Crimson Bellied Conures

I would love to hear any stories or first-hand experience anyone has had with these guys. I have yet to meet one (they seem somewhat rare), but fell in love with CBCs over a year ago after reading every article I could find about them. I have handled a young pineapple conure, who was absolutely adorable, but that is the closest I have come to interacting with one.

I doubt I will be able to meet one before buying one, so I am also curious about what people think of buying a type of bird without ever meeting them. I want to familiarize myself with GCC and handle a few, but realistically that will be the closest I will come to interacting with a similar type of bird.

Thoughts, experiences and opinions all welcome!

Oh and I am not sure if it's relevant, but I do have parrot experience in the form of two lovebirds, but this would be the first medium sized parrot for me.

Thanks!

I love my crimson bellied conure! I would say that in general, her personality is like a calmer version of a green cheek. She is very sweet and goofy and loves attention. She is also very quiet most of the time. I've only heard her "scream" a few times, and it wasn't even that loud compared to other birds. If you have any other specific questions about CBCs I would be happy to try to answer them!

I would love to hear more about these birds too. I met one at a petstore and he was a total sweetie!!! He did seem calmer than the other conures at the store. I am hoping to eventually get a third larger bird and right now am thinking GCC or CBC.

FutureDVM said:

I love my crimson bellied conure! I would say that in general, her personality is like a calmer version of a green cheek. She is very sweet and goofy and loves attention. She is also very quiet most of the time. I've only heard her "scream" a few times, and it wasn't even that loud compared to other birds. If you have any other specific questions about CBCs I would be happy to try to answer them!

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Thanks for responding! I have heard these conures are quite cuddly, has that been the case with your bird? I am also happy to hear yours wasn't too loud. While not a priority or deal-breaker for me, I would prefer a quieter bird. How demanding is she in terms of attention? The articles I have read seem to all say that CBC love attention but are also capable of amusing themselves, so they aren't super needy. Would you describe your bird as being this way?

Were you able to meet the species before choosing to get one? That is one of my biggest concerns - I doubt I will have the opportunity to meet one before I buy one.

evesta said:

I would love to hear more about these birds too. I met one at a petstore and he was a total sweetie!!! He did seem calmer than the other conures at the store. I am hoping to eventually get a third larger bird and right now am thinking GCC or CBC.

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I am so jealous! I want to meet one so badly, my heart is set on getting one of these guys. I am moving in with my boyfriend of 4 years in the near future so I am putting off getting one until I am settled in and possibly until my current bird is passed away.

A friend of mine breeds them and she tells me all the time how sweet they are, even sweeter than greencheeks. I would LOVE to have a pair of them, they are just a smidge out of my price range at the moment.

Violet said:

Thanks for responding! I have heard these conures are quite cuddly, has that been the case with your bird? I am also happy to hear yours wasn't too loud. While not a priority or deal-breaker for me, I would prefer a quieter bird. How demanding is she in terms of attention? The articles I have read seem to all say that CBC love attention but are also capable of amusing themselves, so they aren't super needy. Would you describe your bird as being this way?

Were you able to meet the species before choosing to get one? That is one of my biggest concerns - I doubt I will have the opportunity to meet one before I buy one.

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She is somewhat cuddly, although she only really likes to cuddle on her terms. What she really loves most is just sitting on my shoulder and hanging out with me.

She definitely loves getting attention, but she is very good at entertaining herself as well. This works out really well for me since I'm a college student and I'm often gone for hours at a time. She has plenty of toys in her cage, so she doesn't require constant attention from me.

I actually wasn't able to meet her before I got her. I ended up adopting her from a friend whose parents had a bunch of birds they were trying to rehome. She was out of the state, so I didn't get to meet her beforehand. I really don't think you can go wrong with a CBC, though (although I might be slightly biased ). I've only had Penny for a fairly short time, but we've already bonded so well and she really is a wonderful little companion.

My CBC will be 4 months old May 10th and he is a doll! Yes, he is cuddly and yes, he is quiet. All he wants is to be with me. Very sweet boy. I had no experience with any conures before I got him, but I do have 19 year old TAG and a pionus (white-capped). Also had a lovebird in the past and cockateils. I also have 2 linnies.

