2budgies

Congratulations on your new puppy! See if you can find a local Dog Obedience Club near you, it's so much fun when you have a well-behaved dog to be proud of! You might even get into Dog Agility like me or Tracking and Endurance like my husband! Only costs us $10 per week for the two of us to train two dogs, two classes each so cheap enough at $2.50 per class! Our kids (7 & 9) train rescue dogs for fun too. Your son might even like to teach the puppy some cute tricks! He's very likely to be able to relate to a dog better than to people, I know my daughter does! Good luck

Thanks Neat, I feel like I've tried everything, but I'm sure I haven't! I just want Sky to be healthy! :bluebudgie: I worry for him, but also for my daughter who is very attached to him! Sadly, she chose him from the petshop because he was getting picked on and had feathers missing at the back of his head so she felt sorry for him and wanted to "rescue" him! I really need to make him a sucess story for her! :sadsorry: If there's anything I can do for him, I'll give it a try. I'll keep on with the nutritional supplements and fresh foods and cross my fingers!

:28: :28: :28: So true!!! lol Check out this topic : DIY toys and this section: Setting up a cage/aviary... there are heaps of toy topics in there. You and the kids could make some toys for them instead of buying them :hap: . Good luck and I look forward to seeing your creations or bought gifts! WOW!!! The links are amazing! My daughter is just making her last beaded bracelet for all her friends, so is really excited to see that we can make some toys ourselves! I've just got to find where I put my Dremel for those holes in the wood... THANKYOU SO MUCH!!! I can't wait to have some toy photos to post soon!

Thanks Rainbow, I appreciate all your ideas! Our Alexandrine (we lost earlier this year) loved swinging on his rope perches and shredding stuff! I'm excited about all the goodies I can get for the budgies. As they're not as powerful in the chewing department compared with bigger birds, it gives more options I guess! Shopping list so far: Ferris Wheel, long wooden ladder, rope, millet sprays. If there isn't a thread already, I think that one on the best kinds budgie toys would be great - photos of birds using toys would be very helpful for Christmas shopping ideas!

I'm pleased to hear your pale little guy is doing well. Newbies like me learn so much from following topics like yours!

Thanks Elly, By toy balls do you mean the plastic ones with bells inside that spin like a ferris wheel? Preening toys are the frayed string type? My kids like them and I think the budgies would too, I just want to make sure I don't get something dangerous for the birds. Thanks for the great suggestions!

Our kids love to give presents to all of our pets... so I was wondering if people can give some tips on the best kinds of toys for budgies, or possible dangers as I don't yet know the difference between the toys that are safe and those are not. If you have any tips, please suggest what TO get and NOT to get, thanks. :22:

Hello again everybody, I've been busy treating Sky and Cloud for suspected scaley mite. I couldn't get Ivermectin at the vet but was instead sold a pyrethrin based spray to use. As Sky has some minor discharge on the feathers above his nostrils, I was also given an antibiotic for him. He also has a patch of feathers missing from the back of his head (he was like that when my daughter chose him) that never grew back. Here's a photographic progress report, please let me know if there's anything else I should be doing as Sky is my daughter's favourite because he is so shy and quiet, I just hope that's not a sign he's not healthy! SKY BEFORE TREATMENT: http://i399.photobucket.com/albums/pp78/2b...pg?t=1228435121 turned to link shows to be over the image rule of 480 x 640 SKY AFTER TREATMENT: CLOUD BEFORE TREATMENT: http://i399.photobucket.com/albums/pp78/2b...pg?t=1228435348 CLOUD AFTER TREATMENT: I need Sky to be well by the 18th of December as we are going away for a week at Christmas and bringing all three birds with us (Twilight will be out of quarantine by then). :tree: Thanks

I have just bought the same cage as Melbournebudgies recommends. Everything about it is practical so my family loves it and the birds approve too! It also works well with a homemade flyscreen seedcatcher on the side/s of the cage where the food will be! Good luck finding a nice new cage!

Thanks Kaz, will try low light !

Thanks everyone for your input, isn't he beautiful! It's a shame the colour comes out blue on the computer, he's just that gorgeous colour of the Jacarandas and Agapanthus flowering at the moment! I'll keep trying to get an accurate photo of him for my records (violet owners - any tips?). I have him in quarantine now, but can't wait to breed from him hopefully next year !

We have been admiring him for weeks and couldn't resist bringing him home! Meet Twilight who joined us yesterday . He is the most beautiful rich colour that is more purple than the photos show, and has really pretty markings. On the back of his head he has a tiny white patch, don't know if it means anything. I think he's a violet of some sort, maybe opaline??? as he has colour through his wings. I'm too new at this to really know. So what do you think he is ?

