My new conure tries to give me "kisses" when you make kissing sounds at him. I guess it was something his last owner did. I don't use lipstick or chapstick, my lips are clean. How safe is it to let him do that or do I just need to avoid any contact like that?
He also tries to eat/drink after me. From my cups or whatever I happen to be eating, should I also avoid that?
You shouldn't really let him take drinks of juice lol but that put aside (:
Well, the saliva in your mouth does contain bacteria that is harm full to the birds. It can cause them to get respiratory infections, and also weaken their immune systems. That's really bad for a bird because they are very prone to getting sick. It can happen very easily for them. If you give him kisses its one thing, but letting him lick all over the inside of your mouth is something you really shouldn't do Kissing him is COMPLETELY fine. I kiss my birdy all the time:) Affection is very important for birds and if he's kissing you it shows he likes the affection. As long as your lips are clean and you aren't really exposing the saliva to him, he should be perfectly fine! And a bird that has Psittacosis is very rare. We tested my bird for it, and he didn't have it so i wouldn't worry too much about that unless he is sick!
pets question and answers,www.5d2d.com So conclusion:
Acidic juices aren't good for a birds digestive system and milk is a no-no cause they're lactose intolerant.
2) Kissing him is completely fine, as long as its not saliva filled, and don't let him peck or lick around in your mouth!
3) Pay lots of attention to your new birdy and give him the love he deserves.
Eating after you is fine, as long as you avoid the toxic foods. He should get veggies (He need em) And fruits if possible. I do splurge on my tiels once in a while and give him junk, but mostly keep him on his routinely diet! Also, birds are prone to obesity! Lol Funny huh? But seriously, you sound like you really care about this bird, and i really hope you have fun with him! Conures are great pets.
Final thing, is they don't have to necessarily be sexed unless you REALLY want them too. Or just look at their behavioral tendencies and check that way!! Hope i helped!!!! (:
You are unlikely to pass any diseases to your bird, but he sure can pass them to you! Chlamydophila infection is a disease that parrotlike birds can carry without showing any signs of disease, and it can cause significant illness in people (and even death in immune suppressed people like those on chemotherapy or with AIDS). Another thing you need to think about is, if he gets mad at you for any reason or is frightened, he could take a serious chunk out of your lip. For those reasons, I do not recommend kissing birds . One final note: has he been sexed by blood tests or surgically? If not, there is the possibility that your bird is a female, and kissing behaviour is courtship in birds that could lead to egg laying and severe medical problems associated with that. As far as drinking or eating after you, so long as it is water or juice that is fine, but don't give him sodas or chocolate or coffee or tea. And don't let him eat after you unless it is vegetables (except avocados), fruit, lean cooked meat, eggs, or tofu, or brown rice or beans or a low salt low fat casserole of some kind. Birds need to eat healthy too!
It's not really the saliva itself that will do harm to your bird, it is the bacteria that is in your mouth. There is bacteria everywhere and this is communicated to the bird through saliva, but it can also be transmitted in other ways, such as skin contact. While occasional kisses will probably not hurt your pet, keep in mind that all the bacteria that may be on you will be getting on your bird! Try to keep him as clean as possible and avoid too much contact with him if you are sick. While a human cold is not likely to make him contract an avian disease, his little birdie immune system still has to kill that bacteria should it get into his system.
It is okay for them to have a tiny touch of saliva from a kiss. Be sure that what you let him eat or drink is safe for birds - its okay for him to have a bit of safe foods as long as most of what he eats is a good quality pelleted bird food. Read the link below
idk, but looks at pigeons for example. Their fairly dirty eating whatever they find on the street and their perfectly fine with it.
Why do you need to know if you already know it is harmful.
Transmission of E-Coli
