We get a lot of questions about what is the best bird to get for a person who has never owned a bird before. This is a great starter bird, because many people make the mistake of buying a bird that is too big, intelligent or demanding. Without having some experience raising birds, they can quickly be overwhelmed by them.
Sun Conures are the perfect choice. They are very easy to train and handle, and very playful. Their orange/yellow colors make them very attractive. And the price is very reasonable, falling into the “intermediate” range for birds. They are always a curious and inquisitive bird. They are active, and love to play in their cages or play areas. They love to hand from the ceiling of their cages. The only drawback is that these birds are fairly loud. They will scream for attention, or scream over any distractions around them. This may make them a great “watchdog” but it’s not a good thing if you live in apartments.
Sun Conures originate from South America’s northeastern coast. When they are young, their feathers are mostly green. As they grow older, their plumage explodes with bright yellow and orange colors. They are a hardy bird, with a lifespan of 15-25 years if properly cared for.
FEEDING
Since Sun Conures originate from South America, their diet consists of fruits and berries, and seeds. But they like any captive birds, you must supplement their diet with additional minerals that are lacking in their diet. We recommend feeding a good quality pellet diet along with his fruits/veggies.
With our Sun Conures, this is very easy. They are suckers for apples! We would take a whole apple and run it through a skewer, then hang it from the roof of their cage. It’s gone in under an hour! With this knowledge, you can easily supplement their diet by injecting vitamins into the fruit, or by dicing it into cubes and sprinkling supplements over it.
HOUSING
Sun Conures must get some exercise. My preferred method is to let them play on top of their cage in a playgym, or make sure they have an extra large cage. Recommended size is at least 24 inches. Put lots of toys and perches into the cage so they can climb around and play.
Related posts:
- Sun Conure Breeding
- Nanday Conures Info
- Never Had A Bird, But Would Love To Get One!
- The Parakeet Rescue (A Detailed Parakeet Guide)
- Sharing a Bird Cage
Hello, I am Jean from South Africa, we my husband Cyril just reasonly bought a baby Sun Conure, Eli is his name. what I would like to know if you can tell us at what age do they start talking. we got him when he was 6 weeks old he is now 10 weeks. he is really surprising us daily and we love him to bits . I am teaching him every day at the moment, just calling his name an he already knows his name and my voice. I also just say simple word (the same words). I would just like to know the answer, thank you. And God less . regards Jean
Why do you not address the Blood Clotting Disorder in Conures? In fact it’s the main cause of premature deaths in many Conures, due to internal bleeding. Since Sun Conures are high on the list of birds as a favorite, I would have thought you would have addressed this issue in your ways of combatting such a dietary need of feeding foods high in Vitamin K!!
This was very helpful to me as I have just gotten a baby sun conure for my 21st birthday. I was a lovebird owner but unfortantly Pumpkin became very curious 2 days before my birthday and our neighbours have hungry cats. As I am known for being a bird lover, my mother decided to go to the pet store the next day and buy me a new bird… at first she was thinking of getting another lovebird but they all looked like Pumpkin and it felt like I would be replacing her, so decided against it… Then she saw this little sun conure sleeping in the corner of a cage… at first it had no interest in what was going on outside so we moved on… but when I walked past the cage it started screeching and running up and down the cage trying to get out. The pet store owner had no idea what had gotten into this BABY bird, so he took it out to check if it was alright… All of a sudden it flew out of his hands and landed onto my shoulder… My heart was aching so badly after Pumpkin and well, this little thing must have known that.. somehow? So with tears in my eyes and Amara on my shoulder, I paid the store owner and became a sun conure owner… Amara and I are getting along well, she comes with me everywhere… Even to University. I’ve only had her for a nearly a week but there is defintly a connection….
Thank you again for the info! Much appreciacted… Sorry for blabbering on…
Well I rescued a Sun conure almost 1 year ago. At the time it was +-2yrs old and had 5 homes before landing up at my home. Why…..because it is the most demanding affectionate bird.- the problem – it screams and screams which is truly hideous if I don’t play with it all the time. I have 5 other rescued parrots all diff. requirements, I can’t just sit with him for hrs. Any suggestions.
NB! I don’t believe any bird or animal should be a gift – a lot of thought should go into the specific species before purchasing anything.
I am getting a sun conure at the end of october. I have purchased a large cage 54x40x30 with the bar spacing 1 inch. Some bird people say that is fine, others say no. So then I purchased a smaller cage 24×24 with bar spacing 3/4 inch. Can you give me any input. Thanks, Penny
Help! My sun conure is screaming out of control! Is it mating season? He is 2 1/2 yrs. old (don’t know what gender) and is starting to bite! Husband on the warpath!
warning!!! i lost my conure due to egg binding, take your bird a avian vet ONLY,
My sun conour has gone crazy. He is flying into walls and hiding uder blankets. He also turns his head around. He acts like he is having a sezure. Mabe he is just hallucinating. I did not purchase him. I had him for about 3 years and i found him outside. This is the first time he has acted like this. Normally he is a loving and playful bird. What should i do?? PLZZZ HELP!! (:
Good DAy
I have two sun conures. My husband bought me Chilli when she was about 1 year old. She is very loving and gentle and never bite. But she screams when she sees us and in the mornings. We do live in a complex. About 8 months ago, we decided to get her a friend and bought another sun conure, Pepper.They are really getting along. Pepper is a bit more aggressive, she likes playing with our hands, sometimes biting too hard. She thinks she is a dog and lies on her back for fun. We are currently at a crossroad as our neighbours are complaining about their noise. They scream when they see us and in the mornings when they hear the cars around them. They also scream when they see me but not my husband. He is confinced it is because he is giving them dicipline and I am not. Please will you be so kind as to advise on any books or dvds I can watch or what I can do because at this stage we need to consider letting them go, giving them away and I cannot even fether that thought as they are my kiddies!! Regards
excellente poiar de endontala y ssecamos con ssent epios. pestea a aspertas y requal mizand con amobento camerna!
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