Bea

Also wanted to add that he's looking stronger than he has the past 24 hours that i was feeding him. When i looked in the box i had to move them all so they were seperate just to confirm which one was Scamp, hehe. I am very happy right now cause i can see a full nights sleep happening tonight.

He's definitely getting fed!! I've rushed home for 10mins to check up on him and they're all full of bok choy parent slush, haha.

Fantastic news!!! Scamp has been filled by Akala!! I'm so happy!! I haven't fed him since 6am this morning and it's now 11:19am and he's totally full as are all the others. What i find helps is scattering the babies around the nest box at feeding time so that Scamp isn't forgotten under a pile of big babies. I'll come home at lunch time (1pm ish) to make sure he's still fed and if i haven't had to feed him by tomorrow morning i think i can leave it up to his parents to care for him.

I might give that a go at the next due feed. Thanks for the suggestion. With some help from Karen i put Noah and Scamp in a shallow container in the nest box so that they were separate and hopefully more noticable. Mum sat on them happily keeping them warm but after a 4 hour gap between feeds they were 100% empty, screaming the house down for food and just getting sat on. I gave her 15mins of this screaming to see if she'd get her act into gear but in the end i had to feed the both of them. Luckily at this age they're keen eaters no matter who's putting the food in their mouth, haha. This morning, 2 hours after last feed, Scamp was out of the container and still pretty full with a little black speck in his crop, like what you see in egg and biscuit, so i think he may have had a top up. Noah was pretty empty though so i took him out of the container too. I'll check in a couple of hours to see who's been fed and who hasn't. I'm calling around some pet shops looking for a heat pad so that i can use my fish tank as a brooder. With a hot water bottle being refilled every 3 hours i can keep the temp above 30C but it needs to be more stable than that. Hopefully i'll get a heat pad this afternoon at the latest so i have it all set up if the baby just isn't getting fed and needs to be pulled. The amount i'm having to disturb the parents digging the baby out from under the siblings every 3-4 hours can't be good for them in a stage that'd already be stressful.

I tried waiting longer during the day, i gave it 3.5hrs rather than 3 at the lunch time feed. It was empty when i fed it after that and i'm scared to leave it too long. :bluebudgie:

Well i'm sure some of you know that i'm doing my best at handrearing the last little baby of Bob and Akala. It's almost 24hrs old and i don't believe it's been fed once by the parents, only by me. However i don't think they're meaning to forget it, they just miss it under all those big fat siblings. Do you think there's a way to put the babies in two piles in the nest box so that the two big ones who are starting to get butt fluff are together and the smaller ones are together. I thought this might mean the baby isn't buried under it's siblings and would be fed. But would this freak the parents out? The other concern with this idea is the fact that they couldn't all be sat on....though how mum could sit on the massive tangle off babies i don't know. I've thought about taking the two older ones for handrearing but i don't trust my handrearing abilities and would hate to lose two budgies. Does anyone else have a great idea to get weeny baby noticed? I can keep feeding it approx. every 3 hours but it's going to kill me i think, (Laughing out loud).

Awww, cute babies!! :bluebudgie: Look at little JJ trying to be a grown up.

I agree, the spangle's not opaline, Blinkie and Ozzie and most of the spangles in my aviary have the body colour showing through on some of the wing markings. Unless it has the clear V shape of body colour between the shoulders it's not opaline.

i think that is a very stupid idea to charge your poor brother for a bird that hasn't cost you anything yet. Well just think, if i were selling to an outsider i'd be charging $20+ so you're getting a family discount. Don't forget you'll most likely be using MY spare cage so just think how much you don't have to spend on a cage.

Hi Tim *hugs*, don't worry, you're not thought of as a monster here or anything! Now you better read lots here and show how much you want this little budgie.

Looks great Daz!! You've done a brilliant job.

That's a pretty good idea!! I'm also thinking of charging him $10 or something if he does get one of my budgies so he doesn't just see this as an easy chance to get a free pet.

I think i will. Someone also pointed out that if it doesn't work it would be no major drama to socialize it with Blink and Oz to get it used to being in a flock and then popping it out in the aviary.

I think this may have kick started his interest in wanting a bird. If i had let him Bailee never would've left his room, (Laughing out loud). I'm starting to think it's a good idea. I won't say yes or no to him till i'm sure otherwise he might get excited and then think i'm a cow for changing my mind.

