just wanted to see if anyone else has even seen their budgie do this...

 

i bought my budgie a parsley plant to nibble and forage through (and roll when its wet) but as soon as he got it he started chewing the leaves (normal) and then running the juice and or bits of parsley through his feathers - similarly to the way he distributes from his oil/scent feather above his tail. so very broad sweeping motions, as though he is putting on parsley perfume!

 

and he does smell like parsley afterwards! so my theory is because of the smell.. anyone else have any theories or has anyone seen their budgie do this before?

 

:hap:

Sounds like he is bathing himself (Laughing out loud) ... I haven't a clue with this one but I am sure another member will have an answer for you soon...

Thats hillarious... don't tell the petshops they'll start selling budgie purfume and aftershave...

budgies have a poor sense of smell, I am going to say he probably like the way it feels when he preens it, they are big preeners and love to preen, I would suggest a preening toy for him to play with and preen .

I had a budgie that did the same with Fresh Basil. So I can't see it being anything wrong.

 

It's a form of bathing. Sounds like he had a great time with it. Cool !

haha no i realise there is nothing wrong with it, it merely suprised me and i had never seen another budgie do it before.at first i thought he was perhaps trying to add the green bits of leaf to his feathers (have seen a lovebird rip strips of paper off and slot them into his wings to make it look like he had more or longer ones) but it wasnt consistantly big pieces and it left him smelling more than anything. i suppose there must be an oil of some kind in the leaves... he could recognise that it would keep him waterproof. who knows! he doesnt preen too much so its not an obsessive thing. but its damn funny when he gets so involved in the "joy of parsley" that he ends up rolling off the potplant!

 

it makes him happy and it makes me laugh - thats good enough for me!

but do let me know if your budgie or any you know does the same!thanks elly!

 

i wasnt sure about their sense of smell, but did some research and it seems to be inconclusive. some sites say they can smell many things, others say they cant (or dont need to)i think the best (and most reliable) bit of info was from the Hamilton & District Budgerigar & Cage Bird Society webpage about the Behaviour of Parakeets (they mean budgies)

 

"Thus far there have been no conclusive studies about the parakeet's ability to smell and taste. All we have to go on is reports of individual parakeet keepers. Many bird owners let their pets taste human food, completely ignoring the warning that this habit is detrimental to the birds' health. These people like to tell stories of their pets' special preferences that would seem to indicate that parakeets do respond to taste. Perhaps the birds can tell the differences between bitter and salty and sweet and sour. We assume that almost all birds, including parakeets, lack a differentiated sense of smell. We know that many mammals define the borders of their territory by leaving scent marks and that they attract sexual partners with olfactory substances. Birds do neither."

 

so while its reasonable to assume they dont... its still a possibility. i think the preening theory is more likely though.. but i will keep a close eye on this discussion to see how many other reports of similar behaviour with herbs or scented pot plants. because kit used to eat my heather plants (naughty) but he would just eat or chew them.. not preen them through his feathers. so its just parsley... which smells. and NickNaks does it with basil... also smelly...its interesting and im wondering how i can fit a possible study into my upcoming masters on wildlife.... haha

 

budgies have a poor sense of smell, I am going to say he probably like the way it feels when he preens it, they are big preeners and love to preen, I would suggest a preening toy for him to play with and preen .

Edited March 15, 200817 yr by Kityakana

That's what I meant when I said my bird was bathing with the basil ... he would place the leaves under his other feathers mostly on is underside & back & tuck them in.

 

He was molting at this time also. So maybe it was cool & refreshing to him where he had fresh skin & pimply new feathers coming in. Some birds really hate molting. One of my birds refused to come out of the cage & be social for over 2 months, he said NOT ONE PEEP ! It drove me nuts. I thought he was sick & gonna die ... but. Just molting.

 

Birds all do strange things ... I love this ... since yours loves the parsley, let him enjoy it. Be thankful its not something you can't get or grow yourself. We here in Canada don't have natural Peppermint trees & apparently budgies think this is heaven. I might have to sprinkle some fresh peppermint essence on some basil & see if this entices my boids.

 

The one thing that we all have in common with out birds is ... they molt ... they eat ... they poop ! And not all in that order.

:ygbudgie: Hope your budgie enjoyed his parsley bath!!! At least the odor is not as pungent as basil. (I grow both in my herb garden during the summer).

just uploaded a video of him doing this onto YouTube...

 

Kityakana ... THAT'S NOT PARSLEY ! THATS POT ! MARIJUANA !

Your little budgie is picking dope & stashing it under his feathers for some munchies later. HE IS DOING DRUGS !!! He is going to be addicted in no time. Do you have any idea how expensive a BUDGIE DRUG HABIT IS ?

