IndianRingNeck.com

Okay I have never really owned a bird of any type myself. I have taken care of birds that belonged to others etc etc and know the basics. Unfortunately google doesn't seem to want to give me much information on this particular breed no matter how I put it (that being indian ringneck or rose ringneck etc). I went into the pet store and talked to the owner a lot (she breeds and raises the birds she sells). I bought a handfed IRN who will be ready to bring home in about 3 weeks to a month she said. I asked every question I could think of at the time but a few slipped my mind. I am allowed to go see and hold him everyday but I need lots of help and was hoping I could get some questions answered. Most of my questions will be primarily about housing and food but a few may stray from the path.

First up is housing

http://www.petco.com/product/3294/Super ... -Home.aspx

Now before everyone freaks I know its too short. But long story short I had pet rats for about 5 years. The last of them passed away last year (rip). The cage has been bleached and put away since then. However when I originally purchased it they sent me one with a cracked bottom, and sent another set to replace it. So I have double the panels? (I call them panels because we have horses lol its a habit). So I could easily make it two times as tall. Would something like that be suitable for a single IRN? What I have is not exactly like that, the bars are a little closer together as I recall. I also have a slightly smaller cage that I could probably expand even farther into for a dome like top or perch. The smaller cage was for the rat babies since they could easily get out of the bars of my bigger cages. (Chasing 20 baby rats in a heated garage and enclosed garage was not much fun lol. Lucky they all loved to be held or I would have never caught them). But the smaller cage is more like a mesh metal, is that dangerous?

Also if that does not work out does anyone have some specs or instructions on what would be good and suitable that I can build myself? I have built cages for small animals before and my brother can weld so even if it all needs to be metal we can pull it off.

For anyone wondering we moved since breeding the rats so the bird would be kept in my room and not in the garage.

Another is about how big of a nesting box do I need? I don't plan on breeding my IRN atm and may never, so I just need a box for a single bird to go into should he/she see fit.

Poisonous things, at the top of the page I saw a list of poisonous foods. Some of them listed seeds, and not the fruit itself. So would it be safe to feed that food if the seed was removed? I know with horses apples can colic them if fed during the wrong time of year so I just feed cookies and carrots instead of taking chances, so would there be danger in feeding the food without the seed?

Gender- I noticed some people on this forum said there are other ways for you to tell the gender of a baby aside from waiting until they grow the ring or DNA test. What are those ways? The baby has feathers and open eyes already so the red eyed thread I saw is out unless the owner can remember if it had red eyes or not. I am going to ask more questions about the parents when I stop by today but does someone have a list of all the colors and variations I can look at? I have no clue what color my baby is he looks green with blue feathers interspersed as does another one in his bunch. THere is also one that is much lighter than the two of them but still green and blue and there is a gray one. Can you tell me anything about their genetics on that?

Finally any name suggestions would be awesome. I will try and get a picture with my camera phone today and post them up to see what everyone can tell me about him/her. The pet store owner said it was best to pick a genderless name since I wouldnt be able to tell until the baby was older. HOwever the baby already has a light ring around its neck like I have seen on some of the females in my research, are these normal for all babies or are they really early signs of gender?

Zero

It was so good to read your post and see that you have done quite a bit of research and looking BEFORE you purchase a bird
I think if you made the cage taller like you said it should be fine to keep a single IRN in. I am guessing you will have him/her out of the cage alot anyway. I am thinking that any toxins that were on the metal/mesh would be gone, but it would depend on what the mesh is made from. In Australia most bird wire is covered with zinc and needs to be scrubbed sown well or weathered for a few months before it can be used. Don't know why that coat it when it is harmful As for making your own from scratch, just look on net at different cages suitable for IRN, ebay is a good one to look at to give you ideas

For my breeding IRNs, the nesting box is aprox 2ft deep and about 35-40cm wide and I have had success out of that. The other IRN who I have bought in the last few months so have not bred for me yet have an even larger nest box.The boxes with the IRNs & the previous owner said they bred for her in them.

Apples are fine to feed birds as long as the seeds are removed.

