I used to raise birds several years ago. I did not start out wanting to have so many birds. There were 30 birds in total. I had zebra finches, Blue-crowned Conure Parrot, Cockatoo, Cockatiel, and Ring Neck Dove all the big birds were hand-tamed. Having so many birds was a rewarding experience. What I did not realize was the volume of cages that would be in my house and to the amount of cleaning I had to do.
We named our Conure Squawker. The reason he got this name is because of how loud he was. His noise was ear-piercing. He was very loving to my husband and me but hated kids. He would squawk continuously every time a child entered the room, and I had kids and the neighbor kids in and out all day long. I ended up having to cover him up and then had to move him to my bedroom, where he could not see the kids. Squawker learned how to whistle “Pop Goes the Weasel” although his whistle sounded more like a growl.
The Cockatoo was hysterical. She loved my youngest daughter, but my daughter hated the bird. This crazy bird was an escape artist and could get in and out of her cage, so I had to put a lock on the cage. When she would get out, she would head for my daughter’s bedroom and chew up her toys because she was not playing with the bird. She would also bounce her head up and down many times, then make the top of her head feathers go up, and she would then turn her head upside down and say, hello baby. She would do this nonstop until someone talked to her.
The Ring Neck Dove was so cute when it would make its cooing noise in the morning, and my youngest daughter loved this bird. It was hand tamed, and my daughter would get it out of the cage and hold it against her chest and it would sleep while she watched tv.
My Cockatiel was from a friend who raised birds, and this one I got before her cheeks had even turned. I hand-tamed this one myself. She used to love to sit on my shoulder all day. Some days I would forget she was there and almost walk out the door with her on my shoulder.
I also had a parakeet. She was the most talkative, more than all my birds. The parakeet and the Conure would try to outdo each other in singing and making noises.
When I moved, I had to get rid of all my birds, and have not had birds in quite a few years, until now. I was given two birds from the same clutch of Zebra Finches. Their beaks had not even turned orange yet. I had never had only two finches before so I had not realized how much of a personality they have. I jokingly call them Thing 1 and Thing 2. They both have distinctly different personalities.
Thing 1 is the more adventurous of the two. She is inquisitive and will come to the cage edge to chat with me. Thing 2 seems to be only interested in laying eggs. I have called her the egg-laying queen. I have taken so many eggs from her. At first, she only laid about 3 to 5 eggs. Her normal now is around 7. I have tried to put two nests for each bird, that does not work. They share a nest no matter what I do. This last clutch, which she had 11 eggs, I just left it in there to see how long I could leave them before they began to fight.
There is no more room in the nest for her or her sister. So, they both moved to the other nest. I currently have a bowl full of finch eggs. What to do with them? An interesting thing is, when Thing 2 became ill, Thing 1 told us about it. She made such a ruckus that we had to investigate what was going on. Thing 1 told us her sister was ill. We found Thing 2 on the bottom of the cage hiding under the water dish. They do make great pets if you like birds. As with any animal you decide to share your home with, they take time, love, and money.
If you are interested in learning about bird care let me know and I will write a more in-depth article on care and raising of birds.
Till next time,
Be safe, Be healthy
Roxanne