Thanks, I still miss Bo, he was a gorgeous bird! I'll wash the little cage with vinegar now ... there's a cute young violet budgie boy I can't stop thinking about that I met at the pet shop yesterday... :yes:

We've been busy! After reading as many posts on the right kind of cage, we headed down to our local pet shop and... front view (with Sky & Cloud top right) side view What do you think? Now I have to get on with selling my six foot high and transporter parrot cages so I'm not completely broke! All the branches are natives from our backyard, and we even gave them a housewarming bowl of fresh fruit and vegies! Thanks everybody, I wanted to get a bigger cage, and you all gave me the nudge I needed! Just one thing - other than replacing all the branches, how do I treat the cage for scaly face so they don't get it again? :bliss:

Thanks guys, We were planning this as the travel cage as we travel a fair bit for the kids to dance Eisteddfods, and husband to runs etc. We already bring our two dogs with us, so why not the birds as well! We'll upsize soon!

Thanks Jaz!

Late Nights - guilty as charged I've made them a really flash cage cover with sparkly stars, will put it on much earlier!Too easy, thanks! :blush:BIG OOPS!I'm learning fast thanks to you guys! :reading:

Gross! Maybe too much "nature" for the kids - old man trying it on with a baby boy! Wormer is Avitrol Plus - Active Ingredients: Praziquantel and Levamisole Hydrochloride. I got it from the vet for my Alexandrine, but was told it was fine for all kinds of birds. I also have "Tracemin" Soluble Trace Minerals & Amino Acids from the vet which is supposed to be for all birds, should I give them some to pick up their health? Cloud is the one with the pink cere, we got him only a week ago from a pet shop in Tweed Heads.

Thanks Liv, Will have to treat both for scaly face Is it normal for a boy to try and mate with another boy, or is it because he has "sexual health issues" ? What can I do to help his imbalance? Does Cloud's cere and beak look healthy to you? I'll read as much as I can about diet. We used to have a beautiful Alexandrine boy, but sadly he escaped about six months ago and despite ads and posters everywhere, we didn't get him back :sad: . I'm sure someone's claimed him, he was such a great bird! He ate more food than the rest of us! If we were busy and not paying him attention, he'd throw his fruit and veges at the wall - the cheeky boy! Thanks for your help!

What a great idea!!! Look what I made today... :sad: No more seed mess! I bought the heavy-duty metal fly mesh for $3, then from home found some split rings, an elastic strand and a toggle and here it is! (It looks darker than it really is, you hardly notice it's on.) THANKYOU for such a brilliant idea !!!

Hello again! :sad: I had budgies as a child, and spent all my pocket money to buy a book about them from the petshop which had very little info on them. Now that I have children of my own and budgies again, WE WANT TO KNOW EVERYTHING!!! We would love to breed budgies one day when we know a lot more. Please give plenty of advise! 1. We are worried that our two new budgies Sky and Cloud have both had some changes to their ceres. Sky's cere has become a lot darker - more dark purple than blue now and his beak was always a little bit flaky at the tip. Cloud has got some slight light tan flaky bits on his cere. I'm worried if one has given the other something contagious, or if they are both lacking something in their diet? We checked out Sky's relatives at the pet shop today, and they all looked healthy as far as I can tell. I've read every post that might give me an answer, but I'm still confused why they are changing. 2. Also, Cloud makes funny noises like a noisy-minor or magpie chick and bows down as if he is begging to be fed. Does this mean he is young? We got him from a pet shop and don't know his age, we assumed he was young because the first time we let him out, he did'nt seem to know how to fly! 3. Sometimes Sky gets sick of Cloud's begging, so he puts his foot on Cloud's back. Sky feeds Cloud, and they groom each other, so seem to be happy together most of the time. Is the foot thing okay or will I need to seperate them? 4. I put some worming drops in their water soon after getting them, I give them Eucalyptus branches and bottlebrush and sometimes carrots to chew and feed them Trill seed. We got Sky first (he has a green band on his leg), then Cloud from a different pet shop (no band). We let them out to fly around and tame a couple of times every day. Is there anything we need to be doing different? P.S. Here are some pics - no flash used. http://i399.photobucket.com/albums/pp78/2b...pg?t=1226732632

What a shame, we were hoping that Cloud was female, even though she's very young, we thought all the behaviour signs were there, and the two are bonding so nicely. :rofl: At least we know what interesting colour mutations they both are now! Thanks for your help

Sky looks like an opaline greywing skyblue dominant pied.....and Cloud is a skyblue recessive pied. Sky has two colours on the cere making sexing difficult. More likely male than female, but has it ever been one colour on the cere instead of two ? If cloud is past moulting and of breeding age ( 12 months or more ) then it would be male. WOW !!! Thanks KAZ! Sky's patch of colour is right on top to the split in the beak, so looks like a scar. Cloud is very young, not very strong at flying yet. We were really hoping we had a male and female, but they're cute whatever they are!

We desperately need help figuring out the sex of our two unrelated budgies. Sky is quiet and shy and very gentle. Cloud is squawky, playful and bites hard. Please tell us the colours too, we think Sky is a Dilute Dominent Pied, maybe Opaline? Cloud looks like a Recessive Pied or Double Factor Dominent Pied, but we're really just guessing. We'd like to breed them (if they are boy & girl), and would like to know what we'd be likely to get with this combination. We're very new to this and need help! Thanks