Rainbow

I'm not surprised about the noise level. Poor Merlin. I'm sure he is feeling a bit forlorn. :glare: You took some very nice pictures of him. I know you are spending more time with him now, and I know that helps. It might take a little time for him to get used to being the only bird. I'm sure you are doing everything right.

I don't think she is spangle. Her flights look normal to me, and so do the shell markings. I don't see any reversal.

I think the odd shell markings are due to the opaline gene. She reminds me of my Blossom and Mystery (the twins). That was one way I could tell them apart, was the size of the black on the shell feathers. If you look at Mystery here, you can see they are small on top and normal-sized on bottom (this was before her first molt too). She had a well-marked V area, and so does your little one. Maybe it is just part of the gene?

I have been having a little problem with the birds at bedtime lately. During the day, they get along just fine. But once I cover the cage for sleeps at night, they morph into something else entirely and it sounds like something from a horror movie in there. They apparently need LOTS more personal space to sleep at night than they do in the daytime. :glare: I will be honest with you, I hear sounds that I have never heard a budgie make before.......and it sometimes goes on for 30 minutes or more. I have to go in and check on them sometimes, it is that bad. And only at night. I don't get it. Even though there is plenty of room on that top perch for all of them to sleep, they disagree. The funny thing is, that there used to be more birds in there than there are right now, and there was never a problem until my flock became smaller! I guess the boys must have buffered some of that estrogen. Anyway, since the top perch was the cause of irritation, I have removed it. I tried to empty the cage out a little (it was really crowded with toys and perches) so they would have more room to move around too. I'll let you know if removing that perch makes any difference as it was hard to make sure there were 4 seperate places to sleep at relatively the same height. I still think it might be a little crowded, but I have to make sure there are places where they can all be far, far away from each other at the same time. This is only a stopgap measure I think, because I'm pretty sure they just need a larger cage since there are only hens now. If anyone has any other ideas to make bedtime more peaceful until that time, I'm all ears! I thought I'd post a few pictures of the new setup, and also some little foraging toys I put together. Here is the whole cage. I tried to keep most all the perches fairly far away from each other so they would have to exert some energy to get from one part of the cage to another. :wine Exercise is good for pudgy budgies. Here is a view of the food. I purposely kept a perch away from the front of most seed cups so they would have to use some new muscles to get at it instead of having such easy access to it. So far they don't care. Also, the ball at the bottom has a millet spray INSIDE it...so if they want it they need to use their heads. Maybe some exercise inside the ball crawling through the holes may ensue. I hope. Here is a foraging ball I made. They love shredables, so I put a bunch inside the ball with parts of them sticking out. They have to stretch from the nearby perches to get at it somewhat, so we will see if they still like to shred if it isn't sitting in front of them. :devil:

Congratulations! How exciting that must have been! I know you are just thrilled, and I am thrilled for you too! :sad:

Great pictures! I see you got some "headless budgie" flight pics, LOL! I seem to get those too. :sad: They all look just gorgeous, and I love little Tobie!

The official classification of a rainbow is a type 2 yellowface opaline whitewing blue. They do not have to be pied. Your bird looks more like a spangle, and is very pretty. If you noticed also, your bird has white cheek flashes...a rainbows would be blue like normal.

Wow, that was an over-the-top kind of day for certain! Huge congratulations from me to you!

I'm glad the vet did not find anything serious. I know it is worrisome.

Thank you again. You are such a strong person and a very giving one to be thinking of sharing all of this so soon after Pretty's passing. :angel1: I know you and your family are heartbroken, and I am thankful that you are allowing all of us to help you through your grieving process. That is what friends are for. Thank you for letting us know what has happened. You did everything you could have done - you did not miss anything. I am so sorry.

I am shocked. I missed a day on the forum and come back on to see all these threads about Pretty being gone. I am so very sorry, I don't know what I can say. It is apparent that everyone on this forum feels your pain, and I am not surprised at all to find so many from-the-heart replies to your heartbreaking news. I am sending prayers your way, and ((((hugs)))) too. I wish I lived closer to you. The memorium you posted with all the beautiful pictures of Pretty brought tears to my eyes. Thank you so much for posting them - what a lovely tribute to Pretty.

