Want to get a conure... Any info would be greatly appreciated

Hi,

So I am sure like many people I have wanted a parrot since I was a child... always a scarlet macaw however recently I have been doing a lot of reading and looking at youtube videos and now think a conure could be the way to go for my first bird...

Basically I am looking for good and bad experiences and any tips that could help as I don't want to rush into getting a bird...

I have built an aviary recently using aviary netting which I would let the bird into, supervised, and have located a cage - 65cm x 151cm - is this big enough?

Obviously I would be spending as much time as I could with it and keeping it out of the cage as much as possible but obviously another day another dollar and all that jazz so it would be in the cage too when I'm working...

Also what is your favourite species of conure? I saw a youtube video with 2 sun conures waking someone up and climbing under their duvet for a cuddle and thought that was rather cute...

Would it be good to start with 1 and see how I go before getting a second one?

Umm... I think thats all my questions - Thanks in advance

We have a sun conure and a green cheek, so I can only comment on those two specifically

They're both adorable and sweet birds. I'd say personality wise I prefer the sun -- he's such a nosy brat and he's very funny. Our GCC is very laid back and happy to spend her time just sitting around on you. The sun always wants to be entertained. I bet there are people with the opposite, though!

The sun is.. good lord though.. he is LOUD! When he decides to get going, you can hear him from down the street. I've learned that if he is on my shoulder and hubby or my daughter are about to walk out of the room, I need to plug my ear. Otherwise it rings and then literally feels like I've gone temporarily deaf in that ear.

Our GCC is a lot quieter in general. Not only does she scream less, but when she does it isn't as ear piercing. Still works up a decent volume, though.

I got a Sun for my first bird. I love him. He has such a huge personality. Loves dancing. He'll get a little rock going when he feels like it. Adorable to watch.

Like Selestine said, he is very LOUD. I can hear him when I pull up to the house and all the windows up. I'm sure our neighbors love us in the morning. lol

I have a cinnamon conure (a green cheek) and hes my first parrot. He's great, he entertains me to no end with his hilarious personality. I knew they were needy, but his quite a bit needier than I expected. I personally love it but I could assume some people wouldn't.

If I'm talking to someone that's not Mr. Skittles, Mr skittles will yell and try to get my attention. If I'm on the phone, Mr skittles is also on the phone. If I'm eating, Mr Skittles must closely look at every bite before I eat it.

They're great birds, never a dull moment that's for sure.

I have a Cinnamon Greek Cheek too. She's my second one and I adore this species to pieces. I've also have a Sun and a Nanday. They were both loud enough to break glass, but had good qualities too. My sun was older however, though she had moments of sweetness, she was a very independant girl. My nanday hated men to the point where I thought he was going to kill himself trying to get to my husband and he had to find a new home.

I don't think that's a Nanday problem however. I was at least his third home and I think it was just his problem. He moved into a female only home and last I heard was doing great.

Conures can be wonderful, but they aren't the easy birds sometimes they are made out to be. They can be just as demanding as any macaw. If you still have a desire to get one someday though, a conure isn't a bad idea because it'll let you know if you are really up for it.

As far as this aviary is concerned...what sort of netting are you using? Something suitable for game birds/chickens/pigeons will NOT work for a conure. They'll just chew right through it. Probably want to check that before you get anything.

Personally, I think pet conures belong in cages, in your house as a primary residence. An outdoor aviary is nice as a play space, but I don't know that's the right place if you want them to be pets. If you want aviary/flight birds, go ahead, but they can get as wild as a finch without a lot of socialization.

I have a nanday. Great bird. Such a clown loooooves people and like all conures can be extremely loud when they want to. But I think a conure is a great first bird. There not to needy and are big time cuddlers. But just like with people personality can differ from bird to bird. Good luck finding your feathered baby.

I wouldn't choose a bird based on how cute a YouTube video is. You are going to find cute things for most birds. You should probably go meet some birds and at the end it should probably come down to the personality. For example I find that my brothers green cheek conure is far more noisy than my sun conure. Also the green cheek is far more demanding in terms of supervision, I mean you literally have to watch him when he is on his play stand all he'll disappear to God knows where, where as the sun conure will happily sit on his play stand for as long as you want him to. Again these are just my experiences and I am sure there will be many opposing experiences had by other members.

My sun Chico is my first sun conure that I've owned so I can only say how he is. He is very tame and can be taken out of his cage and put back in with no problem whatsoever. He can be, as others have said, ear piercing loud when he is on my shoulder and screeches. Fortunately he doesn't do that very often. He is happy to sit on my shoulder/arm/hand/leg whatever I am doing and rarely leaves me, unless hubby is eating something and then he has to go check it out and try to get a few nibbles. He can be a little stinker sometimes and bites at times, but it doesn't hurt. Not sure if that is the case with most conures or not. BTW, I saw that youtube video and it was very cute! I am happy with my Chico and really the only complaint we ever have with him would be how loud he gets sometimes..but we live out in the middle of nowhere so not worried about neighbors. I think suns are a good size parrot...not too big..not too small. He's more demanding than my Amazon but that's because if I'm in the house he thinks he needs to be on me...which is fine with me. Can't say whether to get one or two. I have my two birds, but I can't let them out at the same time (at least not yet) so that is a drawback for me. I think you need to see a bird and see how it is to handle and what their temperament is because IMO each bird is different Good luck with whatever you decide.

