One or two Ringnecks together?

[Greg Sujecki]

Just wondering if anyone has two trained Ringnecks that get along together,for when l'm at work l feel sorry for Mylo being in his cage alone even though he has to listen to the Cockatiels near by.I have heard they are one owner parrots and if you get another they will not train as good.For they will show attention towards each other more than you because you are at work 5 days a week for 10 hours of the day.

[doremon]

I have to say that it is true that if the bird has company, he/she will not response to your training as well as if he/she is alone. I have a cockatiel and he was a very cautious bird. We can never pat him. When we first saw him in the pet shop, he seemed very active and was whistling all the time. But he behaved totally differently when we bought him. However, we can train him to wave, nod or shake his head with the clicker training programme without much problem. So, after some time, I decided to get a IRN as I suspected that he will be a happier bird with a 'friend'.

True enough, he was more willing to 'interact' and 'explore' his surroundings when we got Hoogie (my IRN), though he still refused to let us pat him. However, my two birds are now so 'glued' together that it has become quite hard for me to train them. They always want each other to be around. I just cannot separate them because they will start calling for each other. My IRN was able to pick up all the sounds made by the cockatiel. At one stage, I was worried that he will not talk since he acts like a cockatiel and whistles like one! But, in the past month, he had started talking and it was a relief for me!

So, I guess there is no right or wrong answer in this. I would personally say if you just started getting a new bird. Let him be alone for a while to get some basic training, etc. Then, you can introduce a mate later on. I have a friend who got 3 budgies in one go and did not succeed in training them because it is so hard to separate them. But if you already have one which is already responding to your training, it would give your bird a partner and make it easier for you train the other (new one).

That's my 2 cents worth of advice.

Regards
Doremon

[Greg Sujecki]

thanks doremon,thats good advice for l just wanted to know for sure in this field.Mylo even though he has his own cage copies the Cockatiels in there avairies when they scream, which is funny.Thats good to hear your birds do the same.Thanks for the advice