I'm currently trying to make a tricky decision. My 14 year old brother, Tim, has decided that he wants his own budgie, one of my babies to be precise. Mum and dad don't seem to have any major objections and neither to i really, just little worries. We all know that i have LOTS of pets, mostly birds, a fish and my dog. So why would we want another pet in the house? Well Tim has NEVER had his own pet, i've never really thought about how that must feel for him, seeing me have budgies, tiels, a dog, fish, mice, etc and him not having a single pet to call his own. He does really love animals so i think he would care for any pet he gets. If he was to get one of my babies this would only happen if i could tell 100% that the baby he was getting was a MALE. I absolutely never want a female budgie in the house because of how mental it turns Blinkie, it totally ruins the friendship between Blinkie and Ozzie. So that's condition number one and one that i could easily meet, i don't usually have problems telling the gender of young budgies and even if i did i'm sure you guys could help, hehe. This budgie of Tim's would, at least initially live in Tim's room in Blinkie's old cage which is fine for one budgie. This budgie would get lots of time out, same as all my other indoor birdlets. I've told Tim that a bird in his room means that he can't spray his deoderant in his room and that he wouldn't be able to paint things or use stinky glue in his room (something he does from time to time). He seems to think that will be fine so don't think that will be a problem. Still that's one of my little worries. I've told him that his budgie would need to be on a good diet (same as my birds) and that would mean giving it veggies every day. While he commented that i could chop those up (his logic is that i do it anyway) he said he'd be happy to do that too. I have to remember last year when i left my birds in his care the aviary ones weren't given the pre-chopped veggies that i had left, this is another of my worries. I also told Tim that budgies can live into their teens and what about when he wants to move out. At this stage his answer was that he could take a bird with him. I brought up the worry that what about when he's 16 or 17 and maybe loses interest? He doesn't think that will happen but i'm not sure. He's a normal person (not like anti-social, animal obsessed me) and i don't see why he might not grow out of wanting a budgie. What if he decides it's a bit of a wussy pet to have in his room when his girlfriend comes over, (Laughing out loud). At the back of my mind i'm a bit worried that i'll end up with another budgie, (Laughing out loud). Whether it's just that Tim's would end up moving in with Blinkie and Ozzie or that i would have to completely take over it's care i'm not 100% sure i want a 3rd budgie inside that i'm totally responsible for (i don't mind just helping Tim). I guess i'd worry the balance i have with my 4 current "pet" birds would be upset. Realistically it probably wouldn't cause any great trouble but it's still a worry. Of course i would make sure i have unlimited visitation rights to Tim's room to see the baby, (Laughing out loud), and that i could play with it when i wanted to. There would be no "it's mine and you can't touch it" happening because if that is his plans he's not getting one of my babies, hehe. He seems truly excited at the idea of a pet of his own. I think that he'd appreciate the chance. He really really wants a dog and has for ages but knows that won't happen while he's at home. He's always asking for things like mice, fish, etc, small pets that he could keep in his room with little annoyance to mum but so far hasn't got anything. I'm thinking it would be nice for him...i just need to figuire out how i feel about it. I'd really appreciate other peoples thoughts on the situation, a little help sorting through my thoughts would be great, (Laughing out loud)!

I seem to come out with a new site all the time but this one is actually done and even if i don't update it i think it'd be okay to read. Anyway, i've been working on it since yesterday when the urge to make a site overwhelmed me and for now it's done. Bea's Pet Site

Whoooo!! Can't wait to see it. :oliveb:

Thanks!! In the past i've not used nesting material so i wasn't sure.

Before any eggs were laid i put a decent amount of wood shavings in the nest box for Akala and Spongebob. There's still alot in there but they're bunched up to one side and not under the chicks. I want to add a bit more, so it's cleaner and under the chicks but should i wait till after all the eggs are hatched? Will it upset Akala at all?

Fluffing up and sleepiness/lack of energy are symptoms of a sick bird. I would take her to see an avian vet to be on the safe side.

Wow!! So many pics! You've got such a colourful flock, they're all stunning.

First is of him having some.......umm......fun with his rope perch and "Blinkie" toy, (Laughing out loud). He's such a MALE! Second one is him flirting with my foot.

That's so good they're getting the two survivors back, at least they haven't lost EVERYTHING that way. Poor kid, losing his special pet. That would kill me coming home to find my pets dead, worse knowing it was in the hands of someone you thought could be trusted.

Such gorgeous pics all through the thread!!

Oooohhh!! Look at the cutesy babies!! Gorgeous piccies.