New owner with many questions about Sun Conures...

happybirds · 04-25-2010, 12:03 AM

Originally posted by BabySunConureIsis19 View Post

congratulations on the new baby! Cockatoos and Conures are my choice of birds. At the moment, I have 3 conures, a Jenday (Jasper) a Sun (Scarlett) and a Mitred (Hobo)

Food Qs:

1. Is there a specific feeding schedule I should abide by for my conure?
There are lots of threads here about feeding on a schedule versus not having a schedule. I am one of the ones who keeps a schedule due to my work and home life, I need to schedule everything! Some folks feel that a schedule isn't the best, because if you can't feed at the same time, then there are concerns about the bird yelling, or getting upset. I must admit, that keeping my flock of 11 on a schedule is at times challenging because I need to drop whatever I'm doing, and head home to feed the birds!

2. Is it healthy to feed my conure pellets, seeds, or both? If so, what kinds?
I feed pellets to all my birds. I feed Mazuri but can tell you that all of the conures like the Fruity Zupreem. I feed NO seed other than an occassional millet or nutraberrie.

3. Even though certain fruit pits/seeds are harmful to birds; like apple seeds and cherry pits. Is the actual fruit okay to give to my conure?
Yes

4. Do conures eat fish and meat? If so, what kinds, and how should they be prepared/cooked?
You can occassionally feed fish and meat but I do not provide it as a normal part of the diet.

5. Are cooked onions just as bad as raw onions?
NO: onions, avacado, chocolate, caffine - there is a thread called the no no list it is a sticky - just search No No List

6. Are there any herbs or spices that conures should NOT eat?
Hmm, I don't know.

7. Can conures eat unsalted, unbuttered, homemade, popcorn as a treat?
Yes

8. Can conures eat cooked pasta plain, or do they have to eat it with other things like olive oil or mashed sweet potatoes?
Yes. Again it isn't a normal part of my birds diet, but I do occassionally feed it - usually the whole wheat pasta

Misc. Qs:

1. Is a harness, a flight suit, or both, good ideas to have just in case?
The earlier you train your bird to a harness the easier it will be. They will come to associate the harness with go outside, which they like. I don't use flight suits.

2. Are heating perches good for birds in general?
Can't answer, don't use them.

3. Does my bird need a shampoo of some sort when she takes her regular bath? If so, what is it, and where can I find it?
NO! Plain old water, nothing else.

4. How long should I leave the full spectrum light on?
Sorry, I don't use it so can't tell you - others will be able to answer.

5. What are the best disinfecting solutions that can be used to properly clean cages, toys, perches, sleeping huts, and any other things that my bird will come in contact? Can I find some of these cleaning agents in my grocery store?
I use Cleansing Gele' from Oxyfresh. If I don't have any, I just use hot water and a rag. I try not to use any chemicals around the birds. - See the No No List

6. Do I always need to sanitize my hands prior to holding my conure? If so, what sanitizer do I use?
I never sanitize my hands. I wash them now and then, but not because I'm going to handle one of my birds, or have handled one of the birds and plan on handling another bird. The sanitizer in stores or breeders is so that you don't bring in any germs to their birds.

7. Do you weigh your bird on a regular basis?
Yes, at least once a month, more often if you choose. Also give them a good going over all the time - make sure the chest is nice and meaty like a chicken breast and that the keel bone isn't protruding. Keep an eye on the poop to make sure it is healthy looking poop and has no odor. Remember, if you feed beets, the poop will be red - don't panic - it is the beets!

nature-smiley-017.gi

Hope this helps a bit!

BabySunConureIsis19 · 04-25-2010, 12:37 AM

Thanks!

Thank you so much Happybirds! Your information has already helped quite a lot. I really appreciate it. : )

FlippiesMom · 04-25-2010, 01:24 PM

Originally posted by BabySunConureIsis19 View Post

Hi Everyone!