 

And then there's REHAB ... It's almost impossible to get them into rehab. All the Movie Stars & Celebritys are in the Rehabs & making it impossible to get help for your little budgie pot head.

 

Such a shame ... a good budgie brain being toasted on drugs is a terrible waste.

 

You know I am joking ... of course. I love the video. He seems to really enjoy it. Don't let him overdo it though. If you notice his poops are a little loose & too runny he might be having too much.

 

He can always pick the stashes he hides under his feathers for later treats.

Kityakana ... THAT'S NOT PARSLEY ! THATS POT ! MARIJUANA !

Your little budgie is picking dope & stashing it under his feathers for some munchies later. HE IS DOING DRUGS !!! He is going to be addicted in no time. Do you have any idea how expensive a BUDGIE DRUG HABIT IS ?

 

And then there's REHAB ... It's almost impossible to get them into rehab. All the Movie Stars & Celebritys are in the Rehabs & making it impossible to get help for your little budgie pot head.

 

Such a shame ... a good budgie brain being toasted on drugs is a terrible waste.

 

You know I am joking ... of course. I love the video. He seems to really enjoy it. Don't let him overdo it though. If you notice his poops are a little loose & too runny he might be having too much.

 

He can always pick the stashes he hides under his feathers for later treats.

 

I just joined this club and found this very funny! I just got 2 budgies today but have been baby sitting my Dads for 3 weeks and I wasnt looking forward to it going home so here i am with 2 scared little budgies one boy and a girl. I hope they will not be so skiddish in time. Anyways great story thanks

haha well when i got Kit he was so nervous it was ridiculous! he was kinda manhandled in the shop and i was very annoyed at the staff cause they didnt seem to care..

 

but it just takes time. and i recommend wearing wool gloves or something soft and thick like that. that way if the bird does bite you, it dont hurt so much BUT also, more importantly, you dont react as much. and that sends the signal to the bird that biting A) doesnt help :hap: doesnt hurt you.

 

it doesnt stop it all together but it really does help in training.

 

plus you can always chill them out with some budgie dope like mine!

 

 

Kityakana ... THAT'S NOT PARSLEY ! THATS POT ! MARIJUANA !

Your little budgie is picking dope & stashing it under his feathers for some munchies later. HE IS DOING DRUGS !!! He is going to be addicted in no time. Do you have any idea how expensive a BUDGIE DRUG HABIT IS ?

 

And then there's REHAB ... It's almost impossible to get them into rehab. All the Movie Stars & Celebritys are in the Rehabs & making it impossible to get help for your little budgie pot head.

 

Such a shame ... a good budgie brain being toasted on drugs is a terrible waste.

 

You know I am joking ... of course. I love the video. He seems to really enjoy it. Don't let him overdo it though. If you notice his poops are a little loose & too runny he might be having too much.

 

He can always pick the stashes he hides under his feathers for later treats.

 

I just joined this club and found this very funny! I just got 2 budgies today but have been baby sitting my Dads for 3 weeks and I wasnt looking forward to it going home so here i am with 2 scared little budgies one boy and a girl. I hope they will not be so skiddish in time. Anyways great story thanks

That's funny, I caught Squee rubbing herself all over the broccoli today! I'd pegged a bunch to the cage wall and she was jumping on it, rubbing her belly and trying to get her back on it. It might have been because it was wet but it was so funny to watch, I had cooked it so bits of it kept coming off and it ended up all over her! Then it all came off when she gave herself a shake, but Milly wasn't impressed at all I wish I still had my camera! (Parents took it overseas on their trip).

 

i recommend wearing wool gloves or something soft and thick like that. that way if the bird does bite you, it dont hurt so much BUT also, more importantly, you dont react as much. and that sends the signal to the bird that biting A) doesnt help doesnt hurt you.

 

I personally don't like wearing gloves with budgies. Some of them don't associate it with your hand, or learn that they can bite you without it. So they're terrified of the big scary wooly thing, but when they see your bare pink fingers they know to go at it! With Squee I used the method where if she tried to bite, I would push back every time (gently but firmly). It would hurt at first with a budgie gnawing on you but they realise that you are a bigger and stronger 'budgie' and that you are dominant. She doesn't bite me hard any more - only play wrestling now.

Edited March 22, 200817 yr by Chrysocome

l'm currently trying to tame my 2 budgies at the moment and l do not use a glove with them. my female tends to bite me more and my male doe's not bite. l have been using the same technique as Chrysocome.

With Squee I used the method where if she tried to bite, I would push back every time (gently but firmly).

it works with my female, she doesn't bite me as hard as she use to :budgiedance: