stace

I just made an unplanned purchase of some egg and biscuit mix, as I'd heard you all talking about it, saw some, and thought I'd give it a go. It's almost like a powder. Now. Sorry if this seems like a dumb question, but what do I do with it?

You're winning so far Ratzy. Any uppers on 12 years?

You've started Grit War 111 here, G. Check your seed pack. It's probably got a small amount of grit in there already, so you won't need to worry about it. Mine does. It's called Trill. Don't know if you get it there, but you're bound to have a gazzilion products, being in the land of the free. Okay. Beginner's guide.Keep it simple. Just your seed bowl, a water bowl, and a vege bowl. All changed daily. I progressed on to a kabob thing to hang small rounds of veges on as well. Once he'd got used to the little minced budgie salad mix. A bunch of fresh seeding grasses as well, if you can get hold of some. (washed under tap, and not from dirty main roads). I just put around one tablespoon of seeds in, and just biff 'em out and add fresh every day. Some people blow out the husks instead. Too messy for me. (They husk the seed and it looks like they've got a full bowl. But they don't. It's just empty husks.) Seven pages of newspaper on bottom of cage. I put them on the top, not under. Means no poop on the cage bottom. Fold up and discard every day or other day. One budgie doesn't make that much mess. Veges. Provide a mix of colours. Means they get different vits and mins. Red, green, yellow, orange. Check the bad food list on the FAQs here. I even give mine a teeny weeny bit of mashed garlic and chilli pepper once a week. Get a string of millet and use it for hand taming only. LIke I said, just keep it simple. And concentrate on getting him socialised and finger tame. Put him in a spot where he gets maximum attention from you. Leave the radio on when you're out for company. (Silence makes them anxious. In the wild it means a predator is near). Put him to bed when the sun goes down, with a cover over his cage to keep the lights out. I think there's an FAQ on taming on here too. Best advice I can give here is always be gentle, never do anything that will betray their trust, and above all, be patient. Sometimes it takes a while. PS. Get a boy budgie. They're easier to tame and less bossy. If you're getting him from a pet shop, try to watch the birds and look for one that's calm, happy, preening and feeding. Avoid the ones that look scared stiff or go mental when come near the cage. Avoid ones that look lethargic or sick. You want a baby. A baby will still have the stripe bars on its head, with big baby eyes without those grey bits around the outside. Good luck. If you have a problem. Just ask on here. Someone will know what to do, or where to direct you. n the cage. Avoid nervy birds that go mental when you come to the cage, avoid lethargic birds fluffy and sick looking, with a bobbing tail. These are not what you want to be taking home with you.

That's horrific. CAn you report him to the RSCPA?

THE FAT BUDGIE I have a little budgie He is my very pal I take him walks in Britain I hope I always shall. I call my budgie Jeffrey My grandads name's the same I call him after grandad Who had a feathered brain. Some people don't like budgies The little yellow brats They eat them up for breakfast Or give them to their cats. My uncle ate a budgie It was so fat and fair. I cried and called him Ronnie He didn't seem to care Although his name was Arthur It didn't mean a thing. He went into a petshop And ate up everything. The doctors looked inside him, To see what they could do, But he had been too greedy He died just like a zoo. My Jeffrey chirps and twitters When I walk into the room, I make him scrambled egg on toast And feed him with a spoon. He sings like other budgies But only when in trim But most of all on Sunday Thats when I plug him in. He flies about the room sometimes And sits upon my bed And if he's really happy He does it on my head. He's on a diet now you know From eating far too much They say if he gets fatter He'll have to wear a crutch. It would be funny wouldn't it A budgie on a stick Imagine all the people Laughing till they're sick. So that's my budgie Jeffrey Fat and yellow too I love him more than daddie And I'm only thirty two.

No worries! Thanks again stace. 6 Inch diameter seems a bit big. Does it have to be big for him to be able to gnaw on it? Will he be able to stand on it? Hmmm. The small one is about 6 inches long. They must have labelled in incorrectly. 6" diameter would be like a log! You could use it for those cold foggy San Francisco winters.

Goldman, here's a link to a US bird product site. I've recently bought stuff from them online all the way down here in Sydney. There's so much stuff on there, it's a bit of a chore ploughing through everything. But everything arrived by US Post on my front door about one week later, no problem. Here's that mineral perch. http://www.strictlypetsupplies.com/_753323503733-Pollys-Pet-Manu-Mineral-Cactus-Perch PS for you Aussie birds. It's good value for us at the moment with our dollar so high against the US dollar. Even with the postage cost.

