krosp

I've found that three in a cage seems to work best when one of them is a loner. Occasionally we've had a budgie who seems to have very little interest in the others, but the others aren't bothered by that budgie being there either. Otherwise they seem to pair up and then leave the third one out most of the time. I've seen this with both the gender combinations you're talking about. The only times I've actually had attacking it was always the hen that seemed to get attacked, and usually a hen who did the attacking too. But I've only done this a few times so others who have had a lot more budgies than I did will probably have a lot more experience to draw from

Hmmm here's my first attempt. Any suggestions for improvement? I'm not sure if the red is too much.

Wow thanks Chrysocome! That certainly does answer all my questions haha -- that is so interesting, and I really appreciate you taking the time to explain all that so well!

It could still be a breathing thing -- unless she's extraordinarily tame she probably does breathe more when people approach her.

Thanks AV aren't budgies amazing

My goodness.. she sounds like a rocking chair! I have no idea... it really could be harmless (my mum has a croaker, but his croaks are a bit deeper than this) but you can't be certain without getting it checked somehow. I still think it's a bit strange and suspicious.

But they don't consciously/mentally control it right? So it must be a hormonal/chemical related thing or something?

At that age it should still be with the mother. Sometimes they explore and find their way out of the nesting box, but it doesn't mean they can feed themselves.

It sure is fascinating...... Does anyone know how it works though, like, scientifically? I just find it amazing that something external like the presence of a hole in a tree can actually trigger off a hormonal/physiological/behavioural response in an animal. Would love to learn more about it.

I know that budgies without a nesting box can usually still mate and not have eggs/babies... and that once you put a nesting box in, it can often encourage them to lay eggs and have babies. Does anyone know actually how it works that they can mate and not lay eggs unless the environment supports it? I mean seems as though it's not like mammals, where mating either results in fertilisation or it doesn't, and if it does, you have to have a baby whether you have a "nest" or not. Is it a bird specific thing or can other species do this too? I can't figure out how to google this question to get a good website article about it lol

Soil is not dangerous if its clean, fresh and pure. You cant buy it. You need fresh pure soil direct from the ground, either clay or sandy loam is best. Bought stuff could have anything in it. If you dont have access to earth, then dont worry about giving it. Liv... so what if you have say, a standard suburban backyard with grass? Could you dig down a little and use the soil there? Or should you go out bush and get some that is definitely 'untouched' ?? Just wondering Also couldn't any soil have worms in it?

Nope... light/pastel blue is a girl so the one in front (the normal) is female

If it's that frequent and constant, could it be to do with her breathing?

Oh Kaz I have only just seen this thread now :sad: how very difficult for you both. It sounds like you are being a great support to Ken... you could be beating him up as much as he is probably beating himself up for what has happened, but it sounds like you're showing the strength to make the tough decisions that just have to be made That is so devastating though.

Thanks for all your comments.... now that it's all over it's nice to see the funny side! Carmen - no I was very quick to make sure he didn't walk on anything (we're renting!) so the only thing he actually "painted" was the palette.

Aww thanks Maesie I think so too. Well in the meantime, I can just pretend that I got the elusive red budgie!

Oh man... one thing that makes me so so so so so angry and upset is deliberate animal cruelty. What a wonderful thing you did though, and great that you could praise the kids and help them learn what a pleasure it is to help animals

I didn't think so at first either, but now I'm not so sure, because he has this specific route that he takes.... swing, jump, bounce, swing, jump, bounce... and he only does it in really playful moods. The rest of the time when he's on the swing (which is often) he doesn't usually fall off. But yes he is clipped, so you may be right...

Yeah, I guess he might have some red patches for a while! Oh well... if that is the worst of it I will be very happy. He just has to dive head first into whatever I'm doing like a cat

oh dear.. I shouldn't laugh... but it's kind of cute that he thought one piece of meat would solve the hawk problem forever!

Thanks Jen.. it's pretty much all off his feet. It's mostly his head that I can't get it off. Some of his wing feathers are growing back and I will cut those ones off at least. I'll get you some pics to show how much paint is actually still on him..... just a sec. okay here they are:

I'm wondering if it can actually dye his feathers... like even when I wash it all off some feathers still have a reddish hue, whether that is just the colour it will stay or whether there is still some actual paint hidden in there that he could eat. I will keep trying. Thanks. The paint says "NON TOXIC" but I am sure that only applies to children! I am having trouble getting it off his head but it's where his beak can't reach so I might try harder on the parts around his legs where he wants to preen Kicking myself. Don't want to traumatise the poor little fellow. He's being really good but his poos are runny now from the fright.

Whew... I did a silly thing. I had allowed Cosmo out of his cage, while I was doing a painting nearby. He flew down onto the table and then WALKED RIGHT THROUGH the paint! One foot smack bang in a dollop of white, and the other foot on my blob of cool red. I grabbed him straight away and rushed to the laundry. While being grabbed, he shrieked and wriggled, so some paint got on his head and wings too. I think I washed most of it off, but I haven't got it off all his feathers yet. Just waiting for him to dry up and make sure I didn't hurt him in the panic of the moment, I was afraid I might have twisted his foot but I can't see any sign of that. Lucky he likes baths and lucky he trusts me so he doesn't seem too out of sorts now. My big worry at the moment is whether he can die from preening his feathers now, if the paint is toxic. It's just that water based acrylic that you can buy from newsagents in tubes - brand is Chromacryl. How much should I try and get it off him? Because what if he does get some in his mouth? I certainly learned my lesson

He's beautiful horses are so special.

Yeah I agree - but there's no way of knowing exactly how old once they're not babies anymore. My mum has some that are 7 years old and still look really young.... she also has some that are about 12 years old and you can tell they're older but they vary a lot in how old they look too.... one really looks horrible, and the other looks normal, just a bit more shabby like your guy sounds.