This section looks at some frequently-asked questions about parrot care.

• Should I get another (second) bird?

This question is usually asked for two reasons. Either the first bird has bonded to only one person in the family and other family members would like a bird which can be 'their bird'. Or the bird's main carer does not have the same amount of time to spend with the first bird as previously, and considers getting another one as company for the  first bird. The matter of acquiring a second bird should not be gone into lightly. There are many issues to consider  before doing this. What sort of bird would you get: the same species or a different one? What age should your  second bird be, an immature one or an adult? Will the second bird just pair up with your first bird? If it does, will it want anything to do with you or anyone else, or will it reject human companionship? Will it even become aggressive to you or others if it pairs up with the other bird? Trying to predict the outcomes of these issues is very difficult but some things are more predictable than others. Where you have two adult birds of the same species and opposite sex, they are very likely to pair up. This means they may prefer each other's company to yours. One or both of them may become aggressive to people if they perceive humans are 'interfering' with their relationship  with each other. When a second bird is not closely related to the first, this is much less likely to happen. Here the birds may become friendly towards each other without pairing up fully and this result is ideal. However, these are not predictable outcomes.

So, if you do decide to get a second bird and want to ensure that both birds appreciate human company as  companion animals, you might be better advised to get a species which is not closely related to your first bird.  Other species which originate from Africa, such as the Senegal, Meyer's or Jardine's parrot, could be tried with a  grey parrot. To further reduce the chances of birds pairing up with each other, each should be housed in its own large cage but with the cages in the same room.



These two greys, an African on the left and a Timneh on the right,
not only get on well with each other, but they also both enjoy
the company of people.

Both of these birds, a Timneh grey and a Meyer's parrot, are hand reared and each is bonded to a person.
They sometimes show aggression to one another when they are over-excited.
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