I have a male Budgie of 5/6 years old and would like to get him a companion.

Somewhere I heard/read that it is inadvisable to keep two males in the same cage. I have had a good look around the web but cannot seem to find the answer to this one question.

The cage I have is very large and would very easily accommodate a second bird.

Can someone please help, preferably with a website or two which will answer this question.

I had lovebirds. One died, and Peaches, the survivor, was alone for 2 years. I felt sorry for her/him and got a young companion bird. I was advised to keep them in separate cages, but close to each other, for a long time before putting them together. But they seemed to love each other so much I tried putting them together. Fine for a short time, then a fight broke out over the nest territory, and peaches' vet bill was $700.00. You need an aviary to have lovebirds together unless they were litter mates. They're like cats.

http://home.ca.inter.net/~dhansen/many.html

Your keet has been on his own quite awhile and just might not adjust to having a buddy.

I've heard the best companion is a mirror...?

A mirror can be a HORRIBLE thing to give your bird... But that depends on what you expect from him as well.

I have keets that talk and hang with you - better than having a dog!!! Great companion! But some if you give them a mirror they'd rather just hang with the mirror than anything else. It can be bad for them as that is all they will end up doing.. They usually become mean as a result.

Does your keet have toys? You need an assortment to switch out as they get boring and keets are INCREDIBLY intellingent and playful creatures that need something to do.

If he is already a great companion to you then a second bird may not be a problem. If not the chances of taming him to hang out with you and talk are slim as he will probably just wanna hang with his new friend...

If you DO get a second bird make sure it is in a seperate cage not very close. There will be less hostility about sharing space, toys, food and water. You also want to make sure your new bird is well and brings no illness to your other bird. Let them get to know each other a little at a time by moving the cages closer over time and they'll probably be great friends. Maybe in the same cage - Mine travel between cages.. have little slumber parties spending the night with the other birds.. I have one (one of my first) who does not tolerate this AT ALL! She will not have it she likes her own cage so she has her own cage.

If your bird is 5 or 6 you should be able to tell if it is a male or a female.. Females tend to be more aggressive and meaner than the males (usually but not always! My sweetest bird is a girl - she's never even nipped at anyone - ever) all birds will bicker occasionally but watch to make sure that your bird isn't violent and harmful and let's the other bird at the food and water.

Keets are CUTE. and lovable and adorable and pretty and wonderful pets. I've had.. *counts on fingers*... 4? yes. 4.

I would advise AGAINST giving your bird a mirror because, as Lady G said, can consume your little bird's whole attention and it will become much less of a companion to you.

If you want to get a companion for your Male Keet, DO NOT get another male. They can fight to the death. and I've heard some females are territorial like this too. One of my male keets used to attack my hand even when i would go in to change the water. Very aggressive. But two females might go together in the same cage.

But if you do get a new bird make sure you quaruntine (sp?) him or her for a week before you put your birds in the same room. Some people dont remember to do this...you gotta do that just to make sure your birds dont share any diseases...

I had thought of something after I posted this..

A mirror can in fact be a useful tool in getting your keet to interact with you..

Long ago I had a keet that only liked this fake life sized yellow parakeet I had.. She only liked to hang out with it and not me and wasn't big on coming out of her cage. So I removed it and let it be her special toy if she came out and hung out with me. It did really work well as she learned to trust me - just be sure not to tease

You really should get him a female companion and a good way to introduce her is to have her in a cage next to the male. If u don't have another cage then you might want to try introduce them by putting her in to the cage and seeing what they do. First they might not even notice eachother but eventually they'll probably become the best of friends. If they do start fighting then u might want to use a glove to get the female out of the cage and buy her a seperate cage.

I have had more budgies down the years than I care to remember. Sometimes one,two,three, or more. I have had times like we all have when one dies and your left with one bird on its own which hardly seems fair. I have two male birds which live together and have done for the last four years with no trouble at all. Its a large cage with plenty of room for both birds to have their own space. I don't think a mirror is the solution here. The only the way that a single bird can be really happy is to have the stimulation and social interaction that another bird can bring to its life. Budgies are social animals after all and naturally live in large flocks that can number 1000's of individual birds. This is my experience anyway. Let me know how you get on.