Green cheek conure care guide (In-depth)

What is a green cheeked conure and where do they come from?

Green cheeked conures are a small species of parakeet that originate from South America. Their natural range spans across Brazil, Bolivia, Argentina and Paraguay and they normally inhabit forest and woodlands.They can be seen in large flocks of up to 30-40 individuals making them very social birds.

Green cheeked conures belong to the conure family which consist of 20 different species of bird. Green cheeked conures our one of the smallest species of conure and in the wild they are often green with a grey face, black head with blue wing feathers and red tail feathers.

Green cheeked conure in captivity

Green cheeked conures are commonly bred and kept in captivity. They make for excellent pets being on the smaller more manageable size. As far as the conure family goes they are on the quieter side but still have the ability to learn to mimic. In captivity green cheeked conures have been bred into many different colour mutations such as Pineapple, Yellowsided, Cinnamon, Turquoise, Blue Yellowsided, Blue Pineapple and Blue Cinnamon.

PERSONALITY

Green cheeked conures have a fantastic personality and make for a excellent first time bird. These little birds are always comical as well as being curious. They are easy to train and are also extremely affectionate. Here at Riverside we always refer to our conures as the dogs of the bird world. They will happily get along with all family members when socialised correctly and always be excited by interaction with their human companion. These little birds do enjoy plenty of attention but can also be independent , coping with being left at home for reasonable number of hours.

Green cheeked conures are known for being comfortable with rolling on their back and hanging upside down. These birds are so playful, taking full advantage of all toys you give them. They also love to cuddle, often spending long hours with their human companion snuggling and preening their human counterpart back.

We highly recommend green cheeked conures as family birds as they do not sex select their human companion. Also if they are well socialized with all family members they will often be affectionate and well trained with all. They can also be very gentle getting along with children as well.

green cheeked conure Care

Green cheeked conures are a relatively easy parrot-like bird to take care of and could be considered an intermediate novice bird. We personally recommend green cheek conures as one of our easiest birds to tame but can be a bit more energetic and have a high noise level. Being social birds it is important to keep in mind that it is always beneficial for a conure to be able to have plenty of time with their human companion and they are definitely a bird that benefits from time out of the cage.

CAGE

The cage is one of the most important concepts in your green cheek conures care. A cage should be considered as the safe space and enriched living space for your bird. This is where your bird will spend a lot of their time being able to express normal behaviour, as well as being able to decompress from busy family life. It is important to keep in mind that when looking for a cage you need it to be safe but spacious enough to meet your birds energetic needs. Green cheeked conures are intelligent as well as having well developed substantial tools such as their beak and feet which the cage must be able to contend with.

DIMENSION

The dimensions of your cage are extremely important and you must ensure that they are suitable for the species of bird you wish to place in the cage. Our minimum dimensions recommendation for our green cheeks is 39cm Wide x 67cm High x 59cm Deep. Our ideal cage dimension recommendation is 82 cm wide x 94cm High x 53cm Deep.

One of the most overlooked dimensions is bar spacing. Bar spacing is the empty space seen between the bars. Our recommendation for cage bar spacing for our green cheeked is half an inch or less. The reason that the bar spacing is an important dimension to take note of is if the bar spacing is larger the conure has the potential to be able to squeeze their head through the bars and get stuck.

QUALITY

Quality of cage is also important, the cage needs to be powder coated in a paint that the conure won’t be able to chew off the bars. You also need to ensure that the bars are thick enough that the conure won’t be able to break and bend them.

THE GRILL

In most medium to large parrot and parakeet cages you will find that on the bottom of the cage there will be bars going across. This is referred to as the grill. The grill is standard in a cage build as it was meant for ease of cleaning. Our recommendation is to remove or cover the grill. The reason for this is to prevent damages to your conures feet from falling and getting their leg stuck in the grill. It’s also to allow for conures to express natural foraging behaviours on the bottom of their cage.

