I am getting a Green Cheek Conure?

Question

I was supposed to get him in 3 weeks but the breeder seems to think he is doing well and will be fully weaned by mid next week. I am so excited, can anyone please help me through what to expect when i get him and what to have ready for him.
I am wanting to teach him tricks and to talk if at all possible.
Any suggestions and ideas would be so greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

Congratulations on your new baby!

Things you need to get:

Cage: Make sure that your cage is big enough to allow your baby to climb, spread his wings and play. The minimum size cage you want to get is 24"x24"x24" but the bigger the better. The bar spacing on the cage is critical so that their heads don't get caught between the bars. For a Conure, don't go any larger than 5/8 to 3/4 of an inch apart. If you buy a cage that has feeding doors, make sure that the doors give easy access to the feeding cups and that the doors have good clasps or locks. Some birds (usually bigger than a GCC) become very adapt at opening doors. Same goes for the main door but in addition, make sure the main door is large enough to take your bird in and out of without injury. Also, invest in a cage cover or use an old sheet to cover your bird at night. Birds need 10 - 12 hours of "privacy" to sleep each night. If possible, put their cages in an area of the house that doesn't get a lot of noise or foot traffic after they've gone to bed.

Perches: Make sure that you get perches that are the right size for your bird's feet. The birds feet should not be stretched nor should it be able to encircle the perch and touch. Try getting perches with different diameters, simulating perches in the wild. Try different woods, giving your baby a variety and creating an interest. You'll soon find he will have a favorite perch that he will sleep on at night. You can get perches that go from the bottom of the cage to the top and they will love to climb but generally when they perch, they will perch at or near the top of the cage.

Toys: Toys are critical to keeping your bird entertained. For a Green Cheek, don't overwhelm him with large toys but lots of smaller hanging toys with interesting shapes and textures. Most good toy stores (I've posted Busy Beaks' website) will direct you to the right toys for your kind of bird.

Weight Scale: I believe it is important to weigh your buddy every week therefore an inexpensive digital scale is helpful. We weigh our birds on Saturdays. Our Green Cheek's weight stays consistent at 64gm.

Training: I’m not so much in to my bird doing tricks. Our Green Cheek is starting to talk a little but that is more because the White Eyed Conure we rehomed earlier this year talks. Although, because our little guy was parent-raised, we did have to teach him all of his socialization skills. The best way to train a bird to talk and do tricks is repetition and working with him often in a quiet place. When I was teaching Sugar to “step-up”, I took him in to a small quiet bathroom (keep the toilet seat down!) and worked with him there. Within a few days we could handle him without stressing him. Now, he is very comfortable with hands and is a delightful shoulder ornament.

There is so much more and I'm sure others will have suggestions for you. I've added some of my favorite links or those I found helpful when our GCC came to live with us. For laughs, I included "Give me a kiss" -- enjoy!

Answer 2

Congratulations on your new Fid (feathered-kid)!

I have a Blue Crown Conure - so welcome to the conure family.

Get a HUGE cage and lots of natural branches and a big variety of toys. I also recommend getting a natural play gym (but they can be really expensive) To cut down on the costs of new bird ownsership, try going to bird shows and discount places to get your cage and accessories. The pet store jacks up the prices of cages a LOT! You can get a really good cage for a fraction of the price if you look in the right places.

Also, a book that really helped me is "A guide to a well behaved parrot." There are some other really good books out there as well on caring for and training your pet bird.

Expect? Expect to vacuum a lot. Get a good carpet stain remover in case he poops in the carpet. Play a lot with him and socialize him if you want a friendly bird.

Good luck!

Answer 3

it is unusual habit. it is mating season and if the fowl identifies with you as his mate, he does no longer choose the rest around you. this may be the reason. in the experience that your fowl sounds like those products are threatening you by some ability he will attempt to attack you to get you far flung from it. it is probable a question maximum suitable spoke back by way of your avian veterinarian. i might advise which you shrink peanuts, maximum folk think of they're alright to feed birds yet they do no longer seem to be, and likewise the pencils. The lead and erasers would properly be very volatile if swallowed. sturdy success.

