Conure Questions

[Leih]

What's the verdict on birdie bagels? Do yall's birds like them? I also have some paper straws, some balsa and a few stray bits of pine, crinkle shred, cupcake papers, seagrass stuff, vine rings, yucca, sola, and a bunch of other stuff. I kept buying stuff before I realized Chirp didn't like to chew, lol.

Mine would chew all of that! He didn't really get into chewing much until he was about 6 months old.

 

[Yoshi&Raphi]

I know what you mean about the veggies! I was helping my mum go shopping today and I grabbed a bunch of veggies for Yoshi’s chop and she was shocked about how much I got .

 

[finchly]

Who is fuzzgig? Never heard of him before!

Only the most spoiled frog on the planet!

don't feed fruits to the smaller birds much because.... when the weather warms up the palmetto bugs from outside are highly attracted to fruit. They're giant and gross.

HATE palmetto bugs!!!

My GCC is my nippiest, whereas my duskies are the cutest little clown birds

Taxi I keep hearing that GCC are nippy. You ok with that?

What's the verdict on birdie bagels? Do yall's birds like them

They’re a have-to item around here.

I’m enjoying this thread. You got all the conure people talking. I guess I never read conure threads, it’s one of the few species I don’t have.

Dang autocorrect.

 

[taxidermynerd]

Only the most spoiled frog on the planet!



HATE palm


Taxi I keep hearing that GCC are nippy. You ok with that?



They’re a have-to item around here.

I’m enjoying this thread. You got all the conure people talking. I Hutu never read conure threads, it’s one of the few species I don’t have.

Yeah, I don't care if they are nippy, Chirp was a big time biter too (he hated hands). I have plenty of stuff to keep them busy if need be too.

 

[finchly]

Yeah, I don't care if they are nippy, Chirp was a big time biter too (he hated hands). I have plenty of stuff to keep them busy if need be too.

Ok. I don’t care too much either, my caiques nip me often. It’s a tolerance thing I think

 

[d_msparkles]

Waffle only bites when she’s being sassy about not getting her way. And she’s never drawn blood.
She’s not really into bird bagels but likes paper straws.
She REALLY likes sola as @Mizzely knows!

 

[taxidermynerd]

So I asked the store if they allow visits, they said they used to but don't anymore due to the virus. So that's a bummer.

 

[Monica]

I'm likely going to repeat some stuff that's already been suggested.


If you want a specific gender, then find someone who can tell you the parent's mutations... i.e. male is cinnamon/yelllowsided/pineapple and mom is not same mutation. Females will be dad's color, males will *possibly* be mother's color. No need to pay for DNA sexing that way!

Yes, most of the info from budgies does translate out to conures!

You've got it right with diet! Actually, conures don't "need" seed at all! But it doesn't hurt to at least use seeds as treats! Or provide sprouts as part of the diet!

Treats? Well, whatever the bird likes, honestly. I have Merlin, a green cheek here. He is the least picky about treats or food as far as green cheeks go, apparently! Many struggle feeding theirs a healthy diet and Merlin will eat anything I give him! The only thing I've seen him turn down has been dehydrated carrots. He loves millet, nuts, dried fruit...

Your conure (once you get him or her) might be more picky! So feel free to experiment once you get him or her.

I wouldn't recommend anything smaller, cage wise! The bigger the better! If you have a clumsy baby... well, you're already set up for that, too! You can raise the bottom of the cage so if your new chick falls, he or she wont fall as far!

Let your baby decide if he or she wants to come out immediately or needs time to settle in. Some chicks are confident and are fine being out on day one, others get really nervous and need time to settle in because it's a big change!

Many toys meant for budgies and cockatiels would also work great for a green cheek! Yes to foot toys and cardboard!

Yes to training! Green cheeks have a reputation for being "nippy" birds. Unfortunately, I believe this is due to lack of mental stimulation (aka training) and being naturally curious birds. I do not consider them to be any nippier than any other species when you work with them right!

You can feed cockatiel or conure sized pellets. I feed cockatiel sized pellets because one, I have mostly smaller birds, and two, my largest one is missing half of his lower beak! He *CAN* eat the larger pellets, but it's easier and "less waste" feeding smaller pellets... (as Charlie and Merlin both 'swish' around the pellets in the dish, spilling them all over the floor... )

You can have at least 3 dishes in the cage. One for water, one for dry food, one for fresh food. If you want, you can get additional small cups to encourage foraging or just to split food up throughout the cage. That, and treats! (not to store treats in, but to drop treats into)

Food wise... you'll have to experiment! Conures often do like to eat holding their food, but a new baby may struggle trying to balance on one foot and eat at the same time.