You need to be aware when removing the grill from the cage there is a gap at the bottom. Sometimes when grills are removed from the cage the gap is large enough that the conure will be able to squeeze underneath. If this is the case then as an alternative you need to cover over the grill. You can use things such as news paper as a base layer then placing our bedding/ substrate over the top.

CLEANING

In regards to cleaning, conures can be a little messy! They love to bathe and forage so this means that sometimes there can be a little bit of a splash zone. We recommend using wood chips as a substrate for the bottom of your conures cage. The reason for this is that it allows your conure to forage but also allows you to be able to spot clean your conures cage everyday. You can easily check your conures cage day to day and remove any dirty chunks of wood chips with a paper towel. Otherwise we recommend giving your conures cage a full clean once every fortnight.

When cleaning your conures cage it is very important that you use bird safe disinfectant. This is because household cleaners can be toxic to your bird and that includes soapy warm water. The cage bird disinfectant has the correct alcohol content in it to ensure your birds cage is kept clean but does not impact your birds health in any way.

*Top Tip: If you have a particularly stubborn piece of poo then it is best to spray the disinfectant on and then allow it to soak. After it has soaked you can wash it off with warm water, then ensure the enclosure is dry before putting your bird back in.*

DIET

Green cheeked conures diets are similar to larger parrots. Some of the essentials that you will need for a balanced diet for your green cheeked conure are…

Oystershell Grit
Conure seed Mix
Calcium supplement powder
Fresh feed

SEED MIX

At Riverside we have perfected our own blend of conure seed diet. Our seed diet is also found commercially via Northern Parrots. Conures need their seed checked and changed daily. If you feel your conure is wasting seed then you can change your conures seed at the most every other day.

PLEASE BE AWARE BIRDS DO NOT EAT THE WHOLE SEED- it is important to understand that your conure will do something known as shucking the seed. This means that your conures will crack open the seed to eat the fleshy inside and leave the shell. So even though your birds bowl may look full we can assure you they will need their food changed. If you wish for information on why we feed our conures seed diets over pelleted diet then please see our Birds diet page.

On average you should be feeding your conure 1/4 of a cup (60ml) of seed a day, with fresh fruit and vegetables to be provided every other day. Seed must be available and accessible to your birds
at all time with treats given in moderation.

We advise that when you first purchase your green cheeked conure that you keep them on the same diet at least for the first few months. The reason for this is to ensure that you are not changing the birds diet and environment all at once, as this does cause a risk of the bird becoming ill. We also advise that if you wish to change your bird to a different seed mix that the bird needs to be weaned onto their new seed.

All of our seed mixes offer a balanced diet for each specific species of bird so we do ask that if you wish to make any changes that you contact us before hand to seek advice on your birds diet.

OYSTER SHELL GRIT

Oyster shell grit is a fine grit made from oyster shells that often resembles a fine grey grainy substance. We recommend that oyster shell grit be sprinkled on the top of your birds seed at least twice a week. The reason for this is that it helps with mechanical digestion for the bird especially if they have eaten any sticky substances that may block up the crop.

CALCIUM SUPPLEMENT POWDER

One of the most important parts of your conures diet is their calcium supplement powder. At Riverside our recommended brand is Easy Bird complete supplement powder. This needs to be sprinkled on top of the seed every other day but should not be used with the oyster shell grit. The reason for the calcium powder is to provide the conures with all the calcium, vitamins and minerals they need which help with feather, nail and beak condition. We also recommend that when your bird is moulting you increase your calcium supplement every day.

