Hello from Central Indiana, USA

[tweedamay]

My name is Teresa and I'm looking into adopting my very first GCC. I was mommy to a Sun Conure named Rudy and a cockatiel named Sheila many years ago (13ish yrs ago). Now I have human kids.

When I had my fids, we never had any reason to take them to the vet. They were happy and healthy. I'm interested in finding out more about some of the health concerns with conures. I want to be sure that we can afford the medical expenses that might arise.

Anyway, I'm excited to join the forum and learn more about conures.

[Pajarita]

Welcome! Conures have the same health concerns as any other parrot in captivity (liver and/or kidney malfunction, vit A or calcium deficiency, respiratory infections -bacterial and fungal, etc) and, as most avian vets will tell you, 85% of their health issues are directly related to diet and environmental conditions so it's basically up to the owner how healthy the bird ends up been. Give the bird a good fresh food diet, allow it to fly, keep it to a solar schedule and use good quality full spectrum lights, provide adequate housing, out of cage and one-on-one time to decrease stress and the bird will be healthy and content.

[tweedamay]

Thanks for the welcome and the info!

[Harpmaker]

In addition to Pajarita's comments, with which I agree, I would caution you that Avian vets are specialists, and charge specialist rates. In addition, healthy birds, like all healthy pets, do need periodic checkups. So even if your GCC never catches so much as a cold, parrot owners need to be prepared for health expenses.

[tweedamay]

Thank you!