Green Cheeked Conure

[PhilK]

Cheers mate. I ended up getting 'Exact' rainbow pellets from PetStock in Taringa. They seem to be doing the trick. They also stock Passwell's there.

 

[PhilK]

Just a little update on Archie.
He has moved onto fresh fruit really well - loves apple and carrot, but isn't so fond of other stuff.. We'll get him there though. He eats his pelleted diet like a champ and is a great little mate to have around.

My only problem is he is starting to get bitey with me. He's mostly OK then every now and again he sorta snaps and makes funny little monkey noises and goes for your fingers as hard as he can.

How do we stop him biting?

 

[Moreliaman]

Stunning little bird phil, is it the same one that ran up your arm in the shop ?
Nice to know theres some people on here that know their stuff on them too, hope they wont mind me asking for advice oneday

 

[bundy_zigg]

Stunning little bird phil, is it the same one that ran up your arm in the shop ?
Nice to know theres some people on here that know their stuff on them too, hope they wont mind me asking for advice oneday

Im pretty sure you would not need anyones advice

 

[Tatelina]

My only problem is he is starting to get bitey with me. He's mostly OK then every now and again he sorta snaps and makes funny little monkey noises and goes for your fingers as hard as he can.

How do we stop him biting?

Ah haha...the joys of a teenage baby bird learning it's limits. I have no advice (we never mastered it...just kinda put up with it). But good luck!

 

[Camo]

Just a little update on Archie.
He has moved onto fresh fruit really well - loves apple and carrot, but isn't so fond of other stuff.. We'll get him there though. He eats his pelleted diet like a champ and is a great little mate to have around.

My only problem is he is starting to get bitey with me. He's mostly OK then every now and again he sorta snaps and makes funny little monkey noises and goes for your fingers as hard as he can.

How do we stop him biting?

You want to have a female eckie. They are ok until they are about 2yrs old then BAM lets be savage they say.

As for the biting saga. I found that with my birds my girlfriend tends to spoil them a bit more than me so they tend to get a likeing to her. Then when i go to get them they must think in thier head hey this man wont give us fruit and nuts all the time so they bite me. It is a spoiling thing IMO.

Cameron

 

[bundy_zigg]

You want to have a female eckie. They are ok until they are about 2yrs old then BAM lets be savage they say.

As for the biting saga. I found that with my birds my girlfriend tends to spoil them a bit more than me so they tend to get a likeing to her. Then when i go to get them they must think in thier head hey this man wont give us fruit and nuts all the time so they bite me. It is a spoiling thing IMO.

Cameron

It is a spoiling thing, that is why not just one person should feed a bird. Eckies are about the only bird I have a healthy fear of as nearly all the ones I have had contact with are all smoochy till they get on you and then wack the bageebers out of your fingers:evil:, they are such pretty birds and have a really wild personality but they are a look but dont touch bird for me:lolunless I know the particular bird). I think Black Cockatoos are the most amazing and loving birds I have ever met.

 

[venus]

Just a little update on Archie.
He has moved onto fresh fruit really well - loves apple and carrot, but isn't so fond of other stuff.. We'll get him there though. He eats his pelleted diet like a champ and is a great little mate to have around.

My only problem is he is starting to get bitey with me. He's mostly OK then every now and again he sorta snaps and makes funny little monkey noises and goes for your fingers as hard as he can.

How do we stop him biting?

Do a google search on "Green Cheek Conure Biting" and it will come up with some forums.
Aussie Bird Forums are good to join.

They (the Green cheeks) usually go through a nippy stage.
No more on your shoulder until he learns that biting is not on.

Make sure he is lower than you, they can become very dominant and you need to get on top of it now.
Try to not react to the bite (I know they hurt, my hands had holes in them from my girl:shock, and put him on the floor when he does it, or back in his cage and leave the room for 5 mins.

He may be testing his boundaries, or he could be over tired. My girl bit when she wanted back in the cage as well.

Make sure he gets a good 12 hours sleep per night (cover his cage), put a shallow bowl in the cage for a daily bath, and give plenty of toys to relieve boredom. Natural branches, gumnuts, plain paper for shredding, hide treats in paper bags (foraging) etc.

If hes just being "beaky", they like to explore and you can distract with an appropriate toy.

Is he able to fly?

I ended up clipping my girls wings, and only using a perch for her to step up onto, as she was a real skin shredder. She is still a grumpy little cow, but she has her moments.

Dont overstimulate them either, make sure you give them quiet time in their cage to unwind.

