Bird Basics

Getting started with birds.

Before you bring a bird home: what different species are like to live with, what they cost in time and money, and what needs to be in place before day one.

A curious young bird making eye contact with the camera
Before you start

First flock of chickens or first budgie, the questions overlap more than the pet-store aisle suggests. Coop size and cage size are the same question in different packaging — how much room this animal needs to thrive. These pages tell you what you’re signing up for, plainly.

One ground rule before you buy: look at the species head-on. A green-cheek conure lives 20–30 years and screams like a smoke alarm; a Silkie hen looks like a stuffed toy and can die of a vaulted-skull head injury from a rooster jumping on her back. The pages below lead with those realities.

A small backyard flock in straw, morning light

Poultry: backyard chickens, ducks, quail, and more

For anyone starting or thinking about starting a small backyard flock.

A conure on a keeper's finger, mid head-tilt

Pet birds: budgies, cockatiels, conures, parrots, and small companions

For anyone choosing, bringing home, or newly living with a pet bird.

Looking for a specific bird?