The Bird Manual

Featuring: Cuddles the Cutest Conure

Well, it’s been an adventure since I first got Cuddles.

Wanted to create an page where everything related to Cuddles can be found easily. “The Bird Manual” of sorts.

I might break things off into individual posts/pages if it’s getting too wordy here (and I want to go more in depth with it), but for now, this page will be a quick reference to everything I know so far.

History (can be skipped)

I wanted a pet but didn’t think I was fully ready for one. Dogs I would need to walk and cats get into everything.

But I’ve had some experience in the past with taking care of pekin ducks & a pair of finches that grew into a whole colony of finches at some point. Since I had birds in the past, I felt that having one in the future wouldn’t be as much of a learning curve.

I was wrong.

Pekins, after reaching adulthood are pretty independent. And Finches are hardy & hands off for the most part (especially if you got them in a pair, which we had).

Conures, on the other hand, are a whole other story.

Conures are Needy and Not Made for Introverts

Conures are one of the neediest species. Technically all parrots are social creatures, so most of them tend to be pretty needy. Two things I’m not. (Well, except with my last ex, but that was off character for me, maybe this is karma?)

"No I'm not scared of animals generally, I just don't know how to interact with them. It's fun to see them though," my friend said.
"I'm like this with humans," I responded. — A convo with a friend, my response in green. Illustrates my introvertedness perfectly.

So a BIG Warning Sign to All Introverts: If you’re an introvert, please don’t get one unless you’re willing to make some serious adjustments.

I thought an animal presence wouldn’t matter much, since I thought it was only being around humans that was the problem.

Nope. It matters. You can’t shut off. You need to make time to pay attention and interact with it.

When Cuddles first came into the scene, she took up all my time. It was honestly hard for me to keep up with. Especially since she is also still a baby. (Born November 15, 2023.)

Plus her wings are clipped. I feel like when she’s done with her first molt (she’s in it now), and she gets her full flight feathers back, she’ll feel more confident and be a bit more independent. *crosses fingers* That’s the hope anyway. We’ll see.

Some days she’s clingier than others. Sometimes I think it’s because I’ve left for work and the separation bothers her (I thankfully only have to go into the office once a week), but then sometimes even if I’m home all day and focus solely on her, parting after that bothers her too. But then some days if I leave her on the play stand in the kitchen, she’ll nonchalantly walk herself back to her cage in the bedroom without a peep. *shrugs* Beats me. Haven’t figured her out yet fully. Not sure if I ever will. But I guess that’s what keeps things interesting.

The Good Stuff

It’s a little over 2 months since I’ve gotten her (Apr 13 – Jun 23), and I feel like things are somewhat settling down. Kind of. Sort of. The clingyness from above remains till present but I guess I’ve grown used to it a bit more. (Not entirely, but a bit more than before.) And she is getting a bit more mellow during work hours. Like right now, she’s napping on my lap.

And to be honest, it’s kind of nice to feel like I bring something peace. It’s like she can’t find it unless she’s on my shoulder or my hand or on my lap. She settles down when she’s on or around me and that brings me peace.

She’s also suuuuper trusting and sweet. Yes, she’s growing up and so she’s getting more feisty/bitey, but if you say sorry for pissing her off, she accepts it and forgives you. No grudges held. It’s super calming.

And this might be a strange thing to say but I feel like I’ve gotten closer to God because of her. She’s kind of prevented me from praying (not that I was before I got her, but I was starting to), but I’m understanding a lot of the things that God’s said to us. Like how we might hate something that’s good for us. For example, Cuddles isn’t feeling the vet visits, but I’m guessing no pet really does…)

Also because of her I’m eating healthier since I have to buy fruits and veggies for her and because she won’t be able to eat everything by herself, I ~~unfortunately~~ have to eat the rest.

Back to the Bad Stuff

Is she still driving me crazy? Yes. She’s fine if I’m in the room with her (though she prefers to be on me), but if I leave, she starts screaming. It’s hard to go out, not that I did much of that before (introvert), but even to just do regular things like groceries is an ordeal.

I’m trying to feel not guilty about leaving her alone, but it’s hard. I guess It’s something I have to learn. But, yes, she’s driving me bonkers. I don’t say that jokingly. So if you’re thinking of getting a bird, beware.

Note to Self: You Have a Right to Alone Time

Almost every video or resource you watch on parrot care says you have to give them time. You have to dedicate hours a day to them. You need to be able to do that.

But. You also need time for yourself.

Another but: yes, you do need to dedicate hours a day to them. There’s no way around it. BUT you also have a right to time for yourself. It’s a balancing act, yes, but you have to steal that time and not feel guilty about it.

