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Question:

January 9, 2023

Bird Break


Hello,

I’ve had my pineapple conure for about 8 years now, and we’re quite close. He is mainly bonded to me but is familiar with my family. I’m going to be moving to an apartment (that I can’t bring him to) for about two years. My options are to leave him at home, where I worry he won’t get the same level of care from my busy family, or I could house him with a friend of mine that would be more attentive, but who also owns other birds. My goal is to move back in two years and take back full-time care of him, but I’m unsure what my best options is. I’ve heard that once a bird lives with with other birds (even not in the same cage) they will forever need the social network of other birds, and never been socially fulfilled by humans again. Is this true? What is my best option here?

Thank you so much!


Answer:

Hi,

Your conure may or may not like being around other birds since he is a pet. As long as he isn’t sharing a cage, he should not really be affected when you take him back, as long as he is still bonded with you. If you leave him with the friend, you need to visit him as much as possible. It is more likely that he would bond with another person than birds in separate cages. So the risk is he may not want to go back to you, if he bonds too closely with your friend or family members.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda

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