I remember reading up on the grit thing when I first got my budgie. There was a lot of conflicting information on it. I don't provide extra grit for mine. In the seed I buy, there's ground oyster grit in there, as well as a number of vitamins and minerals, like calcium and iodine and so on. Have a look on the ingredient list on your seed pack. People here can correct me if I'm wrong, but I think many keep large numbers of budgies and get bulk seed made up, so they need to add in the extras that don't come in the big wholesale seed lots. Am I right? As well as natural perches, I got him a calcium perch to chew on. One was a fancy schmancy one 'embedded with special minerals from the cliffs of the Manu River in the Amazon". (Gee I'm a sucker). I'll find you a link later. If you've only got one budgie, you can afford to me a little extravagant, I reckon. As to where to put him. He'll be comfortable in conditions that you are comfortable. Don't put him in a cold draughty spot, or where he's stifled by the heat. When he's not flying free, I have mine sitting at around about eye level next to me when I'm sitting on the couch most of the time. They like the company. I wouldn't put him low down. He'll probably feel anxious. In his mind, low down means he's open to predators. Sunlight is good for their Vit D production. Just like us. But like us, it needs to be direct, not through glass. Though he'll enjoy sitting getting sun through the window, I take mine out onto my balcony in the mornings where I have my breakfast. He loves it.

Mine REALLY likes carrot and REALLY REALLY likes raw beetroot. Won;t eat broccoli, so far. Just keep trying, and try serving them in different ways. That is, chopped up really fine, or in thin rounds on a kabob. Sometimes when you think they will never eat it, suddenly weeks later they start showing interest.

There you go Moglet. Looking at the Budgie Colour Chart Nerwen supplied, they do use Pantone colours as a guide. The Pantone colours just get renamed as official Budgie colours.

She's a Pantone 429 C!

It's a good way to get them eating good foods. By nibbling on it yourself. Did we mention trying some raw fresh beetroot? (not tinned) They seem to love it.

I live pretty much in inner city Sydney, Australia. But I grew up in a small beachy town in New Zealand, called Nelson.

Moglet, I doubt the fresh seeding grass would be a problem. It's more likely the fattening dried seeds types they put in the commercial mixes, as well as those seed treat stick things.

I love their names. Whizzbang the Terrible. It so suits him.

Possum is definitely looking a little porky. More of an apple, than a pear. Time to bring out the elastic pants!

Gorgeous photos, Brill.

I just realised Oscar is that little cutie I said looked like a Teletubby when he was a wee bub! Not so wee any more, huh. But still tubby! Have you tried different ways of feeding him veges? Just for instance, mine loves playing with metal things. His skewer kabob thing is one of his favourite toys. So if I put thin rings of carrot, beetroot and corn on it, he ends up eating stuff while he's playing. Before that, when he was just a baby, I had to chop his veges up into really, really miniscule little pieces. Like the size of tiny millet seeds. Even had to buy a special little paring knife to do it. He's a lot better with bigger chunks now. I didn't realise Finch and Canary food was less fattening. I'll have to remember that in case I ever need it. Don't feed him any of those budgie treat things. They full of honey and fattening seeds.

Hi Goldman. That took a while for the owner to find, you didn't it. As for food, they need varied veges, just like us. Carrot, they like usually, and it's really high in Vit A. Also other red veges, like raw beetroot and even chilli. Something dark green - like spinach or asian bok choy, or broccoli, or those really dark Italian-style lettuces. (Not normal watery lettuce - it makes them do runny poop). And raw corn, apples (not the seeds) and so on. Just don't feed avocado or the seeds of fruits. They're poisonous to budgies. Have a look in the food FAQ for good and bad foods. When I'm uncertain, I just google "Budgies and ....whatever food it is". Get a quality bird seed. In Australia we have good commercial products available in the supermarkets. It doesn't cost much more buying the quality ones, as they don't eat a whole heap if you've just got one or two birds. Like us, they need essential minerals. If you've got a quality seed, it will have a lot of vitamins and minerals in there. But you can get a mineral block (with iodine) and a cuttlebone (for calcium) and hang it in the cage as well. I like feeding mine seeding grasses and a sprig of eucalyptus as well, (like they eat in the wild). If you don't have a house with a lawn, or live in Australia, that's not always easy to find. Can't think of anything else. Someone will say if I've missed something. I'd also get a boy budgie. Seems they are easier to tame as they don't chew things or bite so much. Males are the talkers too. Mine's a rescue budgie, so I don't know much about buying them. But I reckon a breeder would be best. A lot of pet stores kinda suck, in my opinion. Unless you know a good one in SF.

Whether you have a companion budgie, aviary budgies or show budgies, I was wondering how old your longest lived budgie ever got to? I've read that they can live to between 15 to as many as 25 years. Has anyone ever had one that lived to a grand old age?

