New family member

[SpanischeRose]

Hello there,
Meet Jasper he is 10weeks old. I got him Friday late Afternoon. I'm very new at this. I have 4 Budgies and now everything about them. I was reading a lot about the conure before I decided to get one but I feel it is different when you then actually got one.
I don't want to make any mistakes and then make 5 steps back instead of Steos forward. He was out yesterday for the first time and was on my Budgies Cage from what I have seen it looked like he wanted to go in there Cage.
This morning when I got up I went to say good morning to my Birds and Jasper came close to the front of his cage and then hopped back on his perches and back to the front of the cage. Does that behavior mean his was happy to see me?
I'm not familiar with the body language yet. Make some of you could give me some pointers that would be more then appreciated.

 

[Mariar]

What a pretty little bird..welcome. Lots of conure owners around, I am not one of them at the moment. Imo your little guy was checking you out..that's a good thing.

 

[StarryEyedGirl]

He is precious! I have a black capped conure and when I first brought him home I had little to no idea what I was doing. Harley is my first pet bird ever! I would think that if he was hopping back and forth with his feathers down and in a non aggressive manner he's probably just checking you out and is ready for play time. Usually any behavior where his feathers are up giving him the 'bigger bird' (fluffed up), head down or going back and forth side to side slowly is aggressive behavior. My Harley doesn't like seeing himself in the mirror so he gets defensive over me and his things. But they do nip but that's their way of feeling around. And then there are love bites. If he bites and draws blood, pressure train him. I did so by putting Harleys beak between my index finger and thumb in a pinching form and grab his beak and put pressure on it. He doesn't bite hard anymore. Get him step up on your hand or perches before allowing him on your shoulders. He could get territorial which you don't want. You'll get use to his cues for things he wants. Treats he likes. It takes time. But conures are quite interesting birds. Never a dull moment with Harley.

 

[SpanischeRose]

Thank you Mariar for you Reply

 

[SpanischeRose]

Thank you StarryEyedGirl for your Reply.
Today when i had Jasper out he step on the Perch i put in front of him and then i took him out. He was flying around for a bit and was checking out my Budgies. After a while i got the Perch again and then he was stepping up and i took him on to the Couch and i put my Hand in front of his Body and he stepped up on my Hand. I scratched his Head and his Head feather was all standing up it looked so cute.
To come back to this morning when i was greeting them after i got up.
Jasper came to the front of the Cage and then hopped around in his Cage and came back to the front. He came to one of th Perches attached at the front and he moved his head up and down to me it looked like Dancing but i think im wrong. Is that a aggressive behavior there and if so how should i adress this behavior??

 

[Notdumasilook]

Get the lil fella out with you as often as possible. Conures are not "cage birds".. they want to intereact with ya. Cages in my house are only for when Im not there.. or sleeping. Get him out and spoil him rotten with attention and you will have a life long "child" that will squeal with delight every when you walk in the door or uncover their cage in the mornings. Seriously I'd let my birds stay out but my Amazon has a fetish for electical wires and hardwood furniture...so they are out under supervision only. That head bobbing you see is probably just a greeting. They seem to have all kinds of lil dance moves ). Mine bobs his head when I shake my finger at him and tell him "no"... From what I understand of conures.. "no" is usually the first word they learn. (hah). Mine will bob his head also when wanting sugar..something he wants often along with the petting. Now if he bobs his head real hard and screams.. hes probably not happy about something.(at least thats true of my Sun). That is an adorable pic by the way. Congrats on the new baby.

 

[StarryEyedGirl]

It sounds like he's just greeting you. I agree with notdumasilook conures are definitely not cage birds. Harley is out all the time. If he is bobbing his head up and down or could be his special way to greet you. If feathers are down and he seems content the it's nothing to worry about. Harley stretches out one wing all the way back while stretching the foot on the same side, sneezes then does the same with the other wing/foot to greet me in the morning. It's the funniest thing. Then he walks back and forth on his perch in his cage until I open his cage for the day (within seconds of taking the cover off, apparently I'm not fast enough lol). It's just something he does. You'll be able to tell aggressive behavior. Usually lunging, fluffed up feathers and a shrill cry (harley has a battle cry... It's kinda funny) or pacing back and forth just overall looking aggravated is located a clear sign to stay away and try to find out what's making them anxious.

 

[SpanischeRose]

Thanks guys for the Replys. He only had to go back to his Cage because I had to go out. I didn't want him to stay out when I'm not home. They will be a lot that I have look out for.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

Thanks guys for the Replys. He only had to go back to his Cage because I had to go out. I didn't want him to stay out when I'm not home. They will be a lot that I have look out for.

Congrats! Notdumb is right about the 'caged bird' aspect. Conures are VERY social - AND very sneaky too. They want nothing more than to be with their owners and included in your daily activities.

Great that you have him out a lot, I think you'll find them very enriching. But don't underestimate them. They are VERY smart and they can be quite sneaky!

 

[Notdumasilook]

As far as body language of aggression.. Booger has about the same as my Amazon. Head goes down, shoulders go out a bit..feathers on back of neck go up.. and next.. he charges with his mouth open. He is actually a lot quicker than the Amazon. 95% of the time he does this is because someone (including the amazon) are too close to his food and/or toy. The Amazon (Cookie) is much more laid back and aggression is rare. Booger on the other hand is young and just became sexually mature and has that teenage chip on his shoulder. Kinda hope he grows out of it with time but we shall see.

 

[SpanischeRose]

I thank you guys for all your Replys. He will be out everytime I'm home. I want him to be around me as often as he likes.

 

[SpanischeRose]

I thought I give a little update on how the last Days with Jasper has been. He is very sweet and I love him very much. He is out very Day and he just enjoys it. He also likes to go into my Budgies cage but I won't open the Door.
This morning when I said Good Morning to him he hop on my hand and climbed on my Arm I believe he wanted out but I could because I had to go to work. I started his step ups with a perch first and every time he did it he got a treat and then gradually I took the Perch away and now he steps on my finger and I take him out of the Cage.
When I do the step up outside the Cage he steps up but soon after he hops back off.
I was able to scratch his Head days ago but now when I try he backs up. I guess he is not ready yet or he doesn't trust me much yet.

 

[SpanischeRose]

He want to come out after I greet him in the morning but I can't let him out because I have to go to work. Will he get upset with me? I tell him that I have to work and that he then can come out in the afternoon. I'm just hoping he doesn't get crossed with me.

 

[BoomBoom]

Incredibly cute! Love the pose. Your parrot looks pretty big for a pineapple conure. How heavy is he?