How do I calm down my new sun conure?

[Scrembirb]

I have a new sun conure today and he is so sweet and cute, but he is also loud when we talk to him and gets angry when you touch his things. I would assume it's because he is new and isn't use to his new home, but I want to be sure. Thanks!

 

[noodles123]

It will take MONTHS before your bird is totally adjusted. Bird time= snail-time SLOWED DOWN.
My Umbrella Cockatoo (who was tame when I got her) wouldn't let me touch her for 1 month...no step-ups for 3 months (excluding the 1st day when she stepped onto me out of her carrier out of fear).


Spend time doing quiet stuff near the cage. Don't push contact...see if you can feed treats from hand...Let the bird come to you...talk softly and get it used to you being within its vicinity. I also let my bird go in and out of her cage (without knowing how I would get her back in...thankfully, mine put herself to bed when the lights dimmed...can't say yours will, but locking it up is probably not the best idea....) I mean, you can open the door and let it choose (as long as you don't have a very time-constricted schedule...you may play a waiting game etc...)


If he screams when you aren't near him, IGNORE IT..You don't want to reward screams for attention with attention...
Then again, that is not the only reason he could be screaming.

 

[GaleriaGila]

May I give you some readings we usually offer to new members?
He'll be settling in for at least weeks, maybe months. Parrots are just like that.
Meanwhile...

Here's some reading on bonding for you.
http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/49144-tips-bonding-building-trust.html
General Parrot Information - Parrot Forum - Parrot Owner's Community
http://goodbirdinc.blogspot.com/2012...n-parrots.html


Most of us swear by our avian vets in the event of health concerns. I don't know where you are, but here are some links. I only have USA info...
Certified Avian Vets
https://abvp.com/animal-owners/find-an-abvp-specialist/
If none are near you...
Avian Veterinarians
http://www.aav.org/search/custom.asp?id=1803
In my opinion, any of the vets listed here should be better than a regular vet.

What's the diet? That's critical for health. Too many are kept on seeds or other poor-nutrition things. They need veggies, legumes, grains... pellets are a good staple. Here's what I use.
Harrison's Bird Foods
I feed Harrison's, supplemented by fresh healthy treats. My first, and later, my current avian vet recommended it. My bird loves the pellets now, but to get him converted, my avian vet suggested putting pellets out all day, and putting seeds (his old diet) out for two 15-minute periods a day. That would sustain him but leave him hungry enough to try new stuff. I presume the same technique could be used to get him to eat other healthy stuff, like fruits and vegetables! My guy was eating pellets in a couple of days, and now I can feed a good variety of other stuff, knowing he has the pellets as a basic. Pellets are out all day... fresh treats a few times a day. I also like Harrison's via mail because I never have to worry about out-of-date products.

Since you're new parront, I'll just drop a note about avoiding teflon pans, which are lethal to birds.

I'm glad you're here. Lots to learn and share and enjoy!

I know you'll get lots of good advice and support from our community.

P.S.
We love photos!

 

[Laurasea]

Welcome to the forum and to parront hood, lits to learn and read up on. ! They are as smart as toddlers, so all the new changes are stressful for them. It help to have the back of the cage against a wall so they feel safe abd no one is sneaking up on them. Hope to hear all about your adventures.

 

[LordTriggs]

Hi I just wanted to add to the advice you have been given is a lot of birds, even cuddly tame ones dislike their wings being touched as those are their primary escape method so they get very nervous when unable to extend their wings

 

[LeslieA]

Welcome!

Like the others, I've had conures for years. If your Sun's a baby, expect a day to two months settling in time then regression to babydom. If a rehome, settling in can take one week to one year; a rescue, one month to five years.

Reading always helps. Try to say his name every paragraph or page. Also, let him see you eat when you want him to eat. When he's quiet say "inside voice."

At any age, until cuddly, he'll hate any feathers being touched and scream if touched or you leave/enter his sight or he hears you or he sees a stranger.

He needs to go to an AV asap. This gives him the chance to know his transport cage and AV as well as travel. It allows the AV to get basics to compare to throughout his life. It allows you to ask questions and get advice.

Somethings important to know are Suns mature sexually around 2 years and that conures tend to be hormonal in the fall. For example, my GCC wants to fight every bird regardless of size and my female Sunday wants me to mate her then bites me for not complying. The extent depends on the bird!

Mine get a mix of pellets and seeds 24hrs/day with new chop every morning. I also do Harrison's, but that's for convenience as much as anything.

What you can expect with any conure: noise, bathing/preening and moodiness. Again, the degree depends on the bird.

 

[LoriS53]

My Sunnie was kept in a cage in dark corner and covered with a blanket when she got noisey. When we got her she was emotionally scarred. We left her cage open so she could come and go as she liked. She spends the majority of her time on my shoulder or on my pillow or tucked under my chin asleep. She about has a nervous breakdown when I leave her so she comes pretty much everywhere with me, believe me people in stores look at you strange, however I figure they can deal with it. Sunnie needs me to feel secure and that is more important to me than a few strange looks. You feather baby will come to love you you just have to do things on his terms. Patience is the key.

