Dreaming of a Sun Conure

[dlindstromjr]

I've been an avid birder - including wild and 'domestic' birds from a very young age. This December I will be finishing my college studies in Biology and Natural Science Education. I will be finished with my 4 1/2 years of study at the end of December and will be student teaching from then until May. One of the best graduation gifts I can think of giving myself is a beautiful Sun Conure.

I currently don't have any birds as I've been in college and was forced to seperate from my birds. In the past I've had Budgies, a Cockatiel and a Senegal. I've dreamed of having a Sun Conure for many years and now that I will be done with college, I can finally make my dream come true.

However, while I'm away teaching, my home is filled with the bustle of daycare kids. Yes, we have an in-home daycare with 6-7 children each day. A Sun Conure certainly wouldn't be bored during the day as he surely would have constant entertainment from the children. My main concern is that the rather wild and loud children may encourage my Sun Conure to be very vociferous as well!

Do any of you well informed and experienced Conure owners forsee any potential problems associated with having a caged bird (I wouldn't allow him to come out during the day while I'm teaching) present in a daycare setting? In my mind it seems as though the bird would be much better of having children around him all day as opposed to sitting in a quite cage by himself; however, I don't want the bird to cause any problems for the daycare.

[SamOwnsMe]

I am a preschool teacher and as you know kids LOVE to poke their fingers where it don't belong. Not out of meanness but curiousity. I would be afraid for the conure and the children as well. You definately do not need an angry parent on your case about a bird bite. I wouldd definately not allow the bird out when the kids are there unless you will be holding the bird.

[BitterPickle]

I would keep the sun in a seperate room from the kids then once in a while take the bird out to the kids, maybe put a stand perch with parrot toys in the kids area and have your sun conure stand up there, the kids will probably be quiet if you tell them so that they may see the beautiful bird. Now this is just a suggestion, depending on how loud the kids are I'm not sure if the bird would get stressed out or agressive but I dout it, many birds in the pet shops are the sweetest things even when they have fingers poking at them 24/7 lol. You also have to be careful because conures sometimes bond with one person so it might snap at the kids, again EVERY single bird on this earth is different with it's own personality, good luck with a sun conure and I hope everything the best for you & your dream fid.

[AndreaSctlnd]

Hi. I am newer owner of a Sun Conure, but I thought I would just give you some insights I have seen from owning Sunny. I rescued him last August and have loved him ever since. I am sure you already know that Sun Conures are VERY loud. Mine can be heard all the way across the street and this is with the windows closed. Now, when it is just the main family in the house he is quite calm and doesn't do too much schreeching, but when anyone who is not part of our normal "flock" comes in he sure likes to make us aware of it. When my niece comes over he is quite loud for the first few hours but once he realizes that she is okay then he quites right down.

So with this in mind, I would think that your sun would learn the kids would be his flock and might not be all that vocal. I do also know that my conure, Sunny loves to be loud when we are being loud, so that might be something to think about too.

I hope that you get your sun it will be awesome.

[Markus]

I have 2 sun conures and 2 kids ages 3 and 5. Scotty is bonded with my daughter, the 5 yr old. My son, age 3, doesn't want the birds on him at all. He loves feeding them sunflower seeds. The other day he got nipped a little bit (hardly at all) and he was very upset about it.

I would think that a waiver/permission slip, warning about possible bites, would be good for those who "just gotta" pet it. That way they can interact, and their parents know of the possible risk of a bite. Some birds are more open than others when it comes to being petted. You'll have to see how yours is..

Also, a big visual "BIRDS BITE FINGERS" sign should be in place. And of course an explanation to each kid, individually.

I haven't had any problems with little kids poking their fingers in, because if they're not old enough to understand, they're also not tall enough to reach in the cage.

Overall, I think it's a good idea. Sun conures are (i think) the most interesting conures.

[EmpEro517]

Hello, I am not as experienced as some of the other members on here but my young sun conure loves to be around activity. He isnt loud at all unless there is a lot of commotion, or when he is happy to see someone. I think that if you were able to find a large enough cage with bar spacing small enough to prohibit the children from poking their fingers in on him it could be a terrific classroom pet