by Pajarita » Sat Aug 30, 2014 10:12 am
The number of animals depends on the infrastructure, financial resources and available time. I have a small zoo: 7 dogs, 7 cats, over 40 birds and a mouse. My house has a large fenced-in backyard that is used only for the dogs, buffer zones (so nobody can get out by somebody opening a door by mistake), two dedicated bird-rooms (one for finches and canaries and one for the parrots), a generous husband who pays the bills and a full time slave (me! -my husband is home most days, too and he helps a bit with the dogs and cats but wants nothing to do with the parrots). My animals are all rescues or adoptions but all very well behaved because I don't only have years of experience (I did full time rescue -dogs, cats, birds- for 6 years, I groom and train) but I am here all day long so supervision (and correction of bad behaviors) and company is constant. Plus, I never take in a new animal unless the current group dynamics are working like clockwork and it's very rare that I would take in a bird of a species I don't currently already have although, sometimes, it happens due to unavoidable circumstances like it did recently with an African Red Bellied). I get a good discount at the vet as well as a lot of latitude when it comes to getting medicines to administer myself because I am a VERY good client (I am there every single month) and my vet trusts me not to do something stupid like giving the wrong medicine or dosage to an animal (he says he knows vets that don't know as much as I do). My children are all grown and have families of their own so I am now free to spend my time taking care of animals -something I always wanted to do but could not before -not that I did not have multiple animals all my life because I did but not in such large numbers.
When it comes to parrots, it depends on the species and infrastructure more than anything. The species you mentioned (ekkie, gray, macaw, too, caique) are all species that usually need hours and hours with their owners so even if you put them all in room of their own and allow them to live cage-free, they will require the usual one-on-one time with you - and that only if you manage for all of them to live with attacking one another out of jealousy over your attention. I have four birds now living outside the birdroom: Zoey Senegal, Isis Redbellied, Codee GCC and Pablo Peachfront. Pablo is severely handicapped and a wild-caught that lived as a breeder all his life; he does not really want any interaction with me and cannot fly so letting him out and climb and chill around is the most that he can get and easy enough (he has Codee for love). Codee comes out first thing in the morning and rides my shoulder while I do the canaries, finches, cardinals, the downstairs parrots and prepare the food for the ones in the birdroom. Thankfully, Isis Redbellied is a sweet tempered bird that has no issues with other birds and likes to fly around the entire downstairs of my house, perching in her special spots to groom and ask for head scritches or some fruit so I can have her out at the same time I do Pablo and Codee - but Zoey is a jealous little thing that will not think twice of attacking another bird, dog, cat or person out of sheer jealousy and possessiveness of my person so I have to take her out on her own, and let me tell you that, although this doesn't sound so complicated, it's actually quite hard because I have to plan my entire day around this fact. Right now, she is perching on my shoulder preening, my husband is taking a shower and getting ready to go get his hair cut to make enough time for me to spend with her before we go to the supermarket. When I come back, it's another hour or two for Isis, Codee and Pablo before I do another hour or two for Zoey while I groom two of my little dogs and repot some plants, by then, it'll be time to feed them dinner. When I tell people that my entire life revolves around the birds they think I am exaggerating but I am not.