I bought my first bird, a green cheek conure!

[theDregs]

I went to the Atlanta bird show today (apparently they have one a month, so I guess it isn't too big a deal). I fell in love with a little green cheek conure. for the price of a pet store conure, I could get a conure, cage, food, and toys!

So I picked up Crusty and a nice wrought iron cage for him/her. He was 135 bucks. They had some for as low as $75 in another stand, but I handled one and the bugger bit me hard three times, once hard enough to draw blood. I decided to pay the extra 60 for a nice bird.

This is the first bird I have ever owned, and I am stoked. He is just sitting happily in his cage right now, eating seeds and chirping happily. I think it's happy chirping. I think.

Can anyone point me towards some good conure care sites? I am currently reading up, but it is difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff.

Right now I have him in a cage very similar to this Miva Merchant: Fatal Error

I bought him a bag of Zupreem pellets and a bag of fiesta seed mix, both cocatiel size. He also has some spray millet, a mirror, 3 perches, and a bunch of toys. He seems to be happy enough, but he squawks at us whenever we stop paying attention to him. I had him perched on my shoulder for a bit, and I put him up because he seemed nervous. Am i doing this right??

[huntress]

I would let him settle in for a day or two before too much handleing. I always advise this with my babies - after all its the first time away from the flock and its a big scary world. Keep the pellets in 24/7 and give the seed mix only in limited amounts maybe not even everyday as seeds can get addicting and he may quit the pellets. Start offering all kinds of fresh vegis and some fruit too. NO AVACADO (its toxic) an stay away from the obvious toxins like caffine alcohol and chocolate. But they can eat anything healthy you eat and will try stuff if they see you eating it! My greenies used to like pasta ALLOT! Greenies can get nippy with adolecence so be prepared and do your research on how to handle behaviors. LOL, the best book I saw for newbies is "Parrots for Dummies". Its a good start. We all want pics and we are here to answer all your questions - allot can be answered by reading old threads too!! Welcome happy "parront" and Congrats!

OH - just like babies DONT go get him everytime he squaks or you will quickly train him TO scream for your attention. You have to teach them to entertain themselves. I purposely will make all my birds stay in the cage all day and night at least once per week. Makes the times you go away less stressful

[Tom Lawless]

Sounds like Crusty is off to a good start. You were smart going the extra $60. When you expense that amount over the years of enjoyment your bird will bring to you it will come out to be pennies. You may have been able to tame the other one but it is great to start out with one that already seems to like you. Good luck and have fun.

[Parrotpeople]

Congratulations! You will love, love your little GCC, they are such little monkeys. My Ziggy can chatter just like one too .

And she's quite the little talker! She said "you want a grape?" just today for the first time, although she hears Poppy say it about a million times a day, lol. By the way she loves her grapes, but they must be red & cut up thank you very much.

Good luck & Huntress gave some great advice for new birdie parronts .

[SniperIX]

Gratz on the new fid =]
It's already being mentioned but try your best to get him on pellets rather then seeds. Once they get older it's much harder to.

[Poohsbirds97]

Congrats!!!!!! I so want to go to that bird show tomorrow. I love to see all the birdies, toys and everything they have to offer. Please keep us posted and post pics of your new addition.

[Jannabellsmom]

Welcome to Parronthood!

[theDregs]

The lady who bred him said she fed about 1/3 seeds and 2/3 pellets, but to spoil him with the seeds at a 2/3 ratio to help him destress for a few days. I'll cut back on them. Thanks for the info!

[theDregs]

Well I have done some studying and Crusty is getting along just fine, I think. I am putting straight pellets in his food bowl. The first time I did it he dove into his bowl and then popped his head up and gave me a quizzical look. then he stired the bowl with his beak and gave me a "WTF?!" squawk. I save the seeds for a treat when I take him out of the cage. It makes him happy to be held, and it also keeps him from trying to pry my thumbnail off my finger. I think he's convinced there is something tasty underneath. How do you teach a bird not to bite, anyway? I know scolding is bad. I just gently push him off, but he doesn't seem to get the message. He also gets a little fruit and oatmeal salad in the evening on top of his cage while we eat dinner, along with any vegetables we might be eating

I am really glad that he seems to be getting along with everyone. He loves it when the kids come up to his cage and talk to him. Their favorite game is singing songs for him while he hops around and chirps. My American Bulldog, Maggie, likes to push her muzzle up against the cage while he preens her whiskers. I have no idea what's going on there. I should be happy she isn't trying to eat him.

Thanks for all the advice so far, guys.

[theDregs]

(EDIT) I just figured out why his water has been so dirty lately. He grabs a pellet in his mouth and drops it in the water to soak for a few seconds before he scoops it out and eats it. Is this normal?? i don't want to soak his pellets, sounds like a good way to get rotten food.