What is it like to have a Patagonian as a pet? I have been asked this question more than once. How would you describe them? Your bird seems to have excellent manners and is quite tame. Or they want to know whether or not they should have a Patagonian as a pet. How would you describe their emotional make-up? What are some of their requirements? What are the positives, the negatives, and the ugly?
More Than Just Pets, Patagonian Conures Can Become Lifelong Companions
As of the month of June this year, I have been the proud owner of my Patagonians for more than seven years. The following is a list of suggestions that center on the experience of having a Patagonian conure as a pet. This information could be useful to you in determining whether or not you should have this particular breed of parrot. First, you need to be aware that their lifespan is 25 to 30 years.
The attachment between a Patagonian and its owner is quite strong. To a very strong degree. They are universally regarded as the breed of conure that is the most loving. When properly domesticated, they take on the personality of a cute tiny bunny. They stay this way because of the everyday, direct engagement with them that takes place.
Over the years, I’ve seen several conures, but this one is the only one that actively seeks out the attention and love of humans. How to know your birds love you? Even more so than when they are in the company of another bird of the same species. Patagonians have a tendency to be quite loud if they are not constantly engaged in conversation with other people. If this will be your first parrot, and you are currently “searching,” then I would advise you to choose a different breed right now. You are going to find yourself well over your head. The Patagonian will be too time-consuming for you to take care of if you aren’t already passionate about birds. Because of their more affordable cost and larger size, Patagonian conures are selected and bought an excessive amount of times. If you have just acquired a Patagonian, I urge you to read what I’ve written on the breed. Discover how they think, what they need, their personality, and other aspects of them. Personally, I consider my Patagonians to be smaller versions of macaws. They possess a very high degree of intellect. Their level of anxiety is over the roof. They must be handled by their owner, and the owner should be there for as much of the handling process as possible. They will consider you to be another bird and treat you in the appropriate manner. They consider any other birds or people that are present in the house to be members of their “flock.”
dispelling the NOISE factor…
The first thing that people at bird fairs and pet shops tell me about the Patagonian is that it is a really loud bird. Even to the extent that because of this, they do not stock them in their stores. After that, I saw the blue crown, jenday, and sun conures, in addition to a cockatoo and other species of macaws in the area. I shake my head in astonishment. First, let’s have a conversation about the noise problem. When their requirements are met, Patagonians are quiet birds that do not make a lot of noise. On the other hand, they do not make any noise at all:
- If they are kept in a cage that is too tiny for them, they will make a lot of noise. They need a cage that is about the same size as one for a cockatoo or an amazon. The length of their tail is what necessitates the bigger enclosure size, despite the fact that they are the biggest of all of the conures. There is a problem with Patagonians’ long tails that have to be addressed. They have to be able to completely extend out without coming into contact with anything inside their enclosure. A Patagonian places a greater premium on breadth and depth of understanding than they do on height. The amount of squawking within the cage is noticeably reduced when it is of sufficient size.
- They WILL make noise if they are confined to a cage for the whole of their lives since Patagonians are social animals. They are animals that live in groups. Patagonians really MUST have constant human companionship, in contrast to their conure ancestors, who are happy to stay put in their cages. They don’t just put up with you; they really like being in your company. You need to interact with your bird on a regular basis if you want to raise a well-adjusted, happy, and satisfied bird. This is because birds thrive on human interaction. In every meaning of the term, a Patagonian may be described as a “companion bird.” They will follow in your footsteps. They will adhere to you and follow you wherever you go as long as they are attached. They are going to be eagerly anticipating the next chance they have to spend time with you outside of their enclosure. This is essential for the care of this parrot. Either in extended visit sessions or in a combination of multiple shorter visits during the course of the stay. After this period of time, they are put back in their cage, where they remain quite quiet. You will be able to hear them whacking their toys and letting out delighted shouts if you have a play top for their cage. They wake up slowly, but when they are roused awake by morning sounds, they squawk out a lot of noise.
- They are loud in the morning when it is first light as they emerge. They are doing what they would normally do in the wild, which is crying out to their flock to make sure everyone made it through the night safely. When I have to go to work in the morning, I take my bird out of his cage and talk to him for a few minutes. The squawking has stopped. When it is the weekend, I open the cage door and let him out, and then we begin our day. Again, no more squawks. There is a bird in your home that is overjoyed to meet you and to be outside. Not out on their enclosure, but out with you, a fellow member of their flock.
It is also important for you to be aware of their noise and the meaning behind it.
A Patagonian is like owning a small puppy dog. This breed enjoys both playing and chewing on things! Because I have a variety of toys, you will constantly witness them being tossed and carried about in different places. They devote a portion of their playtime to only playing with these toys. After that, kids seek entertainment that involves direct physical participation. They will jump on you in a fun manner, roll about, perform flips, slide on their stomachs, make a variety of noises, and go after your hands. All in a lighthearted and fun way. It will be difficult for you at this point to accept that this thing is a bird. You should get up and leave the room so that you can see a Patagonian following you throughout the home. They won’t leave your side at any cost. If they are on their bird perch, you should watch them bob their wings, make a “woof” sound, squawk, and put that adorable foot out as if to beg, “Pick me up.” They often display a high level of insecurity. However, if you are certain that they are in a secure location, you need just approach them from the next room over to ensure that everything goes well.
