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Bert1559 Egg Posts: 1 (8/19/03 12:45 am) Reply	Lovebird? Hi! I'm new here and I'm hoping you can help me out. I'm a fourteen year old girl, but don't take me wrong. I am very responsible and love animals. I live with my parents and sister (17) and our three cats. I have often for about the past year wanted another animal for a pet. I have looked at rats and guinea pigs, gerbils and mice, but I don't feel that I would appreciate them to their full potential. I have found out a little bit about lovebirds and feel they might be good for my situation. Can anyone out there tell me if this is a good idea or not? If so, what are some of the costs and responsibilities of a bird owner? Will it work out with my cats? Or would a new lovebird just turn out to be very expensive catfood? If not, why not? Is there another species of birds that would be better? I want a bird I can handle and tame, is the lovebird that type of bird? Thank you for all of your help! ~Bert1559
DizzyDezzy Bird Brain Moderator Posts: 1697 (8/19/03 4:20 am) Reply	Re: Lovebird? you can get tame handreared lovebird, but you have to realise that they will often bond with you as a mate, or bond to another member of the household as a mate... Would you still want one if it was a one person bird and you were not its person? As a first bird, I would recommend a budgie or a tiel, they are much easyer to tame than lovies are...
Bert1559 Egg Posts: 2 (8/19/03 7:12 am) Reply	Re: Lovebird? Thanks, but I really want a bird I can handle...Budgies, well, you just can't. And I am not sure If I would be able to afford all the needs of a cockatiel. They would need such a huge cage! Well, I'll keep looking. Thanks! Bert1559
Skyler Devin Born a Budgie Posts: 651 (8/19/03 8:15 am) Reply	Re: Lovebird? Can't Handle budgies?!?! ROFL!!! Theres so many ways that sentence is wrong. I bring my budgie out everyday, on my finger, pet him, give him scritches, he also lets me scratch under his wing. He can also almost say his name (skwiwer (lol))Ask any budgie owner on this board (who's budgie doesnt have a mate) If they tamed they're budgie. Why should you get a budgie: They dont bite as hard as lovebirds, they dont screech like lovebirds, They're cheaper, well the list goes on. Dont ignore budgies because they're cheap, they are very loving and affectionate pets. and go through some of the budgie posts, and pics in the photo album. I Really hope to see you around and answer your questions, and sorry if the start of this came out wrong, i just found it kinda funny Need Help On Birds? Even If You Dont, Take A Look!
inging13 Egg Posts: 18 (10/20/03 6:23 pm) Reply	Re: Lovebird? ACK!!! Budgies are great!!! Plus, if you've never heard the chirp of a lovebird, you may not want to make up your mind about getting one! Thats why i don't have one, yet anyway. but to get a properly sized cage for a parakeet, you would spend nearly the same as for a cockatiel cage, the trouble is that most pet stores sell "parakeet cages" that are WAY WAY WAY too small for these guys. they are balls of energy that need lots of space!!! And as any bird owner knows, the chances of you NEVER getting bitten by your bird are very slim, even for a hand fed bird. and if you are getting a pet store bird chances are it is not tame and you will have blood drawn by a pretty little lovebird in no time. on the other hand, parakeets don't have nearly the power of a lovie (i don't THINK anyway) and in my experience they don't bite as much either. In any case, get a bird from a breeder, or if you have to buy through a family owned pet store rather than a breeder. you'll get a better deal on your bird, and sometimes the birds are handfed (like my cockatiel gracie.) and for a first time bird owner i would DEFINATELY recommend getting one that is hand fed because it can get very frustrating trying to hand tame a bird if you don't have experience, and you want to enjoy your bird don't you? Sorry this is long winded and i don't want to sound like a bird snob but there is no comparison between a tame and a wild bird... good luck!
