Rainbow

You might also try your local government, and find out what you need to do permit-wise. Do you want to be a non-profit organization, or something else? Your local agencies will be able to give you all sorts of information about the options available to you, as well as what is required legally. A rescue is a noble effort indeed. Good luck to you. **moving to a more appropriate forum**

That is entirely your prerogative. People are trying to help you.

I can't see the pictures to tell. Would you check your links?

What a great idea! I don't think it will hurt for a short amount of time to give them the bigger parrot mix. It sounds like they are used to eating a variety of foods anyway, so should not be too much of a problem. I usually substitute finch mix in a bind, as it's usually the same as budgie mix but with thistle added. My budgies love it.

**Topic moved to a more appropriate forum.** Please stop the shouting and the sarcasm. It is not necessary.

If you are going to start a small business, you should have a business proposal written up first. Also make sure you have all the proper paperwork for permits turned in to your local government. It does not sound like you have done quite as much research as you need to yet. I'm sure once you begin to talk to other breeders, store owners, etc. regarding necessary procedures for your aviary things will become much clearer. Although in my opinion, the procedures you want to follow regarding your breeding practices are core and basic, and should already have been established in your mind. Your question intimates you may not be as concerned about your stock as would be prudent for a small business owner...the fastest and easiest way when dealing with living creatures is not usually the best way. If you decide to take that road, you will need to have a fair, firm health guarantee in place that all potential buyers are aware of up front. You will probably need to tap into that fund a little more than you would like to if the fastest and easiest way is what you are truly looking for. I don't want to dissuade you from starting a business, the small business entrepreneur is a wonderful thing. There are many small businesses I frequent instead of larger chains because I like their philosophies and how they conduct business. I do think a little more research is in order for you, because it does not sound like you have done any homework from your question.

Just to clear up any confusion, Frisky, Daz's budgies are the larger show-type budgies. It looks like you have the smaller variety. The budgie in your picture should lose a gram or two as he gets good at flying. At his age they are learning all sorts of aerial acrobatics and will lose a little weight. When they fledge (leave the nest box) they are normally at their high weight. They have had 5 or 6 weeks of sitting inside the box (maybe doing a little flapping during the last week) but other than that just eating. :dbb1: Flying exercise slims them down. For the smaller type budgies anywhere from 28-35 grams is about average, depending upon the bone structure. Of course there will be a few variances over, but under 28 grams will usually indicate a problem. There weight should not fluctuate much after 5 or 6 months of age unless you have a breeding hen. My Skittles normally weighs around 32 grams, but when her hormones are high and she is in breeding mode she weighs 40 grams. I think a great many budgies are a little too chunky (I know a few of mine are!), as they are normally very streamlined birds in the wild, tending to look a little thin. You should be able to easily feel the keel bone and when the bird is on your finger you shouldn't feel much of anything at all. :ausb: Hope this is of help to you.

That makes me feel ill too. Reading your post made me cry, for you, Katie, and all those birds. How very, very sad this world is sometimes. It is a shame that children are learning what cruelty and neglect some people are capable of earlier and earlier. Whether you know it or not, I think you were a perfect role model for Katie today, by doing what you did. You cannot go wrong teaching a child compassion, and by your actions that is exactly what you showed her. Thank you for sharing your experience today. Bless you for taking all the birds, at least they are not suffering anymore. And I am sure they WERE suffering. I hope that lone budgie still struggling will make it, and that s/he brings more joy to Katie than she ever imagined having a budgie would do. I am so proud of Katie too. ((hugs)) and tears to you both.

Your link isn't working for me. When you sign into your photobucket account, there will be different links under each picture you have uploaded. Depending upon the size of your photo, copy either the IMG link or the URL link (IMG if your original is under 450 x 450 pixels, URL if it is larger.) and paste to your reply on the forum. It should show up then. You can also check your links before you post to the forum by using the preview post button instead of the add reply button. That way you can see if you can reach the page or not. Would you mind trying again? I'd love to see Yumi!