I am a proud and an excited owner of a Sun conure! She is my first bird, and I will be bringing her home in a week or so. I still have a lot of questions that need to be answered, in order to make this a safe, nurturing, and positive living environment for my baby.

I just want to say that this will probably be a really long thread due to all of my questions, and if any of you could be so kind as to help answer some of my questions, I would be ever so thankful!

Food Qs:

1. Is there a specific feeding schedule I should abide by for my conure? I would offer pellet all day, fresh food for under two hours each morning, a smidge of whatever you are eating at dinner as long as it is bird safe.

2. Is it healthy to feed my conure pellets, seeds, or both? If so, what kinds? pellets for food - harrison's is the best, seed only as a treat or less than 5%

3. Even though certain fruit pits/seeds are harmful to birds; like apple seeds and cherry pits. Is the actual fruit okay to give to my conure? yes, organic if you can find it because fruit has incredibly high levels of pesticides otherwise.

4. Do conures eat fish and meat? If so, what kinds, and how should they be prepared/cooked? Birds are thought to eat a very small percentage of animal protein in the wild, maybe some chicken fully cooked once in a while...

5. Are cooked onions just as bad as raw onions? no onions.

6. Are there any herbs or spices that conures should NOT eat? I will send you a list my friend made...

7. Can conures eat unsalted, unbuttered, homemade, popcorn as a treat? Yes, but it has no nutritional value so you should keep this to a real minimum considering the amount of food a small bird like a conure consumes and what percentage of that needs to be nutritious.

8. Can conures eat cooked pasta plain, or do they have to eat it with other things like olive oil or mashed sweet potatoes? regular pasta has no value to people or birds...get whole wheat pasta and use as only a very small percentage of the diet - look up Pamela Clark for an example of a balanced whole food diet.

Misc. Qs:

1. Is a harness, a flight suit, or both, good ideas to have just in case? I don't use them.

2. Are heating perches good for birds in general? I don't think they are a good idea. A heat lamp over half of the cage is good for a sick bird or an arthritic bird.

3. Does my bird need a shampoo of some sort when she takes her regular bath? If so, what is it, and where can I find it? NO SHAMPOO EVER.

4. How long should I leave the full spectrum light on? Some people do about two hours to all day, several hours is okay and be sure to follow the manufacturer's recommendations for space to mount to avoid potential retinal damage.

5. What are the best disinfecting solutions that can be used to properly clean cages, toys, perches, sleeping huts, and any other things that my bird will come in contact? Can I find some of these cleaning agents in my grocery store? vinegar works great, chlorhexidine from a vet works well too.

6. Do I always need to sanitize my hands prior to holding my conure? If so, what sanitizer do I use? just use wisdom and wash your hands frequently.

7. Do you weigh your bird on a regular basis? once a week is a great idea if you can do and you will see a natural rise and fall between approximately 100 to 110 grams or so - any drastic change warrants a vet visit.

I apologize for all of the questions, but I figured this would be the best place to ask. Thank you in advance to those of you who answer my questions. It is truly appreciated, and I am so grateful!!!

nature-smiley-017.gi

I hope that helps, I am sure people will have differing opinions and that is okay. Do a lot of reading and in the meantime Pamela Clark's website has some excellent information on diet. Also, there are books like recipe/cook books for parrots that are fabulous.

BabySunConureIsis19 · 04-25-2010, 04:53 PM

Thanks, FlippiesMom!

Thank you FlippiesMom! Your information has been very helpful too. I really appreciate it. : )

Patty · 04-25-2010, 06:58 PM

I would like to remind you to not start out holding that baby more at the start than you plan on having time for in your normal routine. I have one that is very spoiled and if he see's me he starts crying for me to take him. He is almost five years old, and he is more demanding as time goes on. A few times I've had to cover him so that he can't see me. Honestly I don't think he knows he's a bird. And yes I have a housefull of birds, so he has to share my time. It's so easy to make this mistake.

BabySunConureIsis19 · 04-25-2010, 11:11 PM

Thanks, Patty!