FRESH FOOD

Because green cheeked conures come from the tropics of South America they would naturally eat fruit in the wild so it is always beneficial to your bird to have fresh fruit and vegetables. It is important to keep in mind that fruits sold for human consumption do have a higher sugar content, so even though your conure would prefer fruit we do say to prioritise your vegetables. We also recommend that when you first take your conure home to only feed them their fresh food by hand to encourage taming. We recommend giving fresh fruit and vegetables around three times a week for your conure. Below is our list of safe fruit and vegetables for your conure:

Sweet apple (no pips)
Seedless Grapes
Thawed out frozen peas
Sweetcorn (with no added salt)
Nectarines
Strawberries
Celery
Celery Leaves
Grated Carrot
Satsumas
Pomegranate
Broccoli
Melon

TAMING

All of our baby conures here at Riverside are parent reared. This is for better mental health and an overall more pleasant experience as pet birds. This does however mean that when you first take your baby home they are wild and will need to be tamed. What we mean by the phrase tame is where you will have a bond with your bird so that you will be able to handle it and safely remove it from the cage. Taming can take time and patience and the best results will come from the effort you put in to the taming process.

One of the most important aspects to taming a bird is that YOU MUST TAME A BIRD IN THE CAGE BEFORE YOU LET IT FREE FLY. The process of taming involves creating a trust bond between you and the conure, which is achieved by having positive experience with the bird. If you free fly your conure before you have that trust bond then you won’t be able to handle it to put it back in the cage. This then means the possibility of having to chase the bird or catch the bird to get it back into the cage which means you will be having a negative experience with the bird which will be detrimental to your trust bond.

When you first get your bird you should allow at least a twenty four hour settling period before you start attempting to tame your bird. Other signs to look out, for to make sure your bird is settled, is that you have at least seen them eating and drinking. If you haven’t seen them eating and drinking then please allow for more time before you start going into the cage.

Here are our top tips for taming:

Some conditions that can help with the taming process is ensuring that your bird is in a communal area where they can have a lot of contact with family members (I.E. The lounge or dining room ).
Taming in short bursts works best with little and often sessions of around 10-15 minutes.
Keep calm- all movements during the taming process should be slow and steady and if your bird goes to nibble try to resist the urge to jerk away.
Find their comfortable zone and work around them there.
Let the conure do things on their own terms, the more the bird participates on their own terms the faster they will gain their trust of you.

Often, you can use treats as a reward and a way to bribe your bird into taming. In the beginning we always recommend giving fresh food by hand. It is also good to work with a variety of treats to see what are their top favourite or what they are more eager to work for. Conures are super curious, so with a little bit of temptation they are quite eager to come and investigate. Bellow is a list of some of our recommendation for top treats:

Garlic sticks
Banna Chips
Pineapple and Papaya Dried chunks
Pine nuts
Nutriberries
Sweet fruits

The most important thing to keep in mind is that the taming process is unique for each and every bird! The process we outline works for most of our conures but each conure does need a slightly different approach. So remain patient and try to test the waters on what works best for your bird. For more, feel free to watch our video linked below.

BEHAVIOUR AND TRAINING

When you first get your conure home one of the most difficult and least researched part is the bird’s behaviour. This is actually a very important part as your bird’s behaviour will help indicate your bird’s mental and physical health. Your bird will use their behaviour to help communicate to you what they would like and how they are feeling. One of the main basis to understand your bird’s behaviour is to know that these animals are not domesticated, which means a lot of their behaviours relate to their natural instincts. Being prey animals birds are programmed for survival. They will feel most comfortable in high spaces and have a flight instead fight response. They are also a highly social animal with affection and attention making up a large part of their lives. They will feel safest when in a group with their human companion. Below we will be highlighting some key concepts that are important for you to understand your bird and improve their quality and welfare of life.

TOYS

Toys are an important part of your bird’s life. Birds have exceptional minds and they need to be kept busy as well as using their magnificent beaks and feet. When you first get your conure home just start off with a few toys so that you are not overwhelming the cage whilst you are taming. This is simply to make sure that the bird has enough entertainment but you don’t bang and clang against the toys, frightening the bird making it harder to tame.

