Thread: Pros and Cons of owning a Caique

Originally Posted by animallover09

This is a great thread! I didn't see this as one of the cons but do caiques tend to be one person birds??

I've always heard that they do not tend to do this, and so far it's been the case here. One day it seems like Pogo prefers hubby, the next all he wants is me, although he will pretty much go to anyone willing to play with him.

PROS: Friendly beyond reason, snuggley, playful at all times, adventurous, fearless, endlessly entertaining.

CONS: Somewhat destructive, want to be with you ALL the time, can be loud, beakiness gets a little annoying.

It's funny how so many people noted the same things as pros and cons! It's very true. That's exactly how it is with my white belly, Jones.

If you are eager to have a parrot that is ALWAYS playful, always wants to be near you, never slows down, and always wants your attention, then you've chosen the right bird. But those are also the cons.

Somehow I'm lucky enough that Jones is not very loud (atleast not as loud as my lovebird) and they happen to get along really well. I was sort of surprised to see so many folks say they can't trust their caiques with their other birds! Maybe it makes the difference if the other birds are introduced to the caique when it's a baby? I never guessed for a second that my lovebird and caique would get along, but I think since Jones is a baby, he's been more accepting.

The thing is, I don't regret getting Jones for a second. Like everyone else I've read about, he's the light of my life, and the Pros DEFINATELY outweigh the Cons.

Originally Posted by animallover09

This is a great thread! I didn't see this as one of the cons but do caiques tend to be one person birds??

Tiki will go to anyone. Even people who don't live in our house(friends and family). Usually when I walk in the room she wants me but we are working on that. My son just loves to wrestle and play with her. He can be a little rough, but she loves it. He holds her upside down and she swings from his hand by her beak. He can't handle the Amazon so he is loving being able to handle Tiki.

Dont back out of getting your caique!! I love mine! I highly recommend weaning them yourself. I had to hand feed mine for a couple of weeks but it was worth it. He totally thinks he's human! And don't name him until you get to know him. I had a name all picked out. It was going to be "bunky" then after I had him for a while it was clear he was no bunky! He was an Omar! Make sure you have a big spacious cage set up for him that includes a house for him to hide in and lots of toys! Only toys made for birds. I made my own toys and Omar broke his little toe. He had to spend the first month of his life in a little toe cast! It was so sad! And to make matters worse the "avian" vet set the toe in the wrong direction so I had to rebreak it and reset it so it was placed in the right direction! Actually my husband rebroke it thankfully! I couldnt stand to do it myself. If I hadn't done that his toe would have healed forward and he wouldnt have been able to hold on to a pirch! So make sure everything is safe.
Get you caique home before you bring him home. You can have lots of fun rearranging his little house. I change things around for him all the time.
Caiques are VERY beaky. And beaky is NOT biting. Omar NEVER bites but he scares strangers because he wants to beak them. They use their beak as another hand and taste everything.
Make sure once he's weaned that you give him a wide variety of food(no avocados) If they dont get to try alot of different foods when they are young they become very picky eaters! It's so important for them to eat a lot of different kinds of food! Mine LOVES chicken and turkey meat! He's a little cannibal! I have had many kinds of birds large and small! But the caique has truely been the love of my life. Be prepared to make a LIFELONG commitment. They live 30 years, which is nothing compared to a cockatoo or a mackaw, which can live 90 years. Good luck with your new baby! It will be a two year old for life!