REALLY newbie

[sue ellen]

Hi. I bought 3 lovebirds at a pigeon show last week, 2 yellow ones and a green one. It was a total impulse buy - I know next to nothing about them. I have been reading to learn as much about them as I can.
Does anyone think that 3 lovebirds can live together permanently in a large cage? They get along well now, but are not at all friendly towards me. The man I got them from said they were 90 days old. I doubt that they were hand-raised, they are really wild.
What if they never get friendly - would that be bad? I really don't want to let them out of the cage, because I have cats and a Standard Poodle.

[Keltoth]

Hi there Sue - nice to meet you. :)

Where to start? Well, on the subject of keeping all three in a really large cage; if they are really young, you will probably be ok for a short while, and if they are all three male birds, you might be able to extend that timetable a wee bit. However, eventually you are going to need to put one of them in a second cage - and if you have three hens or a mixture of male and female, the sooner you seperate, the better!

Lovebirds are individuals every bit as much as humans are, but the general rule of cagesharing in the lovie world is that you either have a single bird, a pair of birds, or 3 pairs or more of birds in the same cage. The reason for this is that a single bird or pair of compatable birds pose no harm to anyone, but if you have three birds, eventually two of those three birds will most likely bond to one another and then start picking on the third bird that is alone, seeing it as an interloper in their territory. It's the same thing with two pairs of birds; one pair will become dominant over the other pair and then continually harass and pick on the weaker pair.

As far as your birds getting friendly to you; it is a chore, but it can be done. However, that will be most easily and readily accomplished if you work with each bird on a one-on-one basis (alone and out of sight and hearing of the other birds) - and that is going to require some dilligence on your part, as you live in a house with predetory pets (cats, dogs). There are some great articles on the boards here as to how to work with your pet to help it handtrain and I would suggest you read those to get you started, but I would add an additional caveat; NEVER take your birds out of their cage unless your cat and dog are secured away from the room in which you are training your bird!

Make this an unbreakable rule; if the birds are out of the cage, the predators are out of the room (out of the house would be even better, as animals can be sneaky, but this is not practical for some folks). ALWAYS train in a room where you can securely shut the door and which the bird cannot squeeze under the door, should it run from you. Even if your dog and/or cat is the sweetest, calmest, non-killing critter in the world, predetory mammals - ESPECIALLY cats - carry a bacteria in their mouths/saliva that is deadly to birds. Even if your cats simple gets drool on your bird, it can kill your bird in 72 hours unless you take it to a vet for the anti-toxin. Trips to the vet can be expensive, time-consuming and scarey, so it is better altogether if you simply keep the birds seperate from the other animals.

With all that said, congrats on your purchase! If you are willing to put some time and effort into your birds, I'm sure that you will find they are wonderful companions. Welcome to the boards!

-Eric

[Janie]

Hi and welcome! Yikes, three on an impulse buy? They are beautiful little birds and I've been tempted a time (or ten!) myself. OK, three together......that usually is a very bad number as far as sharing one cage. I'm assuming you don't know the sex of the birds but the best cage paring would be two males together (if you don't want babies) although sometimes hens can be paired together and get along fine in the same cage. I've read several times that three, together, is a dangerous number because it's likely that one of the three will get the brunt of the other two even to the end result of the death of one of them. It's possible that you have three hens and it's hard to say if any two of them will get along well enough to be caged together. You might end up needing three cages with food dishes, water dishes and toys and perches for each cage. Since these birds are wild now and you don't really want them out of the cage because of your cat and dog, they will likely remain wild. That is OK but they really, really do need a large cage if they're going to be cage bound all of the time. And plenty of toys, swings, etc. to keep them happy. You'll need to observe their behavior closely to see who is getting along and who needs to be moved into a separate cage. Again, it's possible that all three will need to be caged separately eventually.

[bellarains]

Hi Sue Ellen,

There is a forum here called "The Lovebird Resource Library". My first suggestion would be to go there and read all you can.

As for all three getting along in the same cage, you will have to wait and see how that goes as they mature. Some will coexist well, some will not. If you start to see one getting agressive to the point of harming another, you will have to seperate them. It is imperative that you be prepared to do this, as they are quiet capable of causing severe injury, or even killing one another.

Taming is achieved by earning their trust. Trust of course is gained by spending time with them, loving them, and letting them come to you in their time, and on their terms. Everyday interaction is key.

To start, sit by their cage, talk to them, give them a treat such as millet spray through the bars by hand. You want them to perceive hands as a good thing and treats given by hand has to be good :) . You don't want to stick your fingers through the cage bars, but if one comes to the bars for a beak pet, you can slowly reach and try to pet the beak. If they shy away, stop and try again at another time.

You also want them to see you as part of their flock, so when they call out, call back. I mean if they make one chirp, you make one chirp back, etc... You will find they love to interact with you, and this includes you in their repetoire :)

There is so much to learn about caring for lovebirds, and we will help you all we can. Hopefully this will get you started, but please ask any questions that you have and we will be more than happy to try and answer them all. This board was started so that anyone needing help or advice to care for their lovies to the best of their ability would have a place to come. We care very much about each others fids(feathered kids) and each other. We are like family, or a flock we like to say, so welcome to our "flock" :D

[BarbieH]

Hi Sue Ellen, welcome; :)

It wouldn't be a horrible thing if you prefer to let your lovies remain untame. They are delightful little birds and a joy to watch. It's good to hear from a person who can appreciate their lovies for what they are, not what they want them to be.

Still, you may want to train yourself in how to handle them, in case one of them gets sick or injured and you need to take it to the vet. Like the others, I strongly recommend making sure that the dog and cat are safely out of the way before you open the cage door. Working with the birds in the bathroom, by yourself, is the best way to ensure this. I own a cat myself, and although I love her, I don't trust her to act beyond her instincts. :)

Lovebirds are incredible little clowns, and as I said before, a joy to watch. With a little reading in the Links section and a little time, I think you will become well armed to care for your birds.

Best wishes,

[Paulette]

Hi Sue Ellen.....impulse buy....huh?.....that sounds like something I would do. Birds are fun tame or untame. I have both....lovies, teils, budgies and zebra finches. I have budgies just for their chatter 8 budgies and one teen and 6 eggs....tiels because my son brought me one in April and it was lonely, I now have 6!.....lovebirds just because I thought they were sooooo cute, first I adopted a bonded tame pair, then a handfed pair, then 3 breeders...I have 5 babies in the nest box that I'm socializing to be tame.....and zebra finches because they make the cutiest little honking noise I've ever heard with 5 babies in the nest basket!

If you have a male and female out of your 3....you might have babies eventually and you could socialize them to be tame.....then you'd have both tame and untame. I agree regardless of the degree of tameness, they are a joy to have and watch and they will interact with you just because you talk to them and feed them everyday.

I converted my birds to a better diet where I feed them a mixture of brown rice/16 bean/peas/corn/whole wheat/pasta and I scramble a few eggs to mix in it every morning. It took serving it everyday for a couple of weeks and throwing it out everyday, but now they dive right in and if I'm late with it....they are in here just fussing away until I get it ready. The birds with babies need soft food that they can eat quickly and feed to the babies.

I look forward to hearing more about you and your birds.