Large Friendly Parrots Best for First Time Bird Owners

Large Friendly Parrots – the perfect choice for first-time bird owners seeking a charming and easy-to-care-for friend

Not all parrot make good companion pets for beginners, but many people still prefer larger species as pets, perhaps because they are far more engaging and more likely to talk than smaller species, albeit more demanding in everyway.

Now, if you are new to parrot ownership, lets just say your options are far more limited because of the work and experience required to keep large pet parrots.

And depending on what you consider a large parrot, you realisticaly only have less than a handful of options.

Meyer’s and Pionus parrots are perfect for beginners and are large than your average budgies if that works for you, although in the hobby sizing of pet parrots, these are considered medium-sized birds.

Bigger Conures, like the Blue Crown (14.5“) and Patagonian (16“), are perhaps the best large options for first time owners, if you want a species a tad bigger than the ones I mentioned above, but with relatively modest care requirements and pricing.

African Greys, Amazons, and Cockatoos are popular and appealing to most people, but I would avoid them as a beginners, because they are very challenging even for people with experience. They demand a lot of attention rest they get bored and develop behavirol issues.

They also bite more, are more destructive, and require bigger cages, more food, a lot more of toys and enrichments, and social interaction.

How Do You Decide if A Large Parrot is Right for You

If you’ve already done your due deligence on keeping parrots as pets and are confident a large bird is what you want, I advise you first volunteer in a bird rescue before you adopt or purchase your prefered species, just to add some hands-on experience to your research.

These will give you an idea on what each parrot is like in real life. Everything from their noise level, to temperament, care and maintanance, size, and behavior, including friendliness, cuddliness and activity level.

You may think you want a large parrot until you interact with one!

Moreover, a good bird rescue will interview you and let you interact with the birds for a couple of weeks or months and eventually match you to the right bird according to your lifestyle and preference.

They will excercise their own discreation and its very unlikely they will let you get a large parrot if they don’t believe it suits you, both for your own good and the bird’s well being!

Your age also matters and is another thing I like beginners to consider before getting pet parrots!

Parrots, more so large species are like toddlers and need forever care, so they are best for adult owners, mature enough to take care of both their physical and psychological needs for a very long time.

Of course, because most large parrots have long lived, with some like African Grey’s living up to 40 years, they are not ideal for very aged people because the birds will very likely outlive the owner and have to be rehomed.

Best Large Parrot for Beginner Bird Owners

As I mentioned Blue Crowned (great talkers) and Patagonian Conures are easy and friendly enough for starting bird owners. They do not have demends akin to Macaws, African Greys, Amazons, and Ecelctus, but are fairly bigger than your average budgie often topping 14 inches in size.

Pionus, Meyer’s and Senegal parrots are also good options, perhaps even easier to care for but a little smaller.

You can try having mini-macaws (Hahn’s and Illiger), but please keep in mind the care and maintenance challenges at times have nothing to do with the birds size, but the species, and often the reputation of macaws cut across all members of a group.

You may find a Mini-macaw, like a Hahn’s is almost as challeging to keep as a Scarlet or Hycinth Macaw.

In my experience the specie is very emotional with extreme bad and good tendencies depending on their relationship to you, so it helps if you purchase them as babies (chicks) and let them grow with you as the parent.

This way, you will be around while they develop their character and you can mold their behavior along the way.

Now, if you only want a bird that is a little larger than a budgies, but not too big (given the challenge involved with keeping large parrots), perhaps you are best suited by Senegal Parrots, Meyer’s Parrots, Bourke Parakeets, and other equally size species.

Below is a table of large parrot I would recommend for beginners, with their size and difficulty level according to our team and the members of our forums and circles, including breeders, pet rescue workers, and Veterinarians.

Top 5 Large Parrots for Beginners (First Time Owners)

Now that you are just starting you journey keeping pet parrots, and prefer a large bird, below are my top 5 choices for you, but I still insist voluntering at a bird rescue or sanctuary to help you know what each of these birds is like, and see which one you will bond with and match your living situation.

Please note, some of these birds, like the Blue Crowns, are not exactly “big” for parrots, they are more medium sized, but ideal for beginners who want something a little larger than a budgie, green cheek, cockatiel and other common starter parrots.

1— Blue Crown Conure

The Blue Crown conure grows to an adult size of about 14.5 inches, almost the same length as an African Grey parrot, albeit less stockier. This is almost twice the size of a budgies, so they are a perfect size for owners looking for large starter parrots.

The birds are not too demanding and rarely develop behavirol issues, perhaps because they are less needy than most large parrots. They certainly require adequate social interaction, toys and enrichments, but tend to be fairly independent.

Blue crown conures are great talkers, arguably the best of any conure, which is a plus if you want a chatty bird. However, each bird will have its own unique personality and some will talk better than others.

Another reason to love Blue Crown conures is they are a lot more quiet compared to Sun and Jenday conures, although they flock call and squeak when scared or agitated.

