Bird Junky

PS seems Kaz answered your questions while I was writing my post.. Apologise for any repeats. Yours B.J.

Hello. Many breeders make a hidey-hole for youngsters as they leave the nest. Part of this problem is that in the wild the young have room to move away allowing the hen to get on with her next clutch without her first round attracting the interest of any passing predator. A hidey is a piece of ply, 6"X8" raised high enough so the chicks can seek shelter under it. Dad feeds them.. Remove them when weaned. Its the price you pay for breeding birds in the unnatural situation of a small cage. Yours B.J..

Hello Pet shops will take & pay for any birds. Provided they are in the business of selling livestock. On the subject of breeding I suggest you read the posts on this forum. Colony breeding. You need equal sexes. Several extra nest boxes so hens have choice. Birds must be in breeding condition. Yours B.J.

Hi There is the little problem that all your pet birds will or maybe split for other colours/shades etc. Which may upset your careful plans. But that's part of the fun of breeding budgies. Yours B.J.

Hello The answer to your question. Would have been ." How long is a piece if string?" But you already know the answer now. Sorry the other advise you got wasn't to your liking. Yours B.J

Hi You can breed any colours you like. Birds have come along way since the old days. Watmough would think that todays birds have most of the flaws they tried to breed out. There a now good birds in all the major colours that nowadays you would be dipping into any colour if it had the desired features you wanted. If your showing to win I suggest you take out a second mortgage. You can't buy winners in pet shops. Yours B.J.

Hi Jodie, In the UK we don't have to worry about Eucaliptus spotty or not. To be safe most of us stick to Willow & fruit trees like apple, pear ect, I wouldn't trust nothing with spots on though perhaps some Botony types may help. I've got info of the web listing all the safe tree types, unfortunately I'm away on holiday at the moment. Yours B.J

Hello Click on the post bellow. It should answer most of your questions Yours B.J. http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/index.php?showtopic=31805

Hello I think you would be better off letting the parents rear the chicks. When their all hatched you can take the oldest chick & hold it for a few minutes twice a day every day. As the next chick gets a bit older you can take that one out too & so on until you have them all out to play with you for a few min. By the time they leave the nest they will be very tame ready for you to follow one of the posts on taming & training. Yours B.J.

Hello I suggest You remove the nest boxes Until you even up your sexes. You don't say how old the birds are. They have to be old enough & in breeding condition. You appear to not even allowed them to settle down in their new home yet. Diet plays a big part in breeding. Read the posts on breeding & feeding for all the info you need. Yours B.J..

Hi Can't keep budgies now due to ill health. Just me, the wife & a couple of mutts. I used to be a professional .animal trainer, I specialised in birds. Like performing budgies.for Showmen. Yours B.J.

Hello Nice little family you have there jody. Yours B.J.

Hello. Sounds to me her hormones have kicked in & she's feeling broody.There's not much you can do to to help her. Though you might get a lot of conflicting advice about removing her mirror & such like. You just have to let nature take its course & either just let her get over it, which she will eventually or get her a mate so she can start her own family. Trying to stop her will only upset & frustrate her. Yours B.J.

Hi Putting your own interpretation on the actions, why's & wherefores, of any bird is rather a hit & miss affair. As Kaz suggests ere on the side of caution, She will be able to raise the chicks on her own, Yours B.J.

Hello, (1) NO (2) YES. Click on bellow for more info. Yours B.J. http://www.budgieplace.com/colorsguide.html

WHY ARE SOME BREEDERS SO LUCKY Many breeders hope that by giving their breeding pairs a nest box, food & a mate. They have all bases covered when it comes to breeding. Another important factor to take into consideration in the equation, is that elusive element which we all need & hope for, known the world over under a variety of names. In English we call it. Good Luck. So how do we ensure we get our share of this magical phenomenon. As it appertain's to the bird breeding community? For many years in the western world the breeding of some foreign birds was considered to be impossible until 1945 when returning prisoners of war arrived back home. During their incarceration a select few had been given the jobs of looking after the guards captive pet birds & animals. In doing so they had learned a secret most of them would take to the grave. The so called secret formula for the breeding of many difficult birds. The answer to this most mysterious of mysterious mysteries. Was kept a closely guarded secret for many years. It appeared to get out when visiting breeders keen to discover the secret, saw what they thought was the haphazard placement of nest boxes in the birdrooms of some very successful breeders. Haphazard will work really well in colony breeding if you supply lots of extra nest boxes. Even in this day & age almost all nesting arrangements in breeding cages are all set up like a car manufacturers assembly line. Any birds that don't perform well or not at all, are sold off. Bird marketing suppliers. jumped on the bandwagon. selling cure all potions to gullable breeders, with promises of getting birds to breed like rabbits. Which they won't if conditions are not to their liking, no matter what magic medicine you give them. There are many stories of such bad breeder birds being very prolific with other breeders with a practical & to all intents & purposes an identical set-up. When asked their secret, instead of admitting they don't know, they wink knowingly & smile. Even today most of the serious breeders stick to this regimental layout & only keep birds willing to breed under these conditions. Being one of the few privy to the secret, I'm going to reveal some simple ideas to help you attract your share of good luck. How to attract good luck to your aviary Build a pond or waterfall feature to the left of the door & place an ornamental tortoise close by. Water is notorious for attracting good luck. Aviary doors facing the directions below each have a lucky charm animal. North = RAT. NE =TIGER. E = RABBIT. SE = DRAGON. S = HORSE. SW = Monkey. W= Rooster, NW = Dog. Effigies or pictures of these creatures should adorn your shed walls. COMPATIBILITY AIDS FERTILITY The good luck formula also tells us that all birds have a lucky number, this gives you the general direction, of the nest bob hole that a particular bird may prefer. To find this number. Add together the last two numbers of the birds birth year, ie, 2012. 1+2 = lucky No is 3. Lucky numbers, 1, 5, 9 prefer to face North. Lucky numbers, 2, 6, 10 ................ face South. Lucky numbers, 3, 7, 11 ................ face East. Lucky numbers, 4, 8, 12 ................ face West. By pairing compatible birds, good luck is greatly increased. Peace & Harmony In any collection of birds, aggression may break out at any time as with any living creatures kept in a confined space. Sometimes for no seemingly good reason. Eye contact is one factor that seems to set off the aggressor. Parallel perches are a well known factor in making it difficult for birds to avoid eye contact. It is suggested that perches in cages should be set slightly further apart at the front than the back. In an aviary situation place the perches across the corners. This may not be a cure-all but it will help. I know it sounds a little crazy but why take Pot Luck instead of Good Luck? You may be more familiar with this good luck formula under its oriental name Feng shui, its been around since 4000BC. Now if this & all the other good info you get off this site doesn't improve your birdkeeping skills. Nothing will......Yours B.J.

