What type

Question
Hi I have been trying to decide what type bird I want next I alraedy have a cockatiel So have been trying to decide between a SUn conure,Green cheek,or Quaker. I keep going back and forth and am at a loss. The cage I will be using is 22 long by almost 18 deep and 24 tall. I have lots of time to give it. Some things I like in a bird are playfullness - I love birds that enjoy toys.
not nesecearily cuddliness but friendlieness thats about all. I understand you can't make the decion for me I would just like a comparison of the differences and similarities. Thanks soo much

Answer
Hi again, Kelli.  The required size of a bird's cage depends on several things:

- How much time the bird has to spend in the cage
- How much "stuff" you put in the cage (dishes, toys, perches, etc.)
- How many birds are housed in the cage
- Your future intentions for the bird (keeping as a pet or breeding)

If a bird has to spend most of it's time in the cage, you need to provide as big a cage as you can afford.  At minimum, there MUST be enough room for all the birdie stuff, like dishes, toys, perches, etc., as well as room for the bird to be able to vigorously flap it's wings without the wings touching anything on the sides, top, or bottom of the cage.  If you allow the bird to be outside it's cage for a good portion of the day, then the cage only has to be big enough for birdie stuff and for the bird to sleep in.  

If you put a lot of stuff in your bird's cage, then you need to make sure there's enough room for all it's belongings, as well as the bird!  Then the above paragraph applies.  Lots of stuff is OK, but you just need to make sure the cage is large enough for all and the bird.

Of course, if you have more than 1 bird in a cage, you'll need a cage large enough to accommodate all.

If your future intentions are to find a mate for your bird(s) and allow them to produce offspring, you'll need an even larger cage to accommodate a nesting box (unless you put up on outside of cage), the mate, and up to 6 youngsters (unless you pull the babies for handfeeding before they leave the nesting box).

I hope I've answered your questions sufficiently.

Chrys
----------------------------

Hi, Kelli.  Thanks for posting.

Things like playfulness and birds that enjoy toys are 2 of many personality traits that cannot be guaranteed when you purchase a bird.  These traits are not related to the species of a bird.  In other words, not every sun conure is playful and enjoys toys; not every quaker is playful, etc.  This is a risk we take when we purchase a bird.  As far as friendliness goes, when you purchase a new bird, ensure you purchase a just weaned, handfed baby bird, preferably from a breeder, that you can raise to be the way you want the bird to be.  If you purchase a bird raised by someone else, you are basically purchasing a bird raised by someone else's standards.  A lot of birds purchased from a pet shop are biters/nippers (and some are not handfed) because they are poked and proded daily by well-meaning customers.  I'm basically saying the personality traits (playfulness/toy lover) you desire can't be guaranteed.  Comparing differences and similarities between the 3 species of parrots you mention is difficult because it just depends on the personality of the individual parrot you choose.  About the best you can do is start with a just weaned baby and raise it correctly.  Also, there are no guarantees that the 2 birds you want to house in the same cage will get along well enough to be able to be housed in the same cage.  Just be aware you might have to keep them in separate cages, depending on the individual birds you choose.  You also may not want to house conures/quaker with your tiel because the other birds can inflict great injury on your tiel if they want due to their larger size (and larger beak size).  Also, the dietary requirements between the species you mention and a tiel are usually different.  You would have to ensure you provide the different types of food requirements for the different species in one cage (which means additional food dishes in the cage).    

For 2 birds, the cage size you mention doesn't seem large enough when you consider bird dishes, perches, toys also have to be in the cage.  However, cage size depends on how much time they have to spend inside the cage.  Will you allow your birds to be outside the cage a lot or only sometimes?  This is a driver to cage size.

Conures are usually loud/noisy.  If noise can be a problem, you don't want a conure.  Quakers are usually very nice birds...they can be loud at times also, but not like conures.  The conures you mention, as well as the quaker, are usually very cuddly birds, if you buy a handfed baby.  Be aware that in some states, quakers (also known as monk parakeets) are illegal and/or require the owner to keep wing flight feathers clipped at all times or the bird can be confiscated by authorities.  This is because they were introduced in the USA in the wild, and have survived, and cause much damage to crops/agriculture.  I'd check into this in your state before you decide to purchase a quaker parakeet.

Visit my website for more information on birds in general:

http://www.angelfire.com/falcon/birdinfo/index.html

Come back with any questions.

Chrys