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Looking for a reputable Parrotlet breeder near or in So Cal.

4K views 8 replies 4 participants last post by  Karissa4617 
#1 ·
Hi all I am new here on this forum and I am a bird person . I had a grey cheeked parakeet- pocket parrot for about 10 years and since he has passed I had been bird-less for a very long time. I have always had birds in my life prior.
I know Parrotlets look just like my pocket parrot (Except color and slightly smaller)and I found out that now the grey cheek is endangered and no longer available for purchase. I have read a ton of info on the parrotlet and there are a few conflicting articles.
Questions.. I have visited a breeder and asked questions. He said ,Parrotlets don't live longer than 2 years, they are biters and if they don't bite they are not normal. Sounded conflicting to most all the info I read.
My questions are:
How are the hand fed parrotlets temperaments for a male?
How long do they live?
*Can anyone recommend a reputable breeder in Southern Ca, but if not I can order one from a reputable breeder .
Looking for a hand fed baby blue or blue cobalt male.
I appreciate any light anyone can shed here.
Thank you!😊
 
#2 · (Edited)
Welcome! It sounds like that breeder gave you some incorrect information. The average lifespan of a parrotlet is 10-15 years, but some live longer and some shorter - just like with people. All birds have the potential to bite and parrotlets are no exception. They are known to have a Napoleon complex and tend to be nippier than some other species.

There is no difference in personality between a male and female. It all depends on the individual bird's personality.

Both hand fed and parent fed birds can make good pets if they are socialized. Some breeders hand feed and put them back without socializing them. Some breeders do not socialize parent fed babies and some do. The key is the socializing with people.

In this forum, people need to send you a PM (Personal Message) to recommend or suggest any breeders. With the recently upgraded forum, these are now called Conversations. I sent you a PM (conservation) on several reputable parrotlet breeders in Southern California.
 
#4 ·
Welcome! It sounds like that breeder gave you some incorrect information. The average lifespan of a parrotlet is 10-15 years, but some live longer and some shorter - just like with people. All birds have the potential to bite and parrotlets are no exception. They are known to have a Napoleon complex and tend to be nippier than some other species.

There is no difference in personality between a male and female. It all depends on the individual bird's personality.

Both hand fed and parent fed birds can make good pets if they are socialized. Some breeders hand feed and put them back without socializing them. Some breeders do not socialize parent fed babies and some do. The key is the socializing with people.

In this forum, people need to send you a PM (Personal Message) to recommend or suggest any breeders. With the recently upgraded forum, these are now called Conversations. I sent you a PM (conservation) on several reputable parrotlet breeders in Southern California.
Thank you, very informative.
Welcome! It sounds like that breeder gave you some incorrect information. The average lifespan of a parrotlet is 10-15 years, but some live longer and some shorter - just like with people. All birds have the potential to bite and parrotlets are no exception. They are known to have a Napoleon complex and tend to be nippier than some other species.

There is no difference in personality between a male and female. It all depends on the individual bird's personality.

Both hand fed and parent fed birds can make good pets if they are socialized. Some breeders hand feed and put them back without socializing them. Some breeders do not socialize parent fed babies and some do. The key is the socializing with people.

In this forum, people need to send you a PM (Personal Message) to recommend or suggest any breeders. With the recently upgraded forum, these are now called Conversations. I sent you a PM (conservation) on several reputable parrotlet breeders in Southern California.
Hi Jackie!
Thank you for your reply, any info is greatly appreciated. I will be a sponge ad read this parrotlet talk page-s.
Not sure how to send a PM , I can't find this info on this forum. Ill keep looking.
Hi and welcome to the forum!

Parrotlets definitely live longer than 2 years - my Tumi is 7! Their small size does correlate to a strong self-preservation streak with their beak - yes, many parrotlets bite more than larger species (which is just about every species out there).Tumi does use his beak to keep me in line or to let me know that something scary is afoot, but fortunately while he can draw blood he doesn't do much damage. However, it is always a danger and something that I am very aware of, especially if he is being introduced to another human. He enjoys aggressive play, but also snuggle time.

I have no information about breeders in Southern California to Private Message to you, but I highly recommend that you take your time to find a good breeder. Personalities of all parrots vary widely, but how they are raised also matters. Tumi came to me as a baby bird well handled, as he was being handraised by the owners of a small parrot shop and he was living in a family setting. To this day he likes children even though I don't have any because he was surrounded by children and handled by them when he was being handraised. The handling of the baby bird is key, much more than whether humans or parrotlets feed the babies, as Jackie mentioned. Tumi's time on the couch with the middle school daughter was the best part of his socialization, not the feeding of formula. Since parrotlets are so small, some breeders engage in something called "co-parenting" where they let the parents take care of the feeding and they take care of the socializing. This is not considered to be a negative with the small parrots, since they really are so tiny when they hatch that feeding them can be very challenging if you are not also a tiny parrot. A good breeder will socialize the birds, and will not let the bird come home until they are fully weaned. With COVID it is more challenging to ask to visit the setup, but zoom visits should be welcome.
Thank you Dana and Tumi, I guess I must have been very lucky to get my grey cheek. I found him at a pet store, he would step up at any offer so people would pick him up and walk around the store with him. He was the best little guy, he would talk and never bit- me but he was very picky about who could touch him or give him scritches later on.
I used to take him to an avian vet. He told me when I asked how to calm little Boris when he was having a loud tantrum. ..He told me to get a small box and put air holes in it then place Boris in for about 10minutes like a time out. It did work but Boris would chew out the holes and eventually could get get his entire head out of the box. I think he liked it too! It was a pretty funny sight!
I don't mind a peck or bite as long as he isn't a constant hard biter- constant drawing blood, this would cause me to not trust him, so I am trying to get a Parrotlet that has a gentle disposition from the beginning ( Hoping the breeder will be honest about it.) but I do know it definitely takes a lot of handling and learning on both the p'let and myself. I know there will be trials and tribulations. So I will be handling my little guy a lot when I get him.
Thank you again for your very valued response, I appreciate it.🧡🐥
 
