Just got a new sun conure

[unitednations161]

I just bought a sun conure thats about 3 years old. The 1st owner had to part with it because of personal reasons, The second family had it two weeks and got rid of it because it was to loud in the apt.

What do I need to know about this bird? Size of the cage? (its in a small one now, smaller then my parakeets cage)

What food does it need? I think all they fed it for the last three years was apples and seeds. I know my parakeets, need fruits and veggies, but they things are impossible yet to get to eat good. I bought pellets for them both, is that good?

Toys as well? It has some, and a couple of cardboard boxes in there.

And behavior, I know I just got it, But it does bite me everyonce and while to a point where i bleed. But also it will get on my shoulders and walk around with me and take off flying in the house and come back and land on me. When its on my shoulder it screams, I mean SCREAMS almost where my ears start to ring.

I know I can just look all this up but I would love real people with experience to tell me.


THANK YOU!

 

[Melandkids]

I have a sun that is rehomed. I owned a sun a long time ago for a short period. It had a great personality. Sad story. But the sun I have now is very different. I am not sure what happen to it. But it is very timid. But it loves to scream... And scream all day. I have been working on distracting it with other sounds. Zeus will nip me till I bleed. I try not to react and refocus him when it happens. But I know there will be a lot of people on here that can give you great advice. I am learning a lot and developing my relationship with my two. I do know that pellets are better and fresh veggies. I haven't found toys yet that mine will play with. Good luck

 

[WannaBeAParrot]

Hi U.N. Welcome to the forum. Congrats on bringing home your sun conure.

I noticed you keep calling the birdie "it". See if you can find out from previous families whether they know or think is a male or female. What is the name s/he came with?

You are probably already finding out that living with a sun conure is very different than parakeets. For one, you know now how loud they can be, and how hard they can bite. So please please please be careful when you shoulder this bird. Since you are new together, I wouldn't want something to frighten him/her to a point where s/he bites you on your face. It happens, even to those of us that have lived with and loved and get along with our parrots like best friends for years, even decades. So take your time and learn your conure's body language, etc.

The bird could be screaming because s/he is happy, calling for someone or another bird, frightened -- who knows.

Did s/he live in a house with other bird(s) before your home? Try to get in touch with all previous families that s/he lived with and find out as much as you can about social, health, vet name/records, food, sleep, talking, playing, tricks, toys, cage size, time out and in cage, flying, etc. etc.

Also, bring him/her to an avian vet to get checked out if s/he hasn't had a physical in past 6 months or year at the most. That way you'll find out if s/he has any imbalances and can verify approx. age.

The hard bites that are drawing blood need to stop right away. So whatever the interaction is when it happens, stop doing it for now -- even if it is trying to be sweet and kind to the bird. If s/he's biting that hard, then s/he's not ready for any of that. If the bites are to your hands, then for sure keep them out of sight when you are up close to him/her for a while unless you are getting him/her to step up without a problem. If s/he won't step up without the biting, then u should use a perch or dowel.

Food: if s/he's healthy, then I would feed a diet of good pellets that are the appropriate kind and size for a sun conure (medium or small, but not large) plus plenty of fresh veggies and some fruit - try out some different things to see what s/he likes -- kale, spinach, peppers, corn on cob, broccoli, etc. Pellets: if you want to go organic (they are a bit pricey), lots of people here recommend Harrison's. Pritti won't eat them at all. His favorite pellets are the Zupreem. I prefer the Natural flavor best, but since he likes the little fruity ones and also the veggie type, I mix a little in. Pritti is an older conure, 30 years, and he has some kidney insufficiency, so he only eats about 10% of his diet in pellets and the rest in regular kitchen food since pellets are not considered the best diet for his situation. But if your guy/gal is healthy.... Also, I would like to caution you about sunflower seeds -- they are known to easily get "addicted" to them and may even eat them exclusively if you feed a seed diet.

You can also give fresh cooked grains and beans, like quinoa, brown rice, basmati rice, also sweet potato w/o skin, etc. Millet sprays make a nice treat.

