melbournebudgies

I'm looking forward to that too Sunnie but after all the dramas I've only come out of it all with four chicks this time and if I don't extend my season I won't have nearly enough of my lines to use next season :hap:

I am thinking a will bring a few pairs inside so I can exend my season out a little as I have a few other pairs that I really want chicks out of this year, not that it gets really hot in the breeding area though

Not a worry I found two of mine had jumped out of the box when they weren't even three weeks old!!!

No Denise you haven't, we only got them last week and my card reader isn't functioning so you will have to wait a day or two

I agree with your guess

I checked on my chicks this morning and I must admit I have been pretty distracted by the dramas with the oldest chick that I hadn't noticed the pin feathers coming through on my little green chick's head. She's crested! Unfortunately it's not a lovely perfect crest like the one that died. A little lopsided and more like a cowlick so she won't be shown but she'll be a valuable addition to future breeding Before anyone asks I'm hoping for my card reader to arrive today or tomorrow so I do promise photos ASAP

I can answer this one for you Elly I was in AV's aviary today about to catch another bird and we were discussing the ino. It flew up onto the wire and I notice it's eyes seemed cloudy, on closer inspection both eyes have what look like cataracts. The bird is capable of flying but simply doesn't and very poor eyesight would certainly explain this behaviour. As to it's sex it does have faint white rings around it's nostrils wich you can't see in that photo, hence the fact that we are now questioning it's sex

Has he bred? If so did he throw blue chicks? Iagree that he looks like a goldenface and I suspect he may actually be a white texas clearbody with yellow bled into the body feathers

Well the first adult I had to try on was a pet type and they are always more 'goey' than show types

It's not easy on an adult bird as they struggle more than a baby, much easier on a chick

I'll tell you a secret Bicycle tubing, it's only a few mm wide and you can buy it from any bicycle shop for about 50c a metre. It is used by almost every wildlife carer over here for feeding small possums , etc and also is great for crop feeding. You just cut it to the length you want and it fits onto the tip of a normal plastic syringe

Just was reading back over your first post, so much of their energy goes into feather growth which is why she may not be developing as much size as her siblings. Make sure she gets plenty of egg food and high energy supplementary foods to boost her strength

Generally not a good prognosis for them, they tend to live no longer than about 6 months, the majority of info suggests that they may suffer from poor immunity. The ones who have lived for over a year have been supported with lots of supplements, probiotics, etc and kept with few other birds to reduce chance of infection

Were you using a rubber tube or a needle? That's why I prefer the rubber tube, much gentler as once it is inserted you don't need to keep their head arched back so horribly so they relax much quicker I would guess

Every now and then I have seen members post chicks like that which have turned out to be normal once they 'grew into' their feathers but I suspect it may be a mop.

I'm pleased to report I managed to work it out SW and I have two healthy baby budgies and two healthy baby ringnecks now being tubefed. Having watched the video of needling I much prefer the tube it seems like a much softer, gentler way to feed than a rigid needle

My mum always said to me during exams "Don't stress the stuff you can't change" I know it's near on impossible to do that when it's a loved pet but you have to say to yourself "She's eating and playing and there is nothing I can do until tomorrow so I need to put it out of my mind and concentrate on the stuff that needs to be done now" Just before my last exams both of my kids broke bones and I had DHS checking up that I wasn't abusing my kids, exam time is a crappy time for things to go haywire

They haven't been exposed to toys before and probably have only ever had normal seed so you will just have to give them time

Your best bet would be to visit a local nursery that sells LOCALLY endemic plants, these are ones that are not only native to Australia but native to your area. Your council might be able to give you details of one of these and they are also sometimes run by TAFEs, unis and also local 'Friends' of' groups. The people that run them are very knowledgeble and will tell you what you could plant for budgies that is native to where you live

Check out the red fowering gums at your nursery. I have one which is Corymbia ficifolia which I only bought recently so haven't tried it on the birds yet but it says on the tag that it is bird attracting, and grows 6-10metres (you culd prune it if it was getting too large). It doesn't need much water and is a survuvor as I nearly killed this one when it was still in the pot and all the leaves dried up and dropped off, I just kept the water up to it for a few days and now it has heaps of lovely new growth

You could plant native grasses like Poa and Sedges like carex and Lomandra as they will enjoy the seeds and they also look pretty. You could get some nice red flowering gums, some of them are only fairly small and quite bushy.

You may regret a Lily Pily when you have toms of little berries rotting in your grass! Don't know if your kids have a sandpit but if so then don't plant bottlebrush near it as you'll spend your life scooping the little flowers out of it (trust me!!!)

That's New Zealand If you are really worried let me know, other than a couple of babies which I'm handrearing at the moment I have no other inside birds so I can find a spot for them if it helps

dom or recessive pied?

Neocare has all those great probiotics and predigestives which is why I prefer it. I used to live in Wagga (where Vetafarm is located) and had my lorikeet sexed at their avian clinic. I must say I think they are a fantastic company and their products are very good. Every product is well thought out and works, they won't sell any useless crud and I thinks that's a very important trait for a pet products company to have.