NickNack

Gee krompskont, that's so sad to loose such a good friend you've had for so long. I'm sorry to hear that. I hope you don't give up on finding some love in your heart for another budgie sometime in the future. You obviously were a good owner & took very good care of your bird. He was a very old bird ! 11 years is very impressive.

You are fortunate for MIL & FIL being free like that Elly. They can pet sit .. kid sit . or house sit if need be. And they can just get up & get gone. No tie downs. Good for them. She must be having a real ball with your Blue Romeo. He is charming the MIL bloomers off her ! That's for sure.

Hey Andrew, good question ... I will love this topic ! :budgiedance: Your question about territory ? I think its more natural & acceptable for aviary budgies to get along without issue. There are so many birds, space & lots of food & things to do in an aviary so why would they stress over territory ? BUT .... in cage birds ? In a home ? It's can be a little different. I have seen hens kick the birdseed out of another hens butt, even a new cocks butt too. Some nice person went out & bought another budgie to keep their first bird ( A HEN ) company. They come home & tossed the new bird in the cage & guess what ? The birds didn't get along. Blood & feathers flew & horrible stress & terror for the new bird who didn't know what the heck was happening. Hens can be real buggas like that sometimes. But then so can males. This is usually a case of a bird that has been alone for a long period of time in its own cage & has its own way of life. They see a new budgie as competition & can be pretty mean to a new bird IF THAT BIRD COMES IN THEIR CAGE. A bird that has been the only bird in a cage & has never shared food, attention, his space, toys & perches might take it bad that another bird is being invited in his space .... HIS SPACE IS HERS or HIS CAGE ! 2 separate birds in 2 separate cages are fine. They'd probably think it's kinda cool to see another bird like them. They'll chit chat ... spit seeds at each other. You know. Buddy Buddy ! But you said your cousin has had her bird for over a year & this bird has been on its own in its own cage for over a year. So don't just think that it's going to accept a playmate without any issues. It doesn't always work that way. NOW .... when I read your question about them getting together I immediately thought OH OH ... here we go ! WHAT ABOUT QUARANTINE. This is important. I think the rule should still apply. I agree with Kaz & Elly. These 2 birds should not get together to play with each other socially. They should be in their own cages on two far separate sides of the house. Even if you know this person & their home like its your own home & you know they treat their bird well. Many factors can change the health of your bird or theirs. Common tap water can be different in another community away from you, can that tap water make your bird ill ? Will the stress from being away from you & his own home for 2 or 3 days bring on any change in your bird that can make it ill ? Will your bird be offered a fruit or veggie that its never have had before ? Could this make your bird sick ? YES ! All or any of this can happen. I always worry about stress ... birds are delicate & can get sick at the slightest things. And yet at the same time they can be very strong. BUT .... Which chance do you want to test your bird with ? I think it's great to take your bird to your cousins. But keep both birds in their own cages far apart & quarantined. It's just safe in the long run. Who wants to lose their little fine feathered friend ? Good luck ... Nick the Worrier !

I suppose we have to remember, we walk up to their cage & make kissing noises & interact with them, so they will try & do this with us & in our space. ie OUR FACES. Which means when they are out & about you will have a budgie on yer noggin or in your face trying to kissy kissy you. I have heard ppl wear those non prescription glasses, or sunglasses so the bird could perch on that & not get so close to your eyes. You can lead him away with your hand by reaching up & removing him with your finger or hand. But I agree with Elly & Cryso ... one of the best ways is to train the bird to go to your hand or finger & let him on your shoulders. Place a nice little chunk of millet there. Don't leave a long strand of millet on your shoulder & letting the bird think you are a garden. It's just a training exercise to teach him or her to stay off yer noggin ! I'm sure the bird will get the message soon enough. When he or she gets comfy with you controlling it off your head & onto your hand & shoulders they stay there, you can invite it closer for some serious KISSIN. By then your bird has learned the boundarys.

That's too funny Birdluv .... its seems you have the secret to taming. It was MILLET withdrawl. Whoodathunkit ? It sounds like things will go well for all of you.

Well .... then his name is fitting ... cause he does look like the older elvis with the side burns & big bloomy pant legged sparkly jump suits ... sans rhinestone belt ! He is a handsome boy ! Glad they are all getting along.

