Should we get a cockateil or a sun conure?

Question

I am wanting a bird. I have had a cockateil for about 8 years.
I just can't decide now which bird is best.
I want one that is fairly clean and not too loud and good w/ kids.

Answer 1

I have heard that conures are loud. Louder than a cockatiel or a lovebird would be.

If you are worried about two different types of birds getting along with one another, I do not think that should be a problem. I have a cockatiel and a lovebird who love each other. It just depends on their personalities. You could get another cockatiel and they hate each other.

I did get my bird from a rescue shelter and the lady did have cockatiels and conures in the same cage. So it has been done if that is your goal. I would make sure that you do have two cages just in case the birds would fight. I do keep my birds separate and only let them interact during out of the cage time.

I think which bird you get depends on the amount of noise you can handle from a bird. I know my lovebird took me a while to get used to. The screaming between my parakeet and lovebird was nonstop for about 2 weeks.

I recommend you do some research about conures to find the pros and cons.

Answer 2

Both birds are beautiful and outgoing. The conures tend to be quite a bit more expensive than cockatiels. So, if price is a factor, it is in my house...that is a consideration. A conure can live in the same type of cage that a cockatiel lives in, so that is really easy to find. The conures can be extremely affectionate, but are harder generally to teach than a cockatiel, for whistling, talking etc. If you were to add another tiel, you could try to let it live with the one that you already have, and it would have a companion as well as you. The cockatiels are dustier than a conure, but a conure is a lot louder. It is really hard to say which one is best, because there will always be someone to say one or the other, is best. I do find that a conure can be loud though, and it is not a pretty song, tiels sort of warble and sing a bit. Just a word of caution, if going with a conure, try to get one as young as possible, and look for a band on the leg to prove it. Some of these poor little guys get abused because of the volume...people throwing blankets on them, locked in closets, isolated so people who are annoyed by them don't have to hear them. This is so damaging to a bird, they lose their trust. Both birds have a nasty nip if they are not friendly, and with children, this is very important in your search, you don't need an abused bird becoming frightened, and grabbing at a child's face. I would never say one or the other, I own 11 cockatiels, and they are my darlins', I think conures are really pretty, especially the sun conures...they are stunning, but I have other people in my home children and chihuahuas to consider for the noise. Good luck with your decision. Just try to get all of the history on any bird you bring home, and always aim for young when looking for a pet, older is fine for breeding though.

Answer 3

With the noise factor in consideration, you definately do NOT want a conure. They are very vocal and VERY loud. Any good hand raised bird should be fine with kids, but they can have off days just like humans. So if your children are very young, I would probably still stay away from a conure because they are larger and could do more damage with a bite than a cockatiel could should a child be around at the wrong time. Trust me, I love conures, but it sounds like your situation a cockatiel is still a better choice.

Good Luck with what you decide!

Answer 4

I had a jenday conure and they are a lot like sun conures.sun conures can be loud and mean at times if they don't feel like being played with if you want to have a quiet bird who is good with kids I would get a cockateil but sun conures can be very sweet at the same time you need to go to the petstore and ask there professional advice.

Good luck!

Answer 5

FYI: all bird are messy. If you liked having a cocktail then get another one, but if you are ready for a change then get the sun conure, but my personal favorite are the love birds or parakeets. Love birds are very cute and seem calm, parakeets are very playful and enjoy being with their owner. My parakeets are very calm and don't bite hard unlike other birds such as the parrot. They also make pretty whistling sounds every once and awhile. If you do go with a smaller bird then I suggest that you get two to put in the same cage, because when you are at school or work they can entertain each other.

Answer 6

Cockatiel! I adore sun conures and would love to add one to my home, but they're very different from cockatiels. Cockatiels are very docile and sweet, but especially SUN conures, that entire subspecies is VERY loud and shrieky. If noise is a concern, you do not want a conure of the aratinga family because they are best known for their incredibly loud squawk. I kid you not, you could probably hear a sun conure's scream from two or more blocks away. They're beautiful birds, but very, very, very, VERY loud and very prone to learning to scream for attention, which just intensifies the headache of owning such eye-candy.

Also, when it comes to "good with kids", in general, cockatiels are very nice with any age group. They're gentle, lovable, loving, and open. Aratingas, on the other hand, will be friendly with those who've taken the immense amount of time to earn their trust and that they consider their "flock". Anyone out of that circle will likely receive aggressive, threatening actions or great fear and caution from a sun conure.

If you really want a conure, the best recommendation for a friendlier, quieter conure is the green-cheeked. They're more similar to cockatiels in temperament and "stability" of that nature.

By the way, clean birds don't exist. ;) I guess it depends more on the individual bird's decision of "to throw food 20 feet or not to throw food 20 feet".

Answer 7

sun conures are very special; and you would love it.

You just need to look at the cage size, and the environment of your home.

If you want a beautiful bird, don;t care about the loudness, or the more feces to deal with sun conure would be a special friend.

if you want less mess, and quieter bird; a cockatiel would be an awesome friend.

Answer 8

it doesn't matter which one you get smaller birds make less mess than bigger one and as far as having on that is good with kids is that you will have to teach them not to pick at it and you need to get a young bird for that because if you get on that is older then you take the chance of it not liking kids. and all birds can get loud sometimes. i have an Indian ring-neck parrot and sometimes he is quite and sometimes he is loud. and if you want on that will talk you might want to get a sun conure if you take up time with them some of then will talk to you but you will have to watch what you say around them because they will pick up on things you might not want them to say.

Answer 9

You will be unhappy with the conure. They are very loud and have a large beak compared to a cockatiel and they will nip.

Answer 10

Sun conjures are really beautiful birds but can be intolerably loud.