One of the best ways to introduce a little bit of fun into your family and household is by adopting a parrot.
The parrot will quickly become an extension of your family and will add another dimension to you and your family.
However, the adoption of any animal comes with the needed measurement to make sure your household and the animal get along, especially if you have a baby.
As for if parrots are good with babies, that’s a bit of a complicated question.
To answer the question…yes parrots are good with babies, as long as you take the proper amount of time to make sure they’ll be okay near each other. No matter what kind of bird you have, they can pose a serious health risk to a baby if you refuse to take any precautions. A baby’s immune system can only handle so much and a parrot without knowing it can seriously negatively impact a baby’s immune system.
Other than the immune system of a baby, you have to be aware of the temperament of your parrot.
Going over aspects of how they act around humans, how they react to loud sounds, and how they are to deal with change.
If you already have a baby and are looking to adopt a parrot, then your best bet is to ask the person selling the parrot how the parrot is around children.
They’ll more than likely give you an honest answer and tell you the truth on how you can make sure your parrot and baby are good to get along.
How do I make sure my parrot and baby to get along?
The truth is, no matter how loveable and friendly a parrot is, they might react oddly toward a new addition to a household.
If you already have a parrot in your household and are expecting a baby, there are a few steps you should consider taking.
Let’s take a look at what you should consider.
Create ways your parrot can entertain itself on its own
When your baby comes into the world, you’re going to be spending most of your time with your baby.
Causing you to give your parrot less attention and time.
If your parrot all of a sudden is getting less attention then they won’t know how to handle it and will demonstrate bad behavior.
Socialize your parrot before your baby comes into the world
This is probably the most important step, but make sure your parrot is comfortable around people.
If your parrot ends up developing a bit of anti-social characteristics, then they’ll respond horribly to a baby.
Make sure to invite friends over, play with your parrot frequently, and so on.
Make sure everyone in your house has a strong relationship with your parrot
Before the baby arrives, make sure everyone in your household has a strong relationship with your parrot.
This will make your parrot feel more comfortable around your baby when the time comes.
What are the health risks of a parrot being around a baby?
As expected, there a variety of health concerns that involve a baby being around a baby.
However, unless your baby is allergic to a parrot, all of these issues can be avoided.
We’ll discuss the solutions later, but for now, let’s go over some of the specific health risks of a parrot being around a baby.
Biting and scratching
This is a bit of an obvious one, but a parrot can scratch or bite your baby.
To avoid this, make sure your parrot gets along with humans okay.
As long as you know they are, slowly introduce them to each other.
Also, never in a million years leave your baby and parrot alone together.
For all you know, your baby could throw something at your parrot and all of a sudden you have a parrot versus baby war.
Just be smart, and you’ll easily avoid this issue.
Germs
A lot of the time parrots can carry germs without us even knowing it.
If they get too close to your baby, they might accidentally spread germs to them without anyone knowing it.
Salmonella
A more serious form of bacteria is salmonella.
It causes a type of food poisoning which people then get it from.
However, people can also get it from bird poo.
Pretty gross right?
Allergies
Sometimes, a baby inhales too much bird dander from a parrot and it causes them to have an allergic reaction.
What is parrot fever and how can it harm a baby?
Unfortunately, psittacosis, also known as parrot fever, is a disease caused by the inhaling of dust from dried poo or mucus.
It’s a very serious disease that gives off a similar illness to that of the flu.
Since babies have developing immune systems, it’s especially bad for them.
You should avoid adopting a parrot altogether if your baby has any of these issues:
Bad immune system
Respiratory issues
The symptoms of parrot fever are a dry cough and a fever.
Thus, why it has the term “fever” in its name.
Parrot fever can be treated with antibiotics, but you should always reach out to your doctor if your baby has any of these symptoms.
Since a baby has a weaker immune system than we do, their symptoms are usually a lot more severe and can lead to further complications.
It’s a no-brainer that you should take the health of your baby seriously, so don’t hesitate to reach out for help if you’re worried your baby has parrot fever.
How do I know if my baby is allergic to a parrot?
It’s pretty easy to tell if your baby is allergic to a parrot.
If you discover your baby is allergic to dogs and cats, then they probably have a general allergy to several different kinds of animals.
Nonetheless, it’s easy to tell if your baby is allergic to parrots.
Down below are a few symptoms of common allergy symptoms:
Sneezing
Coughing
Itchy Eyes
Hay Fever
Difficulty Breathing
Although this sucks, if your baby is having severe allergic reactions to your parrot, then you might have to make a major household decision.
I know how important a household parrot is to a family, but if they’re harming your baby then you have to make an important decision of putting your parrot up for adoption to someone else.
Luckily, if you have a baby already, and no parrot, you can actually get a test done to see if your baby is allergic to parrots.
Just something to keep in mind if you have a full house, and want to add a parrot to the house.
How do I keep my baby healthy around my parrot?
The answer to keeping your baby healthy while also have a parrot is to just be smart about everything pertaining to the two.
Let’s go over exactly what you should do.
Never leave the two alone
The biggest mistake people make with their baby and parrot is that they leave the two alone.
As noted earlier, never ever do this.
You not only risk the health of your baby, but also the health of your parrot.
You never what kind of stunt either of them might pull.
Clean a lot
When someone owns a parrot, they need to make sure they take good care of them by cleaning up after them.
Leaving their feces or overall dirtiness around will lead to complications with everyone in your house.
Plus, no one wants to live in a dirty house.
Clean up after them and make sure your baby isn’t near the cage of your parrot.
Slowly introduce the two
The worst thing you can do is to have your parrot fly around day 1 of meeting your baby.
They’ll more than likely freak out and cause a major incident.
Make sure you slowly introduce them to each other so they don’t harm one another.
What should I do if my parrot bites my baby?
The first thing you should do is immediately call your baby’s doctor and call your parrots veterinarian.
The doctor will be able to assess the overall damage to your baby and will be able to prescribe medicine to help the situation.
Your parrot’s veterinarian might be able to offer tips on how you can avoid this issue in the future.
No matter what, the health of your baby is important so don’t ignore this issue if it happens.
If you haven’t figured it out, it’s obviously possible to have a parrot and a baby in the same household.
There’s a ton of people that do it all over the world.
Eventually, your baby will develop a close relationship with your parrot.
They’ll play and enjoy each other’s company, which is an awesome thing to see in person.
However, make sure you take the proper precautions.
Otherwise, you might risk the health of both of them.