Hi ozartist. I had to pop in here after I read your questions. :budgiedance: I have 4 budgie hens. 2 of them talk and one wolf whistles. Out of all the budgies I have had, I've had more luck with hens talking than males. I'm sure that is not the norm, but has been my experience. And I 've had budgies for most of the past 35 years. Budgie hens do talk, they just are not as likely to talk as the males. When they talk, regular words are interspersed with budgie sounds, so you never know what you are going to get! And they do not talk very loudly, when mine get on a roll it is usually as they are settling down for a rest and have that little chattering session. Most times I really have to listen closely to figure out what they are saying. And I can make out things others can't, so go figure on that one. And in my experience, the girls do not bite as hard as males either. Well, they can bite hard, but they bite differently. The males I have had when they would bite, would hang on for dear life and just grind and grind into your flesh and not want to let go. They are the blood-drawers. :devil: The hens seem to bite quickly and are done with it, and for me they will tolerate more of whatever it is they don't like before they bite. But if you push them, it will still pinch. :ausb: So you could very well have a hen. If you are able to set up a photobucket account (I was asked to login from your link too) please post the picture again so we can see. Let me know if you are not able to change your avatar.

Thank you for the update. We are all hoping for the best, and it is good to hear she seems to be feeling better, and acting happy. That is what we really want for all our birds - for them to be happy. It is really a tall order to fill, especially for special needs birds. I hope things continue to improve.

Looks to me like she's been in a fight. She looks to be missing most of her flights on the right side. I agree that I would not put her back in the aviary until her eye heals completely. I've had a bird get a swollen eye just like that due to a fight. He went to the vet and ended up on antibiotics and a steroid injection to combat the inflammation and pain. Since she has been in the hospital cage, how has her appetite been? Do you have a gram scale where you can weigh her daily to make sure she is not losing weight? She is a pretty bird. How old is she? Oh yeah, my hens generally don't bite hard - if they are inclined to bite at all. Normally they don't unless I have a medicine syringe in one hand and them in the other, LOL. That isn't always a reliable way to differentiate between the sexes.

It really isn't necessary unless the parents stop taking care of the babies. It won't necessarily create "a better bond". If you want tame babies that are unafraid of people the best thing to do would be to regularly handle them during nest box cleanings and (I think this is so very important but seems underrated) talk to them often! As they begin to show interest in their nest box, the poop on the bottom, their toes, their siblings toes, etc. start offering small pieces of millet and steamed or cooked soft foods like peas, carrots, couscous. They will play with them at first, and will only eat it by accident, but this will help them be more accepting of different foods. If you give them millet by hand while they are in the nest box (after 3-4 weeks) it will also help them to remain unafraid of people and their hands. The idea is to make sure all their interaction with people and their hands are positive in nature. Too much can go wrong when you try to handfeed formula to baby birds. I think regular attention and interaction is the better way to go.

Hi Michelle, if you are very worried you can attach a perch just outside the nest box for the little fledglings to hop to. Make sure the diameter is smallish so when they jump to it and grab on for dear life they can grip around the perch and not slide or fall from it. That way they get to practice a little perching, maybe some wing flapping before they get brave enough to move on.

Hi Vonn, what a spoiled little budgie you have! Would that all the budgies have so much freedom. You can spray him before the antibiotics are over as long as the room is warm, and you do it early enough in the day that he will not be going to bed with damp feathers. I'd use warm water, and hide the spray bottle behind you while you spray up, so the water appears to come from the sky. Pretend to enjoy the bath yourself (as you will get a little wet doing this!) and he may not fly off and enjoy the "rain" with you!