Perhaps the only downside Blue Crown Conures-that I can think of- is they are not big cuddlers. They may accept petting from their favorite person, but are never too eager.

Just to clarify, Blue Crowns are not exactly one person birds, but will always have a favorite person.

They may be territorial with their items, though they rarely bite you or birds in the flock. They rather change their demanour if they disagree.

Overall, Blue Crown Conures are perfect for beginners, families, and a sizable apartment. They are well rounded pet parrots; the sweet spots of bird ownership.

2— Patagonian Conure

Patagonian conures are another large parrot of the same family as Blue Crowns suitable for beginners. They are particularly ideal for owners living in areas where the weather is chilly all year round since they are true cold weather birds.

The conure max out at about 16 to 18 inches in length, so they are a perfect large pet bird that is fairly easy to care for as a beginner.

However, beware of their noise level!

Patagonian conures can be quite loud, and may not be ideal if noise is an issue for your family or neighbours.

They are large parrots, so they also need a big cage, preferable longer and wider than high, and with several flat playstands because the birds are not avid climbers. They prefer to walk!

They are more adapted to life on the ground and flat surfaces. A cage and toys, such as caves and with plenty of dark spaces, that allow their extensive digging and burrowing behavior is best.

You will note Pattis are more cuddly than Blue Crowns and are open to petting.

They are playful, clever, gentle and love a snuggle, and are not one person birds hence perfect for families.

However, they are bigger and stronger biters than your average conure, and require more stimulation and interaction.

They easily get bored and are prone to plucking if not adequately engaged, so keep them in pairs or in flocks with other conures and ensure they are always engaged.

3— Pionus Parrot

The Blue Headed Pionus is another medium to large parrot perfect for beginnner seeking a bird more sizable than your average starter bird.

The parrot adorn a stunning blue head on a green body from the shoulders down, and reaches 12 Inches in length and about 230 to 260 grams in adulthood.

You could go for the intrestingly colored Bronze Winged Pionus in the abscence of the Blue Headed Pi’s, albeit slightly smaller in size.

Pi’s are intelligent and not too demanding in terms of socialization. They are not prone to too many behavirol issues and are perhaps some of the most independent parrots in the hobby.

They like their own space and toys, and prefer being left to explore and discover things on their own. They are also not too active or loud, and are best if you prefer a birdie that’s a little laid back.

As you would expect, Blue Headed Pi’s are not cuddly either. They fancy perching on a stand next to you or sitting on your shoulder, but will rarely snuggle up to you.

They can also be cage-territorial and posses quite a bite and are not afraid to use their beak if you ignore their intial warnings.

The birds are relatively accomodative especially to their favorite person, but they tend to be “one person birds”, so I recommend them more for bird owners living alone or as couple (as opposed to a big family setting).

4 — Green Rosella

Rosellas are very underrated, but in my opinion they are an awesome choice for new parrot parents looking for a bird that is a tad bigger than a budgie or lovebird.

Green Rosella adult max out at 14.5 inches, which is a perfect size, for a parrot that is not too needy, is friendly and fairly easy to tame.

These birds can be one person birds, mostly because they are a prey species and are wary of unfamilier situations, but once comfortable, they can be awesome family birds.

They are not too loud, so you can have your Green Rosella even in an apartment.

However, they are not very cuddly.

They will perch on you shoulder and can be quite interactive, but rarely snuggle up to you.

The birds are not nippy and their aggression is rare and subtle in the odd chance its present. Even so, provide your rosella adequate social interaction to mitigate odd behavior.

Green Rosellas and others in these genus are flock birds, so it may help keeping them in pairs even if the companion is a different Rosella species.

5 — Hahn’s Macaw

They are not the easiest birds for beginners, but they have a large personality and their size is up the alley way of what you are looking for.

The Hahn’s macaw is perhaps the odd ball in this list!

Hahn’s make excellent pets for the right fisrt time owners, especially if purchase hand-fed babies (a few months old), but they can be a nightmare if you are not ready for the birds as adults.

They are a mini-macaw species with an adult size of 12 inches and 165 grams on average, so they should be large enough for first time birds.

They are friendly, easy going and cuddly as babies and develop very elaborate talking skills, perhaps better than bigger macaws.

However, they all develop an individual personality post adolescent (3 Years+) becoming more territorial and hormanal. Most also turn into one person birds, so it helps if you are the person they are bonded to throughout babyhood.

Hahn’s are also very nippy and not afraid to express their discontent, and can be quite aggressive towards stranger, so if you want a family parrot, go for with a different bird.

On the flip side though, Hahn’s macaw have a big personality for their size. They posses the intelligence of larger parrots and the talking ability of AGs and Amazons.

They are perfect for beginners looking to get them as babies and commit to working and growing with them.

Keep in mind that Hahn’s macaw require a lot of social interaction and engagment, so I recommend them more for adult beginner owners, with more permanency in their life and able to spend alot of time at home with the bird.

Remember they are long-lived living 25 to 35 years, so I hope you are able and willing to commit for the long haul.

Tips for Keeping Large Parrots for Beginners