I loved my Sunday conure, but she would not have made a family bird. She was very selective on who she 'tolerated' and fortunately she loved me. She made an incredible amount of noise for such a small bird. I loved her devotion to me and enjoyed all her entertaining little habits that she learned from her previous owner. And if I ever find another Sunday Conure near me I'm gonna snatch it up!

If you want a cuddle bug, a quiet bird, and a great companion, I would recommend any of the green cheek mutations. The maroon bellied conures are especially lovely! I'm also a huge fan of blue crowned conures. My conure, Avery, is a green cheeked, and she's lovely. She's a great companion, generally quiet, and fun to train.

However, there's both the good side and the ugly side. Conures are well known velcro birds, and will often shriek or cry to be with you as soon as you leave the room. They can be very nippy and go through a beaking stage, as most young parrots do, and if this behaviour is reinforced you end up with a conure that constantly bites to communicate something, even if it isn't to do with a dislike.

And, like all birds, they hit puberty and it often changes them from your loving companion to a little biting, unpredictable feather monster. Now, this isn't always the case, but I know of SO many conures that have been rehomed because hormones hit and their owners couldn't handle the "change" from their cuddly, loving companion into a bird that would bite and get angry for "no reason". They hit it normally around 2-3 years in age, and hormones will continuously occur afterwards, potentially changing their behaviour for a few months at a time. Be prepared to work through this stage with your bird, remaining positive, and be patient and understanding.

Also, as I've mentioned, they can become EXTREME one person birds as they're pair-bond birds. If not socialized, there is the possibility that they will not tolerate anyone near you, may use displacement biting for their jealousy, and will potentially fly-attack anyone they perceive as a threat to both of you (I don't know how many times I've heard this happen to people I meet at pet stores). It's incredibly important to socialize them with others to prevent this. There's also no guarantee that they will be cuddle bugs, though, as some birds just tend to be very hands-off regardless of generalizations.

I would also like to say say the aviary is a bit too narrow. Birds fly horizontally rather than vertically, so you'd be better off almost reversing those measurements (unless you meant it was 24" high and 5' wide). I would personally go 3 feet high and 5 feet wide for an aviary, at the minimum.

While my post may seem a bit negative, I just thought it'd be good to let you know all other aspects of conures that we don't normally discuss or think about when we recall our relationship with our fids. We all tend to have rose coloured glasses on when we think about them since we love them so much.

I hope the search goes well and that this helped!

We went to the bird expo one year. The first booth was the Conures. Of course my daughter falls in love with the first ones we see. I tell her that we'd look through the rest of the show and then decide from there. I was so impressed with the breeders of the Conure booth, that I told my daughter if she were to save for the year we would buy one at the next expo.

The breeder lost a bunch of eggs that year due to the heat and she only had one that had hatched when we called. SHe not only hand feeds the babies but she also handles them constantly, every chance she has. Before we decided to get the final bird from her we looked at a local breeder that only hand fed and hardly handled the birds. I wasnt impressed.

We love our GCC. We bought him a larger cage because he's so active and we wanted him to have a lot of room to play. They can get loud, but for the most part he likes to whistle and chatter. Loves company. even if you just stay in the same room and not take him out, he's content. He likes to be out even just to play on his cage.

For our first bird, we are having fun with him. He prefers one owner over the next but he does fine with all of us.

So, my advise would be to find a breeder that hand feeds and handles the birds. You will get a better start.

Thanks everyone for the advice all very useful.

I'm getting a cage tonight - and then going to use the aviary for warm days when he/she can have supervised flight time... it is 5 metres wide, 10 metres long, and about 2.5 metres high and I used netting thats used for eagles (apparently) but once I get a bird I will be very cautious about being there at all times...

The going around to see birds I think is a great idea

Thanks everyone for all the advice

I guess i'm late to this party, but i was going to suggest the same--go and meet some. It really helps you decide for yourself. I had a sun as my first conure and considered a green cheek this time but i met a blue crown while looking at the green cheek babies and it was an instant connection. Although i don't have THAT blue crown (he was sold already), i knew that was the bird i was looking for.

I only had experience with green cheek conures. The two I had were as different as night and day. One would bite anyone that wasn't me while another was easier going but very bird like. As people stated there are pros and cons to conures. I know articles recommend them as a easier bird but it does no change the fact they are more demanding then a budgie or cockatiel. They have a call that drives a lot of people crazy or can become one person birds. I think the one reason they are usually rated as a easier parrot is because their size is less intimidating. I currently have a one year old hahns macaw and as of right now I think he has better traits then the two green cheek conures. I would look at birds in person before you make a decision. Conures and mini macaws share some characteristics found in large macaws.

I have a sun conure and he is quite the character! Definitely Loud!! But oh so adorable he loooves cuddling but if something doesn't go his way he can get a pinch grumpy! sometimes a little pain in the butt but i love him. haha He's pretty much a "velcro bird" and wants to be on me 24/7--could be good or bad i guess depending on your wants.

I've heard wonderful things about Green cheek conures as well! I am looking into getting one for my aunt because they seem to have cute personalities too just less noisy as your stereotypical sunny.

Are you looking into adopting or at breeders? If adopting maybe you'll fall in love with a bird you had no idea you'd love! that's how I got my sunny. He came with a beautiful IRN (package deal since they were bonded). When I was first looking at birds I really Really wanted an IRN...and I found my 2 guys nearby at a rescue place. At first I was worried about the sun conure b/c I hadnt looked into what itd be like owning one as much as the ringneck. They are completely different birds...my irn is standoffish and silly but my sunny is outgoing and an attention hog....but I gotta say I reeaaally love my sun (we all know parents have a favorite!) lol