 

[EllenD]

Welcome to the forum, and congrats on your new baby!!!

As already mentioned many times, you've only just brought him home, so it's going to be at least months before he fully settles-in and until you totally earn his trust, so it's all about going slow at HIS PACE, not your pace. Trying to force a behavior change right now isn't a good idea, well, it's never a good idea to try to "force" it. As already mentioned, you never want to respond to his screaming, only come to him and pay attention to him when he stops screaming...he'll get the idea, it will just take time...

And keep in-mind that Sun Conures are widely known as not only the "loudest" and "noisiest" Conure species, but one of the loudest and noisiest species of parrot in-general. That's simply their nature, they are extremely vocal and extremely loud, that's pretty-much a universal Sun Conure trait, and that's why it's very important that you never accidentally or unintentionally reinforce the behavior.

This is going to be a marathon for him, not a sprint. Whether he's a hand-raised baby or an adult that you adopted (you didn't mention his age or where you got him, but it really doesn't matter), you are going to have to work on earning his trust and getting him into the groove of your schedule/routine.

****Something that will help tremendously to curb unnecessary screaming is making sure that you have his main-cage located in the "main room" of your home, or the room "where the action is", meaning the room of your home where the people spend most of their time when they're home. This is usually the living room, family room, den, TV room, etc. for most homes. Many people mistakenly locate their bird's main-cage in either a spare bedroom or a spare room that they designate "the bird room", instead of locating it in the room of the house where their family spends most of their time and where friends and family visitors usually spend their time when they come over. The idea is that even if you're not directly interacting with your bird, his cage should still be where you are or where the people of the house are, so that he can see you and be around you as much as possible, be exposed to people talking and interacting with each other, etc. Not only will this help him to bond with you and to better socialize him by just having him be around people as much as possible, but it will also give him a feeling of security and contentment, and this will encourage him to entertain himself while inside his cage, simply because he's where you are. Whether you're watching TV, playing video games, on the computer, reading, eating meals, or just talking with each other, having him in the same room with you while you're doing these things will give him a feeling of safeness, security, and make him feel like he's a part of your family and that he's "included" in your lives...One of the main reasons that birds scream continually is because their main-cages are located in a room that is not the "main room" of the home where the people spend most of their time, and because in this situation the bird knows that people are home, they can hear them, but they cannot see them and feel like they are not being included in what is going on in the house and within the family.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

I was fortunate when I got Skittles. He had already been tamed, potty-trained and even taught to make "kissy noises". He took RIGHT to me and was out and about that same day. But given how he scheduled his own adoption, that was probably all part of the plan. BUT, even with that, I still had a LOT of issues in the first few years. A lot of it was trial and error and a learning experience for me. I was used to have very "laid back" birds- mainly budgies and cockatiels. Having a toddler on steroids wasn't ever really in the cards for me. lol.

So allow me to give you some tips. With sun conures there are several things you have to remember. One, they are loud- there is no getting around that. But the noisiness is controllable. Two, they ARE naturally very territorial and possessive. The key with limiting that is setting boundaries as well as proper socialization. Three, suns are EXTREMELY social animals. They are not the kind of bird you can keep in a quiet room all day when people are home. The BEST thing for you to do is to have the 'day cage' in the MOST active room in the home. Which is usually the living room. The ideal place to put the day cage is in the corner so they have a completely unobstructed view of the entire room.

What I found with Skittles and the issues I had with him was that I was not setting limits or boundaries but rather not realizing I was letting him control me. Once I set limits and boundaries (had to resort to time-outs to correct the behaviors) he completely changed. He is now incredibly obedient (but still mischievous and rebellious as sunnies are). The biggest change I made that had the biggest impact was integrating him into everything I do when I am home. All he wants to do is be with me and be involved in some way in whatever I'm doing. That has had the most positive impact.

To give you some examples. I placed some playstands throughout the apartment. So whichever room I'm in, he has a 'safe' place to go. He has a playstand atop his day cage. A regular playstand on the other side of the living room near my recliner and he has a perch with toys that I attached to my computer desk for him to sit on. He has a ring perch in the bathroom that he sits on and keeps "guard" when I'm in the shower. BTW, sunnies love water so you may want to invest in something they can bathe in. I just use a Pyrex casserole dish. I joke with my friends about it. When it comes time for his bath I tell people I gotta go marinate Skittles to make conure casserole.

I also recommend sleep cages to be kept in the bedroom if you are going to be active at night. Sunnies need 10-14hrs of undisturbed sleep per night. They need a LOT more than us. I'm a night owl, so a sleep cage for him is more necessity in my case. If they don't get enough sleep, they will be grumpy which will result in more screeching and bad behaviors (much like humans are when they don't get enough sleep).

You'll want to work on socialization with anyone who regularly comes over. Skittles is not properly socialized and is incredibly possessive of me which in MOST cases is not the ideal situation. BUT, for me, its ideal given how things are with me and my life. I don't like having company nor having people in my house any longer than they need to be, so socializing him never really was an option anyways. Plus, it gives me the perfect "out" if someone wants to come over.