There are ways they say you can keep your parrot busy, making a nice foraging environment so they can play while you get some work done. Again, with a Conure, that’s fine, if you stay in the room with them. If not, then you have a problem.

I have yet to figure out a fool proof way to be somewhere else without her screaming, but one thing I try is to keep her cage light on, but turn off all the other lights in the room. There’s some light coming in from a small window, but the rest of the room is dark. She sometimes remains quiet then. Only if she can hear me in the room. But yeah…that’s how I get my alone time. I sit in a dark room, with a lighted bird cage. Creep factor 1000 unlocked.

Right now she’s in the cage and not bothering me, but that’s because I’ve left treats around her toys. But she still needs to sit near me. She won’t go to the other side of the cage. Unless I turn the cage around (it’s on wheels, uber convenient).

But point is, even if you feel guilty, even if some of the bird owner community make you feel guilty for it, please take some time out for yourself.

Though yes, you still need to pay attention to your bird. For several hours in the day. Prepare for it.

The Scare

In between, I had stupidly used aerosol sprays. Not much, but enough before I read that they were bad for birds. When I had my ducks & finches, they were far removed from where I did my hair, so I didn’t think about it. But Cuddles stays pretty close to me now and with that comes dangers that I was (stupidly) not aware of.

She started losing her feathers pretty early. There was a bald patch on her belly that has since filled in. I was worried it was because of what I did.

Meanwhile, I was also trying to get her to eat veggies but she wasn’t interested. I had to hand feed her pellets for her to even try those instead of seeds.

But when her feathers started looking dull and started falling out (+ she looked skinnier), I panicked. There was no loss of appetite or lowered activity, but apparently birds are really good at hiding illnesses. So I worried and for two weeks straight, I consumed all the knowledge I could on bird care. I made veggie chop, got her vitamins to include in it, and got her a better brand of pellets, specifically geared for molting. I took her to the vet for another check up and he said this is right about the time for her to start molting, so not to worry too much. Though….he said not to worry about feeding her veggies which is ludicrous, so looking up a better vet is on the task list.

But since the changes, she’s been muuuuuuuuuuch better, thank God. The patches on her belly have filled in & she’s gained some of the weight back because I re-introduced some seeds back into her diet. Turns out seeds are not the devil, but should be given sparingly as it’s still required in their diet. *facepalm* There was a lot that I did not know. But I’m thankful I had gotten the chance to learn before it was too late. I know a lot of bird owners out there don’t get that chance.

I was about to say, so I’m sharing my notes on bird care to help, but honestly, they’re more for me than anyone else, but I do hope they help.

Favorite Pet Bird Youtube Channels

I am not an expert (as evidenced by the goof ups mentioned above), but I know these people definitely are:

I’ve been binge watching their stuff (except for the last one, that I just discovered today) ever since ‘The Scare’. Though I had watched some of ElleAndTheBirds before I had gotten Cuddles.

Sleep

12 hours, no light, no sounds
Take toys out, so if they have night frights, they have a clear space to fly around if need be

Food

~~Anything that’s dried food that you find in the pet store, they can have the fresh equivalent of those too.~~ I have to check this. This was advice from the pet store and they’re not known to be super accurate.
Bell peppers (yellow and red) – 1 source, get another one to confirm
SOME seed sprouts, check which ones are ok for them

Sprouts

Mung beans (not ALL bean sprouts are safe! So don’t buy the prepackaged bean sprouts from the store unless you can tell what type of bean)
Quinoa (the tri-color one is healthier I think)

Veggies

Beets
Bell peppers
Carrots (has vitamin A which most birds are deficient in)
Sweet Potato (bake first)
Butternut Squash
Cucumbers (but these are just high in water and little nutritional value for birds)
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Red Cabbage

Greens

Spinach (some, prevents calcium from being absorbed, so just balance it out with cuttlebone)
Kale
Arugula
Romaine lettuce
Brussel Sprouts

Herbs

Mint (but this prevents calcium from being absorbed, so counteract with more calcium-rich foods)
Dill

Grains

Quinoa (get the tri-color one & cook first before adding to veggie chop)

Beans/Lentils

Mung beans
Red Lentils

Fruits

Apples (but NOT the seeds)
Pineapples

Toxic Foods: Stay Away!