Never ever: avocado, caffiene foods, chocolate, cocoa.

Take some time and read up on sun conures.

Good luck and have fun. Post a photo for us.

 

[BoomBoom]

Congratulations on your new companion bird, UN!

New conure threads are always daunting to me, because there is so much ground to cover. Good thing, WBAP gave you a bunch of info to start you off. Parrots are one of the most demanding animals to care for, and to me was a complete lifestyle change. I will tell you that it gets easier, a lot easier as the months go by. Patience goes a long way!!!

On the biting, avoid interaction until he gets used to things. The more he bites you, the more it becomes a habit. When parrots form a habit, it is very hard to break. That goes with screaming. Do not react to his screams (after making sure he is safe of course).

Instead of going through each topic, I will share with you links (some from this very forum) that really helped me start things off:

First and most important: http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/12857-top-10-hazards-companion-birds.html

On his nutritional needs (also useful for conures): Avian Nutrition

On understanding your bird's language: http://www.avianweb.com/communicatewithyourbirds.html

On gaining his trust: http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/3100-bond-forming.html


Very helpful stuff, trust me! Keep reading, keep asking questions here, participate in other's threads. Good luck and post some pics of your sun!

 

[unitednations161]

Im sorry the bird is a boy and his name is sunny.

Do you think this cage will work for him?

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Hes getting better already with the biting, but the screaming oh lordy, when hes on my shoulder hes going to make me go deaf lol. Maybe ill have to wear earplugs with him near me. I try to ignore it, But when i go in the room hes in he screams, then I walk out he quiets down, i come back in to let him out, he screems.

The original owner said he always screemed when being carried, so it might be a hard habit to break. I dont mean to complain, but im only 23, my hearing is rather good ATM I do love him to death though and will keep him, He's been in three houses in the last month. So he's here to stay.

 

[ruffledfeathers]

You can do it!! I lived with a sun for 11 years and you kind of get used to their sound (except if they are having a bad day, and then it is a little annoying!)

Sun conures generally will be happiest in a larger cage with plenty of toys and things to chew. (think something about two feet wide and maybe nearly as deep, with a good height to climb up and down).

There is SO much info on this forum regarding diet (you can read recipes and get ideas from there.) Almost all of us will generally agree with a diet of quality parrot pellets and fresh veggies/grains, etc. Some of the information can feel like OVERLOAD but to begin, you could even get good quality pellets and buy just some bags of frozen mixed veggies and make some brown rice, and offer these foods to your bird and see how well he likes them.

You are probably going to notice quickly enough what situations cause a bite or near bite, and what the bird acts like prior to a bite. Do your best to avoid it, with as little "drama" as possible. Sometimes they can even get a little nippy with you for "fun" or entertainment if it becomes a type of game to them with drama. They are smart and observant of our moods and can be SO funny.

I am so happy for you and your new sun. Good luck!

 

[unitednations161]

another thing, He loves riding on my shoulder, but he wont ever get down unless its on his cage, is this because hes in a new place yet again? The owner said he used to take showers and go on his own through the house. hes stuck to me atm.

Oh and big question is, How much attention is enough for him. I work 8 hour days, shift work. So As much as I want to, I cant be with him 24/7, so whats enough? I don't wanna just give him "enough" by any means, But I dont want him to start being destructive of himself either.

 

[unitednations161]

You can do it!! I lived with a sun for 11 years and you kind of get used to their sound (except if they are having a bad day, and then it is a little annoying!)

Sun conures generally will be happiest in a larger cage with plenty of toys and things to chew. (think something about two feet wide and maybe nearly as deep, with a good height to climb up and down).

There is SO much info on this forum regarding diet (you can read recipes and get ideas from there.) Almost all of us will generally agree with a diet of quality parrot pellets and fresh veggies/grains, etc. Some of the information can feel like OVERLOAD but to begin, you could even get good quality pellets and buy just some bags of frozen mixed veggies and make some brown rice, and offer these foods to your bird and see how well he likes them.