I put mine out on the balcony to get some sun as often as I can, but even with me there I've had miners and magpies try to get at him. I work from home as well and have all sorts of problems when talking on the phone to clients. He's obsessed with phones - even more so when talking on one – and is all over me chirping and squawking like a mad thing. He likes to hang down from the top of my head over my forehead as well, clasping onto a strand of hair for ballast, so all I can see is this enormous upside-down budgie head in my eye. It can be really embarrassing, as I know clients can hear all the commotion at the other end of the line. Taking notes while on the phone is a nightmare as well. He hangs off the end of the moving pen, flopping around like a dead weight with every stroke, kissing, chatting and bobbing his head at it. And of course, when the phone rings, there's absolutely no way on this earth he's going to go obediently back in his cage. He's a little budgie-ball of nuisance.

They love seeding grasses. I try to feed mine a small bunch every day. It's a big part of what they eat in the wild. Just make sure it's not got anything bad on it, like garden sprays, doggy doo, or from high car exhaust fume areas. I give it a wash then hang it up. They get a bit of a bath off the wet foliage that way, too. Burkes Backyard has a fact sheet on aviary grasses here. Unfortunately there are no pictures. http://www.burkesbackyard.com.au/factsheets/Pets-Pet-Care-and-Native-Animals/Aviary-Grasses/1352

When I first got mine, I was watching original Star Trek marathons on tv while I was trying to tame him. He started making all those weird whooshing noises the starship doors make when they open and close, as well as the funny electronic noises from the Star Trek scanner devices. He's forgotten about them now, as that old show hasn't been on for a while.

Alot of budgies, including mine, don't like to be touched or stroked on their head or body. Mine is really super tame, and he just doesn't like it either. I can give him a nuzzle with my nose on his head or belly, but he hates fingers for anything other than perching or playing with. I think I could probably train him up by feeding him millet and simultaneously stroking his back to get him used to it. But I just figure, why bother. Some people have budgies that are okay with getting a little scratch around the head. I don't believe most are like that naturally though, without training. Why this is, I'm not sure. Probably a natural self defence. Maybe a nose is like a beak, so it's kinda familiar to them. But fingers are probably just scary alien appendages, apart from their similarity to a perch. Who knows. Birds can be kinda weird little creatures.

Hi there, I kept this info from an avian vet in case I ever need it. Some of it might be helpful for you. Like the others said, I'd get to a vet as soon as poss. She doesn't sound well at all. BIRD EMERGENCIES – HOME ADVICE 1. Is the bird an emergency case? The problem is that birds hide or "mask" the signs of disease until they are very sick. So the key is that any bird which shows any obvious signs of change from their normal behaviour may be an emergency. Do not just wait and see how the bird is over a few days as, by the time a decision to take the bird to a veterinarian is made, it may be too late. Preferably take the bird straight to the veterinarian. 2. What are the most common signs of an emergency? Sleeping all the time, laboured breathing, vomiting, diarrhoea, poor ability to stand or walk, and seizures (fits). Other obvious emergency signs are wounds on your bird or blood in the cage. Your bird needs veterinary care as soon as possible. 3. How should the bird be handled in an emergency? It is important to handle the bird as little as possible. It is best to pick up a very ill bird in a towel to avoid any problems during handling. 4. Is the bird hypothermic (too cold and in shock)? Most Australian parrots can tolerate the cold quite well. If a bird is "fluffed up" it is probably cold and ill. Being "fluffed up" is the most common noticeable sign of a bird emergency. 5. Treatment of hypothermia Use a heat lamp. Simply get a normal desk lamp and put a 40 watt pearl light bulb in it. Then place the lamp outside the cage right next to where your bird is sitting "fluffed up" to allow it to keep warm. The light can be left on all night and day for up to 48 hours. Cover the other three sides and roof of the cage with a towel or blanket to keep the heat in. Alternatively use a heater, preferably with a thermostat. Electric oil heaters are ideal as they give off a slow heat and have a thermostat. Fan heaters can be used but move dry heated air which many birds cannot tolerate. Placing the bird near a window in the sun is not useful because if the actual outside air temperature is low, the bird may actually still become cooler. 6. What fluids and nutrition can be given to a bird in an emergency? A "fluffed up" bird that is cold and in shock will also usually be low in blood glucose and, even if drinking and still eating a lot, will be dehydrated. At home give some warm sweet weak black tea or some warmed up non-fizzy electrolyte drink such as Gatorade or Powerade. Replace the bird's water with this and drop a little into its mouth every 1-2 hours. (To make up the tea use half a cup of warm water, add the corner of a tea bag till the water has turned light brown and then add a tablespoon of sugar.) There are several commercially available electrolyte supplements for birds such as Polyaid or Spark from Vetafarm. Some of these supplements may need to be given by crop tube. The ideal way to give fluids to a bird is by injection or by crop tube.