Questions on Choosing from a Clutch

[Timothy]

Hello all, I am a new member and you can find my Initial Post in the new members section!
I worked at an exotic parrot Retial Store for a while, Todd Marcus Birds Exotic
I am an experienced owner and have had birds of all types (I would rescue and re home a lot of parrots)

I have a 8 yr old B&G Macaw who is adorable
And a 7 yr old Peach Face Lovebird

With that out of the way on to my First Question!

I will be getting a baby Sun Conure very soon, I am friends with the breeder. However, I've Never had the opportunity to pick from a clutch before. Wow! What a responsibility. Every parrot is unique and I want to make the best informed decision i can. So!

What should i look for as far as attitude, alertness, etc
Some of the babies are bigger than the others, Will the first hatched be healthier?

Any and ALL Suggestions are welcome! I have another week before i go make my choice!

EDIT: I have searched many sites and forums before asking this. I cant seem to get any answers, I guess i just suck at searching questions haha.

 

[RavensGryf]

Well you definitely aren't a beginner if you've worked at an exotic bird store. Sounds like fun picking your baby! I didn't meet Raven or his siblings in person first, since he was shipped from out of state, but I felt I knew their general personality characteristics from what the breeder would tell me and how the personality would tend to show in pictures once they got a little older. Raven was the most 'alert', chatty, outgoing one of the bunch. That didn't necessarily mean he was the friendliest I've come to find. What I noticed is that he can be very strong willed and stubborn. Mostly to me though. He's more tolerant to Don and his bird buddy Griffin lol. In other words, more outgoing translated to stronger personality. What I find too, is that whatever "personality type" or traits a bird has, I think probably those characteristics were there to be seen from a very early age?
I've had that happen with another bird too. Two siblings, I picked the bigger, better colored, more outgoing one, and I found that had a very 'strong' personality.

Also about size, I would definitely say that a small one or 'runt' can be every bit as healthy as the clutchmates. I know first hand with that one . My male Red Bellied is a small guy for his species, and he's 20 and still fine! I had a super small Gouldian Finch (my first bird) and he lived the normal lifespan of around 10 years. My other birds are a little smaller for their species too lol. Just like people, they have different genetics and frame sizes regardless of health or hardiness. Good luck!

 

[Timothy]

Yeah that's what i'm contemplating. Do i pick the outgoing one? the shy one? The Runt? the Head Honcho? I have had many birds (Mostly rescues that i would re-home after re rehabilitating them usually taking 6 months to a year)
And unlike Maya and Nibblett, (Who were sole choices) this will be my first "Pick of the litter"

Here are my expectations. I WILL be training this parrot. The Works! Target Training, Clicker training, Flight Training (Not outdoors, just for emergencies) Tricks and (Safe) Stunts!

Also what i want is a bird that will behave and generally "Be Good"

So what early personality should i be interested in.

Also What would be the best way to sex my Sun Conure? Should i take it to a vet? or take the sample and mail it in? (I have an Avian Vet friend with 15 yrs experience who will do most things for free but id rather not bother him if its not EMERGENCY)

 

[Timothy]

Speaking of Training this will be my first training exercise with parrots other than the basics (step up, wave etc)

Heh guess how long it took for me to spell Exercise - joking aside

any tips or links would be appreciated

 

[Birdman666]

I personally would go for the outgoing one as they tend to have the best temperments for me, but the number one thing is to choose the bird that also chooses you...

 

[Birdman666]

Seriously... there are no limits to the things you can teach a conure to do.

Especially the outgoing attention oriented ones...

Have you thought about skateboarding?!

Py and Demitre both loved it...

 

[samhatch]

My first and only Green Cheek Conure was picked from a clutch as well. I know it can be very overwhelming. So much cuteness
For me I scoped out all the birdies... they all looked healthy, eyes and nares clear etc.
So I just spent some time with them. Scritching, touching, talking. And one just stood out. I'm not sure what it was about her but I knew she was coming home with me. I had to wait a few weeks to take her home so I visited my breeder a few times for a couple weeks and every time the attachment grew stronger.
I think you just have to go with your gut instinct

 

[RavensGryf]

I personally would go for the outgoing one as they tend to have the best temperments for me, but the number one thing is to choose the bird that also chooses you...

"Outgoing" has always meant dominant and challenging for me, and not necessarily an attention seeker. I personally would go for "sweet" and maybe not the most bold one. That's just me though. It depends on what YOU want

If you don't let the bird choose you, it's hit or miss. A few times I got lucky with either the breeder assigning one for me, or me picking one based on the best coloration. We do our best with what we get... Just like kids. They're all so individual and you can't always tell what they'll turn out to be like.

 

[Birdman666]

Py was outgoing, and was the friendliest bird you ever wanted to see...

Demitre was outgoing, and he was dominant, and more than a little bit evil...

The main difference is I RAISED PY from a young bird!!! The person who raised Demitre allowed him to rule the roost, and he got conure "spoiled bird syndrome." FIVE homes later, I got him. TWO years after that, he became a good bird again. (Undoing conure spoiled bird syndrome is a major pain!)

Py was a pampered parrot who lived outside the cage, and was given a ton of freedom. However, he also was given boundaries from day 1. And that's the key to preventing "challenging and difficult."

The evil ones tend to be smarter, and have bigger personalities... that's why I always loved working with them. Boundary setting eliminates much of the evil from the equation. Then you're left with smart and big personality...

 

[Timothy]

Awesome, thanks for all the advice guys! Well i ended up taking 2 of them home :> they are just TOOOOO adorable!! Ha ha.

I don't think i'll be keeping both of them, but i just couldnt leave the one all by himself, so i took both and will be weaning them together, and finding a home for one of them.

They are about 2 weeks old if im judging properly, which i doubt i am due to inexperience with Sun Conure babies.

so cute

 

[JerseyWendy]

How super exciting!!

I can tell you my experience with my babies, 2 of them I picked out from the 'clutch'.

Hunter, my YN had 2 siblings, and I had first pick. I waited with the pick until the babies were somewhat mobile and showed some character. Hunter was the first one who waddled right on over to me. She was neither shy nor rambunctious - just sweet. She is now 15, and THE biggest lovebug with every single one of us in the family.

Niko, my B&G had one clutch mate, and I initially had picked him over Niko because he was VERY outgoing, VERY vocal, and VERY rambunctious. He would knock Niko over in an attempt to come to me. Niko, OTOH, was quite shy initially. Why did I change my mind, you may wonder? When I finally held Niko for the first time, he was THE sweetest, THE calmest baby big mac you could ever imagine. He was cooing in my arms, and my heart melted. I have ZERO regrets.

 

[Timothy]

Aww thats such a sweet story, i love the little guys.

 

[RavensGryf]

So cute Timothy! Congratulations have fun. Now, you can see which personality is your favorite and keep that one!