Avocados
Beef
Caffeine
Chocolate
Alcohol
Cabagge
Celery
Diary
Dried beans (cooked is fine, but only some I think)
Eggplant
Garlic
Honey
Tomatoes
Mushrooms
Onions
Peanuts
Processed Foods
Rhubarb
Salt
Spoiled/Moldy Food
Sugar
Bitter almonds (not the regular kind, but the bitter ones are toxic)
Fruit seeds from apples, apricots, cherry, peach, pear, plum, and nectarines — basically just stay away from seeds from fruit

Toys

Nothing fabricky that they can take apart. If you have cord ones you might want to put tape around it unless you’re there to supervise the play sessions. If she’s taking it apart that’s a concern, if not, then no worries.

General Environment

Preferred Room temperature 60 to 80 degrees F (15-26 degrees Celsius)
Get a humidifier, helps especially during molting
Air purifier for birdy and you
Baths frequency
- “Usually, conures bathe at least 5–7 times every week in peak summers and during the breeding season. They don’t bathe much in winters (if they are not close to breeding)” – Quora

Toxic Items to Keep Away from Bird’s Environment

Anything aerosol
Anything with fragrance
Do not cook near them (Teflon in non-stick pans is dangerous for birds and even humans)
Do not use air diffusers, birds ingest the oils into their respiratory systems. NO. BEUNO.

Behaviours Indicating Illness:

lethargy; sitting in the bottom of the cage
unusual droppings
ruffled feathers
excessive sleepiness (unless you’ve fed them walnuts…those make me sleepy too)
reduced appetite
cloudy eyes
open-mouth breathing
dirty feathers
weight loss
tail bobbing
changes in vocalizations
red, inflamed or runny cere (nose)

Weekly Routines for Bird Owners

clean cage, taking out and wiping the branches, if you can stand a lingering smell of dirty wet socks: clean with 1:1 water to apple cider vinegar (50% water/50% apple cider vinegar). Get the organic kind with the ‘mother’ in it. I’m still looking to see if I can clean it with anything else other than that.
rearrange the branches and switch up the toys to keep up engagement and reduce territorial behavior.
this is more a daily thing: anytime you’re settling down for a work session, set up foraging toys

Bird-Safe Cleaning Products

F10 – the orangeish one, not the green because that has detergent added and needs to be washed off. Orangeish one can dry on surface
DIY – half vinegar/ half water
For better scent – drop a couple of slices of lemon into the vinegar solution and let it sit for 1-2 weeks, then do the dilution (tried this, not much of a difference, still has the wet socks smell)
grapefruit seed extract and water (you can buy baby wipes that are 99% water + grapefruit seed extract — Godsent!)

Pros & Cons of Owning a Bird (More Specifically a Conure):

Pros:

You eat healthier. Because they need a variety of veggies, but they won’t be able to eat it all by themselves, you have to eat the rest. Also, because they cost a lot and I’ve had to think of ways to budget, I’ve reduced spending money on take out and cook more. And with the healthier foods, I actually am feeling better myself.
Gets rid of perfectionist tendencies. Nowadays I just find myself saying, “just do it” in however state I can get it done in. Doesn’t have to be perfect, just do it. Because you never know when she’s going to want to play, you have a little window of time to get done whatever you need to get done.

Cons:

No alone time. Like zero. Again, introverts beware. You will have a constant companion everywhere you go whether you like it or not. Unless, of course, you can handle the screaming for attention.
Super distracting, they’re not ok with being left alone or ignored for too long. You need to take a break from whatever you’re doing and play with them for a bit.
Keeps you home more because you don’t want to deal with the whole ordeal of having to leave and her screaming. Unless you’re immune to it. Some bird owners seem to be. I haven’t developed that immunity yet so it’s heartbreaking every time. Though I’m starting to learn little tricks of keeping her engaged while I’m gone. Or signalling to her that I’m about to leave so she’s ready for it.

General Tips:

Your conure might not take to things right away. Best way to get them accustomed to new places or toys or play stands is to interact with it, so they know it’s safe and it’s fun to explore. It’s a bonding experience to play with it with them.
Don’t have a vision if it will frustrate you. Yes, you can train your conure to how you would like for things to be, but it won’t happen instantly. You will have to be creative on how you influence their behaviors. Make it enticing, pay attention to why they do what they do and use that as incentive to get them to where you want them to go. For example, I wanted Cuddles to play more independently on her play station instead of being on me at all times. But she prefers to be on me. How do I get her to be more on the play station? You’d think simply putting treats on it will do the trick, but unfortunately after having the treats, she comes back to me. So instead, I’ve moved it closer to me and put treats. She feels safe now to go on it instead of being on me all the time. I am hoping that eventually she’ll feel good enough to be on it when it’s farther away, but we will work up to that.

How Long Should a Bird UV Light Be On Bird?

Green Where You Water It