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Sun vs Quaker

Sun conure or Quaker parrot

  • Sun

    Votes: 2 33.3%
  • Quaker

    Votes: 4 66.7%

  • Total voters
    6

elleCAG

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Hello,
I’m new to this website but have been reading the forums for years and hope I’m posting this in the correct place. I know this question has been asked a few times on this website but just wanted to ask again.

I currently have a 21 yr old rescued CAG and had a cockatiel who sadly passed away. Since her passing I knew I wanted to welcome another smaller bird into our home. I’m leaning toward sun conures or (green) quakers in particular. I know conures can be very loud, quakers have a tendency toward being territorial etc. I also know that all birds are individuals and unique. I am doing as much research as I can and have read almost everything but want more personal opinions because I just can’t choose!

I mainly am asking YOUR personal opinion in which you prefer and why. In my home it’s just my husband and I, we have hours to dedicate to birds and noise level isn’t the biggest issue.

Thanks in advance!
 

11bryces

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hello !:welcome: ... have you ever owned birds before ? you like 2 species with very strong personalities ! hope your up for it :excited1:

conure are known to be like mini macaws because of the noise they make and i have to admit that for me it would be the main issue thats why i would go for a quaker even though i have seen so many with self mutilation issues and plucking.
both are highly intelligent and can be very affectionate.. but
are you sure you looked at ALL the different species before settling on a sun conure or a quaker ? which by the way are VERY different birds :wacky:
 

elleCAG

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Yes definitely have some bird experience. Had a cockatiel and I have a 21yr old African Grey that is a rescue and is full of personality and very naughty haha! Because of having our grey I want a slightly smaller bird again. I know both conure and quakers are very different but I guess that’s why I’m having trouble deciding. with the LOUD noises our grey can make (garbage truck beeps that can be heard down the road) I’m not too worried about volume. I have done tons and tons and tons of research on all small/medium parrots and have narrowed it down to these two and just can’t choose lol.
Thank you for your input :laugh:
 
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hrafn

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Conures are sensitive to the dust of birds like greys, and can contract Pulmonary Hypersensitivity Syndrome as a result. PHS can have fatal consequences.
 

Mizzely

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One thing to note is that African Grey dust can affect some species more than others. Macaws in particular are highly susceptible to pulmonary hypersensitivity syndrome which can kill them. Sun conures are closely related enough to some macaws to be able to cross breed with them, so I would be concerned bringing one into the home of an African Grey.
 

elleCAG

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Conures are sensitive to the dust of birds like greys, and can contract Pulmonary Hypersensitivity Syndrome as a result. PHS can have fatal consequences.
Very important to know. thank you very much
 

elleCAG

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One thing to note is that African Grey dust can affect some species more than others. Macaws in particular are highly susceptible to pulmonary hypersensitivity syndrome which can kill them. Sun conures are closely related enough to some macaws to be able to cross breed with them, so I would be concerned bringing one into the home of an African Grey.
This basically makes up my decision thank you. I do not plan on housing the grey closely with another bird but they’ll both be out and about the house for extended hours and it’s definitely not worth the risk
 

11bryces

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Yes definitely have some bird experience. Had a cockatiel and I have a 21yr old African Grey that is a rescue and is full of personality and very naughty haha! Because of having our grey I want a slightly smaller bird again. I know both conure and quakers are very different but I guess that’s why I’m having trouble deciding. with the LOUD noises our grey can make (garbage truck beeps that can be heard down the road) I’m not too worried about volume. I have done tons and tons and tons of research on all small/medium parrots and have narrowed it down to these two and just can’t choose lol.
Thank you for your input :laugh:


oooooh okay then you should have said that from the beginning !

ps: have you read
The good, the bad, and the ugly on sun conures | Avian Avenue Parrot Forum
and
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly about Quaker Parrots | Avian Avenue Parrot Forum and if yes, did it help you in any way ?

