renee

No I think that is for Megabacteria. I know many breeders give their birds lemons but it is the acid content that counts and some oranges have more than others, don't they? I would have thought bitter oranges were best - though I'm only speculating. Matt, how is it going today?

Yes. it is very glossy in the top side. But I have decided not to risk it and hubby is off on another foraging mission determined to get 100% eucalyptus from now on.

Well lets have a closer look at him (bearing in mind that this is a flattering photo of him) It may not look like it but he is very heavy flighted, wears his girth around his middle and has the dreaded 'key hole' look. But you may be on to something so I'll post updates and we can see how he and his brother develops!

Thanks for the tip! I scrunched up the leaves and NO eucalyptus smell. Tragedy averted.

robyn, I will go out on a limb and say yes. Melaleuca has wonderful healing properties. I give melaleuca to my Goldfish to help with bacterial infections. All the cleaning products I use to clean my Breeder Cabinets are melaleuca based.

Yes sorry Taylor, no tags - this comes from one of my hubby's foraging missions. I am not sure about the leaves, they look a bit wide and dark green ....

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you Matt. Good news that only 1 loss so far and hopefully that will be the sum total.

Oh Yuck. What's brought this on? Weather? Carrier birds? New birds? What are you doing about it re meds-wise/treatment?

Yes Dan he is gorgeous Keep the photos coming!

Are these eucalyptus leaves?

BUT you still have aviary mesh down to ground level Renee allowing mice free access to your ground level food dishes. Time to sheet those aviaries up at least 2 ft maybe 3 ft no no no. I have used the small gauge Snake and Mice proof aviary mesh for the entire aviary. Mice do NOT get in. I would know by now if they did.

Ha! This is PRECISELY why I have put snake and mouse aviary mesh on the roof and then put the roofing on top of it PLUS blocked up the channels with wire wool!!! NASTY SNAKES.

I have come to the conclusion that it is better if your aviary is LONG rather than WIDE and HIGH rather than LOW. The further your budgies have to fly the better as they will get more exercise. Keeping the Food Dishes in the floor encourages them to fly down and up again to the perches and it builds up their shoulder muscles. The taller the aviary the more air can enter and circulate. Both my aviaries are North facing to minimize sun exposure in Summer and are covered by shade cloth to provide more cover from the sun and protect from swooping hawks. The Adult aviary is roofed with corrugated iron which we painted with Solar Reflect - yes, it really does drop the temperature by 5C. However, we were less experienced when we built the Baby aviary and spent extra $$$ to roof it with the stupid poly stuff that promises to protect from UV rays and the heat and does nothing of the sort. So to mitigate this we have put a pergola over to provide more shade and installed a sprinkler system .... which of course we wouldn't have had to if we had just gone for the cheaper corrugated iron option.

I'm so sorry to hear that As soon as I see poopy bums I give the bird or birds affected Triple C. A smidgen in a crop feed if it's a chick and into the water for aviary birds. Works every time! Another tip Kaz gave me

What happened to the Opaline Grey cock?

Today was the big day when I released most of the first round of chicks into the Baby aviary. It was very exciting! The eldest chick was born on the 5th September (making it a week over 2 months) and the youngest were born on 22nd September (making them about 7 weeks old). In total I released 24 chicks and kept back Sooky Blue and a Sky Normal that was a bit underweight for my liking. Magic and his Grey hen were going at it in the second Kindie Cage so I decided to pop them in with the chicks. I like to put in a adult budgie couple so the young ones can learn from them how to drink from the Guinea Pig drinkers, and where the food is and how to mate (in case it doesn't occur to them how). At first all they did was sit on the sand and eat it ... but after 30 mins or so they found their wings and the perches Here a few random photos - I have included a dish of Seed and a dish of Hulled Oats and every evening they will get a plate of Soft Food as well as Veggies

Tony, ever the gentleman, says "thanks for the compliment".

I really do not sing the praises of my husband often enough. He finished work a couple of hours earlier than usual today and I think its fair to say that most men on a Friday afternoon would put their feet up, crack a beer and switch to the Sports channel. Instead he decided to top up the Baby's aviary with the sand that was delivered earlier today so they could go in tomorrow. Now if I was to do it I would plonk the buckets full of sand down in regular intervals and rake it over ... but he is a perfectionist. So he uses a leveling stick And smooths it out by hand Doesn't it look wonderful!

Well I would suggest you go along to the next meeting and pay the joining fee and on the day order some rings for yourself. There are set dates when rings are available so maybe you can get some Club rings in the meantime. Or else you can just ring or email the Club Secretary and let them advise you.

Yeah. Are they young 'cause the Pet Shop says they are? I would check the date on the ring if I were you. In fact they could be adult Pet Shop birds masquerading as young show budgies Either way you have to ask yourself why a breeder would be shipping his birds down to the pet shop before their first moult. Just does not make sense. I think more information is required.

Well another good day in BudgieLand! Sooky Blue (who I have now decided is probably a hen) seemed quite content in the Kindie Cage so she is not getting a crop feed tonight. All other birds are fine. The 7 days medication regime is over now and tonight I started all birds on 2 days of Probiotics. Then I am planning on giving the adults Moulting Aid as they are in a heavy moult right now. So any way here are some more happy snaps - Random Kindie Cage shots: The little DF Yellow with green suffusion in the Kindie Cage The little Greygreen split Rec Pied I am not really keen on this one or its sibling, I think they look like bean bags and hope they grow into something better An update photo of the Cobalt Spangle that I have decided is also Cinnamon

Thank you Splat. I will be very interested to follow your progress and hear how you go!

Well I am at my wits end with Sooky Blue. I have resolutely refused to give him an evening crop feed for 2 nights and this morning he was on the top perch with his nest friends and I was very pleased. So I transferred him to the Kindie Cage this morning. But then during the evening soft food & hulled oats top ups he came right up to the wire front and every which way I went he followed - looking at me expectantly. It was heart-wrenching. And then when I turned away he trotted over to the seed dish and made the most pathetic attempt I have ever seen of trying to eat. It is quite obvious that he has not YET figured out how to crack seed- so he eats the seed, rolls them around in his mouth and then tilts his little head backwards and tries to swallow them. Well that was the final straw for me and I rushed back inside to prepare a nourishing dinner for him. As I suspected his crop was completely empty. I have checked his mouth and there doesn't seem to be any physical reason for him not to crack his seed. He is 6 weeks old. Would any one like to venture a guess as to when he will begin to eat properly? Has anyone had a similar experience? What did you do?

Okay, where can you get it from and how much does it cost?