CBC r much more laid back them the GCC. They r much less nippy also. I have not found them to be the most cuddly conure but some can be. I think it is like most birds, they r all different and have different likes and dislikes. Where r u from? I breed the CBC and know other breeders also, I might be able to help u find someone that has them and u can meet 1?

Thanks so much everyone for the feedback!

FutureDVM said:

She is somewhat cuddly, although she only really likes to cuddle on her terms. What she really loves most is just sitting on my shoulder and hanging out with me.

She definitely loves getting attention, but she is very good at entertaining herself as well. This works out really well for me since I'm a college student and I'm often gone for hours at a time. She has plenty of toys in her cage, so she doesn't require constant attention from me.

I actually wasn't able to meet her before I got her. I ended up adopting her from a friend whose parents had a bunch of birds they were trying to rehome. She was out of the state, so I didn't get to meet her beforehand. I really don't think you can go wrong with a CBC, though (although I might be slightly biased ). I've only had Penny for a fairly short time, but we've already bonded so well and she really is a wonderful little companion.

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I am finishing up my degree, so I hear ya about the school work. After I finish I plan to take a year or so to figure things out and will then look into getting one. While I plan to give the bird as much attention as I can, it will have to be home alone at points while I am at work so it's important to me that the bird is ok amusing itself with toys while I am gone.

JuliaDG said:

My CBC will be 4 months old May 10th and he is a doll! Yes, he is cuddly and yes, he is quiet. All he wants is to be with me. Very sweet boy. I had no experience with any conures before I got him, but I do have 19 year old TAG and a pionus (white-capped). Also had a lovebird in the past and cockateils. I also have 2 linnies.

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Can I ask how he compares to the lovebird? That's the only other parrot I have experience living with so I would love to hear how the two are similar and different

amysaviary said:

CBC r much more laid back them the GCC. They r much less nippy also. I have not found them to be the most cuddly conure but some can be. I think it is like most birds, they r all different and have different likes and dislikes. Where r u from? I breed the CBC and know other breeders also, I might be able to help u find someone that has them and u can meet 1?

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I have heard they tend to be quite easy-going and that they are good family birds - they don't tend to be 'one-person' birds. Does that sound right to you?

I am from B.C., Canada, if you know any out this way that would be awesome! I figure the next best thing is for me to meet some GCCs but to meet an actual CBC would make me feel a lot better about getting one

Violet said:

Can I ask how he compares to the lovebird? That's the only other parrot I have experience living with so I would love to hear how the two are similar and different

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I can actually try to answer that question, since I used to have a lovebird. From my experience, my conure is much more laid back than my lovebird was. My lovebird was also a bit nippy at times, and Penny really isn't nippy at all. The lovebird was a lot more energetic and playful and she loved attention, but wasn't necessarily very cuddly.

I think the biggest difference is that my lovebird was a lot more "moody" than my conure. She could be a total sweetheart one day, and then really grumpy the next day. Penny seems to be much more even-tempered and not as hormonal. She does have her occasional days where she doesn't feel like being cuddled, but she'll just walk or fly away instead of trying to bite. I hope that helps a little bit...

Thank you for that comparison, that really clarified my idea of them

I'm getting a CBC that is two years old is there any tips to help ease her into me becoming her new mommy the girl I'm getting her from has had her since she was weaned. So obviously the bird is bonded to her. I'm going to meet her today. Hopefully she likes me enough for me to hold her. Any tips for getting a pre loved bird would be great thanks

FutureDVM said:

I love my crimson bellied conure! I would say that in general, her personality is like a calmer version of a green cheek. She is very sweet and goofy and loves attention. She is also very quiet most of the time. I've only heard her "scream" a few times, and it wasn't even that loud compared to other birds. If you have any other specific questions about CBCs I would be happy to try to answer them!

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Do you know about how loud they are compared to a GCC (which I already have) when they do get loud? I am considering a CBC as a second bird in the future.