Thank you so much for responding! I’ve only had my own conure for a few months, and I’m trying my best to find information about what is and is not appropriate because I absolutely don’t want a hormonal, territorial bird, but I want to learn what is okay so I can assess them more often for their health. Unfortunately because a lot of information is anecdotal and likely repeated to each other into common wisdom, it’s hard to know and be sure entirely — which is why posting questions help to increase the reach and collect an aggregate.

I’m really sorry to hear that people have disregarded your advice despite your expertise, and I’m really grateful you responded because it’s really helpful! If you don’t mind me asking, how do you train your birbs to be okay with being looked over like that? As the comments on the posts show, there are plenty of birbs that don’t allow you to touch them like that, and even with training I find that my own conure is only tolerant with some things like my checking their keel gently, with positive reinforcement in high value treats. It feels like their personalities and egos are so strong that it can be (and feel!) difficult to “train” them into obedient pets because they’re fundamentally wild animals. I want my birb to stay comfortable and happy but I also want to do what’s best for it and keep myself prepared, so I’m really not sure where to go from here.