Rainbow

The cere looks very smooth, and if the bird is going on 2 and still has a pink cere it is male.

Sometimes parrots will regurgitate and swallow it back. Regurgitation is a controlled up and down movement of the head and neck, usually just a few pumps. Vomiting is more a quick pump up and down, then a violent side to side motion as the bird flings the stuff out. Sometimes this will happen several times in succession. Vomit will be pasted on the head if the bird is sick often enough. If you notice seeds are sprayed and stuck to the walls or in places it is not normal for them to be, the bird is vomiting. Regurgitation is controlled, and the seeds will only be in places within easy reach of the beak. I think your vet must feel it is regurgitation if you were advised to wait, as being in breeding mode does not cause birds to vomit. If the bird is swallowing it back, she is probably regurgitating. I can't imagine the bird being able to swallow back vomit, as it comes out too fast. Plus the bird obviously looks like it doesn't feel well if it is vomiting. You can see it in the eyes. How long has this been going on?

I had to look it up, but a weiro is another name for a cockatiel in Australia. They are also called quarrian. http://www.birds.org.au/cgi-bin/articles.pl?Cockatiel

My birds used to do stuff like that when they were juveniles. I think it is normal, and it slowed down after about a year. They still like to yank the food cups off the sides though and the perpetrators are 3 years old now, so some things they may never outgrow!

Looks like you have plenty of room there! Can you post pics of each section so we can see?

Hi Dawnykins, and welcome to the forum. How did you end up with an orphan? Poor thing, it's wonderful that you are able to take over feeding and care duties. I'm not sure about the schedule, as baby birds are fed by their parents on demand. The concept of a schedule is more for your convenience, I think. If you are feeding every two hours, does the crop empty completely between feedings? Or does s/he not seem quite as interested in food, or can you still see food in the crop? You need to let the crop empty as completely as possible, but if the baby is hungry before then, s/he will let you know. It would be a good idea to weigh her daily, to make sure she is gaining weight steadily.

I melted at that first picture.... She is adorable!

I'd observe it for now. My birds have on occasion given me wet sneezes too, and they did not have any issues. A one-time icky sneeze isn't always cause for alarm. If he had been playing in damp lettuce, or dipped his head into the water dish too far, etc. it could cause a wet sneeze. If it becomes more frequent I would take him to the vet.

She sounds cage aggressive. It is not unheard of. I would take her out of the room her cage is housed in (to neutral territory) and start over with taming there. Secondly, Nibbles and Screach should not be housed together. Budgies are much more aggressive than cockatiels are, and since you say they don't get on well anyway I imagine they are both under some stress which could cause much of the aggression that is happening.

Budgie lover, I am sorry this has happened, but I would guess this is why your hen attacked and killed her babies - if you really checked on them that often, you were causing her undue stress! You only need to check on them once or twice per day and allow the parents to get on with the business of raising babies. She would have been so nervous with that kind of interference...even if you didn't touch them, every time you opened the box to look at them you were probably inadvertently making your hen VERY nervous. Eventually I think she killed them because conditions were not right for her to raise a family. Especially as this was her first brood. I would wait awhile and rethink what you hope to accomplish by breeding, and not allow her to breed again for another year. If you allow her to breed again, you will need to anticipate that she will be nervous about it again because of her initial experience and allow her space the next time. If she attacks her brood the next time she should not be allowed to breed ever again, as it is just too stressful for all involved.

I would say you have a male. In my experience, the males bite harder, LOL. Females seem to bite once and be done with it, males seem to hang on and continue to grind into your flesh. Ouch. He is very, very cute. I have found that budgies don't normally bite unless they don't see any other option out of a situation they are afraid of. I'm not saying you are intentionally scaring your budgie or not treating him right, but think it would be a good idea to really look at everything that happened in the previous minutes before a bite. At his age, he may be getting a little irritable because he is nearing his first molt. Some birds go through a molt without much change in personality, others find it very bothersome. The clue to keep it from becoming a habit is to avoid as much as possible situations where he has the opportunity to bite. Is it possible you are moving too quickly with your taming? He may be uncomfortable with the pace. Maybe slow things down for a week and see if the biting slows or stops. Are you putting your hands in the cage or asking him for interaction while he is beating up his toys? If so, wait until he stops playing with them before you request hands-on interaction. If he is releasing tension you can always expect a bite if you interrupt! In the beginning it is definitely a learning curve for you while you learn to read his body language and he learns to read yours. It sounds like you are doing fine, and this is probably part of the learning curve. Keep us posted.

