Thinking about a second lovie

[Ducky]

So. I'm a college student and I am forced to spend hours away all day, and my Widgie (a hen) only gets one to two hours out a day. I've recently moved into a friends house who has multiple parrots who live upstairs and me and Widgie lives downstairs. Since I've moved in she loves to try to talk to the others (loudly of course) and looks at them very curiously whenever they are out together. However, the other parrot close to her size is a very territorial hen who does not want to make friends.

However, Widgie's friendliness towards the others makes me consider getting her a neighbor and potential future cagemate. It's not that she seems unhappy, just that I feel bad for such a social bird to be alone so much. I've noticed that though the other parrots don't get more out time than Widgie they seem to like talking to eachother all day. My only concern is that if Widgie decided the new bird was her mate she wouldn't want to be a pet anymore.

Currently, I am her mate. She loves to be around me and is friendly and tolerant of others, unless she is nervous or in a terrible mood. The only person she is aggressive towards is my boyfriend because she sees him as a mate threat. I know that if she mated with another bird she would become more distant, and I think I'd be ok with that, but I want to be able to still hold her and cuddle occasionally.

Just wanted the opinions from some people with multiple lovie homes. I really would love to adopt another lovie, but want to keep the one I have!

[momo]

I was sort of in your position.. and I got a second love. Your Widgie sounds exactly like my Elmo.

I brought home Spotty; unfortunately he came home with Psittacosis. I strongly advise you if you get a new bird. take it to the vets to make sure it's healthy but you will also need to do quarantine for your new bird. Keep it in a separate room for 30 or more days. Personally I dont see QT as an optional thing. This is your Widges health at stake here.

Secondly. you also have to realise that they may not get along as well. I am slowly trying to introduce Spotty and Elmo together but when Spotty finished his medicine and QT.. all elmo would do is verbally abuse Spotty. It's quieten down over time. I really see it as first child syndrome. Elmo has been my no.1 child all of this time.. and then I bring home a new baby where attentions need to be divided. Now sometimes birds get along straight away but not always. If you bring home a new bird and they don't get along you need to take responsibility for it.. alas you may need to give them separate out of cage time. This is something you do need to be aware of. Which if you don't have the time then it's a bit pointless.

Maybe can you put her upstairs with your housemates birds through the day? There she gets to see the birds that she can hear but they are all in their cages so no fights can happen?

[bookworm0550]

i got joey his sister as a companion after a few months. he was supposed to be my only bird, but i think he was lonely all day and then when i got home, he wouldn't leave my side at all. it was bad and it made me sad that he was alone all day so i got him his younger sister, which then lead to another bird and another :)

i keep my birds in separate cages. i would say that joey and i are still close, i'm still his mate. i thought he would forget about me, but he hasn't.

i'd love to see photos of your hen. :)

[Pips mom]

I can't say for sure how things will turn out, but I can offer this....I have two cockatiels, male and female and everyone always says how once you do this, they will only want each other and not want people anymore! I find that to be VERY untrue! My two cockatiels are mates and a bonded pair that love each other, BUT they still fit us into their lives and want our attention and I still feel that they love us just as much as if they were a lone bird. If I put my head in the cage and whistle and make kissy sounds to my male, he'll sing to me happily! They also don't mind at all being handled, will step up....only thing is don't take one too far away from other! they are like magnets!:rofl: I wouldn't worry too much about losing the love you get from your lovie....he's formed that bond with you and I don't think another bird could take that away.

[Ducky]

Thanks for your replies. If my boyfriend and my roomates are agreeable then I'll probably take the plung when the opportunity arrives. I think ideally I'd really like to adopt or rescue an older male, instead of a chick, because I've heard that hens like males which are older than them and Widgie is now three!

One thing I forgot to mention earlier is that another reason I'd like to get her some company is because when I'm away too much she tends to chew and pluck her feathers. :( They grow back when she gets plenty of out time and baths, but every once in a while when she doesn't get out too much for a day they start disappearing again. It's incredibly frustrating, and makes me feel like a bad fidma! She's not bald like plenty of parrots I've seen before, more ragged. But I'm afraid she'll get there eventually.

Recently, since I've moved, I've been able to put her out on a playpen even when I can't hold her and that does seem to have helped a ton. She gets a lot more time out when she can just hang out on the playpen. But yesterday was really hectic, and today I noticed she was looking a bit sparser. Ugh!


Anyway, here's a picture of her! She's a dutch blue, if anybody's curious.

http://www.craftster.org/pictures/data/500/medium/P1000005.jpg

[michael]

:rofl:.....Oh my gosh! .... Give that little sweety some beak rubs for us! ....Or else!........:D

[bookworm0550]

she is a doll. i'm sorry to hear that she's a plucker. that does not mean that you are a bad fidma though. if you don't already, perhaps you can offer her foraging toys in her cage so she has something to do besides pluck herself. i don't know much about plucking, but that's the only thing i can think of. sorry :(

[Ducky]

She doesn't play with toys, that's part of the problem. She was handraised, but poorly. :( She likes people but doesn't know what to do with toys, baths, or fresh foods. It's really unfortunate, and it contributes to her boredom.

[LovelySydney]

Aww she's so cute!! I got Gus a friend, Oslo, because he was exhibiting signs of anxiety if he wasn't given attention 120% of the time. Since my bf and I both work this was nearly impossible to do. Once Oslo came into the picture Gus was instantly smitten!! Good luck on your new fid search - I hope all goes well!!