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I recently got a yellow sided green cheek. His name is Gus and he's about 7 months old (and completely adorable). He's my first bird so before I brought him home I had done a lot of reading & research. Everything I read made it seem that the bathing routing would be pretty 2nd nature to him & that it was something that conures usually enjoy, however, that is not the case with Gus. I guess his previous owner didn't bathe him because the whole process is pretty scary to him. I've been using a shallow glass pie plate. I fill it with warm water, & sit it in the bottom of the sink. The first time I perched him on the ledge of the dish, I thought he'd take it from there, but he just look at me like I was nuts & started trying to get away. So I've been holding him, dipping my hands in the water & wetting him down. He hates every part of it & seems scared the whole time. Do young birds usually react this way? Any suggestions on how I can make him more comfortable with his bath time?

You could also try putting the shallow pan of water on the bottom grate of his cage. He may be more receptive and go down to check it out. Or he may not. Sometimes birds can be stubborn. The glass pie plate may seem slippery to him. Perhaps try one of those clay or terra cotta plates, like the ones that go under clay pots for plants?

You may find that he will play in his water bowl and bath that way.

Also, have you considered showering with him? Sometimes birds like that, and it can be a good bonding time for the two of you. I keep a shower perch for the birds in my shower. I have mine positioned so that they are not under the water when they are on it. I will sit on the bottom of the shower with my back to the shower head and let the bird sit on my hand. Then they can hang out on the perch while I finish my shower. Mine seem to prefer it this way, and weird as it may sound, I enjoy our showers together.

I've also heard of some birds preferring to rub themselves in wet leaves. It didn't work for me.

Most of the conures I've been around seem to like their baths and showers so I'm guessing that yours will come around when you find what he prefers. Just take it slow. I'm not sure how long you've had Gus, but going into a new home can be a big adjustment for any bird. Good luck!

Try a shallow dish of cold water on the cage top, inside the cage, on the counter...
Try putting toys or ice cubes in the water
Try running the vacuum while leaving out the shallow dish of water
Try using a spray bottle and spraying the bird from atop
Try running the water in the sink or bathtub
Try bathing in the shower with cool water
Try getting some leafy green veggies (or fresh SAFE plants from outside), getting them wet, and hanging them from inside the cage, clipping them to the cage, or putting them in a dish with a small amount of water

You could also try to encourage your conure to bathe by putting your fingers in the bath water and making the water ripple and splash a little

I pulled up my post from a bit ago. You should be able to copy and paste this. This is the first bath my cockatiel took after numerous attempts at other methods. You can probably get the same effect with a very light mist. Good Luck!

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My sun conures take a bath in their water dish. Actually, the white belly caiques do too, but the black headed caiques don't. Specially when I vacuum or give them fresh cold water. Burrr - that seems so uncomfortable.

Thanks for all the great advice! By the way, what is with the vaccuum cleaner? I noticed a few of you mentioned this. Is that something that most birds enjoy?

Many birds get into the mood for bathing or being sprayed when a vacuum is running nearby. Best guess is that it sounds like a rain storm in the jungle But none of my birds respond to the sounds of a real rain storm, so who's to say?! And some of mine aren't moved by a vacuum either.

Others have given you good suggestions. Varying water temp is important. Some birds like it warm, some cold, some room temp. Most of mine preferring being sprayed to bathing, but some who love bathing hate being sprayed. Takes lots of experimentation. And some who hate water for years and years and years will suddenly go wild in it for no reason obvious to the doting mama Never give up! But never torture your little guy either. Give him a chance to tell you what he likes and quit the stuff he hates after just a little bit of a try. 'Til next try.

Paca

Gus took his first willing bath today!! I tried several things & no method seemed any better than the other. Then today I set him down in the sink & instead of trying to get away, he just sat there for a minute looking up at me, then he fluffed up & started going to town. It's like instinct just sort of kicked in. It was a big day for us.