(no subject)
I've been meaning to post this for a while, but wanted to go check the userinfo first, and make sure that posts dealing with other types of bird are allowed. They are, so here I am.
First let me say that I have several parrots -- an amazon and a couple of budgies and a 'tiel that I love dearly. The tiel is endlessly sweet and endearing and adores attention. The budgies are bright and cheerful and love to chatter. The bluefront is a cranky old man who has taught me a lot about life, love and trust and endurance.
That said, a lot of people come to parrots with the idea that they want a bird to hold and snuggle and be 'lap birds'. In my experience this is something a lot of people go to cockatoos to, in particular. This is all well and good, except parrots are parrots, not cats or dogs. They're loud, they're messy, they're hormonal, and they can do you some serious damage. They're also expensive -- sometimes prohibitively so.
Well, recently I found the bird I consider perfect for almost anyone. They come in all sorts of attractive colors, aren't loud enough to be heard two miles away, can be gotten extremely cheaply and you can find vets for them in even the most rural of areas. What's more, their *cages* don't cost an arm and a leg to set up, though they do take up a lot of space. Even their food's easy to find and affordable.
Heck, they'll even 'pay you back' for taking good care of them.
What are these fantastic pet birds?
Chickens.
I'm not *even* joking. They cuddle, they snuggle, they're not loud, they'll debug your garden, can be kept inside and the most complicated factor is that keeping one's not a great idea. You can get chickens that weigh 20 pounds and breeds that weigh less than one. They're just all around *fun*, and I have yet to have one scream mommy help me, which is more than I can say for my amazon.
I love my parrots, but if I want to *CUDDLE* a bird, I'm going to go find a chicken.
First let me say that I have several parrots -- an amazon and a couple of budgies and a 'tiel that I love dearly. The tiel is endlessly sweet and endearing and adores attention. The budgies are bright and cheerful and love to chatter. The bluefront is a cranky old man who has taught me a lot about life, love and trust and endurance.
That said, a lot of people come to parrots with the idea that they want a bird to hold and snuggle and be 'lap birds'. In my experience this is something a lot of people go to cockatoos to, in particular. This is all well and good, except parrots are parrots, not cats or dogs. They're loud, they're messy, they're hormonal, and they can do you some serious damage. They're also expensive -- sometimes prohibitively so.
Well, recently I found the bird I consider perfect for almost anyone. They come in all sorts of attractive colors, aren't loud enough to be heard two miles away, can be gotten extremely cheaply and you can find vets for them in even the most rural of areas. What's more, their *cages* don't cost an arm and a leg to set up, though they do take up a lot of space. Even their food's easy to find and affordable.
Heck, they'll even 'pay you back' for taking good care of them.
What are these fantastic pet birds?
Chickens.
I'm not *even* joking. They cuddle, they snuggle, they're not loud, they'll debug your garden, can be kept inside and the most complicated factor is that keeping one's not a great idea. You can get chickens that weigh 20 pounds and breeds that weigh less than one. They're just all around *fun*, and I have yet to have one scream mommy help me, which is more than I can say for my amazon.
I love my parrots, but if I want to *CUDDLE* a bird, I'm going to go find a chicken.