Rainbow

Congratulations on the little ones! I'll bet they are so cute. I had the same question when my birds were raising babies. You can clean the box. I waited until the hen had left and then raised the lid and scooped it out. (yuck) It was not a bad chore because all the feces stayed very dry-it was weird. It was a little dusty, but that's it. They weren't wet until the babies were ready to fledge. I think it has something to do with the mixture the hen feeds to the babies. Just be as quick as you can without scaring the babies, because your hen will see you in the box and get upset. You can use this time to gently pick each one up before you start cleaning- just loosely hold each one-let them walk through the circle your thumb and fingers make. If they start peeping alot, forget that part - just clean and leave. The hen will really freak out if the babies start making a lot of noise. They will get used to it eventually and you can hold them. The babies shouldn't get sick from anything in the box-they will even eat some feces because they don't know what it is yet. I was advised not to change the box-mine raised two clutches in the same box without it being removed and deep-cleaned and all are fine.

Take the cage in there and set it on the floor. Then you can work on getting him to step up in order to take him out of the cage.

I personally think that with budgies it is best if the parents raise them. There will be no difference in how the babies will bond to you. I found that they got used to me while they were in the nest box. Once they came out, since they were used to being handled some anyway, they were not afraid at all. I bought some handrearing formula after Skittles laid 7 eggs because I thought that was a lot of eggs and if they had all hatched I was worried they wouldn't get fed enough. But I never had to use it, as my birds ended up being great parents for their first time.

Wow. Best of luck to you hath-maybe it won't take so long.

I don't offer it at all.

Beautiful. His wings look grey to me though. Would he like to visit the states for awhile????

Somewhere in the forums there was a discussion about grit, but I don't remember offhand which forum it was in. There are two differing opinions about grit. If you want to offer something anyway, I would think oystershell would do the same thing. At least you know they would be getting the calcium.

How wonderful!!! Congratulations on the eggs and babies! I'll bet you are so excited. Is she comfortable with you putting your hands in the box while she's out of it? Skittles ate her eggshells after the babies hatched, so I'm not sure if you should remove them, or just move them to the opposite end of where she's laid all the eggs. You don't want to stress her too much...maybe I would just move them for now. I didn't clean out my nest box until the babies were about three weeks old. Rainbow used to kick all the droppings out of the hole, so it didn't really need it until then.

I'm not sure. In my limited experience, Skittles laid a clutch of 7 the first time, and a clutch of 6 the second, but the second time around was started when some of the babies were still in the nest box. I think she was tired. I expect if she lays again to have about the same number.

I agree adam, up to a point. There are some things birds will get into that you never saw coming. Cheese Specialist - You are lucky you have never had that sick feeling when you go into the room where your budgie last was and he is not in there and you can't find him anywhere....and you look all through the house and call for him and the goofy bird won't answer...then 30 minutes later he waddles out from under the china cabinet covered in dust bunnies. There are so many places they can get lost, plus I had a sun conure once who got out of the cage while I wasn't home. I found him covered with black stuff on his face - he had chewed through an electrical cord and gotten quite a shock. I was lucky he wasn't electrocuted. That's not to say I never leave mine out alone in a different room, because I do leave the room sometimes, but not for very long. I just hate that sick feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you can't find them, and I prefer not to put myself in that situation. You don't have to keep him in the cage all the time. Here's and idea - if you prefer him have the run of the flat, take him to a smaller room like the bathroom, close the door, and work on taming him there. He will be easier to keep control of, and when your session is over, just open the door and let him out.

I don't recall ever seeing a violet budgie in any pet store over here, so I think they would be very hard to find!

Thanks hath. I'd like to be able to reproduce the purple color across her back and wings.

I think they are easier to tame with clipped wings, but I know there are reasons why people don't want to. I have mine clipped when they are first brought home, and after they molt and regain flight I don't clip them anymore. But they are tame by then. If you are not going to clip her, she will require more "in cage time" than she has now. She has no incentive to become finger tame because she can come and go as she pleases now, right? Food is always a great motivator, and just sitting near her cage while she's in it and talking/whistling to her will help get her used to you.