Chicks are quite curious (usually) so the more you can expose the little one to new things, the better!




You are probably more prepared than you realize! The only thing you *MIGHT* not be prepared for? How needy conures actually can be! That would be my biggest warning for you!

 

[d_msparkles]

@taxidermynerd Awww, that's too bad. But that may change soon if the quarantine lifts at end of April. Maybe they could let you do a video chat!

 

[d_msparkles]

@Monica Oh, gooood point about the neediness! I do love that Waffle is so social and cuddly, but when she was still a baby I would sometimes get frustrated that I couldn't go to the bathroom without her going bananas and calling for me.
She's more independent now, and especially since I trained her that way. She is on my shoulder right now preening my hair and I think it was @webchirp that wisely pointed out they reallllly like to be a part of whatever you are doing!

 

[Nikomania]

My duskies like to fly over and hang out on my shoulder whenever they can. My pineapple GCC loves to be covered up by my other hand or to duck underneath a jacket or something. He'll immediately close his eyes and take a nap.

 

[webchirp]

I do recommend having a separate play/time to themselves space where you can put them for a few hours. It will help them adjust to being by themselves for a certain time. I would loose my mind if I didn't have a bird room...even if I only had one or two. I can't stress enough... "eyes on the bird" at all times. A kid once told me he lost his cheek for 8 hours and then she fell out of the recliner bottom but was okay...some get squished...even I had this happen and almost lost Kari years and years ago. She got on the couch behind a cushion. I had heart palpitations for years after when doing head counts and not seeing someone immediately. To this day, I will start to panic and have to calm myself. Do not let them have run of the home etc...they will get into trouble guaranteed. Open drinks a no-no...to me it isn't cute seeing them drink out of tall cups etc. Cords...some chew cords... Dear lord, always look at the tops of your doors before closing one.

I think you will do great and you'll love having a cheekie. They adore young people and all that energy. To me, boys are bratty but they also seem to be more playful and outgoing, but nippy...better talkers (most). Girls are just sweet little lovebugs...there is always that one that might not be (ahem, Kari!)...but I would take a sweet girl in a heartbeat (unless I've already committed to another and don't have an opening (yeah that might happen). I agree with Monica though...training and more training.

 

[taxidermynerd]

Does anyone have good resources for target training and stepping up? Also, for correcting unwanted behavior? I never really did much training with Chirp, so this is all very new to me.

 

[Monica]

Does anyone have good resources for target training and stepping up? Also, for correcting unwanted behavior? I never really did much training with Chirp, so this is all very new to me.

I would recommend starting here.

Free Training Resources

Someone recently told me that there was only one trainer on the internet that had free training advice. This is, quite simply, false. This “trainer” they spoke of is an amateur that has taken advice from salesmen who market themselves as bird trainers. Not to say that they don't enjoy helping...

forums.avianavenue.com

The best way to avoid unwanted behavior is to train before the behavior starts, or amp up training as soon as you see an undesired behavior starting up... not when it already becomes a problem! But... if it's already an issue, that, too, can be worked on! Just, the more time they have to practice an unwanted behavior, the more it becomes ingrained! That's all!

 

[expressmailtome]

Does anyone have good resources for target training and stepping up? Also, for correcting unwanted behavior? I never really did much training with Chirp, so this is all very new to me.

I do not know if it would be more helpful than just reading, but Barbara Heidenreich has a series of training videos that are very well made. Here is a link to them on her website, however you can find them on many websites, or even on Ebay: Parrot Training DVDS | Good Bird Training DVDS .

 

[taxidermynerd]

Dad says maybe in a few days we can go to the store to pick out a baby! The store has reduced hours so it probably won't be until Friday or Saturday. But soon! Hopefully they still have babies!

 

[taxidermynerd]

They have 2 babies currently- a cinnamon turquoise and a normal turquoise.

Here's the pic from the store's Facebook

 

[d_msparkles]

Oh, they are soooo cute!!

 

[taxidermynerd]

I'm partial to the full turquoise but whichever one picks me, I'll be happy Babies are so cute!

 

[Peachfaced]

I'm partial to the full turquoise but whichever one picks me, I'll be happy Babies are so cute!

Regular turquoise are my favorite, too. It was funny when I saw Rupert's photo on the adoption page, I thought he was more green, but I would see tiny bits of blue, and then in person, I realized he was my favorite color. He couldn't be more perfect.

Be careful, they will probably want you to take them both home.