 

[PhilK]

Thanks so much for the awesome replies. As it stands we have a cardboard box he goes into that he HATES. So whenever he goes crazy bananas we give him a stern 'NO' and put him in the box for a few minutes.

I do find that we probably have him out of the cage for prolonged periods.. By the time he goes back he heads straight for the food and eats and eats..

He is getting a good 12 hours of sleep at night times, although he doesn't have a bathing dish thing. He has a few little toys (including a rubber ball with apple inside it that occupies him for a while).

His wings are clipped, and the way he tries to make a break occasionally from my shoulder, I think I will keep them clipped.

 

[Colletts]

I have a GCC too, a little girl (so i was told). I read a lot about young birds going through the bitting stage and i believe this mostly occurs with hand raised birds. Most people when 'hand raising' or 'hand taming' birds they often grab the bird, holding it and restricting it's movement because it apparently 'gets the bird accustomed to being handled'. This is very frightening for a little bird and it's natural reaction is to bite back, and when he does the human puts him down because it hurts. So the bird learns that when he gets picked up or a hand is near him, if he bites it the hand will go away. It's even more common in pet shop birds because they are poked and prodded and forced on peoples fingers everyday. This causes them to become stressed and to loose trust in humans. Hand raised birds can be more confident around people too, so they think they are equal to you and are not afraid to bite back, similar to poddy calves and foals- most turn out to be little *****s!!

I got my girl just before she fledged and i never once grabbed her or forced her on my finger. I let her come to me, and she has never ever gone through this 'biting' stage that everyone talks about. She learnt to trust me in her own time, not in my time. Once or twice she's tested me and like others have said i've put her away for time out. Maybe i was just lucky with my girl, i don't know.

I feed Kel dry mix which includes 60% pellets, 20% budgie seed (no sunflower) and 20% mixed nuts. She gets a tablespoon every 2-3 days to make sure she eats everything and doens't just pick out the good stuff. And she also gets fruit and veg everyday, hung on a stainless steel rod (bought from pet shop) to make her work for it. As others have mentioned, gum nuts, barky branches, paper and toys keeps her happy.

I've taught Kel to poo on comand. I was sick of washing my white gown and changing my work shirt twice in the morning before i left!! It was pretty easy and saves a lot of cleaning up. All i did was before i got her out in the morning, i'd make sure i waited til she did one. If this did't work i'd tease her by letting her jump on my finger but then put her back on her branch and just look at her, repeating 'do a poo'. As SOON as she did one i'd make a big fuss, give her scratches and out we'd go to cut up her breaky. I've got her to the stage now where if i'm sitting on the pc and i'm too lazy to take her to her cage, i pop her over the bin and say the word and off she goes. If you are to do this though, be reasonable when it comes to time frames. You can't expect her to go every 3 mins just coz you want to avoid an accident. I give it about 10-15 mins, and that way you're not making her strain her bowls. Often i've told my visitors that she poos on command and they don't believe me til i show them! They think its great!

Another pointer too is to ignore your bird if he starts to squark for attention. If you go running to him when he's being loud, he will realize this is how to call you over. It's a very very hard habit to break birds out of so it's best just to let him know from the start that this behaviour isn't wanted and it gets him nowhere.

My two cents (or more!!)

Oh, a piccie of my little Kel too....

 

[bundy_zigg]

I have a GCC too, a little girl (so i was told). I read a lot about young birds going through the bitting stage and i believe this mostly occurs with hand raised birds. Most people when 'hand raising' or 'hand taming' birds they often grab the bird, holding it and restricting it's movement because it apparently 'gets the bird accustomed to being handled'. This is very frightening for a little bird and it's natural reaction is to bite back, and when he does the human puts him down because it hurts. So the bird learns that when he gets picked up or a hand is near him, if he bites it the hand will go away. It's even more common in pet shop birds because they are poked and prodded and forced on peoples fingers everyday. This causes them to become stressed and to loose trust in humans. Hand raised birds can be more confident around people too, so they think they are equal to you and are not afraid to bite back, similar to poddy calves and foals- most turn out to be little *****s!!

I got my girl just before she fledged and i never once grabbed her or forced her on my finger. I let her come to me, and she has never ever gone through this 'biting' stage that everyone talks about. She learnt to trust me in her own time, not in my time. Once or twice she's tested me and like others have said i've put her away for time out. Maybe i was just lucky with my girl, i don't know.

