I have two parrots. One is an Congo African Grey, the other is a Blue Fronted Amazon. Parrots aren't good pets for kids of any age so don't get it unless you're willing to be the one taking care of it for the next 60-80 years. They have human life-spans.
They noise is also a factor. Birds are LOUD. They aren't just loud in the way birds chirping are loud either. My CAG imitates fire alarms, my phone, car alarms, percussion noises he learns from television. If you have neighbors and they don't like your bird, they will be pissed.
Parrots require a ton of attention. Be prepared for at least 2 hours a day of actively engaging them. The amazon is a little more independent. The grey needs to hang out and do almost everything with me. He has a perch in the shower. He watches me shave, brush my teeth, get stuff done for work, likes when i read my work out loud to him. After about 6 hours of interaction I can put him back with his toys.
PARROTS WILL SELF MUTILATE IF YOU DO NOT HAVE TIME FOR THEM OR IF THEY ARE NEGLECTED. They will rip all their feathers out. They will be emotionally damaged and impossible to re-home to anyone other than a really experienced aviary.
You MUST create a trust instrument for them to take care of them when you're dead. Make sure they are taken care of by someone who wants to take care of them. They will outlive you.
I ended up with the amazon when her original owner died from cancer and she had nowhere else to go. I ended up with the CAG because a young kid owned him and decided living in an apartment with his friends was more important than his bird.
If you take in a bird make sure you are ready to provide a "forever home". This means you needs to be ready to pay for an avian vet (they're expensive). They need a GIANT cage. You can't keep them in a travel cage or they'll self mutilate. Be prepared to spend 200-300 dollars on a decent cage and another 20-40$ on toys you need to circulate to keep them stimulated. You need to feed them special food (not just bird seed). Harrison's birdfood is a good brand because it comes in pellet form and is reinforced with calcium (if they lack it they die) and vitamin A (if they lack it their beeks get all flakey). You need to cut up some food once a week to toss in there too (fruits, veggies, etc...).
They typically bond to ONE PERSON and they will hate or tolerate everyone else. You can mitigate this problem by socializing them, but even then there is a good chance your bird will bite the ever loving **** out of someone trying to handle them who isn't "their person". This could be you, or your wife, or someone else in the house. If your daughter becomes their person, and you hug your daughter, the bird might just take flight for your face.
Flighted birds are generally agile and in good shape. Some people are vehemently against wing clipping, but when you bring a new bird into your house to avoid it smacking into all your windows you might want to clip it's wings until it adjusts. They're prey creatures in the wild, so if something startles them they will be gone with a quickness. This is more of a personal preference though.
That said - parrots are really cool friends. They're really loving and cuddly. They're a **** load of work, but they can be good companions. They are not pets for kids though and they aren't pets period for most people due to the amount of time required. I would not recommend them as a pet for a kid.
Linear Mode
