Must haves for new conure?

[Allylang1]

So I am preparing for my new little green cheek to come home on Thursday. I just want to make sure I have everything I need.... anyone have a good list?
So far I have 2 large cages (one for the living room when we are home and one in a bedroom) so when we leave, the cats and dog can’t get to him.
Each cage has multiple perches and about 3 toys for now. Do you recommend any mineral blocks. I have cuttlebone. Food will come from the breeder. What is your number 1 recommended type of pellets? I got a small bag of nutriberries and will have plenty of fresh veggies and fruit. Any advice is appreciated!!

 

[MonicaMc]

My recommendations...


32x21 flight cage minimum size
Natural and rope perches (rope if bird does not chew them up)
At least 3 dishes with some backup dishes
6+ toys for inside the cage, not including additional toys to swap out
Some foraging toys would be great, too!


No mirrors
No wooden dowels

Since you have cats and dogs - I would recommend *NOT* allowing them access to the bird when no one is home. I don't mean simply having the bird caged, I mean no access period to where the cage is located.


If the bird is on a healthy diet, they do not require a mineral block. Cuttlebone may just be a fancy chew toy from cuttlefish. (they may or may not be able to digest the calcium from the bone)

There are vast opinions on best pellet. I prefer pellets without seeds or dyes personally...

 

[Allylang1]

Thank you! Good to know on mineral blocks and cuttlebone. Yes, we have 2 large cages one upstairs in a bedroom Where we can close the door for when we are not in the living room with the bird. Even if they end up being fine with each other, I would never leave them alone in the same room. The cage has a wooden dowel on the play top, are there alternatives to fit that. I have several perches/ swings of different sizes and textures, but I also left the wooden dowel in there... should I remove altogether?
Do you only give seeds as treats or also as a small part of their daily feeding? I know he is currently eating pellets, veggies, fruit, and seed, (per breeder). Sorry for all the questions!! The closer it gets to being here, the more questions pop up!

 

[MonicaMc]

You could always look for a natural perch that's mostly straight and see if you could fit it? If you really wanted to try replacing it.


Diet is quite controversial. I prefer feeding seeds as sprouts, nuts and treats, except to those species that require more seeds in their diet (cockatiels, budgies and other small parakeets). It's great though that the little one is being weaned onto a varied diet!

 

[Caitnah]

It will take you a pretty long time to figure out what your guy likes/dislikes. I would not advise seed as this is like candy. Once hooked...
I made the mistake in giving my Conure a seed blend as it was easy...he ended up picking out all the good stuff and only eating the seed.
Luckily, when he was a baby I gave him a variety of fruits/veggies and he still enjoys them. I have now reduced his seed intake to minimal while giving him the good stuff.

I usually make a game out of fresh vegs. I will tie broccoli bunches to the side of his cage and he happily shreds the treat while eating them. I recently bought a skewer and spear corn on the cob, kale, apple, etc. onto it. He loves picking at it.
But I will also advise that you experiment with different pellet brands. I gave him Harrison’s in the beginning and he liked it...now won’t touch it. He does like the Roudybush small but not the mini. Again, lots of experimentation.

As far as perches, I like to use natural perches like manzanita, grapevine and bottle brush. His playground has a few wooden dowels but they are wrapped with vet tape. In his cage however his favorite perch is a boing. He absolutely loves them as well as other rope perches and spends hours playing on them....AND BOUNCING! He will bounce and bounce so ferociously that I sometimes feel he’s going to launch himself.

Oh, one other thing...get your checkbook ready...

 

[Allylang1]

Haha, yes I have realized it’s quite easy to go crazy on toys and perches! And ropes and spiral hanging things, and little balls, and swings, and ladders.....lol. Amazon has loved me the past couple of weeks.
Thank you for all of this valuable information! I’m hoping he doesn’t get a lot of seed now, so it will be easier to keep that as more of a treat. I haven’t tried posting pics on Here so we’ll see if this works...

. Also what do you guys think about snuggle huts? I have one now that was recommended, but I’ve read different things about them.

 

[MonicaMc]

They can be dangerous and cause death to birds if they chew them up and create loose strings and/or ingest the fibers....

There are safer alternatives.... that said, huts may also encourage hormonal behaviors in adults.

 

[Allylang1]

What alternatives would you suggest? Or does he even need anything other than perches to sleep on? I do have a big flat perch in there like a little split log 3” x 7”....

 

[MonicaMc]

Birds don't have 'huts' to sleep in out in the wild.... but they may have cavities of some sort or another... which are used to raise their families in.

So nothing is *really* required.


That said, there are leather 'huts', large PVC tubes, large cardboard tubes, seagrass mats that can be 'folded', etc.