I think she needs to see the vet again, unfortunately. Although she seems better with the lump shrinking after it was 'lanced', all that fluid has to go somewhere. I wonder if it is possible her body is not absorbing and releasing the fluid fast enough and it has leaked out into her body. The lump was very large, and on a bird as small as a budgie the amount of fluid inside was probably huge. I don't want to sound scary, but if there were any infection in the fluid and her system was not able to get it out soon enough through the urine, it might be contributing to her flight problems. It is sad the vet 'wrote her off a long time ago', but unfortunately some of them do that for the smaller birds. But she is still alive and it sounds like she is fighting like h*ll to get better so I would take her back to the vet. The vet will be able to palpate her and tell better than I whether she has fluid inside, a tumor, or something else. At least I know I do not have the training to tell you what to do to help her, and I have kept birds for over 30 years. I can only throw out guesses, and that ultimately won't help Sara, although I wish it could. It sounds to me like there is pressure inside her where it should not be. The cause could be several things from the fluid leaking inside her (fluid pressure) to a tumor to an internal bruise.... How is her appetite? Her general demeanor? Does she still perch straight? Hugs to you, and please keep us updated. We love Sara.

If I were closer I'd just hug you. :angel1: What strength and determination you both have. I'm so glad things are going well. Hugs and prayers still being sent your way...

This is very good news! I thought at first the worst had happened, even though I realized this was an old thread - I thought 'oh no an unhappy update'. What a relief to read there is a happy ending! It was ultimately for the best, wasn't it?

Hi jeangardiner and welcome to the forums. Beak grinding is a sign of contentment, beak clicking is usually something different. When your bird makes the clicking noises, what other behaviors is he exhibiting? Is he fluffed up, on one leg, looking like he is going to sleep while slowly moving his beak from side to side to make the noise? Is he tall and thin, wings slightly away from his body? Does he look like he is gulping for air? Does his tail bob up and down with his breathing? Does it appear to droop instead of continuing in a straight line from his back? Or is he doing something else entirely? How are his droppings? Have his eating habits changed? Has his personality changed? You said he was more listless than usual...how long has he been so out of sorts? Does he seem unusual in any other way? I am leaning toward a vet visit since you phrased it that way because budgies are not normally listless birds. My experience has been when they act listless they do not feel 100%. If you could give a little more detail that would help steer us in the right direction.

I have some talkers, although they don't say much. Blossom will say 'hi there' 'pretty bird' 'whatcha doin' and some words or phrases that I have no idea what she is saying....she tends to intersperse budgie sounds (clicks and such) with her words. She has to be in the mood to talk, and when she does you really have to listen as she talks softly and very quickly. Sky says 'I love you', and Skittles will wolf-whistle once in a blue moon. I've never seen Blueberry talk, so I can't say whether she has picked anything up or not. They were all older (over 2 years old) when they started talking, and it's not anything I have ever made an effort to teach them. It's funny, but I've only had one male that ever learned a word or two - with that one exception my talkers have all been hens. I've never had one that knew any more than a couple of words though, but there are several people on this board who have some that know a lot of words and phrases. **Pippin has got some great phrases! What a riot!**

She is such a cutie, and sounds like she is just full of personality. Thanks for sharing the pictures!

I don't know what your setup is, but it is possible your hen has a strong urge to breed but for whatever reason is nervous once the eggs are laid. Her actions sound like nervous behavior to me. Is this her first clutch? What is the setup like? How old is she and her mate? Any previous clutches? What is the traffic flow in the area her cage or aviary is in? How often do you check the box? Unfortunately as Kaz said, once hens get into the habit of destroying eggs they don't usually work out as breeders. Best if you can figure out what might be making her uneasy and nipping it in the bud.

Please let your vet know what happened and that clear liquid was expressed from the lump. Since she seemed to feel so much better after the pressure was relieved somewhat it may possible the vet could safely lance it to drain the fluid. That would certainly relieve some of the pressure and the weight she is carrying with it. It would be worth the phone call in my mind, even if it is determined later he cannot do it for whatever reason. What a tough situation for you and Sara...(((hugs))) I am thankful she is still doing well. It does sound like you are taking extraordinary care of her!

Welcome back! I like your living room setup. I'm sure the birds love it too. Do they get on any better now, or is Pipina still hormonal, LOL? I'm sure you have a screen in, but it doesn't look like it -it looks like the birds could fly out.....! The window glass is so clean! How do you manage not to have poop splattered all over it?? Tell me your secret!

Congrats on the egg!!!!! You have some lovely budgies there.