Keeping Sun conures tame in pairs (not for breeding) ?

[retroguy02]

Hi,

I wanted to buy a Sun conure chick but I was thinking of buying two instead of one, not for breeding purposes but so that it doesn't feel lonely. I can devote an hour daily to it (and my sister is also willing to take care of it) but just in case I was thinking if it would be happier if I got it another feathered companion. I don't intend to breed them, but if it happens, then I might consider it.

Is it possible to keep two Sun conures together and tame? Also, assuming that the pair isn't a male and female, will there be aggressive behavior if two males or two females are kept together?

Is it compatible to keep two chicks from the same clutch (related) together? If a related pair breeds, their eggs will always be infertile?

Another question I had is regarding bar spacing. I have a 2.5' x 2.5' x 2.5 cage with 1" bar spacing, is it okay to keep Sun conures in or will they be able to squeeze their heads thru it?

Thanks for reading and replying

 

[DannyA93]

If you only have an hour to spend with them I'm pretty sure they'll end up bonding with each other instead of you

 

[lquan]

Brother and sister from the same clutch can mate and have fertiled eggs. Not a good idea. It is better to have the birds DNA sexed before putting them together.

 

[Sterling1113]

Some people say 1" is a bit on the large side, but if your sun(s) is full grown I think it would be okay.
If you only have an hour, your bird(s) will be very unhappy. Getting a second bird doesn't cut down on the attention needed, it doubles it, unless you want a bonded pair that are less tolerant of humans. Not only that, but sun conures are LOUD. If they're not happy, they'll make sure everyone on the block can hear it.
If you have a male and the female from the same clutch, YES they can and will mate when they become sexually mature. The eggs can be fertile but as inbreeding with any other species there are more likely going to be defects/infertile eggs/sterile chicks. If two related birds lay eggs it's best to remove them and replace them with fake eggs and throw the real eggs away.
All parrots, especially conures(they are VERY much like little macaws) require 3-5 hours of out-of-cage bonding time to ensure a healthy relationship and a happy bird.
Also, unless you get birds that are already bonded(thus less social) you run the risk of your birds hating eachother and requiring separate cages, toys, bonding time, etc.
Are you prepared to handle that?
Not trying to discourage you or say don't do it, but very seriously reconsider the amount of time you have to devote to these birds. They're very smart and develop bad habits when their needs aren't met.

 

[Birdman666]

Same sex pairs. The buddy bird concept works.

But conures are super interactive birds. There is a very real possibility of attention screaming if they only get an hour a day interaction.

 

[WhirlyBirdy]

If you only have an hour to spend a day with your bird a day and you want it to be all tame and friendly, you probably should reconsider getting a sun conure. They are loud obnoxious little monsters with big beaks, if they are not properly socialised. They bond very easily with one person, but if you have two birds and only played with them for an hour a day they would quickly bond with each other because they are together for 23 hours a day. So then you would have two loud obnoxious little monsters with beaks.