I like that when they grow up they still look like a punk rocker. Some are even nasty like SID VICIOUS. But that crest on them gives em a cute look ! I don't know about you but .. every baby bird I see seems to be smiling ! That huge beak they have to grow into ... it just makes em look dorky cute & happy. I see it on NICKY right now ! (Laughing out loud)

OH MAN JIMMYB ... you tease me man ! I have never. AND I mean NEVER EVER had one of those donuts. I hear they are better then _ _ _ well ... just better then almost anything & everything naughty & nice. We have a store/factory outside of Toronto ... it's about 35-40 min drive away out in the burbs & it's open 24 hours. People stand there in line watching the conveyor belt of donuts come around the block for a long long journey to their tummys ! But the line ups of people just walking in off the street & the cars waiting at the drive thru just to get these lovely tasting heart attacks in a box are over 2 hours long. I can't wait over 2 hours for a donut. It's just wrong. Standing outside a KK & trying to buy someones donut for more money then they actually paid for it would make me a kinda lika a ''donut drug junkie'' & the donut seller would end up being called ''my dealer.'' I bet I can be arrested for something like that. DONUT SOLICITATION & Pandering or something. It's not worth it. Someone have pity on me ... send me a KK donut ? Send it in the snail mail ? I don't care if it comes to me all stale & old. I can nuke it in my microwave & get the idea of what it might have been. I just want a hint of what I'm missing. A pathetic donut man. Yours truly. NN

Now you've done it Elly ... your MIL is going to go to a pet shop & buy a semi duplicate bird in a blue color with a hens cere & pass it off on you & say, " HERE's MERLIN ! " No No NO ! Elly ! Why would you think this isn't Merlin ? Honestly .... do you think I have Merlin stashed away & am keeping him for myself ? " Don't be silly ! " " Now take yer lovely Merlin & go home now. Oh by the way ... Merlin doesn't talk anymore & he doesn't seem so friendly either. Maybe he is stressed from being away from you ... I wouldn't bring him back here again. Gotta go now Dear ... I hear my new iguana calling me saying kissy kissy ! '' Who would think that iguana's could talk ! heh heh ... bye DEAR ! '' Yep ... you made yerself a world of trouble Elly. Mark my words !

Great pics Birdluv ! 2 weeks without the secret weapon, might just prove to be the turning point in your training. I wish you luck & look forward to hearing how it goes. I love the evil looks you get from your birds in the pictures. I would sleep with one eye open tonight !

That is very very cool indeed ! I'm happy to hear that lovemybirds !

Ya got me there Phoebe .... I have no idea what it is ... I will take a wild guess though & say .... I think it more of a HATCH-BACK fulla nuts. WALNUTS ! Or a coconut.

Kaz ... those babies are ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS ! They are beautys all of them. I'll be over there soon to get a couple. You don't need all them birds anyways do ya ?

I think you need to visit Merlin more often Elly. He's so STRESSED ... heck I'm so stressed worried about him. I'm sure MIL is loving the hand feeding veggies & whatnots to your little boy. I hope she isn't using industrial welders gloves on her hands when she hand feeds him ! (note to merlin ... 911 on the telephone. I know you can do it ... 3 buttons that's all you need to touch & help will come )

WAIT A SECOND HERE ..... If Maesie is "Hear No Evil !" And Kaz is " See No Evil !" HOW COME ... I'm HOLDING MY NOSE ? I don't " TOOT " in front of Ladies. Not even Silent & Deadly Toots or blame it on the Dog ! I ain't that Evil ... But I must agree to being the EVIL one. Evil .... But not a Farter ! Killing boids with a single Fart !

Kityakana ... THAT'S NOT PARSLEY ! THATS POT ! MARIJUANA ! Your little budgie is picking dope & stashing it under his feathers for some munchies later. HE IS DOING DRUGS !!! He is going to be addicted in no time. Do you have any idea how expensive a BUDGIE DRUG HABIT IS ? And then there's REHAB ... It's almost impossible to get them into rehab. All the Movie Stars & Celebritys are in the Rehabs & making it impossible to get help for your little budgie pot head. Such a shame ... a good budgie brain being toasted on drugs is a terrible waste. You know I am joking ... of course. I love the video. He seems to really enjoy it. Don't let him overdo it though. If you notice his poops are a little loose & too runny he might be having too much. He can always pick the stashes he hides under his feathers for later treats.

Juleslou .... SEND ME YER BUDGIE ! I WANT HIM/HER/IT ! He sounds like an awesome bird. He just wants to LOVE you. LOVE YOU LONG TIME. Just offer your finger under it's belly & encourage it to step to your finger. And off your head. I was wondering though ... Are you making kissing noises & sounds & showing him a puckering mouth when he's in & out of his cage ? He just might be wanting to return them to you. On his terms. Do ya think ?