H i .Most of us mash it all up, shell & all Then mix it with whatever you like . Yours B.J.

Hi i Finnie . Perhaps you should try this first. Distraction will only work until your distracted. Biting birds. These birds are best fed treat foods in small portions through the bars of the cage, with a pair of tweezers or chopsticks. As the birds get used to this, gradually over the next few days, move your fingers closer to the treat food as you slowly build up the bond of trust. The treats are fed little & often. If your bird even attempts to bite, remove the treat food for a count of 10 & re-offer it. Any longer & the bird may not link the two actions, do this as often as it takes. Don't be in a hurry, only when your birds are 100% happy to eat from your fingertips for several days, are they ready for the next stage. This stage is not complete until the birds stop any biting behaviour. Yours B.J.

Hi, I was assuming that Kylie's birds were bought in stock & not owner bred birds. Which are used to our careful daily inspections of nest boxes. Plus the fact that we are not able to see exactly what Kyie means by inspection of boxes, or how Kyli's hens react. It was the only helpful thing I could think of Yours B.J.

Hi again. After reading your reply. Your doing all the right things. Except... & this is just my own opinion. Your into the nest boxes a little often. As I said, some birds don't like too much interference. To them your a possible predator raiding their nest box. Yours B.J.

Hi Can I suggest you mark the eggs so you know when they are laid. Say a, 1.2.3. etc with a note to tell you what date each egg was laid. This will make it easier for you when & if you decide to swop eggs around. Or let her carry on. Some hens don't seem to get the hang of raising chicks first time around. Then again it may be she resents your intrusion into her nest.& it upsets her. Advice on bird conduct is at best only speculation, no matter who it's from. You know your birds better than anyone else, so any decision must be yours. Yours B.J.

B.J's Teaching your Bird to Fetch. A little game that will amuse & exercise your feathered playmate. A playing card is ideal for learning & playing fetch. Bend the card slightly so it doesn't lie flat, making it easier for the bird to pick up. Encourage your bird to play with the card. It doesn't matter if he tears it up, you have 51 replacements. Play 'Peep-ho' with him, some birds really enjoy it. When he's at ease & familiar with the playing card. Place a small treat on the table, when he comes over for it. Cover it with the card. He may think out of sight means gone. If so lift the card so he can see it. This will convince him, out of sight doesn't mean gone. If he picks the card up or he moves the card to get the treat. take it from him & say 'Fetch.' Don't say, 'Thanks, or Thank you.' the treat is the thanks. Practice this part for a few days. Only practice for a few minutes at a time, twice a day otherwise he will get bored & the treat will loose its appeal. If after a few days he is still pushes the card aside. Hold the card down with your finger until he bites at the card edge, then take it from him, saying 'Fetch.' Revealing the treat. Biting will progress into picking up. You want the bird to associate the word fetch with giving you the card. Which he will do with practice. You can add all the words of praise you want later. Now pretend to place the treat under the card & offer the treat in exchange for the card. If he see's you holding the treat, he has no reason to pick up the card. Slowly over a few days increase the distance he has to walk to give you the card. Once you both have mastered fetch. You can substitute the card for other objects. Yours B.J.

Hi You make no mention about your birds breeding condition. Would I be right in guessing that you have a limited knowledge on the subject. If so please check out the posts about the care of budgies before you attempt any breeding. Yours B.J.

Hi Funky Sorry forgot to answer your question about mating, Bro to Sis. Not to be recommended Unless its part of a breeding plan & you would have to know their genetic make up etc. If your breeding on the colony system. Like in the wild. You need equal number of cocks & hens. Plus extra nest boxes to avoid fighting & to give the hens choice. Yours B.J.

Hi I think with your level of experience. You would be better to wait until the babies are older to work out their sexes. You wouldn't be able to tell from any written description. Wait till the box needs a clean out, then handle the chicks for a few minutes every day. This will have them quite tame when they leave the nest. Yours B.J. PS Let us know what your set up is like.okay!