I'd go for 3 or 4 times a day at least. As far as the length of time to leave her hand in, it will depend on the bird. At first it will probably stress the bird out quite a bit and you might only have your hand in for a minute or two, if it doesn't bother her much then as long as you can hold your hand still!!! (That is not as long as you think it is, trust me... ) Gradually work your way up. I used to hang my hand over the highest perch on one end and let the bird stay on the other side. If you hold millet in your hand it may only take a few days to a few weeks before she will eat it while you hold it.

thanks julie and oscarchik101 ! I like the big white star on her center - I think it's unusual. When she was still in the nestbox and would poke her top half out of the hole, I thought it looked like she had on a tuxedo - it looked like a little vest. I found this - it was when she first came out of the nest box - she was exactly 30 days old. The short tail is so cute, isn't it? She had hardly any balance, and whenever she would move she would practically fall off the perch. I just love them when they are so young. Hath - Thank you for the nice comments as well. I'm guessing that is the fault with her body color, that the blue is not solid all the way across the chest??? Or maybe that she is a little patchy with white feathers across the mantle? I appreciate that you can tell me what me to look for. One reason I thought she was cobalt was because her cheek patches are so very dark. Would you breed her with a good pied, or with a normal? I'm not sure which would give me better pieds. I'm pretty sure you've seen pictures of all my birds - is there another hen I have that would be better? You know what to look for, whereas I do not (yet).

Food. :bluebudgie: If he knows what millet spray is, I would cut off a smallish piece - about 3 or 4 inches so it doesn't scare him - and put it in the cage. Once you see he is eating it, only give it to him from your hand. It may take some time before he will eat it, but one day he just may hop right on your hand and start eating. From there on out, you can use the millet spray as a reward. Taming is an ongoing process - it never ends. But it is very definitely worth it. Some birds are just more skittish than others.

Thanks hath. I've been looking for the clearwing, but they are hard to find. :bluebudgie: I would like to breed Blueberry as well, for some reason I think she is beautiful. I like the two different shades of blue she has from the back - light purple across the wings and darker blue across the rump. But she does not have any spots at all, and has already molted, so I guess she never will have any. She is almost 7 months old, so I have a while to wait. Would you breed her if she were yours, and what would you pair her with? Is she a cobalt pied?

You do not think small rodents would be able to get into the outdoor part, do you? If you can rule that out, I would watch them a little more closely to see if there is a particularly aggressive bird. Are they breeding?

Which two do you want to breed?

Got the budgie bug, have we????

Has the cere on the blue one always been the same color?

Two females or two males will bond together if they are the only two around, or are caged together. Some of mine feed each other without regard to what sex they are. But if your blue bird still has a pink cere, I'm not sure whether you have the same sex or not. Is it a normal blue bird (with white or yellow face) or some other type? I only ask because I don't think I've ever seen a normal blue male without a blue cere. I've discovered that budgies are determinate layers, meaning the hen will lay a predetermined number of eggs per clutch and then will stop, so you shouldn't have a problem with continual laying like you do with cockatiels if you remove their eggs while they (cockatiels) are laying. Just leave the eggs in the box for now.

Can anyone point me in the right direction to figure out if I were to breed some of the babies I've got (when they are old enough) how to determine which ones might be good for breeding and which ones should not? So far I have one male (my blue clearwing) and one female picked out which I am looking to get mates for, with the aim being rainbows or really pretty pieds, but I'm not sure if I've picked the right female. My bookstore has nothing, but I haven't been to the library yet.

I agree with hath. Usually a white cere denotes either a hen out of breeding condition or an immature hen. Some types of males do not get a blue cere, but it usually is pink instead of white. I would just let them lay. They may sit on the eggs, but they will lose interest in them after awhile when they don't hatch.

I think if you want to get them a sleeping spot (is that why you wanted it?) I would get the kind that is open on both ends.