That's right, Patty, I did read somewhere that I have to be careful not too hold her too much. Thanks for reminding me!

Lisa · 04-28-2010, 01:39 AM

spending time with your conure

Hello Pam:

I am a new conure owner, I have a Jenday, even though I have not taken him home yet we do visit him every day. what I read in the complete book of conure is that you have to teach them they need time to themselves, which means you need to make sure you have enough things for him/her to due and change around the time you do take them out, change the times around also you need to spend at least 1 hour a day one on one with your conure, also they also need alot of rest.

Lisa

Lisa · 05-17-2010, 01:41 AM

new conure also

Hello:

well, we too our conure baby home a week from Friday, and we had taken him back to BP 3-5 days after he went home and he did not loose any weight, what I have been doing is his blend, a cooked item they gave us and a mix amount of treats, however I started leaving the treats out until after he had eaten his fruits, veg, and cooked meal, I still have alot of things that I wonder but I did follow a routine in the way of feeding him and only took him out of the cage 3 times a day for about 20 min, until he had been with us, I waited a week before I got a playstand,

I have tried given him apples, BUT DO NOT GIVE PITS, also banana's fresh,

by baby seems not to like any dried stuff that are large, one thing is you need to write down what you give him and keep a list and if he does not eat it the first time then try it again, I was told not to give him so many diffrent things from a friend who I knew outside of birds, and she said I was doing fine sense he did not loose weight and I am guessing that it is normal for them to do so when they first go to the new home.

how long has he been home? they need time to adjust and if the only bird it could take longer then if you have other birds.

some where on this list you will find a topic that will list all the things you can and and not feed your Parrot, I am not going to list all of them because it is already on the list, but do not remember where.

just remember the foods with the deepest color offer the most Nutrition,
the following is what I have either given or just got for my conure, which is a gold Capped. at first thought it was a Jenday. which does not manner.

Peppers, green and Red,
Apples
Bananas
blueberries
Frozen Broccoli, we are working on this
Kiwi, have not given this yet
Parsley, not given yet
mango, not given yet
carrots, working on it

hope this helps

Lisa and Ray - owned by Eric, golden Capped conure

Lisa · 05-17-2010, 01:45 AM

harness

Originally posted by happybirds View Post

Hope this helps a bit!

Hello, I posted a list of fruits and Veg that I have given my conure but forgot to say the sooner you start with a Harness the better and by the way if my Husband and I did not see it ourselves we would not believe it, make sure your conure like the color, ours did not like the red, ran away from it, and so we got the black one, before we got him home and we went to visit him, we started him on the harness and then left it alone until today for the first time sense we got him home. add new things slow. we have a moto spray that you fill with hot water and it comes out a nice temp to spray him down, you also can get a shower perch for him but keep him away from the soaps etc.

Lisa and Ray

Michael Romanos · 07-30-2010, 02:11 AM

Feeding Conures is very much the same as for other parrots.
I write stories and articles about dogs, am a dog mag editor and run a dog club so I know something about food for dogs. I would say that parrots are similar to dogs in as much as the food you feed them is a precurser to their health, quality of life and longevity.
So one wouldn't give Conures food that is not meant for parrots nor scientifically proven to be of value - and there you would immediately eliminate most table scraps and the like - just as you would for dogs but even more so taking into account the size of a parrot and the size of a dog.
By the way, the common parsley is a no no for parrots.
My Sun Conure Chico likes a little kiwifruit - certainly not the skin. This is good because kiwifruit mainly comes from New Zealand where we live.
Chico has two food bowls of a parrot mixer which includes nuts (shelled and unshelled), seeds, parrot kibble, dried fruit etc. His/her other bowl is reserved for the daily fresh stuff - fruit, veggies and slices of mixed raw nuts and the odds and sods which might be a small bit of grain toast or fruit cake -bearing in mind that parrots don't need salt or sugar.

New owner with many questions about Sun Conures...

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