lovebird temperments........

Question
Hi Chris, I currently have a rather large female budgie that i would like some company for. Shes lived with other parakeets but unfortunatley plays very rough and killed my last two. I've been hearing through the research i've done online through various websites that different species of lovebird aggression differs. The peach-faced being the most aggressive and largest, while the masked less so, and fischers even smaller and more docile and have even heard reports of them being the only ones to co-exist with parakeets? Which do you feel is the more docile of the 3 species, and could possibly co-exist with a large keet? Realizing i want another bird as company for my already large budgie would a fischers be alright to house with her? Other parakeets are not possible because of my past experiences in seeing how shes treated them. Cockatiels are just to big for my tastes so i'm left with lovebirds as a choice as canaries i already know you don't mix with hookbills. I've had a peachie before alone before i got this particular budgie so i know pretty well how thier attitudes can get. So any advice on whether i could get away with doing this would be helpful, considering i've heard reports of people getting away with it. Also was wondering if i seperate them initially which is what i was going to do in the first place would that ensure thier success in getting along? I have two cages one medium size the other that my current budgie is in now quite large 18x18x36 is that enough space for the lovebird once i put them together? Again any advice would be appreciated asap as my current bird breeder is awaiting my decision on the matter......My email again is tomtalker2000@yahoo.com

Thanks, Tom  

Answer
Hi Tom

While I would not normally recommend putting Lovebirds and Budgies together, in your circumstances it may work. I agree that the Fischers Lovebird is the more docile of the commonly available species, but I would be VERY careful in introducing it to a Budgie. They can still get pretty feisty when wanting to breed, especially females.

In doing the introduction, do it in the budgies familiar cage, not the Lovebirds so it doesn't claim territorial rights. Putting them side by side first in separate cages and monitoring their reactions would be a sensible first step.

Hope that helps.