#3 ·
Hi and welcome to the forum!

Parrotlets definitely live longer than 2 years - my Tumi is 7! Their small size does correlate to a strong self-preservation streak with their beak - yes, many parrotlets bite more than larger species (which is just about every species out there).Tumi does use his beak to keep me in line or to let me know that something scary is afoot, but fortunately while he can draw blood he doesn't do much damage. However, it is always a danger and something that I am very aware of, especially if he is being introduced to another human. He enjoys aggressive play, but also snuggle time.

I have no information about breeders in Southern California to Private Message to you, but I highly recommend that you take your time to find a good breeder. Personalities of all parrots vary widely, but how they are raised also matters. Tumi came to me as a baby bird well handled, as he was being handraised by the owners of a small parrot shop and he was living in a family setting. To this day he likes children even though I don't have any because he was surrounded by children and handled by them when he was being handraised. The handling of the baby bird is key, much more than whether humans or parrotlets feed the babies, as Jackie mentioned. Tumi's time on the couch with the middle school daughter was the best part of his socialization, not the feeding of formula. Since parrotlets are so small, some breeders engage in something called "co-parenting" where they let the parents take care of the feeding and they take care of the socializing. This is not considered to be a negative with the small parrots, since they really are so tiny when they hatch that feeding them can be very challenging if you are not also a tiny parrot. A good breeder will socialize the birds, and will not let the bird come home until they are fully weaned. With COVID it is more challenging to ask to visit the setup, but zoom visits should be welcome.
 
#5 ·
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Young birds are often different before puberty, so it is impossible to know what the bird will be like as an adult. It is a combination of nature and nurture - some birds naturally are less aggressive, but also how the bird is raised and then how you build the bond will effect the nurture side.
The advice given to you from the avian vet is very unusual in the bird community. All birds make noise naturally, and avian vets should understand that. General methods to avoid excessive noise are redirection and distraction, not a punishment method. I would not recommend placing a parrotlet in a small box like that, as it it more likely to increase aggression and also prevent the bond of trust being built between you and the bird. Parrotlets are often cage aggressive, defending their territory, and a small box would make that instinct worse.
Trust is very important to establish both ways, but at the end of the day, you are the much bigger and more powerful creature and the parrotlet will always be on guard to save its own life. Tumi and I have built a bond of strong trust, but it was hard and frustrating work, and it still includes him defending himself from any danger, real or perceived. He uses his beak inappropriately sometimes, and we work toward redirection using the Gentle Beak method. When we get really frustrated, he goes back into his cage so that both of us can have our time out and he can calm down and feel safe.
 
#6 ·
Hi Roobydoo,
Great advise.
My Boris was the sweetest bird , this was a lot of years ago. I just saw my old Avain vet on TV last week- all grey now. He often spent his extra time working on the birds in the wildlife, I remember when there was an oil spill many years ago and he went out to help treat those poor oil covered birds. This is why he was on TV. Helping the wildlife birds.
Your advise makes sense and I am glad Boris had no grudges. Like I said, he loved chewing that box but he was not in it very often.
I had read that when bringing a new P ‘let home to put them in a smaller cage for a couple weeks until he was used to your handling him. What say you on this?
Thanks again for your insight.
 
#7 ·
Some people do put their birds into smaller cages when they are babies because they potentially can be more clumsy as that age. One easy alternative is to put a towel at the bottom of the normal cage that you plan to use in the event that your bird falls down.

I have never done the smaller cage thing for any of the parrotlets that I have had over the past 20 years and have had no issues.
 
#8 ·
Tumi was in a smaller cage temporarily, but he was happy to move to his bigger cage quickly. However, he has always had multiple cages, including a sleeping cage. Young birds are often clumsy, so the challenge is making sure that they don't hurt themselves when they are still figuring things out. Having a smaller cage that your bird is happy in is important for travel and boarding, and Tumi enjoys having a sleeping cage. It is something to think about. As Jackie said, if you don't want to use a smaller cage, padding the bottom of the cage can help with the baby bird clumsiness.
 
#9 ·
Hi, I’m just starting out in my search for a responsible breeder in my area. I live in Los Angeles. My mother has had a Parrolet for many years and I’ve been considering getting one myself for some time. She lives on the east coast, so I can’t use the breeder she chose. It’s scary trying to find a good breeder online without knowing who can be trusted! If anyone has information on trusted breeders in Southen California, please send me a PM with their information. Many thanks!! :)
 
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