How To Care For A Parrot?

Have you ever thought of these super-smart creatures and pondered how to care for a parrot by investing less effort to keep them safe and zest-free? Parrots that hold the virtuosity to talk look stunning and fascinating, and so do they make a brilliant, quick-witted birdy pet for you. 

Parrots that exist in a variety of species are wild by nature with many behaviors. So, if you are all set to buy one from the best breeder, you definitely need to get a clear picture of the particular parrot you long to own. 

What Are The Easy Steps To Care For Your Feathered Friend? A Guide For Parrot Caring!

As these birdy species live for 80 years, they will be with your family longer than other pets and are a long-term commitment. To be the right owner for your birdies demands the necessity to learn how to care for a parrot by which you can easily ensure your new ones stay in a comfortable and joyful zone ever. 

Are Parrots Hard To Take Care Of?

A bright side of parrot parenting is that it’s no way hard to make them stay and look after. All you need is to get prepared with the basic things they need and know some elementary things that help both the owner and the pets to skip the challenging parts.  

Just like other pets, these birdies never demand constant supervision other than the proper care at the right time is enough to enjoy a great time with these beautifully colored birds and will surely give back an extremely rewarding experience. 

Tips To Care For A Parrot

Though many of us know the best ways to care for our pets, bird lovers will curiously seek some add-on information to take care of their feathered friends at their best. As it’s the owners’ responsibility to ensure the harmony of your avian companion, getting prepared with a few tips undoubtedly aids you in bird parenting. 

So, let’s look at some of the tips to go through before selecting one.

🏠Housing and environment

Owning a pet is exciting and joyful because it can be a perfect companion throughout our life. If your pet is a parrot, then you love them for many reasons. Their beauty, speaking skills, funny antics, compassion, and attachment inspire us to own them. But the important thing we should understand before caring for a parrot is providing them with their requirements. As a pet owner, you should allow them a perfect environment for living that mimics their natural habitat. The cage should be suitable for them because they spend most of their time in cages. 

A variety of cages are available in the market, but selecting the right one seems tricky. Ensure that the cage is large enough for your parrot to climb and move freely horizontally and vertically in comfort. The cage should have the facilities to contain perches, toys, a water bowl, a food bowl, and a resting area. So for small parrots, the minimum size of the cage should be 24’’ W * 24’’ H * 24’’ D. And for larger birds, it should be 5 ft W *6 ft h * 3 ½ ft D. 

Apart from the size of the cage, the position of the cage also matters. If the cage is not in a peaceful and suitable area, it can badly affect the parrot inside it. Always remember to locate the cage where fresh air and sunlight are available. Providing perches and toys can help to create an engaging and stimulating living environment.

🥬Nutrition and feeding

Unlike wild parrots, parrots in captivity depend on their owners for their daily requirements such as food, grooming, and other health care. However, wild birds can explore nature and eat whatever food they like. The typical diet of parrots includes a wide range of plants, seeds, nectar, fruits, vegetables, and grains. And they can consume large varieties of food in their natural settings. 

When you feed your parrot, the diet should comprise sufficient nutrition to keep them healthy and energetic. Planning a balanced diet for parrots in captivity is challenging. Because as a pet owner, you should understand their eating pattern and compose the diet accordingly.  

Your parrot’s diet should consist of a wide variety of food items such as seeds, pellets, fruits, vegetables, and grains with the right amount. These tips can help you while feeding your pet parrot.

1. When you prepare a diet plan, 60 to 70 % should consist of pellets, and the remaining 30 to 40 % should be a variety of fresh, low-fat, and low-salt food.
2. Overconsumption of vitamins A and D can cause several illnesses, such as obesity, liver disease, skin and feather problems, and many other medical conditions. So feed your bird a minimal quantity of seeds that contain vitamins A and D highly.
3. Use clean and fresh fruits and vegetables. 
4. Change food at least once a day so they can enjoy different food daily.
5. Parrots love treats, so Include seeds, nuts, and other calorie-rich food less than 10 % of the diet. 
6. Remember to fill the water bowl in the cage to keep them hydrated all the time.
7. Always clean the leftovers from the cage and feeding tray. 

🩺Grooming and health

Grooming plays an important role in keeping your bird happy and healthy. You should take care to maintain healthy feathers, trim nails and beaks, and wing clips. Parrots can become frightened if you mishandle them while grooming, so take your bird to a professional. A proper wing clip can prevent your bird from flying long distances and colliding with windows, fans, mirrors, and other hazards. 

If you handle your bird frequently, it is necessary to trim your bird’s nails and beaks. Overgrown nails can trouble parrots by getting trapped on toys, clothes, or other parts of the cage. If the nails break, it can cause severe pain or blood loss in parrots. If the beak does not trim, it can affect eating, touching, playing, and communication. 

Some parrots are healthy, while others can encounter health issues for many reasons. When you buy a parrot, the first thing you have to consider is its health condition. Always check the health status of parrots before buying them. Additionally, a parrot’s health condition can be affected by its lifestyle and food habits. If your parrot lacks essential diet and physical activities, the chances of having disease and illness are high. Identify when your parrot shows signs of sickness like breathing difficulty, stained nose, appetite loss, swollen eyes, feather problems, bowed head, and change in appearance, and take them to a professional vet. 

🕊️Socialization and training

When you bring a parrot to your home, it will not show any kind of affection or engagement with you because they are in unfamiliar surroundings. Their behavior depends on how you raise them from a young age. You can use some tricks and techniques to train and socialize your bird. 

1. Correctly approach your bird

In the beginning, your parrot will consider you a stranger. So gaining its trust is upon you. Try to maintain a slow and gentle motion when you approach your parrot. A scared parrot can react negatively when you try to handle them. To avoid this, don’t try to touch them frequently. Just be somewhere near the cage and mark your presence. 

2. Maintain a low and inviting voice

Parrots are sensitive birds and can be frightened quickly. So keep your voice low and gentle while interacting with them. If you make loud voices, they may retreat from you.

3. Offer them treat

Offering threats is the simplest way to gain their trust and interest. Parrots love treats, so feed them their favorite treats like fruits, nuts, vegetables, or specific food items. Through this, your feathered friend will understand that you are trustworthy and not an enemy.  

4. Socialize your parrots

Parrots are smart and intelligent birds. They can remember whatever happened to them. If your parrot has a previous negative experience, it is important to socialize with them with positive things. Training and socializing with parrots is not an easy thing. It requires a lot of time and patience to tame them. As a first step of socialization, try to build a strong bond with your parrot. You can do this by making them comfortable and providing for their needs. Once successful in bonding with your parrot, interact with them by talking, singing, playing, and spending quality time together. 

5. Teach them tricks

Train your parrots with tricks such as waving, turning around, fetching, sitting on the shoulder, dancing, and many more. These tricks help entertain others and make your parrot behave well and understand.

Summarizing

Feathery companions are always an excellent choice as pets only for the right owners who know how to care for a parrot. By considering all the above-discussed tips on offering proper care to your pets, you can surely make a great lifetime companion.