Dave_McMinn

hey hey hey, let's not give Kaz any ideas okay? Start chargining in say.....February!!!!

the one on the left is definitely a hen. I might be wrong as it is not the best picture, but it could well be a yellow face type 2 sky blue spangle the one on the right is really hard to tell the cere colour of. If it is brown, then it is a girl, but since it is male pied - I am guessing a double factor dominant pied - it will never have a blue cere like most cocks. If it's cere is a smooth purple colour, then it is male.

I love the fact that he got out of the cage and found the food. I think that is a good sniffer on him. I would call him something related to that like Hound, or Basset, or Beagle. I always like to name birds after personalities rather than appearance.

Other hobbies - some are past, some are present, and of course, i want some to be future. Past Comic collecting - I still have boxes full of comics in a cupboard. Sports Present My dogs All sports - watch all although I only play golf now Movies - quite a DVD collection Future Travelling Sports - Watch all although I want to get back into playing tennis I am sure I will think of more and so I will add them as I think of them.

I am tough - no need for the safety doors Kaz

No, not 19. No need to go for that record. i will bring some back, but not that many

Well, tomorrow I am making my much awaited trip to Perth, where I will be staying with the wonderful Karen and Ken. I am very excited. I was meant to go last holidays but ended up slipping a disc in my back the day before and spending 2 weeks in bed at my parents place. Looking forward to the trip. I will take plenty of pics and I am sure I will see some beautiful birds.

he is about 7 weeks old, and he is a light green boy. As temping as it is to buy them all, I say you should resist

dom pied melanistic spangle

John Payne looks to have a good setup. The bush looks so dry where he is. This hot weather you guys have had looks liek ti has done a number on some areas. You will be pleased to hear I am bringing with me a cool change on Monday - LOL. Nice to finally see a breeder with some natural timber in there, not just dowel. Sometimes I think things are too sterile. Nice looking birds. They look to have long masks with good spots. I particularly like the idea of the blue cock. The more I learn, the more I realise how important and difficult it must be to breed good quality blue birds

Any photos?

She is doing well. She is going to have the leg int he splint for the next week, but she should be fine after that. In terms of the headwear (LOL) I asked the vet about that, and they were more of the opinion that it is fine for wing injuries, but not as good for leg injuries. Kiwi is going to spend the week at my parents house. I am leaving her in the carry box where there are no perches. This will restrict her movement, which should assist her with her damaged leg. Apart form the leg, she is in fine form, talking and screeching, have a great time. I dropped in at my sisters as she lives near the vets and my nephews desperately want birds, but their parents have long been reluctant. Anyway, I told the boys they could have a bird eacha nd keep it in my aviary. Anyway, my sister told me that she is going to get an aviary for the boys and put it in the backyard. It is good as that is where I can keep any birds that need to go out for a spell - LOL.

I too think your budgie is a male

In the wild birds breed as soon as they are old enough. Many young hens would die due to complications. You have to remember that in the wild, breeding is dependant upon rain. Rains only come one a season in the middle of the outback, so there would be rain, and then all the hens would be wanting to breed. The young will be born, come to maturity and leave the nest. The rain may not come again for 10 months. It is unlikely that they will get rain in another 2 months. Since it is a hot dry environment, there is naturally a bigger gap in breeding cycles then the artificial environments we put them in.

Welcome to the forum and thanks for giving us those wonderful photos. Your birds are beautiful, especially the colours of Leo. I also want to congratulate you on your naming. I think everyone of us who has ever handled a female bird and been bitten has at one stage called the hen a little b@#*h. For you to adopt that as a name, well, you earnt my respect straight away, and it gave me a good chuckle. Once more, welcome and I hope you enjoy it here.

You can breed show budgies with pet budgies. they are the smae bird, jsut selective breeding has resulted in different sizes. It would be like suggesting you breed a bigger dog with a smaller dog. They are both dogs. You are breeding pets, not show budgies, so size is not as important as having nice young chicks in terms of colour. I would take RIP's advice and change some of the pairings around. the show budgie/pet budgies combo should produce offspring that fall somewhere inbetween the two in regards to size.

I am not as good as predicting gender as some but I will take a stab at it. Light greens - both males YF blues - hen on left, cock on right

Chrissy, I do not think that Kaz is personally attacking you. I am sure that if you felt that way, Kaz would be most upset that you have taken it to heart. Kaz is simply making the point that some of your birds look very young, far too young to breed. Liv makes a very good point in regard to developmental stages of birds versus ages. I am sure that we all know young people who can physically have children, they may be 18, but they have not physically grown to an age where their bodies are ready to produce offspring. Just because they are chronologically old enough does not mean that they should have kids straight away. All pairs do not have to start breeding at the same time - stagger the start - give the young ones another 3 months and then see how they go. Think if it like this, the runt of a litter is loften ready to breed later than the older chick as the older chick got all the nourishment in the nestbox, they were louder and able to get mum and dad's attention. So whilst we consider all chicks in the nestbox the same age (days apart), the developmental growth betweent he youngest and the oldest is often quite different. The younger one will catch up, it just needs more time. As for the birds looking young, pet types have a greater tendency to look young to me than show birds. Mainly because they are smaller and thinner, I am always waiting for them to "fill out". Everyone on here just wants what is best for you and your birds. No one is personally attacking you. Kaz used metaphors in her reply. She could have said "you asked for people's advice and then when you were told something different to what you wanted to hear, you sought to justify and tell experienced breeders they are wrong". Perhaps she should have said that. I know Kaz and I know that she is not setting out to insult you. She is just wanting what is best for your birds and what is best for you. I know Ilove my birds, and I am very sure you love your birds very much. The thought of losing a young one due to complications with laying an egg, due to the fact she was a little underdeveloped (not too young chronologically, just not physically ready) would be devastating. Please, do not get upset at what people write here. Ultimately, everyone is trying to help you out. Sometimes people will have different opinions. I know I disagree with more experienced breeders at times, but no matter the advice we are offered, we are going to do what we think is right. You do what you think is right, but do consider the advice of others.

I once lost my beautiful boy TCB Norm to canker. You should treat your remaining birds as well

but you see, once you move the birds, they may not want to go near the logs again. Bird will abandon a nest if they feel threatened, and such a major move would threaten them. It is one thing if they were ina breeding cage, but this...not hopeful

Use a teatowel. This will allow you to limit the space and make it easier to catch. Also take any food bowls or toys out of the cage. You want to be swift as well. Easiest to ctacha bird when they are up against the cage sides or on the ground. Don't try to catch them off a perch.

I would think this would be fine. I would do it way in advance though, so you can ensure that it is working.

Not sure what a gren rainbow is, but he is a grey-green spangle

she is a light green opaline cinnamon wing

Kiwi mannaged to rip her masking tape bandages and splint off, and so she went back to the vet. The vet did a new splint with a green tape and covered it with elastoplast. The vet thought this would last for sure, I was not so sure. Next appointment is saturday morning, and we will see how she goes then.