aviary and was never handled, other that having his wing clipped, and is a beautiful bird. He got out of his cage straight away and sat on my shoulder but seemed lonely so I got another, Percy, who was hand raised.

I have never been bitten and my two birds live in my lounge room and are never locked up. They are both clipped so they just walk and jump around. They spend most of their time on my curtain rails or on the couch, especially if they see food! :lol:

I love them so much and could never be without an IRN now, but every bird is different and I have heard lots of stories about biting IRN's.

Pioneer · Post by **Pioneer** » Wed Dec 12, 2007 9:21 pm

Hi Claire, Thank you for replying!!

What you say pretty much reflects what I thought until I went to the aviary today, thank you.

Does Petey let handle him and stuff now he's used to you?

Clare · Post by **Clare** » Wed Dec 12, 2007 10:33 pm

I think I got very lucky with Petey. I had never owned a bird and didn't even know about hand raising. I just went and picked him out from a breeder for $25. I took him home and got him out and he was fine right from the beginning. He was probably just so terrified he didn't think to escape :lol:

He would ride on my shoulder all day and take food from me.

However, until I got my second bird, Petey never played with toys and never made a sound. He learnt those things from Percy. He was in an aviary with no toys when I got him.

Thats Percy. He is way more adventurous and confident because he was used to people.

Post by **kyria** » Thu Dec 13, 2007 3:31 am

Alot of breeders get pissy because and IRN is not like alot of other birds, that you can hand raise make tame then put out to aviary and a year down the track take them out of the aviary and they are still relatively tame. An IRN can be handraised and stay tame, IF you spend time with them on a regular basis.

Every bird bites at some point in time, but a bite from a lori or a cockatiel, budgie is not nearly as impressive as from an IRN. Well a lori can deliver a nasty bite.

I just think breeders that breed many varieties are disheartened with the fact that you need to spend personal one on one attention with an IRN to keep it nice and tame and disciplined.

I would never give up Jordan and Pickle, they are cheeky, naughty, playful, funny, totally FUN birds to own. I enjoy the time I have to spend with them, teaching them and keeping them under control. They learn very !! quickly and adapt very well. Which is why when put out to aviary they adapt back to a wild flock easily.

If you have time and desire and want 30 years of fun loving relationship with a personal pet, then go for an IRN.

You know every creature bites, every creature has bad moods, I just think that IRN's are given a bad rep by breeders because other breeds are so easy, and for me, easy is boring :wink:

Just my 2 bob !

By the way .. Welcome to the family and I can't wait to see your new baby. Definately go for handraised baby, as adult aviary birds are almost and I say almost! impossible to tame. I have tamed one, with alot of time, patience and wearing many bites and attacks.

Melika · Post by **Melika** » Fri Dec 14, 2007 12:27 am

Hane has pinched me a few times, but he didn't even go through a bad bluffing stage- never bit, just bluffed it. I simply called his bluff.

Tsume I don't think has ever bitten me, at least not within the past year.

I don't think they're easy. They're a lot of work, but I think Hane was well worth it.

But I'm used to dogs, the training never ends with them either! :lol:

Ditto what Angie said!

And welcome to the board. I'm assuming (since you said you've gotten many birds from this breeder) you have other bird children right now- what kinds do you have?

Pioneer · Post by **Pioneer** » Fri Dec 14, 2007 9:51 pm

Hello, thank you all very much for the advice, Sorry it's taken me so long to respond but I have been having computer troubles.

I've decided to just go ahead and get one, everyone that has one seems to love theirs to bits so I think the aviary person that told me they were bad pets must be one misinformed person.

Melika, I have had other bird children in the past but I don't currently have any. I bought a peach faced parrot when I was 8, and he died at the age of 16 just last year. he was by far the tamest bird I've ever owned (well... tame to me anyway

used to attack my mother on occasions =) )

Claire, thank you for the pictures of Petey and Percy, they look cute, especially playing soccer!!