Chewing?
As part of their beak care routine, they are required to do this task. To address this requirement, I have a wide variety of wooden parrot toys in my collection. You’ll see what I mean if you go to a dollar shop and buy a pack of one hundred wooden clothespins. You are going to get knowledge of the term “bird shirt.” As soon as a few of your nicer shirts suffer holes from being chewed on, you will begin to compile a collection of your older, less significant shirts to use as replacements. Do not wear clothes that have buttons unless you are interested in seeing how quickly each button is shattered into pieces and gnawed off in its whole. If one of my T-shirts gets chewed up to the point that it seems as if a shotgun was used to blast it, I just replace it with a new one.
In addition, during the whole of their lives, they will always retain the mindset of a kid that is 2 and a half years old. If you leave them alone, they will get into things much as a youngster would. This topic is off-limits. If you need to attend to anything else, you should first ensure that your bird is secure by returning it to its cage or placing it on a play top. You shouldn’t just leave them on the floor like that. When they reach the Patti level, they will discover things that you are unable to see that are lethal to them. Things like packages of silica, things like plaster, and things like little metal objects are included in this category. They will gnaw on them until they are dead. You wouldn’t just walk away from a newborn kid, and the same logic should be used to your Patagonian.
You will need to take your bird to the groomer on a regular basis so that the main flying feathers can be cut and the toenails can be trimmed. After seeing it done once, you will be able to carry out both of these tasks on your own. If you feel you can. Otherwise, you’ll need to make regular visits to an avian veterinarian or a pet shop.
You are going to have to wean your bird off of a diet consisting only of seeds. To parrots, seeds are the equivalent of junk food, and feeding them seeds will eventually make them sick. If their diet consists of things like human food, parrot pellets (like Zupreem), fruits, and vegetables, then they should be allowed to consume seeds in their cage. You should aware of how to properly feed parrots.
Your Patagonian will need an additional hour or two of sleep each night in comparison to their human owner. That’s the equivalent of 12 hours of sleep without interruption, or as close to that as you can get. They are going to develop stress if they don’t obtain the amount of sleep that they need. Stress is handled differently by parrots than it is by humans. It will have an effect on the way they behave. Covering them at night prevents drafts from entering the cage and contributes to the “feeling of security” they have there.
Your Patagonian will choose a member of the family to connect with and get attached to. The first step is always to show love to your parrots and let them trust you. If you are fortunate, you will find that you are this person. You are going to win their favor, and from that point on, they will only do things with you that they will never do with anybody else. There is nothing you can do if you want your parrot to connect with you but it chooses another member of your home instead. Simply make sure that you offer this bird a lot of attention, and you will be astonished by how much love it is able to return to you in return. Patagonians have an innately endearing quality about them.
Be prepared to get bites from your Patagonian if the two of you form a relationship. They are going to be harsh to you as well. Your thumbs are going to be bitten, and there will be blood. If they are sitting on your shoulder, they will probably yank your hair and bite your ear, which will cause you to bleed. In the event that you are a guy, they will remove the hair off your arms. Is this formerly cute and fluffy bird now a dangerous extremist? In no way, shape, or form. They are not even developing a nasty disposition. They have formed a relationship with you and are now attempting to exert their authority on you. Either you are the dominating member of the parrot society, or you are the subservient member. Your Patagonian will put the person they connect with via a series of challenges. This happens all the time in the natural world. It is going to be so difficult not to get even now! It took me approximately two weeks to effectively show my bird that I was dominating and he was subservient to me as his owner. Because of how I handled the situation, no one was scared, and the parrot was able to follow what was going on. A HUGE amount of love and perseverance is required here! Be aware that even if you have established your dominance, it will still be contested on a regular basis even after it has been established. This is particularly true with regard to Patagonians of masculine gender. This is going to be the most difficult period for you. Simply restate that you are the dominant party. After that, you will be able to welcome your bird back to its perch on your shoulder. Only the birds in whom you have the utmost confidence are permitted to approach your face in the first place, and one of these birds should be a Patagonian.