Cuteness overload, for sure! :ausb:

http://www.birdsnways.com/articles/psittico.htm http://www.avianweb.com/psittacosis.html Bea, don't freak out about Blinkie. He will take the injection like a champ, I'm sure. Blinks is in good shape now, so I can't see 2 more days without meds moving him into a huge decline. You don't even know if he has it yet. I know you want to fix it now, but there is a possibility that his immune system has been able to keep the virus from taking hold in him. After 2 or 3 days of meds, I read that Ozzie won't be actively shedding the virus anymore. The problem is that the disease is airborne transmissible, so any poop dust from Ozzie could be anywhere in your room to be stirred up. Since you can't get meds until Monday, I would go through their room and clean, clean, clean as best you can without stirring up dust. Wipe down any woodwork around the doors, baseboards, etc. of their room. Damp mop the floor if there is no carpet. Wipe down the walls with a damp washcloth. If there is carpet, vacuum it several times over the weekend. If you have blinds over the windows, wipe them down also. Wipe down the windows. Bookshelves, desks, nightstands, everything! I don't know if it will help any, but I think any activity on your part right now will help your frame of mind until you can get meds for all the birds. ((huge hugs to you, Bea, you are handling this better than most people would, even at twice your age. You really, really deserve something for the responsibility you are showing in caring for your babies. I wish I could be there to help you in some way.))

Hello and welcome. As far as dogs and budgies, it will depend upon the temperament of each. But some common sense issues: I would be very wary of a bird dog or terrier breed with the budgies. Each of those will present it's own issues. I had a herding dog (Australian shepherd) that for the most part ignored the budgies, and would not chase them even if they landed on the floor, but would I have trusted her around them without my presence? Absolutely not! It will probably take months of work on your part to keep the dog's natural curiosity at bay where the budgies are concerned. A larger parrot may be able to hold it's own a little better (ie-a more wicked bite) but even if your budgies are flighted a determined dog can bring one down. Better safe than sorry, and keep them in seperate rooms unless you are able to provide good supervision. Molting is a normal occurrance whereas eventually every feather is replaced. A full molt will last about 2 months. You will notice the feathers on the head first, because as the new feathers grow in the sheaths are most noticable there. Feathers will fall out synchronously on the wings (the same feather on each side will fall out at about the same time). Your bird should not lose the ability to fly while molting. The 2 long feathers on the tail will be lost, although not usually at the same time. The second usually drops after the first is mostly grown out, but this is not always the case. Body feathers and down feathers as well will be lost, but these are not as noticable growing back in as those on the head. When your bird molts he or she may be a little more irritable than normal, or may nap more often. It takes a lot of energy to regrow every feather on their bodies. A healthy and varied diet is of utmost importance at this time.

okay. I know you will, so try your hardest not to worry until then. You are doing all you can at this point. No one else could do any more. ((((more hugs)))))

I figured as such. It is worth a call to them anyway. I'm not sure if you drive - if you do it is no big deal to go yourself and see what there is to choose from, but if your parents have to drive you they might not be happy about a trip for "nothing". At any rate, maybe a multivitamin with calcium plus the veggies would be of help? If the parents are truly calcium deficient, they should be eating the cuttlebone daily and will probably go nuts over green vegetables. Birds seem to instinctually know what they are lacking and will gravitate towards a source if offered.

Call the stores first and ask... we are in different places so what they have in stock might be slightly different. But still go with the veggies.

I went to PetSmart and PetCo to look for calcium supplements for you. I did not find any, so I would recommend if you are planning on going to either one of those places you call first and ask. I only saw calcium in multivitamins supplements. You might have better luck at a locally owned store. If your birds eat veggies, broccoli is very high in calcium, so is Kale. Try feeding those things to your birds - I'll bet they really eat them up!

Bea, it is probably that Blinks is missing Ozzie, but makes me concerned that he should be on meds too, just in case.....

I'm glad you have been able to begin a program to help your baby birds. You should be able to find a calcium supplement at your local pet store. If you can't, let me know and the next time I go out I will look for brand names you will probably be able to find here.

Aw Bea, I'm sorry he is so sick. Hopefully since he seems to have perked up a little, you have caught the re-infection early and he will soon bounce back. I agree you need to treat all the birds that have had contact with him. If your parents don't understand why it is so important let them ask here and we will all be glad to let them know how urgent it is that all the birds are treated. Thinking of you. ((((hugs))))

Lovely birds! I think you are right about them all except for June and Chevy...it's hard to tell because of the shadows in the pictures, but the ceres look pink to me instead of brown. What color are they really? Pink will be boy, brown will be girl. Those 2 I can't say for certain without knowing the true cere colors. I like Rainbow, he is a cutie.

AAAAWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!! If you are worried about the temps there, feel free to send them my way. I have a nice 70 F climate-controlled room they can stay in.......

I'm sorry Jim isn't well. Prayers are being sent your way for you both. I'm wishing a quick recovery for Jim too.

Oh Bea, I am sorry Ozzie seems ill. Can you think of anything he would have been exposed to? It most likely would have come in from outside the house, don't you think? It is great that you can take him to the vet same-day! Sometimes that is very hard to negotiate, especially if you take him to a busy practice. I hope it is not a serious illness. Let us know what the vet said as soon as you get back home!