Posted: Sun Sep 03, 2006 9:01 pm Post subject: Baraband keepers out there?
Hi people, I'm looking at getting a Baraband as an indoor pet and although I have found a couple to look at, they aren't very common in nz and was wondering if any one can give me an unbiased view on suitability as a family pet. And what life expectancy?
Hi Steps, I am considering alsorts, I know you have both kings and crimson so I'd cetainly like to hear your thoughts on temprement etc. I know of a very well tamed King Parrot but although the end result in taming can be the same some spiecies will be easier than others. And some require hand rearing properly from very young as opposed to a Cockatiel that you can tame from a few months old no probs. Cost is a consideration otherwise I'd just get me an African Grey
Our kings and crimsons where avairy breed/raised
They have always been in an avairy.
It took me about 2 weeks, a few 10 mins/day to have them like u see in the album.
The male King, he is Called Napoleon...hes his own man, the king of his flight..he comes down...slowly, not because of nerves or anything, he just like to make the chioces and make sure we know it, in his time.
I can leave them all to their own devices for 6 months or so....then spend a few batches of 10 mins with them and they again come down and climb all over me.
The only thing I cant do is scratch them. I can put a seed on my tonge, put it to the back of my mouth and they will all put their head in a get it, nps
EXCEPT the male king
If u want a very good, well treated, king, crimson, galah, hand raised..
We dont do it but we have some very good friends here who do...
If interested PM me. _________________ My Spelling is Not Incorrect...It's 'Creative'
Hi Gecko, I have had Superbs for 24 years now. They are lovely parrots and are very attentive to you regardless if you hand rear or not. I have to argue about taming down a cockatiel (the no prob's bit)- I have had too many bites-...BTW Superbs will bite and handrearing is great if you want to handle them.
You probably have ‘Googled” the birds and found out a lot of details so I will tell you about how sweet they are to have. They are nothing like a Kakariki, they are a much more 'sober' bird. Very intelligent, and will be dependent upon your attention. They will talk to any face- even if you draw two eyes and a smile on a balloon, the males will try to chat it up.
They need a bit of maintenance. They IMO need quite a bit of vegies, especially the dark green ones. They also have to have their feet keep moist, I have my old boy lose toes thinking it was arthritis but it was because his skin was very dry (their skin is like scales and it will form a circle around their toe and cut it right off.) I never had any problems with feather plucking, my aviary birds are extremely healthy. I only had one with an eye infection and she is perfect now, feathers were rubbed off but they are back and all is ok. They are reported to be good breeders however, I (in hindsight) have found they are very competitive breeders, you should keep them alone in pairs for more successful breeding. The males are good talkers but the talk most, and more clearly when it is quiet. If you do keep them in an open aviary, you need to keep more females than males, and be wary, the females can be real bitches. They will dominate the males and keep him on the floor if they do not get along. As far as training- I haven’t done anything really exciting except step ups and taking them into the shower with me (blow drying and everything that goes with bathing). They are very good with dogs, cats, and other birds. – can’t think of much else except they are a protected species here, you need a license. Also they have been known to live til 90 years. I heard that they decided this because they found one out in the wild that knew an ancient aboriginal language. – They assumed he had to be very old to be able to know this. My oldest as I said is over 23 now and he is going well despite losing some toes.
good luck deciding, Kathy
thanks kathy I apprieciate the advice. The wet feet bit is interesting, is that an issue in all climates, where in aust are you? Being protected and needing a licence mean you have the same issue we have with Kakariki in the market place, an oversupply or is there a managed releasing programme?
I do like the sound of them and will try and find a local breeder
I have heard they are very simialr to princess parrots and i have a male princess as an indoor pet and he is great.... i knew a lady that had one and she said he was a wonderful pet (handreared) they are apparently great imitaters like the princesses i am not sure how loud the barras are but my princess is EXTREEMLY loud......I think all the polyteils are pretty simialer
Posted: Sat Sep 09, 2006 11:46 am Post subject: Superbs
The feet problem can be with all species- IMO, it is partly a vitamin deficiency and moisture. so in other words, just watch their legs.
also yes they can be very loud when they call.they usually call to parrots flying over but it is no worse than any other small parrot.
