I'm sorry if any of these have been asked before. I have used the search bit, but I'm not too good with these sorts of things so may of missed them.
The first one is one you probably get asked alot, noise! How loud are IRN's? I used to own a Senegal, who was alot quiter than the cockatiel I used to own. She whistled more than anything else, I never heard her scream or anything once. I have also been around a blue crowned conure while that was screaming, and that was loud! So if anyone could tell me what they're like compared to these 3 birds I would be very grateful. I expect some noise, they're birds after all, but I know that none of us, or our neighbours would appreciate a bird as loud as the conure was.
I have a little boy (3) and another child on the way, are they generally good with children? They will be able to give it treats and things (well, not the baby to start with, lol) but won't really be able to help with the other things like cleaning, etc. We often have people popping round, so I also need to know that they're usually good with other people. I know this can vary from bird to bird, but I would like to know in general.
Hand reared or parent reared? Does it make much difference which you buy? I know a hand reared bird will be tame from the start, but are young parent reared birds hard to tame? I've been looking at adverts for IRN's for sale, and see a few young parent reared birds for sale, but hardly any hand reared. And what age would it be best to buy either at?
I thought they pinned their eyes when they were angry, but I read something that someone had put on youtube (while I was watching one of the many videos) that says they do this when their happy, is this true? (this is just a general question for my curiosity!)
Also when watching video's on youtube I noticed alot with the birds outside. I know that some of these birds have their wings clipped, but I have seen some where the birds haven't got their wings clipped. Is that because they can be trained to come back easily if they were to fly off? I have no intentions of taking my bird outside loose, but after my sennie escaped last year, I would like to be able to train my next bird to come back when called, just incase it ever happens again. Is this easy to do??
Sorry for so many questions, but I want to make sure that these are the right birds for me before I buy one.
A few questions
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Re: A few questions
I'm a big fan of wing clipping myself, though I always let my bird grow his out fully and fly around a while before clipping again. Because out doors are opening so often it is simply best for us to clip. Recall training to me has always seemed a bit iffy. Especially with Hane- I raised him to be independent and be able to amuse himself and enjoy others so he would have no problem ignoring my recall and doing whatever he wants to do. I wouldn't be able to rely on it. Perhaps someone else has better input on that subject.
Noise. Hm. Senegals are very quiet compared to IRNs in my experience. Hane is louder in volume to my tiel but lower in pitch most times. Our IRNs aren't screamers so I cannot tell you what that is like. They do chatter a lot because that is what they get attention for. They do get pretty noisy when they are calling one another down the hall though. A screaming patagonian or a quaker would definitely be more noisy than our IRNs (I've only heard a screaming patagonian and quaker lol). Their parents are very noisy but not really screamers either.
Hane has always been really good with kids (as long as they have no jewelry on, he'll go for it and scare the kid) but Tsume is not. Tsume doesn't bite but is just plumb scared of most people anyway. Hane and Tsume are brothers and very different in personality- they were raised by two different people, my sister and I. With a young bird, getting them accustomed to people popping in and out will be simple and for the bird it will be a normal day. A lot of socialization will help. Avoid being your bird's 'mate'. It can help with a new bird to cover the sides and top of the cage at first, just leaving the front open so it feels more secure in it's new place. Then remove the covering from one side at a time when you see that your bird is comfortable.
Baby choosing:
A well raised baby will be a great companion either parent raised or hand raised. If they are parent raised, they should have had contact with the breeder and handling so they could get accustomed to being handled and not fearful. Be picky when you choose your baby and don't settle just because of price or 'pretty'. Find one that is not afraid of you and wants to come and play.
Not all hand-raised parrots are tame! Hand raised parrots should be handled often by their breeder, played with, and abundance weaned. Again, they should not be afraid of you and should want to come out and play.
Age isn't so much of a factor as long as they are fully weaned and their handling has been continued.
They can pin their eyes at will as part of their communication. A bird will often pin just before a bite, during play, mating dance, anything really. Often though, a very excited bird is more likely to nip out of enthusiasm. We don't handle our birds when they are over-excited.
Hope some of that helps. ^^
Noise. Hm. Senegals are very quiet compared to IRNs in my experience. Hane is louder in volume to my tiel but lower in pitch most times. Our IRNs aren't screamers so I cannot tell you what that is like. They do chatter a lot because that is what they get attention for. They do get pretty noisy when they are calling one another down the hall though. A screaming patagonian or a quaker would definitely be more noisy than our IRNs (I've only heard a screaming patagonian and quaker lol). Their parents are very noisy but not really screamers either.
Hane has always been really good with kids (as long as they have no jewelry on, he'll go for it and scare the kid) but Tsume is not. Tsume doesn't bite but is just plumb scared of most people anyway. Hane and Tsume are brothers and very different in personality- they were raised by two different people, my sister and I. With a young bird, getting them accustomed to people popping in and out will be simple and for the bird it will be a normal day. A lot of socialization will help. Avoid being your bird's 'mate'. It can help with a new bird to cover the sides and top of the cage at first, just leaving the front open so it feels more secure in it's new place. Then remove the covering from one side at a time when you see that your bird is comfortable.
Baby choosing:
A well raised baby will be a great companion either parent raised or hand raised. If they are parent raised, they should have had contact with the breeder and handling so they could get accustomed to being handled and not fearful. Be picky when you choose your baby and don't settle just because of price or 'pretty'. Find one that is not afraid of you and wants to come and play.
Not all hand-raised parrots are tame! Hand raised parrots should be handled often by their breeder, played with, and abundance weaned. Again, they should not be afraid of you and should want to come out and play.
Age isn't so much of a factor as long as they are fully weaned and their handling has been continued.
They can pin their eyes at will as part of their communication. A bird will often pin just before a bite, during play, mating dance, anything really. Often though, a very excited bird is more likely to nip out of enthusiasm. We don't handle our birds when they are over-excited.
Hope some of that helps. ^^
I've been called 'birdbrained' before, but somehow I don't think this is what they meant. say:hah-nay
Re: A few questions
Thank you for the reply Melika.
My main concern was the noise. Quakers are supposed to be quiter than blue crowned conures, so that is good. I went to see a hand reared baby yesterday. The people who bred her had an outside avairy with ringnecks in, and they had one inside that had been picked on by another bird. While I was there it called out to the other ringnecks in the avairy, and compared to the blue crowned conure it was nothing! That was my convincer, and I'm now the proud mummy of an IRN!
I will try to post some pictures up later, and help choosing a name would be good as I'm not very good at that!
Thank you for your help again, and to everyone else on this site, I don't think there's many posts on here I haven't read, and all the advice has helped me alot!
My main concern was the noise. Quakers are supposed to be quiter than blue crowned conures, so that is good. I went to see a hand reared baby yesterday. The people who bred her had an outside avairy with ringnecks in, and they had one inside that had been picked on by another bird. While I was there it called out to the other ringnecks in the avairy, and compared to the blue crowned conure it was nothing! That was my convincer, and I'm now the proud mummy of an IRN!
I will try to post some pictures up later, and help choosing a name would be good as I'm not very good at that!
Thank you for your help again, and to everyone else on this site, I don't think there's many posts on here I haven't read, and all the advice has helped me alot!