You are probably going to notice quickly enough what situations cause a bite or near bite, and what the bird acts like prior to a bite. Do your best to avoid it, with as little "drama" as possible. Sometimes they can even get a little nippy with you for "fun" or entertainment if it becomes a type of game to them with drama. They are smart and observant of our moods and can be SO funny.

I am so happy for you and your new sun. Good luck!

The screaming doesnt bother me to much. Im just going to stick in an earplug whens hes on my shoulder lol. When he's up stairs in my room is kind of peaceful actually, like the birds outside.

 

[ruffledfeathers]

I also work full time and have had parrots and worked it out. Never had one become self destructive. They can handle you being gone with enough toys and good foods to keep them happy and entertained and healthy.
Even on a very busy day when i work late and am tired and have little in me, i always sit down to dinner with Gilbert (even if i'm not hungry, i'll have a small snack or a soda and give him dinner out of his cage, in the kitchen, with my undivided attention). He LOVES this. Sometimes on "bad" days, all he has is a couple hours like that, dinner and play time and snuggle time and then it's his bed time.
Before work in the morning, some days all i have time for is cleaning the cage, food/water and taking him out to hold him and give a kiss and talk a few minutes. On good days, I even bring him up to stand in the shower with me.
So, in this long and rambling way, i'm saying it is ok to vary the amount of time and attention your life allows you to give, but always make up for it with some quality time each day. Casual time is also good in between, but sometimes 2 hours of high quality time means more than 6 hours of just 'being there' and having the bird hanging out.

 

[unitednations161]

I also work full time and have had parrots and worked it out. Never had one become self destructive. They can handle you being gone with enough toys and good foods to keep them happy and entertained and healthy.
Even on a very busy day when i work late and am tired and have little in me, i always sit down to dinner with Gilbert (even if i'm not hungry, i'll have a small snack or a soda and give him dinner out of his cage, in the kitchen, with my undivided attention). He LOVES this. Sometimes on "bad" days, all he has is a couple hours like that, dinner and play time and snuggle time and then it's his bed time.
Before work in the morning, some days all i have time for is cleaning the cage, food/water and taking him out to hold him and give a kiss and talk a few minutes. On good days, I even bring him up to stand in the shower with me.
So, in this long and rambling way, i'm saying it is ok to vary the amount of time and attention your life allows you to give, but always make up for it with some quality time each day. Casual time is also good in between, but sometimes 2 hours of high quality time means more than 6 hours of just 'being there' and having the bird hanging out.

Ok thank you! shift work is going to be a pain though because on 11 to 7 I sleep days and hes almost going to have to be covered if he screams during the day, I do need sleep. Do you think Ill hurt him at all if on 11 to 7 If I change his "sleeping habits slightly" on that shift. I bought him pellets now to eat and he seams to like the nut flavored ones the best! (my parakeets are fussy though, they dig in the newspaper to find seeds because pellets are gross) lol Im going to spend as much time as i possibly can with sunny. So i hope I make him happy being in a final permanent home. I did get a whole mess of ear plugs too, while he sits on my shoulder blasting his calls out to god who knows what

 

[WannaBeAParrot]

Sunny is very cute in the photo. That cage is nice. Sunny should have a nice time in there with some wood and rope perches, toys, a swing, etc.

Just one thing to mention. I see a fan in the photo. Please be sure that Sunny is not in any of the breeze from the fan or in the breeze from a vent or window in the house on a regular basis.

 

[ruffledfeathers]

on your days when you are 11-7, you "could" have a little trouble but he may get used to it. I wouldn't even try to adjust the bird's sleeping schedule but basically keep him on a normal routine and on the days when you need to sleep during the day, maybe give him an hour or so of out of the cage playtime before you sleep and then put your ear plugs in, lol.
I had a few times when i was SICK during Georgie's lifetime and in bed all day and in general she wasn't too bad. A few random squawks which would maybe wake me and i'd go back to sleep. (Her worst squawking was in the morning.) I sleep with white noise on and i think they somehow relate that sound to "it's time for us to be calm now". When she would hear that machine go off in the morning, it was time to call me. ha!