wild_spot

I got a new Budgie on Sunday. She's a baby, around 6-8 weeks. The thing is, she just doesn't seem very happy... She spends most of her time sitting in the one spot, sometimes preening. She has toys in her cage but doesn't play with them. I tried putting some millet in her seed bowl but she didn;t touch it, so I hung a whole branch (?) of it from the roof near her favourite perch. She ignores it. I've been giving her fresh vegies, but she doesn't eat them though that may be because she was a pet shop bird and only got seed. I put some newspaper on the side of her cage for her to shred, and she hadn't touched it until this morning, when she had a few bites at it. Her taming is going well... When I let her out she flies around the room a few times then settles soemwhere and stays there until I put her back... She is eating her seed, she doesn't look sick... Any advice? Could she just still be settling in?

Thanks guys! She's going really well. Last night and this morning I did some more practice. I can get her to stand on my finger first time nearly everytime now, with hardly any hopping away, and I can move her to the middle of the cage without her flying off. If I put her too close to a perch though she hops off :] I can now get her on my finger from 2 perches, her favourite natural perch and her calcium perch. She is still nervous on the lower perch as I think my hand is more intimidating coming from beside or above as opposed to below her. I didn't have time to let her out last night as I had a crisis with my horse :s But I will let her out for a bit tonight when I get back from dog obedience classes!

This is Minx: I bought her home on Sunday, four days ago. She is a cobalt spangle hen. She was a petshop Budgie, so I don't think she had much handling. They chased her around the cage to catch her. I've decided to document here how taming her goes. She is my first budgie, well my first bird... So any tips or help will be greatly appreciated! Day 1: The pet shop lady chased her around the cage and put her in a teeny box for travel. I spent the whole drive home with my boyfriend telling me how much of an idiot I looked dangling the box so it didn't shake when we drove over bumps, lol! We got her home and left her in the box while we sorted out her cage. I bought it from hot dollar (cheap, I know, but i'm broke at the moment!) and it seems pretty sturdy and okay so far, if not the ideal shape. For the first day she just had the dowel perches that came with it. I gently lifted ehr out of the box, but obviously wasn't holing tight enough as she got away between the cage an the wall... I was scared I would squash her so the boy picked her up and put her in the cage. She didn't want to let go of his hand. Spent about an hour just sitting by her making sure she was okay, then left her alone for the night. Her cage is beside my head at the bed. Day 2: I didn't so anything with her in the morning, just let her be. At lunch time I went to a pet store and bought her toys, millet, a calcium perch, a swing... I also grabbed some Eucalypt branches and leaves from the farm. She flew away from my hand whenever I had to do somethign in the cage. That night we decided to let her out while we watched a movie... (probably wasn't the best idea seeing as her wings weren't clipped!) I first tried getting her out by attempting to get her to sit on a dowel perch... no luck. So I tried with my hand. She would fly away unless the was on her favourite perch. I brought my hand up from underneath her slowly, and one foot at a time, she stood on my finger. As soon as i moved my hand, she hopped off. I kept trying, and eventually she let me bring her out. She sat on my finger for a few minutes on the bed, then flew around the room a few times before settling on top of my stero speaker on the highest shelf in my room. She started chirping away, and had a great time investigating the trophies and photo that were on the shelf. Then time to pur her back... I really didn't want to have to grab her, I just felt it wouldn't help with teachng her 'the hand is your friend' lol. So I got up on a chair so i could reach her, and tried the same thing I did in the cage. She kept flying around the room but coming back to the speakers, so the next time she flew I spread my hands on eithwer speaker, and she labnded on my hand :] Once again, when i moved she flew off, but after about 5-10 minutes I managed to get her on my finger and back to the cage. I was really happy with that, as she had the option to fly away, but she stayed on my hand! Day 3: In the morning I had about 10 minutes of taming with her. I did the same as before, moving my hand slowly up underneath her. Same as before, she would only stay still if she was on her favourite perch. I got her to tnad on my finger for about a minute in the cage. At lunch I bought some vegies for her... peas, corn, carrot and bean sprouts. Last night I let her out again... I had more problems getting her out as I had put her favourite perch in the fron of the cage, but that meant that when she was on my finger, my hand plus her could onlyfit to the door sideways, and she kept hopping off! Eventually we got it, and while she was out I moved the perch diagonally, so there is more open space in the middle. I put a tray of vegies on her favoruite shelf, btu she didn't touch them. I then put some in her feed dish and the rest in the tray in the bottom of the cage... She put herself back in the cage. Day 4: This morning I did about 5 minutes taming with her. She went so well! I got her on my fingers 3 times without her flying away, and only minimal hopping sideways. twice I got her down into the open area and sat her there for a minute or two before I put her back on the perch. The new position of the perch is so much better. She hasn't touched the vegies I put in for her... I threw the peas and corn out this morning and left the carrot and bean sporuts in there for her. She has been sneezing a bit, and last night when we were watching a move was pening and closing her beak a bit, liek she was eating... is this a bad thing?