It is very hard to tell the gender without a DNA or some form of sexing. Some say the shape of the head, (more rounded for girls, flatter for boys), others say the distance of the eyes, then there is the behaviour (females more moody, males do a lurv dance ) but all these are just guesses I think. When I try and guess a sex, I don't take it as gospel as chances are I will be wrong lol.
If you know the parentage of the chick then you may be able to tell a birds sex by the colour as some mutations produce sex related colours. Too complicated for me though I am afraid lol

With the ring appearing, unless the bird is quite a few months old (like 12 months or more) I doubt a ring woud be visible to tell the sex. From what I understand by your post, they are still in the nest age.

lol oh names.....I always have trouble picking names lol I try and choose one thats suited to their personality or by how I got them. Like we have a cat here named Freebee coz she was free lol. I had a dog called C.D. as he was a cattle dog (kelpie actually but they work cattle ) I have a rabbit called pommy coz he is an English Dwarf. My Lutino IRN is called Jasper coz at the time I didn't know she was a she lol, so picked a genderless name. So have fun with the name choosing

Best of luck with your new bubby-to-be
Looking forward to seeing pics of him/her.

I dont think that cage is suitable at all i think you need to look at a proper bird cage the larger the better I have a great site for cages that arent too expensive if you are in the uk but ebay is also very good thats where i got mine from and it is very big. Im not sure about building your own maybe someone can advise you on that but irn are very clever and little escape artists so it would have to be very secure.
As far as i know your bird wouldnt need a nesting box if your not breeding.
As for the safe fruits i give billy apples all the time without seeds tomato without the seeds but peppers the seeds are ok if you are not sure you can always ask on here and everyone will do their best to help
Gender i think the only reliable way to know the sex of your bird is dna or the ring other than that i think its abit of a guessing game as these bird can fool you lol a female can do a male dance or a male can do female things its just not reliable.
Names i quite like phoenix which i think sounds unisex kia is nice

I have to agree with Bella on this, i dont think that cage is good for a IRN at all i do think you need a bigger cage for your baby, my boy has a really big cage with lots of things to do thats keeps him happy.

I dont think you need a breeding box he your baby goign to be the only one.

thanks for the answers. I saw a big steel bird cage today at the shop when I went to visit him for just $100 stand and all and I think I may just end up getting it (it was sold to them and they are reselling so I will have to bleach and rub it down, I am very particular about reusing things). I didn't manage to get pictures because the owner was busy and I didn't want to hold him and camera at the same time and risk him getting hurt. But he was perching all on his own today! Very first one of his(or her) batch and he was perching when I came in. I held him for a bit and asked some questions about toys and perches for him after I put him up and she had time. I want to ask other people as well as her. She said she doesn't like toys with rope in them because birds get their feet caught in them. She has had this happen to her but I know with horses its the same type of story for fencing. Some people hate panels, other hate electric, others hate panels. So what do you guys think of rope toys? She also suggested getting smaller toys to start and working my way up from there.

She suggested I cover the bottom of any cage I have with newspaper until he is really strong so he wont drop his feet through any grates in the bottom until he is more coordinated. Personally I think this is a good suggestion and don't see anything wrong with it. But I am new in this area and want to make sure its a safe thing to do.

I have been looking at some pictures and best I can guess is that his color is turquoise?

As for names I have thought up Soleil, Zero and Zee so far. I love Soleil but I am also thinking its a lil girly.

The cage will only be to hold him while I am not home. If thats safe? I have always been a very free roaming animals type person. My dogs have a dog door and come in and out as they please and when I had the rats they were only int he cages when I was not home (They were very loving and cuddly so if you let them out they only wanted to set in your lap our shoulder and not run off). I want a stand so he can stretch and move around my room (and possibly the house if things work out well).

You said he doesnt need a box if I dont breed, but would it be something he liked? I want him to feel like he has a place to go to get away from anything bugging him.

Also how much attention would he need? I read up on the net and the lady said they are pretty low maintenance for birds. I am home on weekends when I dont have a horse show so he could be out then. But I work during the week so Mon/Wed he would be in th cage until about 5. On T/Th he would be out at about 1 but back in at 5 and in there until about 9. I usually got to bed about 10:30. Is that enough time for a bird his size? Or do I need to work something out that he can get more free time?

i think rope toys are fine Amazon has had rope toys since he was 7 weeks old and has never hurt himself in them he likes to hang upside down adn pretend he is stuck to get my attention. Buy toys that are suited for his/her size so when he/she real little buy the smaller type toys that he/she can learn to hold.

If you are worried that you baby will fall though the floor grates i would put something down to stop that until he/she can hold him/her self up without falling.