Once your bird is tame, though, it is important that you are providing a lot of toys in all different shapes and sizes. One of the most important things to remember is the whole purpose of your bird’s toys is so that your bird can DESTROY THEM! This means that toys will be shredded and chewed; this is perfectly normal. This does mean, however, that even though toys are perfectly bird safe you do always need to keep an eye on them. Making sure you are checking your toys daily and removing any debris or toys that aren’t in suitable shape anymore.

Toys are super important for getting your parrot’s brain working and ensuring that they have enough enrichment that they do not become bored and start destructive behaviours such as feather plucking or screaming. Our recommendation is always to have a large variety of toys but don’t have them all in the cage at once. The best technique with toys is; every time you clean your birds cage to replace or change the toys as well as moving them around the cage to give your bird a change of environment. Just this simple technique will give your bird some spice in their life and help keep them entertained in their cage environment. Another important concept to this is how brightly colour all the toys are. When you come into our store you may notice that all of our toys are in a wide spectrum of vibrant and bright colours. This is because birds vision has twice the colour range that humans have so the toys are made to be stimulating for the eyes and therefore more enriching for the brain. Brighter colour toys will also be more comforting for your bird as it will make them feel as though they are more surrounded by a colony. If you wish to know more about toys and toy care then check out our toy article.

AUDITORY RESPONSES (NOISE LEVEL)

When we are talking about auditory responses we are quite often referring to the use of sound. Birds use sounds as a primary form of communication so noise comes to them naturally. Using verbal responses is a way of communicating in birds so it maybe used by your bird to communicate with you but you can also use it as a way to communicate to your bird. Quite often people are apprehensive about the noise level a bird can make, so it is always worth having a good think before purchasing. Even if your bird is a particularly quiet individual they may still shout as this would be a way they would communicate danger to the rest of their colony.

Auditory response can be a key way of knowing exactly how your bird is feeling. If your bird is feeling threatened or unsure they may use verbal cues to indicate this to you. A common example of this can be when people complain of having a noisy bird when it is placed near a window. This can simply be caused due to the bird being able to see things it considers distressing, so it will be trying to alert the owners of their distress and discomfort. Conures in particular have a good auditory response as they are from large rainforest and their calls have to travel.

Conures in general once tame are a very quiet bird. Green cheeked conures are one of the quietest species of conures but they can be a little noisy when they are in large groups together. However, even though this is usually the case it is important to note that vocalisation can be accidentally reinforced. A common misunderstanding when your bird is vocalising is to responded with a command or yell at your bird. When you do this, what you are actually doing is giving your bird the auditory response it is after so you are therefore encouraging your bird to continue making loud noises. It is recommended that when addressing your bird you speak in a calm and quiet tone as this will help keep your bird calm and quiet as well.

One of the other most important vocal reason people buy birds is for their mimicking abilities or learning to talk. Green cheeked conures are very capable of talking but they are not the clearest. It is important, however, to keep in mind that even though all of our green cheeked conures have the ability to talk, it is up to the individual. Our Green cheeked conures will mimic regardless of the gender and they can start to mimic at any age. Some conures will start talking as young as three months and some may be a year and a half before they begin to talk. The best way to encourage your Green cheeked conure to mimic is to start off with simple sounds, such as kissing noises, before progressing on to words. The way to encourage mimicking is to make a lot of fuss and attention to your conure. When they make similar sounds as you, your bird will learn that making the sound or word will get attention. This does mean, however, that there will be a lot of repetition so you might need to keep that in mind if you feel the novelty will wear off. What we must stress is a bird should never be purchased purely on the basis of speaking ability and you must be excepting that you may have a bird that never talks at all.