I think they are much like the Princess but I think princesses are less talk ative- at least I've never seen one talk. -I do not know
I have a pair of Barrabands and a pair of Eastern Kings. All were aviary bred. When I got the first Barraband - male - I tried to tame him sufficiently to have him inside. It didn't work. I got him to the stage where he would sit on my shoulder, but he squarked loudly and constantly the whole time to let me know just how much he objected. Funny thing was he didn't just fly off - he stayed there squarking. He is a real character tho'. Lots of personality, very self assured, independant and obviously intelligent and curious. He used to check everything out around the house including the cat. I have since got him a mate, but as yet they don't look like nesting. Early days tho' as both of them are less than 3 yrs. He is definitely much happier in the aviary than he was as an inside pet. In the aviary the male will eat from my hand, but won't sit on me. The female doesn't come near me. They are also the loudest birds in my aviaries.
The Eastern Kings on the other hand have very quickly become friendly in the aviary and will sit on me to eat. They are generally quieter and are a much more gentle bird than the Barrabands. They seem to like being near me more so than the Barrabands, and are more likely to follow me around as I move round the aviary. This year is their fourth breeding season and the hen is currently on eggs. She is not particularly worried about me checking her, and the lady I bought them from said she handles the chicks regularly without this upsetting the parents much at all.
I intend handling the chicks sufficiently that they will be good inside pets, and I think this shouldn't be too hard to achieve. With the Barrabands I think hand raised would be the way to go if you want them as inside birds.
Both have their special qualities and I enjoy each of them. Good luck with finding the right one for you. I have to say that Tauranga possibly doesn't have many to choose from, or at least it didn't when I lived there and was looking for birds.
Hey thanks heaps for you responses, I havn't yet decided but all your info is helping me lots. Im seeing more birds being advertised now so Im confident on finding the right one
Im new here and so happy to find this site. Im in the USA and its hard finding anyting on Barrabands. I will be getting my first pair this week and im so excited, it took so much work to track down a pair let alone even 1 haha. I have breed many birds in the past but for some reason finding out a correct age on when to breed these is next to impossible. When i look it up i never get the same age twice uhhh !!!. I do want to hand feed which i have done before and will hold a baby back for myself they are way to cute not to.. any advice would be great... and appreciated thank you.
which gives him a slightly swollen red weepy eye but strangley only when he his diet has been lacking loads of fruit & veges also its never been passed onto any of my other birds
With all due respect "Strangley" ???
A consistant , balanced diet is the responsablity of any pet owner, and without that immune systems, fertility, and damn near every issue can be prevented in capative birds.
Or put the other way...99% of issues in captive birds are caused bu poor inconsistant diet...and are a great souce of income for vets...and our doctors.
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(we think him being handtame in the past hasnt helped)
Sry I do not go along with that old wives tail either...
It is not uncommon for hand tamed birds to get crap diet...even so it is not uncommon for hand tamed birds to be so screwed up pscologly by the owners turning them into some they are not...hand tame doesnt mean they have to loose their natural instincts and behavoural patterns.
Basically its not the hand taming, it is poor diet, junk food and mental abuse often dished out.....we b reed many hand tame birds, not just kakariki...in fact most of our bredding birds are hand tame.
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, they also love sweetcorn in any form (but do limit it for treats as its highly fattening).
Another old wives tail....you eat a lot of sweet corn you will not get fat...you eat a lot of sweet corn /carbs PLUS a lot of sugars..be it refined or high sugar content fruit juices and fruit...you will get fat very quick.
Its the sugars NOT the carbs or natural fats.
To illustrate this..go out in the back yard..check out how ripe the fruit is the birds get into....any person who has friut trees will complain that the birds get into the fruit "just before it is ready to eat" or put another way, just before the sugars rise.
If one watches birds go after nector in flowers...is it the nector with a lot of sugar or nector where the sugar has verminted into alocohol and acedic acid.....the Tui phenomenar of getting 'drunk ' on flax flowers for instance.
The wide spread use we make of vinigar (cleaning) and apple cider vinegar in the diet.
Im not pointing these thing out personally to you...but rather the 'common belief of old wives tails and semi truth built up over generations, and passed down with little research and back ground just keep[ on hanging around
U really want to see the reactions when I give a lecture at a bird club on keeping and care of kakariki.....and the emails I get in the following months when they have tried a lot of what I have said.
Cheers
Steps
PS
Purplegoanna
I see you are a JAFA also If intersted you are to come out here for a coffee sometime.
I THINK you may work within a couple miles of us??? _________________ My Spelling is Not Incorrect...It's 'Creative'
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