The Teddy Bear

We bought Japser his very own teddy bear. It's a tiny doggie toy and it's stuffed with some kind of grass so it crinkles when he plays with it and it's small enough that he can pick it up and hold it by himself.

Beware of Friendly Bird

It always take a long explaination but a friendly conure can sometimes bite more often than an unfriendly one.

If a conure (or any other kind of bird I suppose) doesn't like a person or thing, they'll find a way to let you know. They will lean away, hop or climb out of reach, hiss and yes lunge and bite in a very obvious display of agression. It's usually pretty obvious when a bird doesn't like you, is afraid of a person or thing or is just not in the mood to play.

A friendly bird on the other hand will call to you, lean or move toward you and jump onto a finger or shoulder without hesitation. The problem is that they have two feet and a face - a face framed by a very hard beak. Birds lick, nibble and "beak" things to explore their world .

Happy, friendly birds can get so excited that their usual gentler nibbling and beaking becomes biting - can you say fun. He doesn't get like that with us, but he loooooves new people so every visitor is greeted by a happy hyper bird who suddenly forgets all his manners ....

We've been working with Jasper and he's been getting a lot better about it, but he still has his days. Lots of treats when he plays nice, teaching him that the word "soft" means to be gentle and a small travel cage so he can be around visitors without getting too close has definietly helped. He's still young though so hopefully in time he'll remember his manners no matter who's around.

Shower time

Jasper loves to take a bath. He has no shame and will gladly follow me all the way up the stairs (carpeted, so it's a flap/hop that he employs to keep up) and scoot right into the bathroom where he will then wait impatiently for "his" play time in the water. Apparently the fact that he's co-opted MY shower is lost on him.

Our finicky conure prefers his water fresh and lukewarm - but really he's not spoiled. Then again, when he's moulting he'll dive headfirst into anything wet just to get relief for the itchyness of those new feathers growing in so he isn't always picky.

Biting again ...

Well Jasper is in his cage for the day probably.

Birds - at least ours - are apparently great little hormone monitors.
Once a month he gets nippy and a little agressive. The next day... yes ladies pack a little something extra in your purse if you're going out. He'll be completely back to normal once I start, it seems to be that hormone spike just before that he can detect.

The first couple of months, he bit so hard that I bled and he was so worked up that he bit every time I went near him. Now that he's older (he was less than 6 months old when we got him) and has been trained, he doesn't draw blood and it doesn't really hurt all that much but we gotta keep with the training or he will start biting harder and harder...

Gardening time

Jasper loves fresh carrots (leafy greens and all) right from the garden.
I'd say more but I have to go clean up all the carrot bits from where he just spent the last hour happly nibbling, chewing, eating, playing, throwing, etc which is now a very large pile of very green and orange confetti.

What can’t conures eat?

Coffee, chocolate and avocado are the three notable exceptions. These are toxic to conures.
Avocados have a toxin in the bark, leaves, skin and pit that is highly poisonous to not only conures (green cheek or otherwise) but all birds and can even cause a reaction in dogs, cats and other animals. The flesh is probably safe, but it is so easy to avoid that most vets will advise you not to take any chances.

Coffee, chocolate and other highly caffeinated foods need to be avoided. Birds already have a very rapid heartbeat and caffeine speeds that up.

Jasper absolutely loves coffee and will do almost anything to get some. I now drink my morning coffee out of a travel mug. He still gets a small amount of coffee from licking at the rim and such, but it’s just barely enough to get a taste and not enough to be a “dose”. While this, for us, has become a rule that we do tend to bend we are still very careful that his exposure to caffeine is minimal. We have found that a drop (literally one drop) of coffee, or cola in the bottom of a mug will keep him happy as the shape of his beak and the effort required to get to it makes it a fun, long lasting game for him that does not give him enough to be harmful.

Apple seeds deserve a special mention as the seed contains cyanide. It’s not enough to harm you or I, but letting your bird eat them is a definite no-no. It’s usually recommended that you avoid seeds altogether and just give them the same parts of a fruit that you would eat for yourself. We tend to stick with that, as it gives us less to remember and it’s not difficult to slice off a little bit of whatever I’m currently munching on.

What do Green Cheek Conures Eat?

What do conures eat?
They eat EVERYTHING! That pretty much covers what they eat.
That doesn’t mean you can give them everything.
A basic rule of thumb that we’ve found helpful is - if you can feed it to a 2 year old you can give it to your bird. Of course you wouldn’t give your 2 year old a jalapeno pepper to chew on, which conures happen to love, but you get the idea.

We keep a good quality food in Jasper’s cage, but when he’s out visiting he gets the same things we eat. He loves almost all things dairy and will happily drink milk or nibble a piece of cheese. And yes, polly really does want a cracker. Crackers, bread, dry cereal (we'll cover fruit loops in a separate post) and tortillas are a favourite that they can not only eat but happily tear up just for the fun of it.

Rice, beans, noodles and corn are foods that they enjoy either cooked or raw.

Fresh fruits and vegetables – including the green parts - are all foods that you should offer to your conure regularly. Jasper’s favourites are carrots, celery, and fresh peas including the pod.

Hamburgers, lasagne, spaghetti, sushi, mashed potatoes... if it’s on your plate, your green cheek will be happy to try it.

Conures are curious and will casually wander into the middle of your plate and chow down if you let them. They can be trained to eat from their own little dish at meal times or even take small bits from a fork, your choice. They will also happily play in their cage and if your birdieparent guilt kicks in then saving an especially favoured treat for dinner time will work like a charm.

Having a high metabolism means regular meals and lots of treats but don’t expect your conure to eat every bit of food you offer. Conures definitely love to play with their food. Jasper loves crackers but he also loves that satisfying crunch of biting one to pieces just for fun.

When you feed your green cheek conure, definitely expect a mess. All birds are messy eaters and conures are no better or worse than any other. We’ve gotten around that by offering things that are easy to clean up and everything else is given in small amounts.

Just remember, you are not obligated to feed your bird people foods and there is nothing wrong with keeping all food in the cage. Food is not the only way to your birds heart and you can still bond effectively without it.

Meet Jasper

This is my buddy Jasper the Green Cheek Conure.

Many refer to this type of bird as a mini parrot and a parrot he is.
Although he is not a true parrot he loves human company, loves to play games and yes, he can talk.
Taking care of this smallest of the conure family has been an adventure and an education and all in all a very rewarding experience.