There is nothing wrong with your birds ... they are giving comfort & love & attention to each other. There is absolutely nothing wrong with their behaviour. About them calling out that loud chirp to each other when you remove one from the cage while the other is inside .... that is so normal too ! It is just calling the other bird & telling him to come back to the cage where its safe & home. If you had just one bird & you & that one bird were very close & bonded & you left the room that bird would also call that same single loud chirp to you. It is telling you to come back. It's wanting you near ! It's their way of keeping the flock together to assure safety. If you are trying to hand train each bird individually ... you will need to take each bird separately into a room where they can't call & hear each others calls to distract themselves. Its always a little harder to hand train two birds. Not impossible. But a bit more of a challenge. Your birds are perfectly normal ... don't worry ! I'd love to hear how it goes with you in the long run ... let us know !

Well Feathers & Elly ... I am pleased you brought up this. About the sexes sharing a cage. Most pet shops will tell you a female & a male get along great in a cage together. But ... 2 females in a cage can be a bad combination ! 2 males in a cage is fine. Who knows why that is ? I mean males do bond better ... must be that football, golf, beer drinking & hunting, cards playing thing that males love to do together. You know when in Rome ... do like the other guy Romans do. I've a friend who owned (key word there OWNED !) a pet shop & she said she had more hens returned back to the pet shop because one hen in the cage was kicking the beejeesus birdseed out of it's poor cage-mate who was also a hen. She also said that she would recommend to these people to keep the the poor harassed hen & buy a male budgie to balance out the cage demands. One hen will pick the cock as her buddy & then the fighting hen will not beat up the other poor little bird pecked hen anymore. Unfortunately .... my friend said allot of times ... that didn't work either. People like to buy 2 BIRDS. They want TWO budgies as pets to keep each other company. A 3rd bird can mean upgrading to a larger cage & which is more costly & annoying to the owner who just wanted 2 dang budgies in the first place ! And this can cause some more stress on the situation that is happening to the hen that is getting the beating. She is lucky if she is in a newer bigger cage & can run/fly away from the evil meaner hen that is picking on her. But what if the cock decides he doesn't want to be with the evil beast hen budgie either & sticks with the little hen picked victim ? Does this mean he will get his budgie butt kicked too ? I hate to say it but it's true ! Some birds are just MEAN AS SIN ! When they want to be ! I won't say its alway a hen either. It can be a cock too. They have their moods & temperments & they want the cage to themselves & the swings to themselves & the perches & the favorite perch spot to themselves & they don't want to share the food or any treats that come their way. But ..... these evil little nasty birds can be the sweetest birds to their owners & yet even be nice to their cage buddies that inhabit their cage too. BUT ONLY WHEN THEY WANT TO BE. It's like a right of passage & a awful ordeal your birds have to go thru ... whether they like it or not. I don't know what the answer is. We've all had some taste of this. Or heard it happen to friends & their birds. What can you do ? Wait it out ? Buy more birds & hope it evens out ? Buy another cage & spend more money & put the beat up budgie in the other cage & hope someday they might get along ? CAN'T WE ALL JUST GIT ALONG ? I don't know or think there is an answer to this question. Wait ... what was the question again. Sorry ... I love to ramble .... ! I need a donut & I will shut up for a while.

I hope you find her owners too. I am just so very happy that she sounds so good despite her ordeal. Eating & hopping around the cage & loving herself in the mirror. That in itself is so great ! And using the Swing ? WOW ! Let's hope she had it as good at her old home as she is having it at yours. Not to pressure you ... but ... Is there no way possible you would keep her if you can't find her owners ? You've done so well with her & you've had budgies before. You just might find her a nice addition to your little flock ! I think you've done a great job so far ! Way to go.

Call him MILBURN ... He's a gorgeous bird. Don't give him to your daughter. Give him to me. In fact. SELL Milburn to me. I will pay top dollar. Name your Price. No amount of money is too little to pay for such an excellent specimen of a parakeet ! You'll take a cheque right ?

This may sound stooopid .... but. Which one is ELVIS ? I don't see any long sideburns on any of these boids. I don't see a rhinestone belt or wide legged flashy pant legs on any of them either. And the most important thing of all ... NONE of these birds looks like they were eating deep fried peanut butter & banana & bacon sandwiches lately. Point me to the new addition please ? The white one ? The middle one with white & greyish color ? Or the yellow banana colored one ? They are all lovely looking birds.

HAPPY ANNIVIRTHDAY Petie ! Loved the video of the budgie munch fest, seeing Petie share his millet cake with his buddies. Good to hear about the Aviary. Can't wait to see it set up & in action.

" oh yeah .... that's the Norweigan Blue ... Beautiful Plumage "

You took the quote right outta my mouth Birdluv ... those things are really expensive here ... the ones I bought are well over $10. Until I found the same things at the Dollar Stores. They sell them for your dog & they are the same thing without the dangly bits ... All you have to do is add a hook or tie to make it the way you like for your bird cage to make it hang properly. The ropes with the plastic screw pieces on the ends for perches are well over $15.00 here in some of the pet stores. HIGHWAY BIRD ROBBERY.