i find both species very interesting !
maybe go to a store that sells birds or breeds birds or even go to a breeder and see which baby makes your heart melt ?
when i got my plum headed parakeet and my superb parrot, i was looking for a crimson conure or a meyer's but ended up with them so maybe you should just visit different breeders and see :D:D:highfive:
 

SandraK

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You could always try this -https://myrightbird.com/quiz from the Higgins web site. I have a sun (Tikki) and 5 Quakers and none of them are the same. We have to watch Tikki more than the Quakers because he has shown a tendency to attack newcomers, especially women. And I mean fly to, bite as much as possible before being removed or fly away. He doesn't have cage rage though. Polly, blind Quaker, is pretty calm and quiet. The girls, Loofa & Daisy (aka Jaws) growl, lunge and bite, usually once they're away from their cage they're ok though Daisy does sometimes randomly bite (ergo no more shoulder time). Boys, JJ and Baby Blue don't have cage problems though JJ does watch what I'm doing and doesn't like me getting near the nest he's built in his cage. Baby couldn't care less - all he wants is to get out of his cage. The boys are the only flyers and they'll visit with people when they feel like it and have never attacked anyone. Baby likes shoulder time while JJ prefers visiting you during meal times so he can try to mooch some human food (so does Baby sometimes as well as the gccs).

Noise-wise, I'd say that Tikki is worse than the 5 Quakers together. As @Farlie can attest, one sun scream on your shoulder and it feels like you're ears are bleeding. The Quakers can get noisy when they spot something different in the garden like a hawk or the gardener and once they start an alarm call every bird in the flock joins in.

Have you considered a gcc - green cheek conure?
 

elleCAG

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You could always try this -https://myrightbird.com/quiz from the Higgins web site. I have a sun (Tikki) and 5 Quakers and none of them are the same. We have to watch Tikki more than the Quakers because he has shown a tendency to attack newcomers, especially women. And I mean fly to, bite as much as possible before being removed or fly away. He doesn't have cage rage though. Polly, blind Quaker, is pretty calm and quiet. The girls, Loofa & Daisy (aka Jaws) growl, lunge and bite, usually once they're away from their cage they're ok though Daisy does sometimes randomly bite (ergo no more shoulder time). Boys, JJ and Baby Blue don't have cage problems though JJ does watch what I'm doing and doesn't like me getting near the nest he's built in his cage. Baby couldn't care less - all he wants is to get out of his cage. The boys are the only flyers and they'll visit with people when they feel like it and have never attacked anyone. Baby likes shoulder time while JJ prefers visiting you during meal times so he can try to mooch some human food (so does Baby sometimes as well as the gccs).

Noise-wise, I'd say that Tikki is worse than the 5 Quakers together. As @Farlie can attest, one sun scream on your shoulder and it feels like you're ears are bleeding. The Quakers can get noisy when they spot something different in the garden like a hawk or the gardener and once they start an alarm call every bird in the flock joins in.

Have you considered a gcc - green cheek conure?
This is very insightful thank you!!! Do you find female quakers tend to have some more territorial issues than males??
I have considered a GCC and that’s actually the first kind I started looking into once I decided we were ready to welcome another birdie into our home. I thought I was dead set on getting one at that time. I’m not sure why but they just don’t catch my husbands or my attention like quakers or suns(or Jendays), even after spending about an hour with three young GCC’s. But I have read just how much people tend to adore them and recommend them.
 

elleCAG

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I loved the quiz!! It recommended a Cape Parrot! I don’t know much about them.
 

Mizzely

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I would still be concerned with any conure with the grey :)

Macaws, pionus, and poicephalus all seem to be the most susceptible to the dust, but conures are closely related to the macaws so I would personally never take the chance.

In theory any New World (south and central American) can be affected by the dust. The only birds who really aren't affected by dust at all are those that are powder down birds too - cockatoos (including cockatiels) and other greys.

