A handfed conure or quaker may be the perfect choice for someone wanting a smaller, less expensive parrot. Their clownish personality is similar to that of a pint-size macaw, and they can make delightful pet parrots. They are not demanding, and seem to get along fine and stay very tame with just a small amount of daily attention. While the conures are not particularly good talkers, I have seen many exceptions to the rule, and most handfed quakers will talk a blue streak! Although Quakers are not conures, but rather a South American parakeet that belongs to a genus all its own, their behavior and characteristics are very similar to Conures, so I will include them here, and try to note the differences as I see them.
Most tame, handfed conures and quakers are fairly affectionate and enjoy being held and pet, and they usually seem to go to anybody with no hesitation. The handfed quakers I've had and those of my friends usually get along great with everyone, and love to be passed around the room to be loved on by all. Some of the conures are not quite as accepting, but many are and you will easily be able to judge this characteristic even before they're completely weaned. Conures, as well as quakers, are also very playful and intelligent, and can learn many tricks with just a small amount of effort.
The biggest complaint I ever hear about these birds is that some people cannot tolerate their noise (the natural call). While they are not as loud as some of the larger macaws and cockatoos, their voices are generally rather high pitched (particularly the Nanday Conure), and some people find these calls very irritating. The natural call of the Quaker is very similar to that of a Conure, but most handfed Quakers don't use their natural call often. As stated in the earlier section on noise, these calls can be controlled or kept to a minimum. I have a handfed Nanday that rarely makes any noise, unless you place an unfamiliar object near its cage, and then she only screams for a minute or two. However, this will vary from bird to bird based on their individual personalities. Just be sure not to reinforce any screaming behavior, by screaming back or giving him exactly what he wants any time he screams, or you will only worsen the problem. If their natural call bothers you, you may want to consider keeping their cage in a separate room and having a playpen in your living area.
One thing I have noticed about the conures I've owned, though I don't know if this is typical of the genus, is that they often hang on the bars of the cage and potty either outside their cage or down the front bars, instead of on their cage paper. This was slightly annoying to me, and I had to devise cage aprons and various drop clothes around their cages to protect my walls and carpet. Again, I don't know if this was simply my birds (I've had Mitreds, Blue Crowns, Peach Fronts and Nandays), but they all exhibited this behavior. The Quaker Parakeets did this a little, but not nearly as bad as the conures. This might be something you want to consider when deciding what kind of cage, where to place it, and if you will need to protect the walls and floors around them.
Due to these birds' "large parrot personality" and inexpensive price, they are often the first parrot of many multi-bird owners. Although many individual bird owners think their pet conure is the perfect pet bird and all they'll ever need, owning a smaller parrot like these will give people all the knowledge and confidence they need to go on to a slightly larger or more expensive parrot if they so desire. Just be sure to remember your little friend who got you interested in birds, should you decide to move up to a larger bird.
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