Patagonians are a breed that, once you’ve had the pleasure of owning one, you can’t help but fall in love with. Really manages to win you over. That forcefully and in a manner that is difficult to comprehend. After just a few short months, I discovered that I had formed a close attachment with my bird. Their own character. They have a very high IQ and pick up new information very quickly. The manner in which they carry themselves physically reveals what they are thinking. No joke. Every owner of a Patagonian is caught off guard by them. We have discussed this topic, and all of these birds behave in the same manner. While you are at work, you may be concerned about your pet bird. When you go back to your house and hear your bird squawking for you, either because he heard the vehicle door or because he saw you coming, you will feel a thrill that cannot be explained. They get so used to your coming that they even begin to connect the time of day with it. When my bird is not in the cage, I will be notified via squawks. He can’t wait till we are together again. If he is on the bird stand, he will throw himself to the ground, race inside the room, and come to a halt at my feet. Simply asking me to bring him home so he may be with the person he has connected with. When you pick them up, they provide a kind of greeting that is not typical of any other species of conure. It is identical to being welcomed by a small kid of the human species. Is it supposed to be a bird? Wow!
You will have one of the “Lesser Patagonian conures” if you make the decision that this is the right bird for you and if you are fortunate enough to discover one. Greater Patagonians and Andean Patagonians are the names of the two further breeds of this species. The Greater and the Andean were never brought into the country of the United States. The only conure from Argentina that was brought in was the Lesser Patagonian conure. That is the breed of conure that is being used in the production of babies by breeders in the United States. Avoid getting the two names mixed up. You are NOT going to get a bird of a lower grade. The size of the bird and the quantity of white on its breast are also factors in the Lesser. The Greater is a little bit bigger all around, and it has a substantial white breast necklace that hangs around its neck. The Lesser wears a little necklace, which may be seen as two tiny white dots, one on each of her shoulders. If you buy a Patagonian from a pet store, you should budget something in the range of $450 to $500. Breeders of Patagonian parrots at exotic bird fairs often charge in the neighborhood $250.
To have ownership of and responsibility for the upkeep of such magnificent wild animals strikes me as a privilege rather than a burden. They are not objects that can be thrown away simply because we become tired of them or outgrow them, the veterinary expenses are too expensive, or the parrot does not get along with a member of the family. As owners of domesticated animals, we are accountable for their behavior. Make sure you make promise to your pet birds before getting one.
Are you going to take a road trip? Thinking of bringing your Patagonian with you? Unless you are a bird enthusiast through and through, this will drive you completely insane. Your Patagonian won’t be able to form any associations with the outside world. You are going to have to deal with a true chatterbox at all times. Only when they are on their bonded partner will your bird remain calm. There is no other moment when this will occur. Or at the very least, have them inside their field of vision. I have no doubt that you would be asked to leave even if you booked into a hotel that welcomed four-legged friends. If you make any attempt to move in any direction, you will be met by loud squawks. There is no way to prevent them from continuing either. Before you leave town, you should have your bird boarded with an avian veterinarian unless you have every intention of bringing it with you wherever you go.
In conclusion, I would like to provide some more thoughts from a Patagonian breeder. They have the same way of thinking that I do and provide an excellent description of ownership:
An individual in Canada who breeds Patagonian conures:
We are grateful to you for writing to us. It would seem that you are a bird enthusiast in every sense of the word. The Patagonians that we own are of a lower genetic strain and are now sitting on a clutch as we speak. They were born in captivity. They had vaccinations when they were infants. We keep our aviary locked up so that the birds won’t be exposed to any illnesses that may be carried by other species. If everything at the nest is in order, the young will be extracted between one and two weeks after they have been born (parents taking good care, etc.) The parents seem to take our inspections of the nest in stride, even though we do them almost every day. As soon as I opened the package, the female began to coo at me. They do not seem to be people who pluck feathers, in our opinion. My point of view is that plucking feathers is seldom a sign of a health problem and more often than not has something to do with the way the bird was reared. We make an effort to maintain a calm demeanor and let the birds’ normal day unfold around them. Instead of making things quiet or tranquil, our birds behave as if everything is usual as long as we do, whether there is a loud noise or I cough or whatever else is going on. When they are calling, they may be rather loud at times, although it is often in the early morning. Those who are maintained as solitary pets do not seem to make as much noise. The ones that we have are generally easygoing and have personalities that are more or less matter-of-fact. They have low-pitched voices, yet we have heard them converse with us. We judge them to be clever. We have observed that newborns that are reared by their parents have calm personalities, are affectionate, yet are not too reliant. We also give our birds plenty of free time so that they may learn to entertain themselves and develop their sense of self-reliance. They do not seem to be bothered or bothered by the presence of other species in our breeding area. Instead, they are satisfied with just staring, and that is about all they do.
These birds do not strike me as being dominant or insistent in any way. They are quite enjoyable to me. Maybe I’m just as biased as everyone else! Seriously, in the field of aviculture, they are so uncommon, yet being able to care for a healthy newborn is like falling in love all over again. In many respects, I can’t help but think of a smaller version of a macaw when I look at them. They are a fantastic species in every respect. Simply said, not many people are aware of them, and even fewer people are interested in them, since they do not seem to be as vibrant or “beautiful” as, for example, a female eclectus. Do you get what I mean? They are lovely birds, particularly if you enjoy colorations that are muted and understated
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