Parakeet as a pet?

[SnuggleBuggles]

My ds1 really wants a parakeet but we have tried to discourage it forever. I'm mostly discouraging him b/c I know nothing about them. My impression is noisy and a lot of work. I also have no idea how long they live for. Does anyone have any experience with parakeets? Is it a pet that a 9yo can be mostly responsible for?

eta- still interested in hearing about them but dh is telling me "no way!".

Beth

[chozen]

my dad had them when we were kids and i think they are annoying, (just my opinion). yes they are loud and can be messy and some of the birds that we had were also mean. one thing that does make a difference is if you can get a very young one that has been hand fed as a baby they tend to be more friendly. you also need to spend time with them out of the cage on a daily basis if you want them to remain friendly, a mean bird can bite really hard can even draw blood. iimo 8 might be alittle young for a bird, you have to be very gentle with them, i guess if you think your son would be VERY gentle with one 8 might be ok. one more thing just came to mind, you will need to get there wings clipped so they can not fly or there is a chance you will lose one, my dad has had to have fire dept. get them out of trees before, it seems like they have radar for an open door and they are fast, very fast. my dad still has birds and it seems to me that the longest he ever had one parakeet is 10-12 yrs. hth

[amldaley]

We had a couple and we did not have them long. They were messy and not particulary friendly, etc. I wouldn't get one again, but I don't think it is the worst pet he could ask for.

Is he a mature enough 9 yo to keep the cage clean? Otherwise, it is largely feeding, watering, ensuring they have a cuttle bone, etc. Maybe some nail trimming.

[swissair81]

My husband just bought one, and I find it irritating. The kids love it, but I definitely wouldn't trust my almost 9 year old enough to take care of it.

[R2sweetboys]

I honestly don't think there is any pet that a 9 year old can be mostly responsible for. They're just too young and immature to understand the kind of commitment that owning a pet entails. Even a more mature 9 year old may be enthusiastic at first only to become lax as the newness wears off.

As for owning a parakeet, I don't think I would do it. Here (http://www.epet-center.com/lifespanofparakeets.html)is a link I just found about caring for a parakeet. They can live for 15 years! Another interesting fact is that you're not supposed to cook with non-stick cookware because the fumes are toxic to them.:eek: They are sensitive to drafts and susceptible to bacteria so their cages and food dishes need to be cleaned daily. Parakeets also need daily socialization. That's a lot of responsibility, even if you agreed to help a lot. Would your DS be interested in anything else for a pet? I think a cat would be easier!

[wellyes]

No way. They're a big responsibility (more work than, say, a cat) but all they do is poop, and look sad to be stuck in a cage.

[SnuggleBuggles]

No way. They're a big responsibility (more work than, say, a cat) but all they do is poop, and look sad to be stuck in a cage.

Exactly my feelings. Sadly, ds1 is horribly allergic to dogs and cats otherwise I'd get a cat in a heartbeat!!


Thanks, all, for confirming my feelings about the parakeets. We'll just continue steering him towards something else, with the reminder that he can have whatever he wants when he grows up and moves out. :)

Beth

[JoyNChrist]

I hated our parakeet. My aunt bought it for DS1's 4th birthday (whole 'nother bitching post), and it was just so messy! It died about a month ago (no idea what happened...he took great care of it, it was just dead one afternoon when we got home from preschool). I was not particularly sad, and I discouraged him from getting another one.

What about hermit crabs? That was our replacement for the parakeet, and I really like them.

[SnuggleBuggles]

Hermit crab is our plan, probably. He was just bummed that they weren't interesting at the pet store but they were what we originally went for (I had forgotten just how much he wanted a darned parakeet).

Beth

[doberbrat]

I had them as pets when I was a kid and I certainly dont remember them beeing so fragile or difficult to care for. Of course, they didnt live to 15 or anything but still....

And ours were always quite tame. 2 of them spoke, one had quite a vocabulary. Yeah, it was a scratchy voice but he did speak. Theo went everywhere with me sitting on my shoulder until one day a very low flying plane spooked him and he flew away. he also ate out of my mouth (I know, gross but hey, I was 10ish)

Patches swam and took showers with me daily.

None of them were hand raised, but we did get them young and spent quite a bit of time with them on a daily basis.

[rlu]

As a kid the first one (Luke, as in Luke Duke) we had did not live long. The second, named Q-bert (how many here remember that game?) lived a long time - he kept having siezures and would fall to the cage floor and then later shake himself and get back up so when he did truly pass we waited a long time to make sure he really had passed before putting him in the shoebox. Q-bert went a little crazy I think, he would get seriously po'd at the bird in the mirror, so if you do get one, get two to keep each company.

[Snow mom]

As a kid the first one (Luke, as in Luke Duke) we had did not live long. The second, named Q-bert (how many here remember that game?) lived a long time - he kept having siezures and would fall to the cage floor and then later shake himself and get back up so when he did truly pass we waited a long time to make sure he really had passed before putting him in the shoebox. Q-bert went a little crazy I think, he would get seriously po'd at the bird in the mirror, so if you do get one, get two to keep each company.

I disagree with the part in bold. If you want a pet bird that comes out of the cage and hangs out you should stick with one. One parakeet needs a fair amount of socialization to be tame. Two parakeets need a ton of socialization to be tame. If you don't want a bird that comes out of the cage think about zebra finches or canaries. Or honestly it sounds like OP doesn't want a bird at all so I'd go with that.

Parakeets can be decent pets but they are a bit fragile, even for a nine year old. One thing to keep in mind is that they need some training (handling really) to be calm and friendly. The person that does this needs to be patient and not hold grudges if they get bitten. I know at that age I didn't do well with parakeets because once I was bitten once I was afraid of being bitten again and then the birds didn't get enough socialization.

[s7714]

My roommate had a couple as pets in college. OMG will I never ever have those things in my house voluntarily! I used to put the night covers over their cages in the middle of the day when my roommate was out just to make them be quiet for a bit. They're beautiful and I like watching them, but listening to them constantly was headache inducing.

I never had to clean out their cages, but I hated the fact they'd get bird seed all over the place.

[MontrealMum]

I had one as a child because I am allergic to cats and dogs, and fish just weren't all that interesting. Though I also had a fish tank, and after that, goldfish in a bowl. I don't remember it being that much of a pain but if you ask my mom, she did a lot of the work. So take that with a grain of salt. I found the goldfish worse to deal with because they needed cleaning every day and were so stinky.

I think I got mine in 5th grade. So, just slightly older than your DS. And it lived until I was a freshman in college. I still remember my dad driving down to get me at school so I could say goodbye before the vet put her under. (she had a tumor). I was so upset.

For the most part, my bird was very social and friendly, though PP are right - they can bite and draw blood. We used let her loose on our screened-in porch in the summer so she could "talk" with the birds outside, and more than once a neighborhood cat tried to pounce and got stuck on the screen! During the cold months she lived in our den (where we often let her loose with the doors closed) and you can hear her singing along on many of my mom's recordings (she's a singer). She also liked watching TV but didn't like it when dogs or cats came on and enjoyed sitting on my dad's shoulder while he read the paper.

FWIW, they're not terribly bright, but they can be affectionate. And I've heard that only the male birds can learn to talk.

I'd certainly consider getting another one if and when DS starts talking seriously about pets.