Rainbow Lorikeet: Need some advice PLEASE

[kuruptz]

Hey guys/Ladies.

Recently i made a thread and thought i decided i wanted a cockatiel due to Rainbow poo problems and them being nippy sometimes.

BUT TODAY!

We got a rainbow lorikeet in at work, and it had only just been tamed the day before we got it by a fellow workmate of mine(i work at a pet shop) and this littel guy is quite a character and rainbows are just so beautiful.

NOW, here is what im thinking about and my problems

1.) POO

Is it that much of an issue and is training them to poo on there cage or in it a hard thing to do?

Is there poo really so bad ?

How big are there poo's? (average)

Also anything to do with Poo goes here

2.) Food

What would be an average days feed?

When i leave him/her alone what do i leave a bowl of? as they dont eat seed.

Are they expensive to feed or just like a cockatiel in terms of cost?

To handfeed it from a small baby, what would i feed it and how often?

3.) Behaviour

I would be looking to handraise from a baby, so feeding it etc from a very young age, i want to do all the hand rearing myself, so i thoguht it would be tame and not be nippy yet people seem to tell me they can be nippy ?

Can a rainbow be extremely tame if i hand rear it, i mean so tame he or she comes to me and sits on my shoulder and hangs around me in the house.

Is it hard to train them to poo on there perch or in cage?

Are they smarter then cockatiels?

Anything else concerned with behaviour here

[zooyouthben]

I had a rainbow taht i raised they are great birds but are very demanding, Poo is not an issue i had a cloth cover on 3 sides of her cage and there was minimal mess. alsong as they cant get to there poo (wire bottom cage) they are pretty clean, the poos change in saize depending on size also change in colour and texture, I fed mine and my other lorikeets get Passwell Dry Mix which they have acess to all day, and they get Wombaroo Lorikeet Wet Mix poured over a selection of fruits each day. I swear by both these products but i know many other memebrs use different products, Rainbows are by far very very inteligent, and super demanding and will poo just about anywhere but its not much of an issue.

Rainbows a great for handraising i have only raised one so some other people might be bale to help, but they are recomneded as a great started rearer

[kuruptz]

Thank you for your reply mate. I look forward to many others hopefully!!

[silvercloud]

I haven't handreared lorikeets but bought mine already handreared. I don't find the poo an issue though I have to clean their cage more than the others sometimes as apart from the poo being more liquid than other birds so needing the paper changed at least once a day, one of their fave things to do is bath in their drinking water so their cages become a bit soggy sometimes. LOL

Mine get dry mix everyday which is placed next to their water as they love getting a beakful of dry mix then dunking it in the water. They get wet mix twice a week and fresh fruit and vegies every day. I also give mine flowers such as bottlebrush, gum tree flowers, grevillea, camelias, roses and hibiscus. Make sure you don't spray anything on your plants if you take them from your garden and don't take any from roadsides as they are covered in exhaust emissions. You can also buy liquid nectar which they love. When I get any I freeze it in ice cubes and give them one after defrosting every couple of days.

Lorikeets do nip, its part of the way they play and interact as they do play rough at times. Mine get put back on their cage if they nip deliberately but most of the time they're only playing.

They are wonderful little critters full of fun, cheekiness, attitude, a little unpredicatable at times and very, very smart. They can be loud but can be wonderful talkers and mimics. I've never regretted getting my 2 little monsters.

[Bow]

Hi All,

I have a Rainbow Lorikeet and his name is Bow.

I feed Bow Pellets from Vetafarm and have found his poos are not a major issue compared to the other forms of feed.

Also if ya use a "Rat Water Bottle" to keep Fresh water in so it does not get dirty and a normal bowl for them to play in. I found this works well.

Kind regards
Bow.

[Jane]

Welcome Bow, Vetafarm make great products don't they?

[vankarhi]

good idea about the separate drinking water and playing water Bow. ;D

[Bow]

The Vet at Vetafarm is an Avian Vet and one of the very best in the country. They are an hr away from me. I am very lucky.

As for the water issue. Its the only way I can keep Bow's water clean. LOL

[Bow]

Hi kuruptz,
Will answer your q's as best I can.

I truly believe that one needs to do much research on these birds before buying.

The reasons for having a Rainbow Lorikeet are:
Their personalities, nature, character, color, intelligence, general behaviour and their antics.

Then comes anything ya like. Smiles.

1. Their Poos. LOL
Ok. Their poo will change depending on what you feed them. The more moist their food the more sloppy they are. LOL
Again, size varies due to their diet.

2. Food
Their average food intake varies daily.
Usually about 1/4 - 1/2 a cup of Lorry Dri or pellets per day
When alone make sure they have CLEAN COOL Water and say 1/4 of an apple, 1/4 of a corn cob and their normal food.
They are NOT expensive to feed over a week. Mine costs between $1.50 - $5.00 depending on what I give him.
Depends just HOW SMALL your talking about. I got mine at 7 weeks and have had NO trouble at all.

If feeding pellots they need A LOT more water to be available to them.

3. I would stronly advise AGAINST hand rearing it till its 7-8 weeks old. Let the breeders take care of it for you as there is far more to it than you realise.
Tame = Time spent with your parrot.
There are many arguements about potty training. I would at this stage advise against it.
The Rainbow Lorikeets are highly intelligent parrots.
Em, lots of love, care and spend lots of time with your parrot.

In the 5 weeks that I have had mine, I can do literally ANYTHING with him. He will roll on his tummy for tickles etc etc.

Hope this helps ya out a bit.

[loriluver]

Hi Kuruptz, I handraise all my lorikeets, even though they are handraised they still can get nippy at times.

They are very intelligent, I have one for sale at the moment that talks, whistles and even fetches a ball, he also loves scatches and cuddles. But I spend a nearly all day with him.

I feed mine on Sheps wet and dry lori mix with fresh fruit and veges daily. Grevillias and bottlebrush flowers through the day when available or gum leaves and braches to chew on keep them occupied also.

The poo is normally of a runny consistancy.

To handraise from a baby say 1 week old you will have to feed every four hours from about 7:00am til last feed 10 or 11 at night. I feed mine on either Roudybush or vetafarm formula.

[Jane]

I am using their new Neocare formula for my 'tiel chicks. Their website is full of great info too.

[melzawelza]

Everyone else has said great things that i totally agree with but i can add insight into the potty training.

you CAN do it for a lorikeet and it's relitavely easy. it makes the poo so much easier to handle.

Every time i get pickles out of his cage he sits on my hand and i say 'poop' and he poos on command. he knows he doesnt come out till he has done a poo (although now if he resists for a while i know he has just done one).

Its very easy to tell when a lory is going to poo because they back up a little and get a certain stance. once you've learnt the signs its easy to quickly grab them and place them over where you want to poo (i.e a bin or a sink).

Pickles hardly ever poops on me these days!

You train them in the basic reward system you use with any animals. Pick a command and say it exactly the same way every time. Pick ONE spot in the house which will initally be his 'poop spot'. When you can tell they're going to poop hold them over that spot and say 'POOP'. once they've done it praise them and/or give them a treat. If they poop in the wrong spot say 'no' in a scolding voice and take them to the poop spot. they're intelligent birds and will get it eventually, and once they've learned it you dont have to always do it in that one spot.

Hope that helps! Pickles can be nippy too, but most of the time he isnt. he's got me a treat a few times, i think he just likes the reaction. whenever he does he gets put in his cage and covered, and luckily he doesnt do it much.