Concerns about a lonely parrot

Dear Dr. Friedman, I would like to ask you one question. I have a Ducorps Cockatoo,  female, 1 y.o. From next month I will work every day and really afraid that my parrot will be lonely. Therefore, I decided to buy one more parrot. I   heard that males of Ducorp’s Cockatoo are very aggressive to female. I need your suggest about which species better to buy? I can buy baby of Ducorp’s Cockatoo male or Grey or etc? Which species can be friend for my Ducorp’s Cockatoo female?

Would be so grateful for advice. Thanks.
Antonina

What a great question Antonia.  It’s one that generated a good deal of discussion amongst out group of LLP graduates who have an interest in the behavior of parrots both free range and in the home.  Rather than come up with suggestions as to the species that might co-existed best with your Ducorp’s cockatoo,  we felt that it might be more prudent to discuss whether or not another bird in the home was necessary. 

To that end, after editing for readability, we decided to answer in a point- counterpoint fashion so that you could review different thoughts that arose during the discussion.

One point we were unclear about was whether or not the “month” you speak of meant you would be busy for just one month or if in a month’s time you would be begin working longer hours which would reduce the time spent with your current bird. That is an important factor to weigh in making your decision.

1) Can a single bird thrive in the home?

*Lee said:
Certainly!  In the late 60s into the early 80s, before I took in a re-homed birds, I only ever had one bird at a time. Can that one bird thrive and survive while I was away all day at work?  You bet. But there are some correlates to be considered. Enough enrichment to keep the bird busy during the day when it is not napping, work for it to do in the form of foraging for food; audio/visual stimulation of some sort and assorted toys with differing textures to play with during the day were items that I addressed..  Additionally, when at home, both ambient and direct attention were provided along with some form of exercise.  We also taught the parrot some bird tricks a along with new new behaviors which added to the one on one interaction time, increased my observation skills when it cam to body language as well as made me a bigger reinforcer for my bird. In lay terms that means we developed a closer bond.

2) Bringing a new bird into the home as a companion.

*Lee said: 
Bringing another bird into the home whether it be the same or a different species can bring problems of it’s own?  If a new bird reduces the time the caregiver spends with the in situ bird and that time is, as I suspect, very reinforcing to the bird, then behavioral trouble such as screaming and biting might be on the horizon with a reduction of the overall level of available positive reinforcement.  It seems to me that we can’t take for granted that the two birds of the same species, or a different species,  would interact although they might be company for one another even with out observable interaction. Are there “solo” birds in the wild? I suspect so but can’t prove it other than that loan wild Spix’s macaw that was last seen in 2000. .

**Gay said:
I would advise not to though. I don’t get this one month of change versus a whole lifetime of change.

Nothing says the birds will be friends no matter what type of bird they get. So you put two birds in proximity that really aren’t friends and I personally am not sure if you’ve done anything good. Far more important to me to compensate for that month of more alone time by giving the bird lots of enrichment and giving it some good personal time. People get the idea that the birds needs hours and hours of your undivided attention and it just isn’t true.

A new bird would not be a month. It is supposedly a life long commitment. I would never advise buying a second bird solely for the first bird.

*Lee said: 
Yes, you are right. Getting another bird as company for the existing bird in a situation where I was speaking one on one to a person, I might ask for more data including life style, current interaction level with the bird, fiscal and physical constraints, time available,  etc before I would offer specific advice to the individual. 

Another factor to consider would be the age of both birds. The research is there that we all need some sort of interactive relationship with the environment especially at key points in our lives and there after. Perhaps in an ideal world it would always be with the same species in a family unit but life sure isn’t ideal and most of us adapt in one way or another including single birds.

How many times have we heard of a bird that begins to overpreen/pluck after a new bird is added?  We wonder if you are prepared for any eventual behavioral or reproduction behaviors that might arise? Those are important points to ponder when considering both same species, same sex versus another species.

**Gay said:
People get the idea that the birds needs hours and hours of your undivided attention and it just isn’t true. IF the only reason is for bird number 1, then I would still say nay. It’s the wrong reason, for this human and for the new bird and possibly the existing bird.

*Lee said:
Agreed!

**Gay said:
Another point to bear in mind is that you are going to buy a new bird, bring it to a strange home, with another strange bird and desert it at a time when it might require greater interaction. IF the only reason is for bird number 1, then I would still say nay. It’s the wrong reason, for this human and for the new bird and possibly the existing bird.

I say these comments though, knowing that birds are more flock animals and living in segregation is (or should be) totally alien to them

*Lee said:
Don’t forget that not all species of parrots live in large flocks (not sure about Ducorp’s as I haven’t researched them).  Look at the South American birds who might show up at a clay lick for the "town hall meeting" and then be solitary or in pairs for the rest of the day. Even with those that live in pairs do you thing that nature always balances it out - exactly?  My bet, although I don’t know definitively nor do I even know if it’s been researched, is that there will be spinsters or bachelors in the wild as well. What they are is adaptable given half a chance.  What happens to the males that aren’t colorful enough or sing great songs well enough to get a female? Wouldn’t they some how adapt as evidenced by the period of time that last wild Spix’s macaw was alone?

3) Quarantine concerns.

Dana said:
Shouldn’t a new bird be quarantined from the original bird for about 3 months??

Lee said:
Valid point Dana. I’m afraid I don’t know the disease status in Japan, if parrots are still imported or locally bred. Those should always be considerations when bringing a new bird into a home where an existing bird resides. A quick check reveals that Japan does still import parrots, without quarantine at the point of entry, so segregation prior to interaction with an existing flock would only be prudent,

There you have it Antonina. Some slightly differing opinions that are leaning toward not bringing in another bird at this time. . The bottom line is that we really don’t have enough information about you, your circumstances, the existing bird nor the current status of parrot diseases in Japan to give an informed answer. Nor do we have enough inforamtion as to how you interact with the current resident. We do not know what your expectations are for the new bird in relation to yourself as well your yearling Ducorp’s.  As it stands, we don’t know if you are just getting a new bird for your existing bird or for other reasons. That would be a key piece of information to have in order to better answer your question.

When a new bird arrives in one of our houses, great pains are taken to ensure that the routine of the resident flock isn’t interrupted and the new one is introduced in a controlled supervised way as the helps to prevent behavior problems down the road.

Best of luck in making your decision

Lee McGuire, Gay Noeth, Dana McDonald for Susan Friedman Ph. D. and the LLP grads group.