Posted February 3, 200916 yr Hi everyone. I'm Shaz. I'm married and have 2 kids aged 3 and 8. I have just bought a beautiful pair of budgies. A girl and a boy. Unnamed as of yet. but really like Leni for the female. I have never owned birds before. They have a nice big cage. Not sure of the size, but the pet shop said it's good for 2. I have layed down some news paper, but read somewhere that it may need to be shredded so as not to get stuck little feet? I look forward to reading around your forum :cake: My boy My girl Edited February 3, 200916 yr by Laceyloo
February 3, 200916 yr Nice! They are both adults. They are such funny creatures to watch and I'm sure they will bring you loads of joy and entertainment! I don't think the newspaper needs to be shredded, to me that kind of defeats the point of putting it down to make the cage easier to clean! It will probably end up shredded though :cake: if they can reach it. I'm not sure why the female has brown above her beak? To me that is not a good sign, but it might not be anything serious so I hope one of the others can help you on that. Edited February 3, 200916 yr by krosp
February 3, 200916 yr Nice Budgies I love the green boy. A few things, the newspaper does not need to be shreaded. Are they plastic poles/perches you have? You are far better off getting the kids to get some natural perches from somewhere you know they don't spray (look for those land for wildlife signs, my council does not sray in these parked areas). Having plastic poles/perches are not good for their feet. Also try and run the perches from front to back keeping them on both sides so that the birds can fly from one side to the other, they way the get more exercise. Also as krosp said they are adults. Have they been handtamed? If not it will take alot longer to hand tame them but not impossible. If you want them tame look into things like Clicker training. Do either of them have rings on their legs? If so and you can read the ring or at least tell us the colour then we should be able to tell you how old the birds are. Good luck with your new guys, they will bring you alot of fun. Oh also if you are not planning on breeding don't put anything that looks like a breeding box in the cage. As you have a pair they might decide to have eggs and unless you are ready and know what you are doing this is something you want to avoid. I was in a pet shop today and the lady told customer that Budgies sleep in breeding boxes so she HAS to supply them *bangs head against desk* Budgies don't need them to sleep. Any questions just ask great to see someone coming into bird ownership!
February 3, 200916 yr Welcome You have been given some great advice already :cake: As others have said your budgies are adults not babies. That can make it harder to tame them as well as there being two. But you may just want them for company. Petshops just about always advise badly about cages.....and ages and sex o0f budgies. You will need the cage to be wider rather than taller...minimum of at least 2 feet wide by a foot and a half deep and tall. Shaped cages with peaked roof sections usually take up space that the budgies need, but can be where you hang toys. Here is a great section on cages .... http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/index....showtopic=17858 If the petshop has given you the wrong kind of cage, its not too late to return it as it was from their advice. Advice about the staining above thre hens cere is correct. It indicates either a respiratory issue past or present, or can be a sign of a psittacosis carrier. PS your budgies are of show type breeding and may well have a legring with information on it. Edited February 3, 200916 yr by KAZ
February 3, 200916 yr very cute :cake: they are a great pair! Look forward to seeing you around on the forum
February 3, 200916 yr Author Thanks Heaps. Firstly, i was a little concerned about the girls beak. it just didn't look quite right. I have become attached to her a bit because she is quite vocal. What should i do with her? Should i ring the pet shop i bought her from or ring the vet? In the feathers around her nostrils, it looks dirty. Not sure what to do :cake: The rings on them are Boy : green tag BCV 3188. Girl : black tag C64LF4 with a sideways x8. Our cage is similar to cage 9 in the link supplied, thanks Kaz . We are looking to get a bigger and better permanent one outside once we sort out our backyard. As far as breeding goes, nope. Not interested as yet. Maybe one day when i have done lots of research and know what i am doing. I don't want to make any mistakes as i don't want to hurt them. PS your budgies are of show type breeding and may well have a legring with information on it. What does this mean? Thanks for the welcome,
February 3, 200916 yr Thanks Heaps.Firstly, i was a little concerned about the girls beak. it just didn't look quite right. I have become attached to her a bit because she is quite vocal. What should i do with her? Should i ring the pet shop i bought her from or ring the vet? In the feathers around her nostrils, it looks dirty. Not sure what to do :cake: The rings on them are Boy : green tag BCV 3188. Girl : black tag C64LF4 with a sideways x8. Our cage is similar to cage 9 in the link supplied, thanks Kaz . We are looking to get a bigger and better permanent one outside once we sort out our backyard. As far as breeding goes, nope. Not interested as yet. Maybe one day when i have done lots of research and know what i am doing. I don't want to make any mistakes as i don't want to hurt them. PS your budgies are of show type breeding and may well have a legring with information on it. What does this mean? Thanks for the welcome, Your hen with the black leg ring was hatched last year and the boy with the green leg ring was hatched in 07. Show type breeding and the legrings means they were bred from exhibition sized and type birds for show but have been sold perhaps due to other brothers and sisters being a shade better than them or they just werent up to the breeders standard size and type requirements. The codes are traceable and if you can trace the breeder then you can find out ages and parentage. If you plan on breeding later on you need to be sure of the hens exact age as last years she could have been from any opart of 08 and they should be 12 months to breed successfully and safely. The dirty feathers over the cere means she either hasnt been well, or something has iritated her breathing, or she carries psittacosis which is a dreadful disease..... often people take their birds to the vet for a well bird check up just to be sure all is well with them. Might pay to get her checked out. Edited February 3, 200916 yr by KAZ
February 3, 200916 yr Author Thankyou so much. I didn't realise there was so much to them. I'll call the vet tomorrow to ask about her.Now, just to settle my dog down :mallet:Been thinking, I'm actually quite concerned. My first experience at buying these beautiful birds and it's worrying now that my girl may be sick. I want to return her, but i have become attached to her.What if the vet gives us some stuff for her and i have to separate them? How do i get her to the vet?She is very active and doesn't look sick at all :cake: . The boy just looks grumpy and just sits there and asses the situation. Edited February 3, 200916 yr by Laceyloo
February 3, 200916 yr Even if you returned her and she was sick, she could have passed it on to the boy. So you probably need more specific advice once you have found out what is wrong with her (if anything). I am not sure what you should do- it depends on how you feel about it and how much money you are willing to part with if she requires expensive treatment.
February 3, 200916 yr Hello! Your budgies are very cute, i even think i have one of the toys in that cage
February 3, 200916 yr When you get perches for the cage make sure you choose branches from safe trees. I believe there is a list in the FAQ section. Great and safe branches for budgies are eucalyptus tree branches. Once you have chosen them, wash them down with vinegar and water solution and leave them in the sun to dry. This will clean the branches of most or any wild bird poo and help destroy germs.
February 3, 200916 yr I just wanted to welcome you, there isn't much more to say as you are getting great advice from all the other members here , that is what I love about BBC!!