I feed Kel dry mix which includes 60% pellets, 20% budgie seed (no sunflower) and 20% mixed nuts. She gets a tablespoon every 2-3 days to make sure she eats everything and doens't just pick out the good stuff. And she also gets fruit and veg everyday, hung on a stainless steel rod (bought from pet shop) to make her work for it. As others have mentioned, gum nuts, barky branches, paper and toys keeps her happy.

I've taught Kel to poo on comand. I was sick of washing my white gown and changing my work shirt twice in the morning before i left!! It was pretty easy and saves a lot of cleaning up. All i did was before i got her out in the morning, i'd make sure i waited til she did one. If this did't work i'd tease her by letting her jump on my finger but then put her back on her branch and just look at her, repeating 'do a poo'. As SOON as she did one i'd make a big fuss, give her scratches and out we'd go to cut up her breaky. I've got her to the stage now where if i'm sitting on the pc and i'm too lazy to take her to her cage, i pop her over the bin and say the word and off she goes. If you are to do this though, be reasonable when it comes to time frames. You can't expect her to go every 3 mins just coz you want to avoid an accident. I give it about 10-15 mins, and that way you're not making her strain her bowls. Often i've told my visitors that she poos on command and they don't believe me til i show them! They think its great!

Another pointer too is to ignore your bird if he starts to squark for attention. If you go running to him when he's being loud, he will realize this is how to call you over. It's a very very hard habit to break birds out of so it's best just to let him know from the start that this behaviour isn't wanted and it gets him nowhere.

My two cents (or more!!)

Oh, a piccie of my little Kel too....

If it had been DNA sex you would have a certificat to prove it so I would say that they didnt know the sex when they sold it to you. When getting a bird and they tell you the sex ask for proof or its hogwash. I H/R sun conures and Nanday conures and I can tell you that it has nothing to do with being rough(all thought being harmful to the bird will cause it to bit), the sunny babies seem to always bite more than the nanday and all are different - some babies will never bite others will bite I get at least 1 biter our of every clutch but that does not make them a bad bird it just means they have some real spunk about them and are normally the really out going member of the clutch. If you got your GCC just before fledging how do you know that the person you got it from wasnt forceful?. Birds take time to build trust with their companion.

 

[Colletts]

Ok ok, first, sorry bundy i should have said that i got her before fledging, straight from the nest. I watched him pick her out. He didn't raise her, her parents did. He checked the clutch twice daily but that was it, no touching or contact. I didn't want her raised for these very reasons, and she turned out just as i hoped and planned her to be- she never had a bitting stage, she was raised naturally and she was young enough for me to bond with her and let her trust me before anyone else. I spoon fed her hand raising mix until she started to regect it and weaned herself onto egg and biscuit, fruit and veg and wet pellets, then I weaned her onto dry.

Second. I understand fully that there is no proof that she is female. I know that you need to do a DNA test, im not silly, i've owned birds all my life, have worked at zoo with birds and have cared for wild ones for years so i know that much. I didn't care what sex i was getting. I just said give me the one that you think is the healthiest, largest and best one from the clutch. I wasn't after a female or male it was just that he had a guess while picking her out and he guessed female. So i call her 'her'. If she's a 'him' who cares, it doesn't change who she is and i definately wont be breeding from her so i really don't need to know.

Thirdly, im not saying that EVERYONE hand raises wrong and is rough with the birds. Im just saying in general, people who either don't know how to handraise or people that are only doing it for the money raise their birds like this. It's seen a lot in pet shops. The people treat the animals like crap, grab them out, put them on peoples shoulders and pick them back up again and pass to the next. It's not good for the bird and it's teaching the customers that's how to treat the bird. I only brought up this comment coz Phil purchased his bird from a pet shop and i was giving him a possible idea of why the bird might be like that. The people who raised it probably raised it right however after it got to the petshop it might've been treated like crap coz it's just another animal and more money in their till. And i know birds take time to build trust, and they are all different. I'm not saying that's what's wrong with his bird, im not saying that its abnormal for it to be bitting, im just saying that you'll find a lot of pet shop birds and hand raised birds that aren't raised right can have these problems. He could just be a little character, as you said. My post wasn't directed at Phil or his bird it was to give him info if he wanted to take it on board but was also for the rest of the readers that might be interested in purchaseing a hand raised pet shop bird in the future. And im not saying ALL handraised pet shop birds turn out like this. You just have to be very carefull who you buy off these days because most peshops are in it for the money not the animals.