Answer 4

OOOHHHH, I've got two and love them both to death. My baby is only 5 months and loves to lay on his back in your hand and have you scratch his belly. They love to dance too, if you get some music going they will start bobbing their heads and making all kinds of noises

Answer 5

Omg... they (to me) are one of the best birds to own !!! I used to have one, but due to moving, i had to give him up. (long story, i would've never 'willingly' givin him up ) You 'can' teach him, but trust me, it'll take a long time, and lots & lots of patience !!! You're getting a "new baby", so treat it as such. Lots of tlc, lots of praises for 'doing good', right off the bat, teach it that biting, is a NO NO !.. or you'll have trouble down the road. My bird bit, BUT.... he bit my stepson, which he didn't like. He bit me once, out of 'fear'.... he thought 'my' arm, was my stepsons arm, and yup.... 'chomp' !! But, i didn't scold him for that.. it was just confusion. If you'd like to e'mail me, now, and after you get your bird, please do so. I'd like to hear from you, and your progress with your new 'baby' ! ( [e-mail] ) Best of luck to you and your new bird.... i think you'll be pleased !

Answer 6

Whatever you do, don't bring the bird home until you are certain the bird is fully weaned. Most responsible breeders are good about this, but I've known of a few who are ready to have the birds off of their hands a little too soon. It's hard to be patient when you've got such a cool little Fid (feathered kid) on it's way, but patience is far better than running into the problem of learning how to properly hand feed. If your Fid does come home early and you notice signs of him wanting to be handfed and refusing normal food, ask that the breeder either take him back (or make this an agreement before you bring him home) or teach you how to correctly handfeed - it's more complicated than you'd think.

Now with that said, the obvious answers to what you'll need when he comes home: a cage (bigger's better but make sure you don't get one with too wide of bar spacing or you might end out with a bird who strangles himself trying to get out), a cover for the cage to use at night or as a time out (a dark colored sheet works well if you don't want to buy something expensive), food/water (I'll tell you more about this in a sec),a spray bottle to mist your bird (shower perches are good too, but not all birds catch on to taking a shower with you), cage cleaning supplies (extra newspaper, a scrubber, a bottle of water GSE [grapefruit seed extract] mixture and whatever else you might want to use) and toys (the best toys for my birds are free - phone books are great! If you choose to give your bird branches make sure the wood isn't poisonous - there are many websites that list safe woods for pet birds - and, with anything that comes from a mass pet store or from outside, it's best to bake it in a low temperature oven (200 degrees or so) for about 1/2 an hour before giving it to your bird.

As for food and water.... I really really really suggest getting an appropriately sized bird water bottle for the cage instead of a bowl of water. Most of my birds like to make soup with their food and if you're not able to remove this within a couple hours time you've got yourself a true bacterial pool waiting to make your bird sick. In the beginning, hang the water bottle over a bowl of water to get your fid used to the idea. You can also play with the water bottle so the bird sees where the water comes from. When you see your bird using the water bottle instead of the bowl you can then remove the water from the bowl - you might want to keep the bowl under the bottle though to catch drips. If you choose to do this, you won't regret it.

As for food, don't just give seed and pellets. Seeds and nuts should be given as treats only and only a couple of times a week. They're fattening and lacking in nutrition. Pellets are good, but in and of themselves are not a complete diet. My birds get grains (oats, rice, cereal, cornbread, etc.), cooked beans, vegetables and fruits and at least one or two servings per week of a protein (1/2 a hard boiled egg, 1/4 c. cooked chicken, 1/4 beans, etc.). Do make sure to always clean any produce as pesticides and chemicals can be lethal to birds. If you can buy organic it's a good idea. Also, make certain you never prepare your birds food on teflon or nonstick pans as they emit toxins when heated. Avacados, chocolate and alcohol are all poisonous to birds so don't feed these under any circumstance. Also, watch to make certain that your pitted fruits are not too ripe as the pits are toxic to birds and can "leak" into the fruit when it gets too ripe.

As for what you can expect and what you should do.... Usually it's a good idea to bring your bird home, place him in his cage and let him have time to adjust before bringing him out. I've always given my birds the first day in their cages. It's also a good idea for your bird to have some time alone. Eventually you will be leaving him and he needs to know this from the beginning. Young birds are often scared and this leads to aggression - don't be surprised if you get bit a lot at first. But, with that said, DO NOT ever use gloves to handle your bird - he needs to learn to trust you. You can use a wooden spoon or dowel rod to get your bird in and out at first - but you should never do more than this. It'll take a lot of work and trust building, but if you go at it slowly and reward your bird for good behavior you'll end out with a great pet.

I hope some of this information has helped. If you're up to reading you should check out www.landofvos.com. It's geared more toward the eclectus parrot but had a wealth of information about cleaning, toxins, food and other stuff that is relevant to all parrot species. Have fun!

Answer 7

I have one who is mean like a bad pit bull dog. I love it anyhow.