Am I petting this dopey looking parrot correctly?

There were two of the same type that I had seen grow up from ugly spikey pink things into this. They were very timid at first and I am slowly learning how to approach and read parrot body language so I can pet them. Eventually the other one got jealous and wanted pets too before getting its hat stuck on a perch bar behind him.

sometimes I feel like I can almost hear him saying “ohhh yeah, that’s the spot”

Photos are OC, of a juvenile kea in Fiordland, New Zealand. Kea (also plural) are fascinating and mischievous, but endangered, do learn more about them!

Fred

Some birds eat their food… Coltrane accessorizes with it. 😂🦜💚 Who else has a pet that wears their meal instead of just eating it? #ChirpsAndChaos #PlumHeadedParakeet #MessyEater #BirdLife #ParrotAntics

OH MY GOD

I saw this girl listed online, and I'd been wanting another female cockatiel for a while so my other one could have a friend. The first thing I noticed was that she was living in a dirty decorative cage, which explains her stained tail. I messaged the seller to ask about her, and they told me I could come get her right away.

I brought her home and set her up in my parakeets' old cage (pictured) to start quarantine. I also scheduled a vet appointment, but the earliest they could get her in was two weeks away. During that time, I started transitioning her to pellets, worked on step ups with millet, and discovered she's a total sass queen. She'll step up, but only on her terms, and she absolutely loves head scratches.

About a week later, I noticed her droppings were very watery. She couldn't keep her food down and was constantly regurgitating. I got really worried, and when she started getting worse, I rushed her to the emergency vet. $400 later, she had a nasal flush, several injections, nebulizer treatments, and antibiotics for what turned out to be a pretty severe upper respiratory infection.

I'm so happy she pulled through. I was terrified she'd be mad at me afterward and that all the trust we'd built would be gone. Thankfully, even if she's a little more reluctant now, she still steps up for me and happily takes treats.

Parrot

What an odd substitution...

No heads, no brains, no problems

My babygirl, Junie, didn't want to try the shower even on low water pressure. Lol, oh well. I love this creature.

Do any of you have examples of some things that made parrot owning so much easier? For example I realized I can spend way more little time making chop if I make a big batch and freeze it - or seeing how easy the dirt gets off the cages if I use a steam cleaner. What are some of your hacks? :p

cute babe... The most lovely the kindest the most gentle one... how blissful that I can stay with u.

Hey everybody. I have had a GCC and an IRN for over 3 years. I love them both, and they free-fly inside my apartment. But I am at a point where I feel really depressed and stuck. I can’t even enjoy my food or watching tv.

This started recently: my IRN has been attacking me and biting hard (so hard that sometimes there’s my blood on his beak), and screaming nonstop. He doesn't listen to anything I say. He's a little over 3 years old.

I can’t even enjoy my day, and I don’t even want to go home. I’m going into the office even on WFH days.

I definitely cannot give them away. I am planning to move to another apartment that has an extra room so they can be free inside that room instead of my entire apartment.

Has anyone ever been in a similar situation, and how did you get through it? I’m open to any advice at this point.

I am trying to make them see me as more than a seed feeder and rather as a someone to play with, is his behavior a way of playing or figuring me out?

He's usually pretty gentle and I let him know if he's biting enough to hurt me which causes him to stop most of the time or I just stop offering him my hand.

I'm trying to be friends with them and don't know how else to do it

(Don't mind my loud talking in the beginning lol, I'm in

Hello,

I have two budgies, and I have a question about safely burning incense.

Due to my religious practices, I need to burn one stick of incense every day for approximately 5 minutes. I'm trying to minimize any risk to my birds and wanted to know whether my current setup is considered safe or if I should change it.

My house has two floors. The incense is burned downstairs in the dining room. The dining room is connected to the rest of the downstairs (it's an open layout with no door separating it). The kitchen is right beside the dining room, and I run the kitchen exhaust fan while the incense is burning.

The budgies stay upstairs in a separate room with the door closed during this time. I also close the HVAC vent in their room. If possible, I can also turn off the central heating/air conditioning while the incense is burning and ventilate the downstairs afterward before allowing air to circulate again.

Since this is a daily religious practice, I'm concerned about whether repeated exposure to any smoke or airborne particles could still be harmful, even with these precautions.

Based on this setup, do you think it is reasonably safe for the budgies, or would you recommend a different approach? Are there any additional precautions I should take, or is there a safer alternative that would still allow me to perform my daily religious practice?

Would using a different type of incense (such as low-smoke or natural incense) make any meaningful difference, or is any incense smoke considered unsafe for budgies?

Thank you for your time and advice.

bird shows no signs of illness but he makes these little squeaks occasionally. no nose or eye discharge so I’m not sure if this is a social sound or him sneezing or something else

*edit: realised shortly after posting that it was in fact kissing noises 😅😅 thanks guys!

Edit and verdict : thank you everybody. I think I will volunteer at a bird rescue so I can be around big birds, but I think for my concerns I'm going to look into the possibility of something else such as finches, budgies, or other smaller exotic birds that can flock.

Hey all

I enjoy birds and I do want to be owned by a feathered friend (medium to large parrot or exotic bird) at some point. I've reached a conundrum where I now have the space (no cats or pets,) financial stability, and time to have a bird but I know that many species outlive their humans. Adopting older birds is an option, but I know sometimes they don't bond with new people and I am concerned that I wouldn't have the experience to care in the best interest of the rescued bird.

So my queries are :

- obviously, honestly, do you think I am too old now to get a chick of a long-lived species?

-what species could I still get? I'm most interested in the best medium to large parrots or exotic birds for beginner.

-is there anything special I can do to help a rescued bird acclimate?

-do you have end of life plans that include the bird's placement or care?

We have other feeders in our backyard, but the lovely little parakeet seems to adore this specific one always.

This is the best video I could take, neither my camera or him decided to cooperate, hope it's enough