 

[bundy_zigg]

Ok ok, first, sorry bundy i should have said that i got her before fledging, straight from the nest. I watched him pick her out. He didn't raise her, her parents did. He checked the clutch twice daily but that was it, no touching or contact. I didn't want her raised for these very reasons, and she turned out just as i hoped and planned her to be- she never had a bitting stage, she was raised naturally and she was young enough for me to bond with her and let her trust me before anyone else. I spoon fed her hand raising mix until she started to regect it and weaned herself onto egg and biscuit, fruit and veg and wet pellets, then I weaned her onto dry.

Second. I understand fully that there is no proof that she is female. I know that you need to do a DNA test, im not silly, i've owned birds all my life, have worked at zoo with birds and have cared for wild ones for years so i know that much. I didn't care what sex i was getting. I just said give me the one that you think is the healthiest, largest and best one from the clutch. I wasn't after a female or male it was just that he had a guess while picking her out and he guessed female. So i call her 'her'. If she's a 'him' who cares, it doesn't change who she is and i definately wont be breeding from her so i really don't need to know.

Thirdly, im not saying that EVERYONE hand raises wrong and is rough with the birds. Im just saying in general, people who either don't know how to handraise or people that are only doing it for the money raise their birds like this. It's seen a lot in pet shops. The people treat the animals like crap, grab them out, put them on peoples shoulders and pick them back up again and pass to the next. It's not good for the bird and it's teaching the customers that's how to treat the bird. I only brought up this comment coz Phil purchased his bird from a pet shop and i was giving him a possible idea of why the bird might be like that. The people who raised it probably raised it right however after it got to the petshop it might've been treated like crap coz it's just another animal and more money in their till. And i know birds take time to build trust, and they are all different. I'm not saying that's what's wrong with his bird, im not saying that its abnormal for it to be bitting, im just saying that you'll find a lot of pet shop birds and hand raised birds that aren't raised right can have these problems. He could just be a little character, as you said. My post wasn't directed at Phil or his bird it was to give him info if he wanted to take it on board but was also for the rest of the readers that might be interested in purchaseing a hand raised pet shop bird in the future. And im not saying ALL handraised pet shop birds turn out like this. You just have to be very carefull who you buy off these days because most peshops are in it for the money not the animals.

True - It is illegal to sell an un weaned bird so I find it funny you got her and still had to feed her(each to their own). green cheeks are easy to adapt but if you did that with a sunny(let the parents raise it) you would have a wild bird that would want nothing to do with you! Pet shops are bad places for any animal we all know that. I think your bird is a minority the majority bite at stages - as they do in the wild when they are teens(they often get rough with mum and dad or other birds), I think that having a bird that is social is important as conures are a social bird(having a parrot budy/vist is often good - like puppy school). I do agree though that you should never grab your bird but let it hop up on its own.

 

[Colletts]

The guy didn't tell me to feed her, i chose to. He said she would go straight onto dry mix and fruit/veg but i thought that was a bit rough and thought it wouldn't hurt her if i did hand feed for a while. Plus i knew it would help us bond as she knew i meant feed time. I doubt he would've sold me an un-weaned bird coz he is a very well respected breeder and would do the best for the bird and not break the law. He told me she was at fledging stage but i guess there was no proof of that as it was my first visit, to pick the bird up, and she was in the nest at the time. And because i'd never owned a GC before i just believed him. She was fully feathered and quite active when i got her. She only wanted to take the spoon feed for a further 1-2 weeks, and that was because i was probably offering it more than solid food to make sure she received the right nutrition for as long as she would take it from me. But when she started rejecting it i stopped feeding, so i guess if anything i fed her for longer than i needed to. But i would've prefered i did that than weaner her too early.

I would love to find her a 'play mate' however i worry a lot about diseases and how well the other bird would get along with her. And it's not an option to purchase a companion for her. I only work part time and i'm home with her at lunch and in between i find she enjoys her 'alone time'. She talks VERY loudly to her lorikeet friends outside all day too!

I was going to purchase a Sunnie but i decided against as they are a little more intelligent than the GC's and i was afraid that i would not meet it's needs. I'm glad i chose a GC though as her squark is loud enough, i couldn't imagine living with a Sun's squark!!

 

[bundy_zigg]

The guy didn't tell me to feed her, i chose to. He said she would go straight onto dry mix and fruit/veg but i thought that was a bit rough and thought it wouldn't hurt her if i did hand feed for a while. Plus i knew it would help us bond as she knew i meant feed time. I doubt he would've sold me an un-weaned bird coz he is a very well respected breeder and would do the best for the bird and not break the law. He told me she was at fledging stage but i guess there was no proof of that as it was my first visit, to pick the bird up, and she was in the nest at the time. And because i'd never owned a GC before i just believed him. She was fully feathered and quite active when i got her. She only wanted to take the spoon feed for a further 1-2 weeks, and that was because i was probably offering it more than solid food to make sure she received the right nutrition for as long as she would take it from me. But when she started rejecting it i stopped feeding, so i guess if anything i fed her for longer than i needed to. But i would've prefered i did that than weaner her too early.

