time devoted to a brid

Question
I had a cockatiel form the age of 8-20, he died in a house fire. i have wanted a bird for a while but, my wife had never had a pet before and is afaid of most all animals. talked her looking at cockatiels and she just fell in love with a baby tiel at the pet store.  we've had him for about 8 months now and has been a outstanding pet. says 3 words and whistles  and is loving to the whole familiy. i think he really gets too much attention sometimes. i try to limit it sometimes becuase i think he needs a little time to rest.

first is this a good idea? i find he gets a little demanding if he's out too long.

what is too long for a tiel.

also i have always wanted a African Grey. i would probably keed them in seperat cages next to each other. do you think they would have any problems with each other if i were to get the gray young?  

and most importantly how much time would a gray require? i would probably be the main handler he him/her. there is almost always someone in the house. but, acual time out of the cage would be about 3-4 hours after i get off work? would he/she be ok. for 5-6 hours a day with no one but the tiel as company?

sorry for bing long wind'ed
Glenn


Answer
Hello Glenn,

I guess there is a point where a bird becomes spoiled by a lot of attention, but giving as much attention as you're able is okay as long as this continues throughout the birds life.

In regards to amount of time the grey would need out, I think 3-4 hours is great for out of cage play time! If you're able to also take him/her out with you in the morning for breakfast, that's a great idea also. But like I said, make it routine, and continue this throughout their entire life.

If you do get a grey, be very careful with him/her around the 'tiel, they might not get along. I have a young Quaker and a fairly young Cockatoo, and they just don't get along. It's due to the quaker mainly, she nips at my 'too, so I don't let them near each other because they could BOTH get hurt quite easily!! Supervised meetings are best. If you introduce them slowly, and they have cages right next to each other, it should make things less difficult, but definitely keep them in different cages.

The Grey will be fine on his/her own throughout the day, as long as you provide plenty of different things for them to do. These guys are super intelligent, like the geniuses of the parrot world, so they need to be entertained! Puzzle toys are the best bet, but chewing toys are also great for entertainment. And you might consider rotating the toys weekly or bi-weekly as opposed to monthly as most people do.

If you find your 'tiel to be a bit too spoiled, then I would slowly diminish the amount of one-on-one time.. well if you want to. There's nothing wrong with a fid getting lots of attention, as long as its not too much so that they start screaming when they don't get attention. If this starts, completely ignore him while he's screaming at you, don't run to him. If it's too excessive, its okay to cover him up with a blanket until he settles down. I usually just ignore them.. lol.

I hope I've helped you out some. Let me know if you have anymore questions!

Sarah