Monk Parakeet
Monk Parakeet Pet Bird Profile
| Size | ca. 11.4 inches (29 cm) |
| Origin | South America |
| Color | Green blue, gray; multi-colored |
| Lifespan | 20-30 years |
| Personality | Sociable, curious, entertaining, funny, playful, feisty, confident |
| How to keep them | At least in pairs (one of each gender) |
| Hand-tame bird |  |
| Talking bird |  |
| Bird Noise | |
Characteristics
Monk parakeets are lively, confident and sociable birds. They’re well-known for their cheeky personalities and their silly, slightly clumsy “adventures” that see them stumbling around without a care and not achieving a great deal. Monk parakeets are louder and more active than other birds and need a lot of attention (time), so any beginners should really think about whether they’re ready for this challenge. As a reward, your heart will swell when these adorable little chirpers let you pet them on their backs and heads. These moments are priceless!
Intelligence
Monk parakeets are very clever and can even learn tricks. You can use treats to train them to lift things up and bring them to you, put a toy in a certain spot or stack up toy rings. They can even solve puzzles! The whole thing obviously comes with one little downside: birds that are this clever need constant entertainment, so you will have to give them a whole lot of your time.
Behavior
Are They Loud?
Well! Yes. Monk parakeets, just like Goldie’s lorikeets and Pacific parrotlets, are not quiet birds. These little chatterboxes have got a lot to say and seem to gleefully comment on everything happening around them. These birds get especially loud when neglected, i.e. left alone for a long time. The good news: they can learn to talk!
Do They Talk?
Yes! Monk parakeets learn words very quickly and repeat them in a cute, squawky voice. It works best when they’re gently and lovingly encouraged to speak.
Nest Building
Monk parakeets are the only parrots that don’t build their nests in hollows. Instead, they build a nest made from twigs and branches. And they know how to dream big! They create big family duplexes that have enough space for the couple with multiple rooms for sleeping and incubating eggs.
How to Keep Them
Cage size: at least 62 x 40 x 28 inches (160 x 100 m x 70 cm) (W x H x D) for two animals
Monk parakeets must be kept in pairs at least and need a large cage as well as several hours of free flying time each day. As these birds build nests in the wild, the room where they’re allowed to fly must be very well bird-proofed. Otherwise, things will start to go missing as these birds will think they’ve found some great building materials. The cage door should also be well checked as they’ll quickly learn how to open it.
Monk parakeets love toys, but these don’t have to be expensive. They’ll get just as much fun out of paper bags and toilet paper tubes.
They don’t get on well with other types of birds, so you should only keep them with their own kind. Be careful if you have any other pets in your home. Monk parakeets are so fearless that they may even pick a fight with a big dog! Most four-legged creatures are too shocked to do anything about it, but not all of them...
Fun Facts
These birds come from South America - Argentina, Uruguay, Bolivia, Paraguay and Brazil to be specific.
