I'm suffering from a bad case of MBS , and next weekend the local bird club is having a bird fair. I want to go and see what it's like -- never been to one before -- and I'm pretty sure I'm going to encounter a bird I can't walk away from. Clyde accepted Bonnie easily enough, so he won't hate me if I bring yet another feathered sibling home as long as he still gets first and most attention (and he will), so before I go, I thought I'd decide which kind of bird would fit us best so I don't go off and fall in love with the wrong kind.

I've narrowed it down to a cockatiel or a conure -- small, but with plenty of personality. Noise level is not a concern. If they want to squawk and sing, that's fine. We'd want a bird who can handle our noise, too -- we're musicians -- and won't mind seeing the dogs lumbering around. If it learns to talk, terrific! If not, I don't care. I'd also want a bird who will be affectionate and want lots of interaction with us. And it would be nice if he or she could eat the same food Clyde or Bonnie eats, so I don't have to buy a third kind of food! I've already got numerous containers of pellets and seed in Quaker and budgie sizes. I don't have tons of money to spend and we'll need another cage since both of ours are already occupied, so I have to take that expense into account, too.

I'm sort of inclined to a cockatiel, but the folks I know that have them have more than one. Do cockatiels need a companion/roommate, or will a solo be okay by him or herself in the cage, with Clyde and Bonnie to talk to when we're gone? Do they like to play with their people and sit on shoulders or are they more aloof than that? Can they eat what budgies or Quakers eat? Do they have any special needs I should know about before I decide?

From the research I've done so far, it sounds as if either species would fit the bill, but those of you who have one or both of these will know more than I do. I wanted to get the conure at Petsmart because I felt bad he/she was stuck living in a pet store, but I just can't swing the $350 price tag plus a cage and toys and everything at one go. I hoped the bird fair would have more reasonable prices. Once I have the bird and cage and all that, I can manage the food and care costs after that for a third bird. And the local avian vet's prices are very reasonable.

I guess it really depends on what you are wanting, neither need a cage mate and will bond better with you if they don't. Cockatiels are sweet, affectionate, very loving birds and very intelligent. They will talk also if worked with, (more so the male than the female) The only bad thing about cockatiels is if any one in the house has problems with allergies a cockatiel is one of the birds that gives off heavy dander and dust and can cause breathing problems unless you have good air filter systems. Green cheek conures are wonderful little guys who remind me very much of quakers, but are very, very active, needs lots of toys for entertainment, are affectionate, talk, although can be a little nippy. But either is great as long as you make sure they are babies or young birds, handfed AND handtamed and well socialized. You would be able to tell by the way they react, if they back away or when you talk to them come to the side you are on an are curious.

Also remember one very important thing. When going to bird fairs you should come home and straight away change clothes and take a shower before handling any of your birds. Any new bird should be kept in a separate room for at the very least 30 days incase of any disease so you don't infect your birds. Anything you purchase should be cleaned well before allowing it near your birds.

Wait until you get there and look for a cage too, bird fairs are great places to find bargains on cages, food, toys.

Good luck and keep us posted on how things go.

My vote is for a conure..I'm not a fan of cockatiels... I really don't know why, I'm just not.
But if you get a conure...you should start researching all of the different kinds now because there are soo many to choose from. We stumbled upon our sun conure at a bird fair (actually we won her in a raffle for 10 dollars..Cant beat that!!!)
Her and my quaker get along fairly well. I think they are a good fit because they are about the same size and I don't have to worry as much about one hurting the other one. Although I do have to watch them closely...they are never out unsupervised.
Sun conures, jendays, and sundays (all three pretty similar in looks) are not known for their talking..although ours does mimic any silly sound we make pretty good.
Green cheeks are more playful and clown like.
My neighbors have a blue crowned conure and he is just a hoot. Talks really well and says all sorts of things at the funniest time.
There are so many to consider. A good place to start looking at different species is birdchannel.com They have all the species listed alphabetically and you can browse through and read about each kind. Good luck!

I have researched on Bird Channel.com (and congrats for Spree and Elliot's photo being in the November issue of Bird Talk, by the way! I just saw the magazine for the first time yesterday and there you were, and I said to the family, "LOOK! I know them!" ).

Anyway, my research on that site is what helped me narrow it down to a cockatiel or conure, and of the conures, I think a green cheek is my favorite. The suns are gorgeous but (here's the proof that Clyde is in charge at our house) Clyde doesn't like red and yellow. If we're wearing red or yellow, he gets very upset, and he attacks red or yellow yarn if I'm crocheting with those colors, and he won't touch red or yellow food ... so I know if I brought home a red and yellow feathered sibling, he would probably never warm up to the poor thing, even at a distance. That's part of why, when we decided to get a parakeet, we got a green one! So I'd have to get a green cheek if I get a conure.

Cockatiels are generally nice calm colors like gray and cream, so he'd be fine with that. Do cockatiels come in green? Clyde really likes green.

Haven't seen any green cockatiels

Green cheek conures are such a hoot! Playful and active and all the ones I've met have been REALLY friendly ... of course they were all hand tamed and ready to go to new homes ... same with the cockatiels.