I think as long as you spend at least 2 hours a day with your baby he/she will be fine they get into your routine fast and learn when my parrots arent home i am in my cage when they home i get to come out and play well thats how Amazon sees it lol.

As for the box i dont think it really matters, I dont have one if Amazon wants time out to himself he will go to his cage or climb up high and ut his head under his wing, i know if he is either in his cage or head under teh wing i leave him alone for his me time.

hope this helps im sure others will be over soon to chat

We tend not to have boxes for our birds since it can trigger nesting behavior and horomones when they mature- and then they're evil. Birds in the mating mood can get really mean, so we try to remove things that will trigger them, such as a nestbox.

For a young bird, new the home, I would cover the top, back, and one side of the cage, to help him feel safe and secure until he's moving around and playing freely. His cage will become is safe place, and probably his playstand as well.

Newspaper on the bottom of the cage, over the grate, is a good idea. Once your birdie is climbing around the entire cage with ease, you can take it away.

The danger with rope toys comes when strings get loose enough for a food or toe to get caught and twisted up in it. So we trim those off or replace the toy (rope perches also). Sisal rope is even better than cotton, not to mention easier to clean. Sisal doesn't get as stringly as cotton rope but you still need to trim it when warranted.

Depending on your home, other pets, and youself, a roaming bird shouldn't be a problem. A few on this board have flighted and/or roaming birds. Bird-proof the area he'll roam and supervise your birdie for the first few weeks when he's out. Some birds just like to get into things... o_O

If you can, make sure his wings aren't clipped until he knows how to fly well. I don't know what your breeder does, but it's been my experience that a fully fledged bird is more well-rounded and seems to have less fear. Once they can fly and land with precision, then clipping is fine.

Since this will come up (lol) clipping your parrot's wings is up to you. I'm not a huge fan of having a flighted bird in the home, but that is also because it isn't safe in this house. With the dogs and doors opening all day. Not to mention the lost and found section of our paper always has one or two (sometimes more) escaped birds in it. If your parrot will be flighted, it'll take extra vigilance on your part. You just have to prepare for it.

And that sounds like plenty of time, lol. What a happy birdy she/he'll be!

I asked my breeder about clipping because to be honest I just dont feel safe if the wings are not clipped. Same as tying a horse to a hitch post to me I suppose, I know horses and have had horses that ground tie but I dont do it unless they are in an enclosed area because it just takes one thing to spook them and they are gone and you may never be able to find them again if you live out in the country (where we live). Iwould feel much more comfortable if his wings were clipped as a safety net so if he did manage to get out I could possible catch him. The owner said she will clip the wings before me just before he comes home. She said she wants to wait until the feathers are all grown out and the birds have practiced flying arounda bit as well or something.

I bought the cage and set it up at home, I want to take some pictures and post them up and if people say its too small I will rip my hair out lol. I had to take our suburban there and set down the back seats because it was too big to fit into a regular car.

I also got metal feeders that secure to the side of the cage instead of the plastic ones I see. The owner of the store said that the metal ones would be safer since he would have a harder time if he tried to fling one across the cage. She let me trade out my plastic ones (that came with the cage) for the metal ones she had in the store. She also let me trade out the perches for larger ones since he is going to be too big for them. The cage also came with two ladders and two levels so I set up one level and the ladders as well as the perches. I am looking into getting a big perch for on top of the cage for when he is out but I can hardly wait for him to come home.

I took my sister in with me to see him and now she wants and IRN too! lol. The store owner said her birds are laying eggs again so its a ways off since no one else in town sells them but it would be neat if she got one too. I bought just two small toys for now, they look a lot like baby toys lol but one is just little plastic balls with slots and a bell inside that hang from the cage and has 1-2 loose ones for him to play with and the other is a plastic one that resembles kiddie keys to me.

Might just be kiddie keys, lol. Many baby toys are safe for birds too. ^^ (except for all the paint/lead issues they've had lately )

Sounds great, lol. Hane still has his little whiffle balls with bells inside. It's one of his favourite toys. I still remember waking up to a lound bang. He was trying to carry it up to his food dish. He did finally manage, after dropping it a few times, but now he's a pro!

It was always fun watching him try to figure out how to hold something in his foot and nibble it at the same time! They have to learn coordination, just like little kids.

I remember the first day he perched, lol. In no time they were climbing around that cage. They grow so fast!

You'll end up with a whole family of IRN owners at this rate.