How long do Conures live? Inherited 27 y/o Cherry head

[Birdman666]

when i was referring to "worst diet' i was referring to an "all seed diet".... Not a bird being poisoned with avocado/chocolate.

I'm very aware of how an unhealthy diet plays a massive role in the majority of diseases in birds and humans for that matter (just look at how obese, sick and diseased majority of amercians are... They eat tons of junk then blame it on their genes while completely disregarding something called "environmental triggers"). I'm a whole foods plant based vegan and take health very seriously (eating healthy and living a healthy lifestyle is my passion)... But no tiel on this planet is going to die at the young age of 4 or 7 from an all seed diet aka "bad diet"... I was referring to that type of diet. That vet must be dealing with people who are feeding their tiels sugar cubes and greasy pizzas to be kicking the bucket at such a young age. Bizarre.

or a badly misinformed vet that was speaking off the cuff without really knowing what he was talking about...

The dog and cat guys sometimes just guess when it comes to birds. That's why i avoid them...

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

@Birdman666 I take my birds to a certified avian vet. Otherwise, it's really a waste of money. You are exactly correct about the 'dog & cat' vets. Usually, a bird owner knows more than those vets.

@tropical Look, none of us no for sure how long any bird will live on a poor diet and its not a test I would ever want to take part in. I'm also not interested in having a debate about it either. Like I said, lets just agree to disagree.

 

[Tropical]

What I find to be a bummer is the fact that the bigger louder birds live longer than the quieter smaller ones (aka GCCs and tiels). If I could handle a louder/nosier bird I would love to get a conure that has a longer lifespan (40+ yrs)... but I guess you can't have it all.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

Another down side of the larger ones that live so long is that many can/do outlive their owners and as such end up being re-homed. I can't imagine how that must be for those birds, not to mention the risk - you never know what the 'new home' will be like or the new owners. Plus, the longer the bird has been with its previous owner, the harder it will be to re-train and bond with.

 

[MikeyTN]

I just got done reading all the postings here. The shorter life span that was posted is pretty accurate as most new folks don't take care of them properly and they die early because of it. And yes they can live on all seed diet and live 25+ years. A lady I used to know, her Cockatiel whom she had since he was young was on an all seed diet but she does offer fresh fruits and veggies. He was 25 years old at the time, I'm not sure if he's still around or not as its been 12 years since I've seen her. In reality it's not different then human from those that eat healthy and those that don't, who's gonna have more health issues? The main thing is we just need to try our best to care for them and provide for them properly so they can be around us as long as possible.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

Very well said MikeyTN. Unfortunately, for me, in the years when I first got Peaches, I fed her a lot of 'junk'. Doritos, bologna and such. Hence, why she had so many health issues. I do believe that if I hadn't altered her diet ten years ago, Peaches wouldn't be with me today.

Sammy, my favorite budgie, lived to be 11y/o on an all seed diet. Granted, I think they CAN (not necessarily DO) live even longer on a pelleted diet with fresh foods, but not all birds take to that.

 

[JerseyWendy]

Another down side of the larger ones that live so long is that many can/do outlive their owners and as such end up being re-homed. I can't imagine how that must be for those birds, not to mention the risk - you never know what the 'new home' will be like or the new owners. Plus, the longer the bird has been with its previous owner, the harder it will be to re-train and bond with.

I'm counting on my fids to outlive me. That was one of the reasons I opted for the big ones. Down side??? On the contrary! When socialized properly, the transition into a new home 'should' be quite smooth, especially if the fids already 'know' their next human caretaker. And yes, I actually DO know where my babies will end up. A living will is a wonderful thing.

 

[Allee]

I have retrained three adult birds with issues and I have strong bonds with all of them.

I think the original question in this thread was, how long do cherry headed conures live. I read everything from 20 to 50 years but the average seemed to be 40+.

Considering my present age, my U2 will more than likely outlive me and maybe my quakers too. I'll try to have them well trained before I say goodby. As Wendy said, living wills are good to have.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

So much of all of this is subjective, really. There is no guarantee one way or the other. I'm sure there are abused birds that take right to new owners and well cared for birds that don't and vice versa and so on.

I had a dove once that was from a good home and took right to me. Another case, I had a tiel I got from my sister and the tiel never took to me despite weeks of trying. I do think that part of that though was because I had Peaches.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

@Allee Honestly though, I'd like to know of someone who has had a sunny that lived more than 25-30 yrs. (actual proof that the bird IS that age). It will give me hope.

Sunnies are so often re-homed that I often question the accuracy of the lifespan. I really think they have the potential to live a lot longer than 20 yrs.

They don't live as long in the wild due to predators, climate changes, capturing for plumage etc. But I think the biggest reasons why sunnies die prematurely (in captivity) is poor diet and accidents. I've never owned a bird that needs as much supervision as Skittles. He IS way too curious and adventurous.

 

[Tropical]

Another down side of the larger ones that live so long is that many can/do outlive their owners and as such end up being re-homed. I can't imagine how that must be for those birds, not to mention the risk - you never know what the 'new home' will be like or the new owners. Plus, the longer the bird has been with its previous owner, the harder it will be to re-train and bond with.

That's why I would never get a Macaw at my age (35 yrs old)... unless the Macaw was already a certain age.... but I would love to get a conure averaging longer lifespans rather than shorter such as a GCC or tiel... but the slightly larger conures they are far too loud it would drive me insane. I will have to settle on getting a GCC. Cannot escape dealing with a pet dying one way or the other it sucks

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

That's true. When I had to have Sammy (my 11 y/o budgie) put down, it broke my heart. Fortunately, I had Peaches to get me through. I've had her for almost 20yrs and I am preparing myself for the inevitable. I know she could go another 10yrs or more, but I'm doubtful of that given her current state of health. She is very poor on balance and gripping. Especially the latter. She falls a lot. I'm hoping she's not in any pain but I am preparing myself for the inevitable should she need to be put down. I don't dwell on it, but it is in the back of my mind. I want her to have a good quality of life.

When Sammy fell ill back in 2000, I waited 2 wks before deciding to put Sammy down, despite a vet recommending it. That was 2 wks he didn't get any better and I saw him suffer. I have no intention of making such a selfish move with Peaches.

I will have Skittles to get me through when Peaches passes. But then it will just be him and I and that scares me. But I still have many years ahead with him.

As for noise, I actually have a very high tolerance for loudness, it's constant noisiness that goes on for pro-longed periods that gets to me. Sunnies are loud, there's no doubt on that.

I do know if something happened to Skittles I could never get another sun. They just all look too much alike. If you're in your mid-30s, then getting a pet bird that will live 20-30yrs is pretty much a full life for you.

I love all animals, but I could never get a dog. They just don't live as long as parrots and yet they make such good pets it just would scare me to only have 15yrs or so with a dog (and that's if you get it young).

 

[JerseyWendy]

Back to the OP's question, please have a look at the following thread:
http://www.parrotforums.com/bereavement/47412-pritti-has-passed-33-years-earth-now-over-rainbow.html

....and with this the thread has run its course.