Conure Care Sheet
Basic Info
Scientific Name: Aratinga solstitialis
Lifespan: Approximately 20+ years.
Handling: Anytime after he/she gets use to you.
Size: About 10 -12 inches.
Care: Easy
Community: Yes, you may house a pair of conures together. It will not matter if you house two males, two females, or even a male and female together. They will both get along together just fine. However, if you do decide to house a male and female together, you are going to want to prepare for your female laying eggs. Make sure to give both attention, or one will get jealous over the other.
Lifestyle: Diurnal, active during the day.
Enclosure Requirements
Cage: The recommended minimum size cage for conure is the 20in x 20in x 30in (L x W x H). If housing more than 1 conure, you are going to want to double or even triple the dimensions given. Remember… the more room, the better! The sides should be made up of metal bars that are close together. Make sure the bars are close enough that your bird’s head can not fit through. There have been incidents of birds sticking their heads through the bars and breaking their necks. Avoid this, by choosing the right cage.
Bird Toys: Your bird will be very active in it’s enclosure, so it is very important that you keep him/her occupied with things to do. conures love to chew and shred things up, so choose toys that are edible, safe, and entertaining for your conure(s).
Perches: conures do everything with their feet. They eat, sleep, climb, and play with their toys using their feet. So it is very important that their feet should be able to grab something everywhere they go. A few perches around the enclosure should do the trick. The perfect size perch will be the one that allows your conures feet to wrap around 3/4 of the perch.
Water bottle and Food bowl: In order to keep your bird-cage clean, you will need to put your food and water somewhere. Most birds will drink out of a water bottle made specially for birds that hangs onto the side of the cage.
Bedding: Newspaper will be just fine. This is where all your conures droppings will be collected.
You should clean the enclosure every two weeks to avoid any bacteria build up. All food and water bowls should be cleaned out weekly thoroughly.
Feeding/Diet
For a well-balanced diet, you will need to feed your conure a variety of foods. Your food should consist of: bird seeds, veggies, fruits, and protein.
Note: You will want to store your bird seeds in the freezer in an air tight bag. If you do not store your bird seeds in the freezer, you will most likely have little insects emerging from the food.
Note: All fruits must have seeds removed.
Note: All protein foods must be fed in small amounts. Any left over food that is not eaten at night must be removed and thrown away.
Feed veggies, fruits, and proteins all on separate days. Always leave bird seeds in your conures enclosure to snack on throughout the day. Never mix the seeds with the fruits, veggies, or proteins. You should have separate food bowls.
Noises/Imitations
Conures are known to be very loud and are not known for having a great ability to talk, but can learn a few words and sounds. They are also known to learn a few tricks.
Bathing Your Conure
Bathing your Conure is very important. Baths help keep feather dust down, prevents your bird from getting dry skin, and helps soften the keratin coating on new feathers so it sheds more quickly. Now when I say bathe, I am not talking about submerging your Conure under water and giving him a scrub down. I just mean simply spraying your Conure down every once in a while with a spray bottle or mister. If you want, you can even let your Conure bathe himself. The way you can do this is by getting a very shallow dish which your bird can easily walk into and out of easily and by putting an inch of water into it. Lightly dab your fingers into the water to show your bird that there is water in the dish. He will then walk into the water and start bathing himself. Another thing you may enjoy doing is showering your bird. Yes, I am talking about literally showering with your Conure.
First thing is first, NEVER EVER get soap on them. Soap will only harm them. So when your washing your hair, make sure your shampoo isn’t getting on them when you’re rinsing your hair out.
Next, the water bouncing off walls is what the Conure should be receiving on it’s perch, nothing more. Any direct water from the shower head to your bird will only be harmful. Remember Conures are very delicate and have very sensitive heads. A mist shower is all that your Conure needs. They become very cold if they get too wet, which is why you should never soak your bird. If you realize your bird got too wet, simply dry him down with paper towels. Avoid using a hair dryer at all costs. You give your Conure a bath to keep the dust down and to help with dry skin. Blow drying your bird will only increase the chance of getting dry skin.
Lastly, never use HOT water or COLD water. It should be room temperature or a little warm. Just keep that in mind when taking a shower with your Conure or when you’re misting them. Some Conures will tolerate water, while others wont. If your Conure is the type that hates water and will do everything possible to avoid water, spraying your Conure with a mister once a week is your best bet.
All in all, Mist your bird. Do not soak your bird.
Use room temperature water, not HOT or COLD water.
If you shower with your bird, never get soap on them.
Never ever face a shower head or faucet head at them.
Never blow dry your bird, use paper towels if necessary.
Always use clean water.
Note: The information on this conure care sheet is not a substitute for veterinary care.