Is a princess parrot or eclectus suitable for a beginner?
Lily, you state that you have cats (PREDATORS): this is not a good situation for any parrot – a wild PREY animal – to be thrust into. One other person has a question currently open about this very subject: she describes how her “…cinnamon tailed green cheeked conure.. has a long tail and he bites it and it’s like shredding the tip of it and he’s working his way up his tail…” and might his self-mutilating behaviours be a stress response to the presence of cats? YES UNEQUIVOCALLY YES. Please don’t make the same mistake by putting a parrot in a similar situation: it’s really unfair to the animal. Eclectus are definitely NOT “beginner” birds and anyway as they are actually PRONE to feather-destructive chewing. The more that is learned about their behaviour in captivity the more is learned too about hormonally driven aggression – especially in the hens (who are dominant). “A word of warning: during the breeding season Eclectus Parrots, especially the females, can become very aggressive
