Questions about a GCC

[nlee]

Does it matter as far as the sex of the GCC for pet quality?

Also, what if the female decides to start laying eggs?
This Iam totally afraid of. I lost a female Cockatiel that was an egg layer and we did everything we could for her to help with calcium and etc.

[n8wb]

The sex of the bird doesn't matter in therms of quality. Both can make outstanding pets. With a GCC, most variations are not sexually dimorphic. You can't tell by looking at them if they are m/f.
I really can't say much about the egg issue. Perhaps someone else can shed some light on that subject.

[LMPego]

Can you tell me how old your cockatiel was when she passed? I'm going through this with my lovebird and just want some idea of what to expect.

[Monica]

If a bird is healthy, fed a good diet including fresh foods (veggies, fruits, pasta, beans, bread, eggs....), and get frequent exercise, egg laying is not normally a problem... with tiels though, they CAN become chronic egg layers and it's best to let them have their eggs until they get bored of them. One can always try removing things that stimulate the birds to lay eggs, or even putting them in a different cage...

I took in two chronic egg layers.... The first (not sure exactly who... mother or daughter) laid one egg soon after coming here, and that was it. The second (unrelated) had a full clutch of eggs and was continuously laying. She was also underweight and malnourished (still is, trying to get her to eat fresh foods but it's going to be a while before she's more accepting of them) I cleaned her cage, it has no toys in it (not that they probably encourage the behavior) and I have yet to see her lay an egg... I still have her eggs of course, but she's not laying, and she doesn't have them!

I currently do have a bourke that is laying eggs, and she laid so many she weakened herself... Currently have her and her sis in a different cage and so far no more eggs. I cannot put them back in the regular cage for fear of getting eggs. So, I know how frustrating that is!


As far as anything else, male vs female doesn't normally matter, but with males you don't have to worry about egg laying. Males are also more likely to learn to talk or whistle, but females can too. It is said that females are normally more cuddly but it's not really true to a huge degree.

[Kachina]

Not sure which type of bird you're talking about (GCC = Gold Capped Conure and GC = Greencheeked Conure), but I doubt it matters much.

I've got a female Greencheek who is the sweetest little darling in the world. Unless you do something that displeases her highness. Then you get a good hard nip.

I don't think with Greencheeks that it makes a difference at all which gender you get when it comes to pet quality. That depends more on you and what you're willing to put into them. They're highly intelligent little beings (Miss Kizzy has learned the Turn Around and Wave in 2 days), and I could see how a lack of handling could cause major problems. Just make sure to socalize your little one and keep them that way, and you shouldn't have any problems whether you bring home a boy or a girl.