Capes are the biggest of the poicephalus family :) I have a Jardines which are also in that family. Lovey birds, but the family is prone to respiratory issues.
 

elleCAG

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I would still be concerned with any conure with the grey :)

Macaws, pionus, and poicephalus all seem to be the most susceptible to the dust, but conures are closely related to the macaws so I would personally never take the chance.

In theory any New World (south and central American) can be affected by the dust. The only birds who really aren't affected by dust at all are those that are powder down birds too - cockatoos (including cockatiels) and other greys.

Capes are the biggest of the poicephalus family :) I have a Jardines which are also in that family. Lovey birds, but the family is prone to respiratory issues.
Seeing as this is the case I think I’ll put my search on hold. I don’t want to put a bird in harms way because of our grey and definitely am not interested in welcoming another grey or a cockatoo at this time. I’m glad I posted and have learned so much :) Thank you!
 
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SandraK

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They're also VERY independent thinking, smart, sometimes nippy (no blood) and they can be Velcro birds. Once they've seen something interesting, they don't give up - one has to pretty much hide the object.

All my birds are in one curtained off section of the family room and I have a stand lone Austin filter running in the room 24/7 as well as 3 smaller filters. The tiels double cage is at one end of the bird room with the Austin on one side and a supply bookcase on the other. We also have a small filter running in the family room and a Rabbit Air in our bedroom.

My avatar, Kiwi (rip), was my 1st Quaker which my hubby gave me as an Xmas present. She was young so she literally grew up with me. She tried a cage rage attack on me once. I was so surprised I snatched her out of her cage and put her in the small "time-out" cage in the laundry room f/10 minutes. I never had any problems with her after that but she would growl at anyone else and follow the person the length of the row of cages as much as she could. Once off her cage, she was fine with everyone.
 

Mizzely

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Seeing as this is the case I think I’ll put my search on hold. I don’t want to put a bird in harms way because of our grey and definitely am not interested in welcoming another grey or a cockatoo at this time. I’m glad I posted and have learned so much :) Thank you!

It is hard to come to that decision when our hearts want something different than our brain! I'm sorry if I took the fun out of it! I hope you stick around - I love greys myself but because I tend to get South American birds or those that are sensitive, I sadly have come to the decision myself that I have to live vicariously through others :)
 

elleCAG

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It is hard to come to that decision when our hearts want something different than our brain! I'm sorry if I took the fun out of it! I hope you stick around - I love greys myself but because I tend to get South American birds or those that are sensitive, I sadly have come to the decision myself that I have to live vicariously through others :)
Yes it is but I really appreciate your (and everyone else’s) honesty! I definitely came to the right place! I’d much rather that than harm a bird because I didn’t know better!!! I’ll just keep visiting our really great local bird store and loving on all of the birdies there to get my fix :swoon: maybe one day down the road we’ll find another grey we can rescue and it’ll be meant to be lol Who knows!
 

Mizzely

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Yes it is but I really appreciate your (and everyone else’s) honesty! I definitely came to the right place! I’d much rather that than harm a bird because I didn’t know better!!! I’ll just keep visiting our really great local bird store and loving on all of the birdies there to get my fix :swoon: maybe one day down the road we’ll find another grey we can rescue and it’ll be meant to be lol Who knows!

I was firmly in the "I don't want another bird!" camp when I found my Jardine's, Ripley. Sometimes it just clicks. I think all of my best birds I found when I wasn't looking, come to think of it :lol:
 

elleCAG

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I was firmly in the "I don't want another bird!" camp when I found my Jardine's, Ripley. Sometimes it just clicks. I think all of my best birds I found when I wasn't looking, come to think of it :lol:
Awww! That’s exactly how it was when we got our grey, John! I never thought we’d be ready for a Grey especially not one with existing problems but always dreamed of having one! He actually came to us through a coworker (very long story) and we couldn’t say no! He has my heart. That’s the best way, isn’t it? :joyful:
 

tka

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Thanks for being a good parrot carer and checking before you brought a new bird into your life. It sounds like John is a real character - why don't you make a thread to tell us more about him? Pictures would be much appreciated too! :)
 
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