NIPPING

A major concern that gets brought up is biting. Green cheeked conures do have a substantial sized beak and it can be quite intimidating to deal with. Green cheeked conures use their beak as a tool, so even if they do not intend to cause you harm they may use their beak to steady them selves, climb or to preen you as a form of a bonding exercise. When they are using their beak in this way it is important not to panic which may cause your bird to increase pressure. If your bird is trying to preen you then just encourage them to preen more comfortable areas such as your hair. If your green cheek conure is testing its boundaries and begins to put more pressure into their bite the most important thing is to not react verbally. As stated in the previous section, verbal responses can be used to encourage this behaviour. The best thing to do is to calmly push your conure off you or place them in the cage and walk away not giving them attention for ten minutes so that they understand that biting will only mean they don’t get attention.

Biting can also be a way of your bird communicating. So It is important that when your conure is moulting they may be in discomfort which can cause them to be more irritable. When they are moulting if you accidentally stroke their pin feather the wrong way it will be uncomfortable for them and they may give you a nip to indicate their discomfort.

FLYING AND FLIGHT TIME

Flying is an important aspect in your bird’s life. At riverside we highly recommend keeping your bird fully flighted. We do not tolerate any sort of practises such as wing clipping or wing pining. The reason we believe this is that flying is an important aspect in your bird’s health and mental wellbeing. When you first get your Green cheeked conure home it will still be young and developing its flight muscles so do not panic if your conure has accidents or crashes. This is perfectly normal, especially as they will also be learning a new layout of a room and where it is safe for them to land. When your bird is flying towards you don’t panic, remain still and don’t duck as this is more likely to cause injury to your bird. We recommend, on average, that your bird should be getting at least 2-3 hours of flight time outside of their cage to day in one hour intervals.

Equally, as much as we appreciate people want to do the best for their bird, as an owner it is very important you understand that your bird needs time to rest and decompress. A common mistake first bird owners make is allowing their bird to free fly all the time. Free flying your bird all the time can cause your bird to become over exhausted and over stimualted. This in tern can lead to unwanted behaviour such as:

Increase in aggression
Increase in nipping
Decrease in hand ability
Increase in destructive behaviour

Allowing your bird to constantly free fly can be distressing for your bird and can cause re-wilding and decrease in bond between bird and human companion. You, as an owner, should not see your birds cage as a place of restraint but instead a safe space for your bird to relax. A birds cage should be seen as their area where they can express relaxing behaviours such as preening and foraging. The room where you fly your bird should be seen as their area of exercise.

So, as much as we encourage the importance of flight in your bird’s health and well being, we also encourage that your bird should be exercised appropriately. There should be a healthy and equal balance between exercising your bird and allowing them to have time to relax.

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Health checking can be a very difficult process for new bird owners. One of the key elements to your bird’s health will be the fact your bird is a prey species. This means that when your bird gets ill they will try to conceal it for as long as possible so that they don’t seem weak. This means there is some very subtle body language that you need to keep an eye on.

Signs of ill health are as below:

Slit eyes
Lethargy
Change in appetite
Change in droppings
Beak in feathers
Fluffed up
Prolonged periods of time at the bottom of the cage
Discharge from the nose or eyes
Compliance to handling but with no energy
Dramatic tail twitching or tail flaring
Destructive behaviour such as feather picking

Bird’s health can also be complicated because their bodies have been very specialised for flight. Birds, just like dogs, do not sweat and don’t have a major mechanism for body temperature regulation. This means that they can easily become cold or overheated. We always recommend keeping your bird out of direct sunlight and to ensure they also are not in direct access to a draft. Birds also have very specialised lungs, due to flying at high altitudes, so they can be very sensitive to air quality. This means that you should not contaminate the air around your bird, or you should ensure to prevent as much contamination as possible. See below a list of things that are considered hazardous to your bird:

Aerosols
Teflon cook wear
Candles
Tobacco (Smoking)
Burning
Polish
Window cleaning products
Cleaning products
Air fresheners
Diffusers
Plug ins
Wasp stings
Self cleaning ovens
Paint
Avocado
Pear
Chocolate
Apple pips
Human food/drink
Salt
Milk products
Saliva
Some house plants
New furnishing fumes