New to Conures

[Jessia]

I have been researching conures for a few days, as I'm currently considering purchasing one. I haven't had birds in many years, though I did have some parakeets back in the day! This will be my only pet, and I'll be working from home, so should be able to at least be around my bird for a good part of the day. Interactive time will be a little shorter, but I still plan on devoting 1-2 hours of playtime per day! That might even turn into lots more!

I've read through lots of topics here, as well as articles and information on many sites. I'm currently seriously considering a conure hybrid: He/she is a mix between a yellow sided green cheek conure and a black capped conure. There are actually three babies (2-3 months old) to choose from: I'm going to be interacting with them to see who seems to like me, and to see if this is the right type of bird for me.

The nippiness doesn't bother me: I used to have a terrier who was a constant biter, and although I don't expect bird bites to feel like nothing, I expect them not to be worse than what I went through!

Are there any tips or information that conure owners might want to share? I live on my own, in a townhouse that's actually mostly detached. Although noise isn't too much of a concern, I would definitely prefer the quieter side of noisy!

One important question about the cage placement: I'm planning on having the cage in my office, so that when the bird is caged during the day, I'll be right nearby. If I put him/her to bed at around 9 PM and still plan on staying up, will the computer screen and typing be a bother? I might just adjust my schedule a little bit to finish all computer things by 9 PM. I'm hoping the later bedtime keeps me safe from a wake up call really early! I'm used to waking up at 7 AM each day, so I think I should be pretty safe!

I would appreciate any tips, and I would be happy to answer any questions! Thanks!

 

[DebsFlock]

I have a similar setup to what you are describing and I'm transitioning to more of a work-at-home mode. I do try to avoid working in here after the birdies have gone to bed, but I have an iPad and a laptop if I need to be doing stuff.

If your work involves telecons, expect occasional active participation from your bird!

It can be hard to ignore a terribly cute conure in order to get work done. Prepare to be hard-hearted.... Scooter will occasionally hang over the edge of his playtop bobbing up and down saying "Pretty scoo-bird!" and it can be darned distracting!

Conures are go-go-go birds. If you want something a bit more mellow, you might want to think about that. My other two are currently happily napping in their cages with the doors open, Scooter is building a tent out of cage paper on his playtop and I'm going to have to insist he go inside so I can go run some errands!

 

[AFP520]

Sounds like you have a good bird lined up. They all can make noise. I have a gold cap which can relate to a sun for noise. Lucy can be loud, but compared to a dog barking, she is really not that noisy.

As far as keeping the cage in the computer room, the screen and noise can definitely keep them up. I would get a cover for the cage, or just switch to a laptop in another room.

 

[aliray]

welcome to the forum. I am new to owning a conure as I just bought a 5 mo old yellow sided green ckeeked conure about three weeks.She is a doll and your going to love having one. To me with her colors she looks like a living piece of art, if that makes any sense. She is not very loud at all. She was hand fed from three weeks and hand tame when we got her as was thank God my other two parrots all bought at 5 to 6 mo old. There are a lot of conure owners on the forum that have a ton of good advice

 

[Jessia]

Thanks for the responses! I'll probably be tempted to be distracted, but I also go out of the house a couple days of the week to get more work done. And with a laptop, I can always try to escape from all the distracting antics! I think I'm simply going to stop using the computer around my bird's bedtime: I definitely need time away from the screen later in the day, anyway!

Sounds like everyone has some adorable conures! I'm still a bit undecided, but I think it just has to do with me not having had my own pet in awhile. I also tried adopting a dog earlier in the year, which was an absolute nightmare. Not the dog's fault, but it was just awful to experience. I'm a little nervous with this decision, yet there's no rush! I just want to be sure that I'll be happy with a bird, and that the bird will be happy with me. Conures sound like the way to go, though!

 

[BoomBoom]

Hi, Jessia. I have a 6 month old conure who we've had for 4 months now so I'm still fairly new to this as well. While there are soooo many tips I can give you, I'd recommend starting with a basic guide to conure care and nutrition. Some guides are more extensive than others but all offer basic guidelines in caring for your new bird.

One thing the guides didn't contain which I later realized was very beneficial to my bird's well-being, is having companion birds in another cage. This applies to working people who have to leave their birds alone 10 hours on weekdays. This may be a case to case basis but we found our sun conure when left alone at home was more secure, had more zest for life, ate more, played more and was scared less when we introduced 2 budgies in a cage nearby. Having other birds brought an aliveness to the room and gave a flock vibe. Although he does not care for the budgies, we noticed a positive change from when he was an 'only bird.' Again, this may just be the case with our young bird, so take this advice with a grain of salt. This also applies only if you have to leave your bird for long hours during the week due to work like we do.

Also it's important to note, the budgies are cared for and looked after equally as our sun conure. A healthy flock is a happy flock after all.

Good luck!

 

[Jessia]

Thanks for the tip! Although I'm aiming for just one bird, I'm sure that will be useful to owners who have to leave their birds for long periods of time! I should be around most of the time, aside from a few days here and there when I'll be gone for 5-8 hours tops.

As far as cleaning goes, would vacuuming every 1-2 days and thoroughly cleaning the cage about once per week work? I'm a somewhat neat freak, but I know how messy birds can be! The cage lining will be cleaned every day: Thorough cleaning just means scrubbing with soap and water. Most of my house is carpeted, though I plan on trying some potty training techniques. I'm also planning on keeping my bird over hard surfaces or a towel as much as possible to make cleanup pretty easy. Accidents happen, though: I'll just be vigilant!

 

[dishgal1]

A green cheek conure is absolutely involved in everything you do. Mine loves to shower with me eat with me and even sit on my shoulder while I sew.
They are a very interactive bird and not that loud. They are usually very energetic and always in the middle of everything you do. Forrest is a very well behaved conure but can have mood swings. If you want a companion that is always there for you. you absolutely cannot go wrong with a green cheek. Most Sun conures are a lot louder and also the Jendays, my Sun is actually a very laid back bird and is not as involved in everything as my green cheek. Just being in the room with you is sometimes all a green cheek needs but you can expect him to be on your shoulder whatever you are doing.
I think it is an ideal choice. As far as the mixed breed, I am not sure if they are as healthy or not. Seems like I read about that somewhere.
Just be sure and let the baby pick you and one of them definitely will and you will have a lasting bond. The nippiness won't be so bad once you learn their body language and leave them alone when they show you some attitude.

 

[SweetPeasFriend]

Birds want to do what you are doing with you at all times. These are wild animals that are never left alone in the wild. Not domesticated, but highly social and extremely intelligent. They need things to do. I honestly think a person would fair better mentally in a cage than a bird can.

As far as bites - Our mitred would draw blood with her bites, not always on purpose, she just got out of control excited sometimes. I am sure of few of the bites I got should have had stitches, especially the one on my top lip and my ear. She took her fair share of chunks of flesh in her days, but mostly she was lovey and cuddly.

Our blue crown doesn't bite that hard, but I dont give him the chance. After 28 years of seeing mitred body language and being bitten for what appeared to me to be no reason at the time, I now can read it pretty well.