Hello and welcome! I'm sorry Peter has pneumonia. I hope the meds take effect quickly for both of your sakes as I know how distressed I get if there is something wrong with one of my birds. As far as getting him to eat better, that could be tough. In the wild, budgies are probably opportunistic feeders, that is they will eat what they find that day. Unfortunately, in some cases such as this it can be bad that our birds do not have to fend for themselves. He is used to a seed treat diet, and will probably stubbornly refuse anything he doesn't recognize as food. That is your problem now, he doesn't recognize veggies and such as food. Changing a birds diet is difficult, as you have to convince them what you are giving them is something they want.....and what Peter wants is seed treats! I would medicate Peter as your vet prescribed, but also whenever you can, eat in front of Peter. Pretend that brocolli is the best thing you have EVER tasted in your life. Offer it to him with your hand, let him see it, then take it away and eat it yourself. It may sound silly, but it might be just enough to entice him to taste a little bit the next time you offer it to him! Make sure it is a small piece, (smaller than his head, definitely!) and if he won't eat it from your hand, place it on a clip to his cage near a favorite perch. You could also try parsley or any of the dark lettuces (red leaf lettuce or Kale) and clip these up too. He might decide to try to take a bath on the lettuces, so make sure they are very damp and clipped securely! Eventually if you offer new things daily he will become brave enough to taste. You can also try clipping baby carrots to the cage, or use a peeler and weave strips of a normal sized carrot through the cage bars near his favorite perch. It may seem like you are wasting food initially, but perserverance is key here. Good luck! Keep us posted on Peter's progress! Get well soon Peter!!

They are both beautiful birds! How old is Phoebe? She looks male to me, but that could be my eyes - they are not young anymore, LOL!

OMG I can't stand it....... Picture # 5 threw me right over the edge! Was it lettuce?????? LOL, what a little food-face!!! How do you ever get anything done with all those cute budgies around??????

Chucky is a beautiful bird. I really love her coloring. She is opaline, isn't she? Her barring looks like it. Does she like the gym much? I mean, does she really get into it or is it just another place for her to sit? I have been thinking of getting a playgym for mine, but as they can go where they want I'm not sure if it would be a waste of $$$ or not. What has been your experience?

:wub: I still want her to live with me instead.... (Like there needs to be another female in this house. ) So cute...Thanks again!

Thanks for the pictures! I'm thinking the father is blue and not green....from mid-chest down he looks like his base color is blue to me. But then again, my eyes are not as good as they used to be, that's for certain! 1st sister picture looks green, and 2nd sister picture looks blue. Are you sure father is a green bird? As Nerwen says, a few more blue would have been expected in the nest, but then again percentages are based on the breeding life of the birds and not necessarily on one clutch. But if they are the color of the father you posted, they could be blues and not greens like you thought. By chance, is he easily handled? If so, I'd see what colors the feathers are closeup on the rump and under the wings.... ....or you could always breed to a blue hen and see what you end up with......

AAAAWWWWWWW......cuteness overload! Thanks for the new pictures! She looks a character in that last one! All those black markings do look a little "smudgey", don't they? She is adorable! The blue on her rump looks a little grey too....is she cobalt or something else?

How horrible for you! It sounds like the past several weeks have just been a trial. I am glad to see you back, but very sorry for all that has gone on in your absence.

The latin name would be helpful. Bubbles, do you think you can find it for the eucalyptus and the peppermint tree? I would be interested to see if I can get them here.

Do you see small clusters of seeds stuck on the cage bars or the wall behind the cage? The first half of your description - it looked like she was getting the food out of her crop (like when they feed each other - but she didn't feed any other budgie), then she swallowed it back, - sounds like regurgitation, but the second half - sometimes she shaked her head and the seeds were spraying around. - sounds like vomiting. If she were regurgitating she would place the seeds on whatever she was regurgitating to. It is a deliberate act. What did she eat the day you noticed this behavior? Can you remember if the water was maybe especially fouled that morning, or if she had veggies left in the cage for longer than usual, or if she was out and about unsupervised and may have nibbled on an unsafe plant or something? A crop infection would probably smell. If you can hold her and get close enough to sniff around the beak, do so. It will probably remind you of curdled milk if there is something wrong. Can you post a picture of her now? If she has been vomiting off and on for two days, there will be signs of it on her feathers.

Hi Norm, and welcome! It sounds like you have had birds for a very long time. They really do grow on you and become a part of you. I'm sure getting back into keeping budgies will be very rewarding for you. I look forward to hearing more about your birds and maybe seeing a few pictures too.

I can tell how happy you are. I'm so glad.

Can I see new pictures of Smudge? Pretty please?

Beautiful bird! I second that. Are those really blue feathers that I see on the tail and around the legs? There seems to be a smattering of it through the wings and below the chin too...Or just my monitor? I'd love to see pictures of the parents also, they sound lovely. Welcome!