Cockatiels are SWEET little birds ... friendly, and so smart .. mine whistles the Andy Griffith theme and says Pretty bird and Cheerios, but I know others have tiels that talk up a storm ... Tiels are usually more inexpensive to get so would leave more $$ for a new cage ... great deals can be had at bird fairs, both on cages AND fids ...

The bird fair I went to in October had tiels anywhere from $25 to $50 and the green cheeks were around $150 to $250 ... depending on how badly they wanted to unload their stock ... wait till later in the day and you can probably get an even BIGGER price break

Green cheeks will need lots and lots of toys to keep them entertained but they can use YOU as a toy when you are available My sun loves to snuggle inside my shirt, especially when it gets toward nite nite time GCCs are the same way ... snuggle bunnies ... but CAN be nippy if not socialized and have daily interaction ...

Good luck choosing ... either will be a joyful addition to your flock ... just let the others be first in all you do with them until they accept the new fid into the flock ... have fun!!

I think I'm a little biased towards cockatiels.

They are my little awesome buddies and very clever. Wembley has picked up many tricks including:

singing Imperial March, Addam's Family

says pretty boy and Gobo

Wolf whistling

Imitating the microwave beep (and seems to imitate other things like crows)

Pickup up objects and dropping in cup (retrieving)

Walking through tunnels on command

Standing on skateboard (hopefully one day, riding one!)

pushing a ball

Following a target stick

ringing a bell

flying to me on command

Need I go on?

And they are terrific cuddlers!

I feed Gobo and Wembley a little parakeet seed (fresh from ABBA) and mostly Roudybush pellets (along with veggies). They don't mind not being around another tiel. Gobo was alone with me for a year after Wicket died and before I got Wembley, and she didn't mind at all. (More attention for her)

Gccs do sound neat though..and maybe one day I'll own one.

I would say a G.C Conure ....myself ...
Yes Cocatiels will play up with anyones allergys they are dusty birds like Too`s..
Both are loverly natured though , but my choice would be a conure ..Neith a green cheeck conure or a cockatiel is red or yellow so colour shouldn`t be a problem ..

We don't have allergies, so that's not a problem. At least, we don't have critter allergies. I grew up with cats and dogs and birds and even had pet chickens (we used their eggs, but they all lived to ripe old ages and died natural deaths and were buried with proper cermonial pomp and circumstance) and even had a pony as a kid. Hubby and I have also had ferrets and once we had a pet skunk. So dander doesn't bother us.

Great post! we are looking into a conure or tiel as well!!! we go this weekend to a rescue to see who loves us ! LOL ! does anyone know how conures are with children?? i know tiels are great with them i used to have em LOL!

My GCC is the best of all of my birds. If I were getting another bird, that's what I'd pick.

green cheeks are suprisingly quiet for a conure. I know you say that noise won't bother you, but when you want to have fun time with clyde, and the other bird doesn't approve they will shriek constantly, and to say the least it will put a damper on the fun time. I love tiels I really do, but I think that conures have a little extra to provide. If a conure doesn't sop you from adding to your collection, then nothing will. Again Siobhan I caution you to take it slow. I don't want you having to max out on the credit card bill if you have to make an emergency trip to the vet. Also be careful at the fair. It's usually better to get a breeder's phone number and get them locked in on a price, then to impulsively buy right on the spot. A lot of time I don't get taken seriously by breeders at these bird shows, because they see a young guy, and don't think I know jack about a bird and certainly couldn't afford one. A lot of people don't know my credentials, and a good thing too. I don't want people to know that I have spent the last couple years (up until like 3 months ago) running an avian department at a high end kennel. I like being treated with kindness and respect and not treated like a peer. I want to see the labor of love in these people's eyes and not their egos. So be careful, and don't buy from jerkoffs. I don't want them having your money anymore then a chain pet store that neglects their pets.

Don't worry -- it won't be an impulse buy. I've been thinking about it for some weeks now and Hubby has been rooting for getting a big bird next like a grey or macaw, but I don't think we're up to one of those, which is why I narrowed it down to a tiel or conure. I want the bird to choose us as much as we choose the bird, though. So we'll look at what's there and how they react to us and how they're being treated by the folks who are selling them and just see which bird wants to come home with us. With the exception of Bonnie, every critter in the family was an accident who chose us. And Bonnie kind of was, too. I mean, we went to Petsmart to get her, but you know what it's like when the clerk goes to capture one of them -- you can point to one and say "I want HER" but is the one the clerk finally captures actually the one you pointed to?

We'd been talking about how cool bassets are and lo and behold, someone advertised a basset "free to good home" in the paper. So I went and got him. Then a couple of years later, a chocolate Lab turns up in the driveway, starving and terrified, and refuses to leave. So then we had Gigi. And a couple of years after that, a Quaker parrot turns up on the bird feeder squawking at Hubby that he wants someone to take him in NOW. So there's Clyde. I'm pretty sure when we go to the bird fair, some bird will see us go by and start squawking at us the bird-language equivalent of "THERE you are! It's about time! Now take me HOME!"