I would love to find her a 'play mate' however i worry a lot about diseases and how well the other bird would get along with her. And it's not an option to purchase a companion for her. I only work part time and i'm home with her at lunch and in between i find she enjoys her 'alone time'. She talks VERY loudly to her lorikeet friends outside all day too!

I was going to purchase a Sunnie but i decided against as they are a little more intelligent than the GC's and i was afraid that i would not meet it's needs. I'm glad i chose a GC though as her squark is loud enough, i couldn't imagine living with a Sun's squark!!

She should have been eating fruit, veg, seed, pellets and much more if she was weaned, if you had to move her from wet to dry she was not weaned - lucky you got her as many of the breeders like that pass them on to pet shops and they die of starvation because thae cant eat for them selves.

Disease is a big issue with birds so play time should only be done with birds you know and trust(which is hard to find), Conures tend to ditch you if you get them a mate(or friend) so your right by keeping by her self. People always told me a H/R bird will never breed but both my sunnies were H/R and still hang with me and have bred for the last 2 seasons smae with our Nandays.

A sunnys squak is some what LOAD hahah but I couldnt be with out them now days and it is there way of comunicating so I cant hold it against them.

I went in today and had a play with the 3 little bubs in the nest and mum and dad just stood there watching me(im so privlaged to be allowed to play with hatchlings), I will get some updated pics of the babies they have grown sooooo much. The Nandays(although H/R and allow cuddles) will not let me near the nest or even in their cage when they have babies funny hey

 

[Colletts]

He said she would go onto solids coz she had been pickin at them but he didn't offer her pellets coz he only used them for his older birds (don't know why?) I think he was confident in selling to me coz i had experience raising lorikeets and other birds. He said he usually hand-fed for a week or two before selling to get them used to people but because i knew how to do that i said i'd prefer to so she bonded with me adn didn't have to bond with and trust two 'mums' in such a short time.

THat's great about your Sunnie's letting you handle the bubs. I think that's the best way to hand-raise- with the parents involvment too. Coz the young get that contact with birds and the humans and because the parents aren't afraid of you, the bubs see that and they become accustomed quicker and easier to human contact.

ANYWAY....Phil, how's your little man going???

 

[Moreliaman]

Im pretty sure you would not need anyones advice

You've let me down ! ...I thought you knew everything...but after reading this thread !!:evil:
Atleast i know pellets are good eh

 

[bundy_zigg]

You've let me down ! ...I thought you knew everything...but after reading this thread !!:evil:
Atleast i know pellets are good eh

I never said they were not!, I just personally dont think that a bird should live off just pellets(same as they should not live of just seed!).:shock:
But at least Im only young so I have many - many - many more years to learn
I am happy to see that you atleast know they need food, so you have not let me down

 

[PhilK]

... The people treat the animals like crap, grab them out, put them on peoples shoulders and pick them back up again and pass to the next. It's not good for the bird and it's teaching the customers that's how to treat the bird. I only brought up this comment coz Phil purchased his bird from a pet shop and i was giving him a possible idea of why the bird might be like that.

Not sure if you read the whole thread, but I mentioned that he is an absolute sweatheart, and hops onto fingers left right and centre. Every now and again he will go crazy monkey on me and go for my ears/fingers/whatever is nearest.. It's deifnitely not a "I'm scared of people" reaction.

Also the pet shop treated this guy brilliantly. There was no rough handling or dumping on peoples shoulders. He was never in his cage because he kept escaping and pretty much had free roam of the pet shop. Both times I came to see him I had to look for him haha. The moment anybody puts their hand near him he will jump right onto it and that included the pet shop staff.. That's why I chose him. Because he seemed so friendly and great (and he is).

Anyway he is already getting better. Now when he goes crazy he gets 2 minutes in a cardboar box which he really doesn't like. The I get him out of the box and reward him if he is good for the first minute.. The behaviour is already subsiding.

 

[Camo]

I think Black Cockatoos are the most amazing and loving birds I have ever met.

Yes i would also agree. Mine are very friendly and are hardly ever handled. They are a super bird but what they make up for with thier friendliness they let you down with thier loud screeches. Arghhhhh.

Cameron