Strange Budgie Behaviour ?

[Rue. 0]

Hi ,

My 2 brothers and ! all have a bird and recently we got our third. He is aroundabout 4-5 weeks old and still developing feet and claws. We recently put him in his new cage and he has been acting very strangely. He came in a small cage that we returned which basicall was like a little box with no perch. We got him out of the cage this morning because he is hand reared and played with him , letting him sit on everyone's thumb and back. He flew around and hit the walls a few times. This really worries me that he will hurt himself smashing into the walls and ceiling. We never experienced this with the other two birds , mostly because they aren't hand reared and live in an aviary out the back.

Thanks , Rue.

[funkypanda 0]

hi rue this is not going to kill him but its not good for him so if i wear you i would clip his wings

[**KAZ** 0]

Funkypanda is right...he needs wings clipped for safer handling and training.

 

 

also what do you mean by this

still developing feet and claws

a fully fledged baby budgie has its feet and claws fully developed, so what is wrong with your budgie to make you think they arent ? Edited April 25, 2012 by **KAZ**

[Finnie 0]

Hi. 4-5 weeks is pretty young. I find that my parent raised chicks just come out of the nest at 4 weeks, and of course, have never flown before. The first time they find themselves outside a cage, they take off flying and don't know what to do. They fly around and around looking for a way to stop. They don't know how to land, so they crash into things a bit. Eventually they learn how to grab things and land. It takes them a couple of flight experiences before they get the hang of it.

 

All this to say: They really NEED a chance to fly around and learn how to use their wing muscles BEFORE they ever have their first clip. From what I have read, a baby bird who gets clipped before it learns to fly, might never learn to fly in its life. I haven't tested this theory, and I don't plan to. I want them to learn to fly. Then I only clip them if they are slated to be sold, and I need to have some control over them, work with taming them.

 

I DO recommend clipping wings of older, non-tame birds, if they are prone to freaking out and crashing into things. But in the case of a baby that's just learning to fly, let it learn.

 

And if it was hand raised, it shouldn't freak out. A little bit of miscalculation while it learns a new room is expected, and won't hurt him.

 

 

I'm not saying not to clip him, I'm just saying that with hand raised, you shouldn't have to, but if you want to, make sure he knows how to fly well, first.