Hi all, this is my first post here, so here goes...

 

I went to the pet shop this morning to get a few things for our feathered friends and saw they'd stocked up a few new birds. I always stop to admie whatever they have, even if I have no intention of buying!

 

Anyway, they had some adult budgies and one female was the loveliest shade of blue and white. As I was admiring her and wondering how my colony would welcome her, I looked cloesly at the birds in with her. Several of them (her included once I looked closely enough) had dry-looking, hard-looking feathers on their cheeks. It was only 3-4 on either side. A green/yellow male had white hard-looking reathers. The blue and whites had mostly dark blue ones. The female had white mixed in with normal looking white feathers.

 

Now I've only had my budgies for a short time, so maybe this is normal, but mine came from a breeder and none look like this.

 

And also, is it usual for 2 females to form a special friendship in a colony? My yellow girl Sugar and grey girl Cutie spend a lot of time together preening and feeding each other. They do socialise with the boys too, but not to the same extent. Unfortunately, I'm not sure how old they are. It's possible they are mother and daughter, but they are adults, so I'm not sure they'd continue as they would have have as mother and chick.

 

Any advice would be welcome on either perplexing quesion! okay, maybe not THAT perplexing, but interesting anyway.

Edited November 13, 200915 yr by KAZ

Hi all, this is my first post here, so here goes...

 

I went to the pet shop this morning to get a few things for our feathered friends and saw they'd stocked up a few new birds. I always stop to admie whatever they have, even if I have no intention of buying!

 

Anyway, they had some adult budgies and one female was the loveliest shade of blue and white. As I was admiring her and wondering how my colony would welcome her, I looked cloesly at the birds in with her. Several of them (her included once I looked closely enough) had dry-looking, hard-looking feathers on their cheeks. It was only 3-4 on either side. A green/yellow male had white hard-looking reathers. The blue and whites had mostly dark blue ones. The female had white mixed in with normal looking white feathers.

 

Now I've only had my gudgies for a short time, so maybe this is normal, but mine came from a breeder and none look like this.

 

And also, is it usual for 2 females to form a special friendship in a colony? My yellow girl Sugar and grey girl Cutie spend a lot of time together preening and feeding each other. They do socialise with the boys too, but not to the same extent. Unfortunately, I'm not sure how old they are. It's possible they are mother and daughter, but they are adults, so I'm not sure they'd continue as they would have have as mother and chick.

 

Any advice would be welcome on either perplexing quesion! okay, maybe not THAT perplexing, but interesting anyway.

 

sounds like they are young birds my friend and have just began to get their cheek patch feathers in

if not young i dont know what could be

not un common for hens to enjoy each others company

they could have been going through a molt the feathers that replace the older feathers will still have a sheath on them and then that comes off showing off a more softer feather. It is very comman for the same sex budgies to bond like your females have and they don't need to be related at all.

I agree, in the absence of photos and based on your description, nothing to worry about!

I agree, in the absence of photos and based on your description, nothing to worry about!

 

Thanks for the quick replies!

 

Ahhh, young makes sense. They could have been just too old to sell as babies, so they're sold as adults, but still are young enough for that first moult.

 

Next question, do you think my hens will breed with the males in the colony? I have a male and female that seem bonded, so we might have eggs there some day, so I'm not overly worried. The budgies are good company if they breed or not, really, but I'd be good to know what to look for.

do you have nestboxes or anywhere they might think could be a nest?? if you do then yes there is always the chance they will breed in the colony...

do you have nestboxes or anywhere they might think could be a nest?? if you do then yes there is always the chance they will breed in the colony...

 

 

Yes, 3 nestboxes and a hollowed out cocounut they all adore. Thanks. It'll be interesting to watch them and see what they do.

I wouldn't put your new chicks in there with the nest boxes, you don't want young birds breeding...

I wouldn't put your new chicks in there with the nest boxes, you don't want young birds breeding...

Agreed. No birds under 12 months should be in an aviary where there are nestboxes.

I wouldn't put your new chicks in there with the nest boxes, you don't want young birds breeding...

Agreed. No birds under 12 months should be in an aviary where there are nestboxes.

 

To the best of my knowledge they're all over 12 months or more old. We have few other different kinds of parrots (Eclectus, cockatiels, kakarikis, quakers and conures) and I've discovered that they all have their own quirks and ailments. So before we get a new breed we do a lot of research. But things always arise that didn't come up in a google search before! Budgies seem to be delightfully quirky in a whole new way and I wish I had some sooner. I didn't end up buying any from the petshop (besides the fact they're expensive), but they'd have been quarentined before joining the flock.

do you have nestboxes or anywhere they might think could be a nest?? if you do then yes there is always the chance they will breed in the colony...

 

 

Yes, 3 nestboxes and a hollowed out cocounut they all adore. Thanks. It'll be interesting to watch them and see what they do.

 

 

If they all adore the one coconut, watch out, they will fight over it. I had two females who got along really great, until I put in a thick wreath-thing made out of grapevine. Boy did they love it! (It was very nest-like.) Until they started getting possesive of it and fighting with each other. I had to take it out, but they are back to being friends again.

Yes, 3 nestboxes and a hollowed out cocounut they all adore. Thanks. It'll be interesting to watch them and see what they do.

 

I had two budgies who started out laying eggs in a coconut shell too. Best you remove it as they will try to raise babies in it but they arent big enough for a family of budgies and the babies will fall out too soon.

The cocounut (actually 2 of them) hang from a rope and they all hang off the outide and chew it. They don't really go in there. There are three holes around it, so it's not that enclosed. But I'll keep a lookout. If they go in there a bit I'll take it out. Phew, the hazards of budgie breeding!