CheekysMama Egg Posts: 40 (10/21/03 12:39 pm) Reply	Re: Lovebird? Amen. I got Cheeky a bit wild and she's still pretty wild. I keep longing for a bird that's really tame and will step up at least 90% of the time. Cheeky currently steps up like 10% of the time Also even if you get a tame lovebird, if you don't spend LOTS of time with it everyday, it will revert to being nippy very quickly. Cheeky's Page: http://www.geocities.com/punkypower9 Edited by: CheekysMama at: 10/21/03 12:43 pm
lovieguy Egg Posts: 1 (10/21/03 1:01 pm) Reply	Re: Lovebird? Hello. I myself am also new to this site, so dont feel alone. I would first like to strongly recomend a hand fed and/or hand raised loviebird. I have had 2 budgies and 2 cockatiels all bought from a pet store which were not the most friendly little things. The birds you see in pet stores are rarely handled and require alot more time to train than a hand raised one. I recently bought a baby lovebird (about 8 months ago) from a breeder in my state. My baby lovebird (her name is penny) was out on my hand with complete trust within a matter of hours. Over the last eight months, penny has become very close to me (although shes a real pain at times). She litterally "cuddles" with me. She loves to have her head scratched and she adores doing the dishes with me. The only complaint i have is that she is to attached (which i plan on asking advice on from whoever can help). She is very time demanding and not to mention spoiled. The cost to maintain penny is very minimal. the whole setup is the most expensive part but after you have all that you really only need to spend 5-10 dollars a month on food, toys and treats (its a good idea to have a savings for a unexpected need to visit the vet). As I mentioned before, they are very time consuming. They are well known for thier energy and explosive personalitys (which is my favorite part).As for the cat....well, I have a cat to which i have had for about 4 years and who would have guessed...my cat and bird are good buddys. They chase each other and play quite a bit , however...i wouldnt recomend ever leaving a cat and bird alone! I will say at this point that lovebirds are very loud at times! overall i would strongly recomend a hand raised lovebird. with time and patience they have the potential to be one of the family.
CheekysMama Egg Posts: 48 (10/29/03 10:19 am) Reply	Re: Lovebird? *Quote:* They chase each other and play quite a bit , however...i wouldnt recomend ever leaving a cat and bird alone! I will say at this point that lovebirds are very loud at times! overall i would strongly recomend a hand raised lovebird. with time and patience they have the potential to be one of the family. That's cool that your cat and lovie are friends, be careful that the cat doesnt get its spit on the bird, because its toxic. You know, 95% of the time I go to a bird store or pet store I hardly see hand fed lovebirds! The ones that are hand fed of course cost more, but probably worth it. Cheeky's Page: http://community.webshots.com/user/punkypower
ItsyBitsy Egg Posts: 1 (11/8/03 3:14 pm) Reply	lovies v.s. 'tiels and budgies for a first time owner I agree with DizzyDezzy. A budgie (probably a 'tiel too, I'm not sure though because I've never owned one) would be a LOT easier to handle for a first time bird owner. Not that lovebirds aren't wonderful pets; they are just very difficult to train. Trust me, I own 4 budgies and 2 lovebirds. It took me 2 or so weeks (maybe a little more or less) to train the budgerigars. They are now very sweet. The lovebirds on the other hand took MUCH longer. it took me two months to get my Peachfaced Lutino used to me. And then, I got my blue masked lovebird, Milo, in March '03. I'm still trying to curb his nasty biting habit. So, again, strongly consider get a budgie or 'tiel. If you are set on getting lovebird get a hand raised one. They may be a bit more expensive, but it will be easier for you.
lovebird lova Egg Posts: 5 (12/29/03 12:19 am) Reply	pros and cons HI!!! I have both a budgie and a lovebird and each of them got their own good and bad sides. My budgies' names are Peaches, and Cream and my lovie's name is Pickles. Here's sum info on budgies: they dont bite hard, they're realli cute, they're cheap, shy, quiet, id say not very enthusiastic. From my point of view, get the lovebird, they're so much fun. Even though they bite, they love socializing, (budgies-less). They neva get bored, they get really used to 1 person.(mine flies 2 my head as soon as i enter the room). And dont worry bout the cats cuz lovies can protect themselves(i hav a dog and a cat and so far pickles bit them both) So ya, get a lovie, they r REALLI CUTE! C ya
second hand roses Chick Posts: 412 (12/31/03 8:12 pm) Reply	budgie I dont have a lovie as of yet my baby is comming from a breeder this march cant wait but for your first bird I'd suggest a budgie. If you get a very very young budgie they'll will bond with you almost as well as a lovie but not to lovie if you know what I mean. When we got Bird'O my budgie from pet land she was so little and only took 2 days before she wanted to climb all over us. It got to the point where I had to ask how to make her not want to be around me. The plus side to budgies they can and will bite but wont resort to being mean like lovies. You can also really train a budgie and get a mate for it and the budgie will still be very tame. Mine is though its not her mate just her play time pal. Shes not as clingy but still loves to be with me. If you want to get another lovie down the line your lovie will not want to be around you only its new compainion (though theres exceptions to every rule) just keep these things in mind. Either way get a very young bird. Good luck tell us what happens !! Christa
second hand roses Chick Posts: 430 (1/1/04 11:20 pm) Reply	Re: Lovebird? I've been busy doing love bird research and I came across this it might help with your decision www.birdsnways.com/articl...aq.htm#You
melanieyeah custard puddin alfie Posts: 1386 (3/25/04 3:57 am) Reply	huh not all budgies are shy and unenthusiastic! and they can bite very hard, ive been made to bleed by my budgies many a time, and its the other way round for my lovie, hes the shy one and he doesnt bite at all. i gues it depeneds on personality of the bird.