New here and new to these lovely animals

[mariamcsorley]

Hi my name is Maria, I am new here and have just got my first GC conure called Kiwi. Well my first bird ever!!! He is 10 weeks tomorrow.
I also have a 19month old english sheepdog called tilly, she is really good with him, and keeps giving him kisses. He loves to fly onto her back and cuddle up in all of her fluff!!!! lol
I am very interested in training him and thinking of doing clicker training with him as Tilly has been clicker trained- makes sence to keep the training the same!
My first question is does he need grit? I am feeding him on a pellet diet but he does have some seeds. I read somewhere that conures dont need grit in their diet.
Many thanks
Maria
PS looking forward to getting to know you all

 

[Spiritbird]

Hello Maria and glad you are with us. We have a wonderful forum with lots of conure people. No conures do not need grit. High quality pellets are good. Harrisons is one of them. Offer lots of fresh fruit, nuts and vegies. Suggest you read up on their care and training. Lots of good books out there. If you look at my resposne to Intro need a little help you will find more details.

 

[antoinette]

Hello Maria, great to have you joining us.
Great friendly members, always willing to assist.
Thanks for sharing the picture, so cute.
Below is a link, very informative, great tips etc pertaining to training GC conure's.
http://www.pet-parrots.com/Conures/conures.html
Good luck

 

[Bear]

Welcome to the forum! I'm new myself so a welcome from a fellow newbie!

 

[justwingingit]

Welcome to you and your little family. This is a good forum where everyone puts their pet's needs first and foremost. We look forward to advising and learning.

 

[Ratzy]

You said your dog gives your bird kisses? Dogs and cats carry deadly bacteria in their mouths. Thats why birds so rarely survive after being attacked by a cat or dog.

 

[Mel]

You said your dog gives your bird kisses? Dogs and cats carry deadly bacteria in their mouths. Thats why birds so rarely survive after being attacked by a cat or dog.

Welcome Maria (and Bear)

Great to have you with us. Maria Clicker training is great and if you have already done it with Tilly the same principals will apply with your bird so you shouldn't have any problems.

Ratzy thanks for the warning. Doggy kisses they should be ok unless there are open wounds. The reason so many birds do not survive an attack, apart from the trauma and physical injuries, they have puncture wounds so the bacteria in the saliva gets into the body (most cat bites result in abcesses). For most creatures the skin is an amazing defensive system designed to keep out nasties.

 

[cnyguy]

Welcome Maria, Kiwi and Tilly! I'm fairly new to the Forum myself, and have already discovered a lot of useful information and friendly people here. Green-cheeks are great parrots, and I'm sure you must be enjoying Kiwi a lot. I'm a bit jealous about Tilly though. I've always wanted an Old English Sheepdog, and never have been able to have one (the apartment complex where I live now only allows dogs weighing less than 30 lbs., and an OES definitely doesn't qualify).

 

[idahogems]

hello and welcome!