Thanks!

Thanks! I have decided to call her Minx :]

I tried to find a cage that was wider, but this was the best I coudl find... eventually when I find what I want I will upgrade. I didn't even notice the perch could reasult in pooping in food and water, thanks! I'll see how I can move it around... The thing attatched near the upper perch is a cuttlebone and calcium? thing. She is in there all day while i'm at work, but I am going to try to let her out for an hour or two each night to fly around. Since she is taking to taming so well I'm not going to clip her wings, so she will get a good workout flying when she is out. It's hard to tell from the picture, but the top perch is toward the fron of the cage and the bottom perch engles from the front to back. The calcium perch is at the back, so there is a few places she can fly from perch to perch. However I do see how it wouldbebetter with them on the side... I might have a rearrange tonight. if I do i'll post more pics tomorrow and see how I went :] She hasn't been eating the leaves so far, and I put some millet in her seed dish but she didn;t look to have touched it this morning when I left. I tried handfeeding her some but she didn't eat any.

Well, I bought my first budgie on Sunday! Little Cobalt Spangle hen. Tossing up between Sky and Minx for names.Here is my cage setup: http://i234.photobucket.com/albums/ee184/wild_spot/cage.jpg You can see her hiding at the back right on her calcium perch. A shot off the bottom half and floor: http://i234.photobucket.com/albums/ee184/wild_spot/cage2.jpg I guess I just want to see what you guys think of the setup? I've never had a bird before so i'm winging it (pardon the pun!) I'm thinking about getting more smaller feed dishes and spreading them throughout the cage with seed, vegies, fruit in them. Does the water thing look okay? Enough perches? There are the two natural perches (gum tree branches) a clump of gum leaves, a small calcium perch, and a swing right at the top. I haven't seen her use the swing yet, but she loves the natural perches and the calcium perch. I'm going to start hiding some fruit and bean sprouts in the pinecone before I go to work. So thoughts? Opinions? Suggestions? Thanks! * Bummer. I tried to resize these but it obviously didn't work!

ha ha i'm so happy I know she's a girl now. lol. Now I have to think of names! *sigh* Getting very excited looking at the threads on foraging, going to go to the supermarket at lunch and buy some vegies and fruit for her :]

Aw yay! A cobalt spangle was what I wanted when I was researching, lucky me to stumble upon one at a pet shop! And a girl? Wow was I off, was thinking it was a boy! Now what to name her... Hmmm... Also, she likes to chirp a lot when she's relaxed, she was doing it when i let her out last night, but I read females aren't very vocal? Maybe she's my exception :]

Thanks!I tried uploading the photo's to photobucket, but i'm at work, and it wouldn't work... I'll have another go now, and if not then I will try when I get home.I had a browse through and read a lot on here before I went and bought him, and have been reading the taming section. I was really surprised when i got him on my finger! I was expecting it to take a lot longer.okay, it worked!Here he is: http://i234.photobucket.com/albums/ee184/w.../birdybird2.jpg http://i234.photobucket.com/albums/ee184/w...t/Birdybird.jpg http://i234.photobucket.com/albums/ee184/w.../birdybird4.jpg http://i234.photobucket.com/albums/ee184/wild_spot/cage.jpg http://i234.photobucket.com/albums/ee184/wild_spot/cage2.jpg

Hey! My name is Lauren, and I bought my first Budgie on Sunday. It's so cute! I'ts only 6-8 weeks old. I got it from a petshop, so I don't think it was handled much. It's going so well with taming! I left it alone on Sunday so it could settle in. Then last night I decided to let it out while we watched a movie in my room. Well I managed to get it to sit on my finger! It came out and sat on myfinger for a minute or two, then flew around the room a few times before making it's perch on my highest shelf. It had a great time playing with my horseriding trophies, climbing all over them! It was chirping a lot, so I think it may be a boy? Any help with sexing would be appreciated! I see it as a boy though. Because i'm not sure, I haven't named it yet, so i'm calling it birdy bird. I spent a bit of time trying to get him back in his cage, as I wanted to avoid grabbing if I could. Didn't want to scare him. So I got him sitting on my hand but when I moved it he would fly off, but eventually he stayed until I got him back in hsi cage. I was so happy, he sat on my hand while he was free to fly away... I had another taming session this morning, and after a bit of coaxing got him to stand on my finger again. I just let him sit there for about 10 seconds in the cage and then let him go. I went toy shopping for him yesterday, and got a whole bunch of stuff, plus I got some Eucalyptus sticks for perches instead of the dowel that came with the cage. Here's some pics of him and his cage set up. Any help with his actual colour/sex and my setup would be appreciated! *I couldn't upload the pics on here cause they are on my computer. So here's a link to my thread about him on my horse forum, with pictures :] Budgie