Ask Lafeber

2 ten yr. old parrakeets

Is it too late to hand tame them? I am tried but have not been successful.

Also what size cage is best for them?

Hi Millie,

At ten years old, your birds are considered seniors. In fact the average life span for parakeets in captivity is 6-10 years due to poor genetics and inadequate nutrition. While they can live into their 20’s, it is rare these days. I would not make any major changes with your parakeets at their age. Taming is out of the question. It is very difficult to train a single parakeet when it is young unless it was hand fed. But it is nearly impossible to train two that are caged together, and especially older birds. All you will manage to do is stress them out and old birds cannot tolerate a lot of stress. If they are in a cage they have been happy in for 10 years, I would not change that, either. A larger cage could be too stressful for them. It is best to continue the same care and diet they have had for this may years. If you want a tame bird, I would suggest a baby that has been hand fed and of course you will need to keep it in a separate cage.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda