Siamese

I've had tons of animals under my care....cats, rats, dogs, snakes, fish, squirrels, rabbits, raccoons, the list goes on and on. The only experience I have with birds though, are a pair of baby owls I rehabilitated/finished raising/released.

But low and behold, my partner is allergic to pretty much all forms of pet dander and fur, so there will be no more furry friends added in the future. He had a couple birds when he was really little, but doesn't remember much about them and now wants to get birds. I, on the other hand, always heard they were an absolute mess, noisy, and could have their fair of social problems, depending on the kind. I don't even know where to begin really.

So long story shorter, is there a kind of bird that would make a good "starter bird," so to speak? What are some of the bare basics that I should know before getting too far into my research? There just seems to be a ton of information about "birds in general" and they're all different, so help?

puppylove

Birds can be very different from one to the next just like dog breeds or cat breeds. I only was around birds for the past five years with an African Grey parrot becoming a part of our household the past two.

One thing I will tell you is expect to get bit. It happens even with well behaved birds, so if your new feathered friend is anything less than perfect it could happen alot. I've been bit about a dozen times, sometimes for doing nothing other than putting her back in her cage when she wants to be out or not picking her up. Fortunately she's smaller than some birds so she hasn't hurt me too bad yet. I don't find her too noisy, as she can be quited by closing the door to her room or telling her to be quiet and go to bed. She can be a bit messy, but the seed guards on her cage work wonders. When she sheds fluff gets everywhere but it can't be helped much. There are a couple different schools of thought on feeding ranging from seeds, to pellets to a more diverse diet. We feed pellets along with fresh fruit/veggies and peanuts as a treat.

Alot of people have love birds and other cute bright colored birds as they are cheaper than African Greys and Macaws and often more friendly. Try going to a local pet shop and talking to their avian specialist. They can tell you about the birds they carry as well as let you hold them.

Also note that your partner can be allergic to birds as they do have dander and can be rather dusty. I myself am not although I am allergic to cats, so keeping the cage clean may be important for you to minimize this issue.

Fluffball

I always wanted to get a bird myself, but I never had the first clue on where I should start!

Birds can greatly vary from species to species, and some are far easier to raise than others.

I was never entirely sure what bird to start with myself, but I definitely found Puppylove's post to be very helpful

puppylove

I had to learn very quickly when we were stuck "babysitting" my mother-in-law's 14 yr old African Grey. My husband grew up with her so he knew plenty but I had never had a bird before ever. I helped take care of her when we lived with his mom but not as much as I have to now. Since they live so long I found I had to make myself just get over my fears and concerns and just pick her up, feed her, etc. We've been babysitting for over two years now, so its a good thing I did.