Posted December 30, 201014 yr hi all I have become an accidental budgie owner.... sort of The OH walked out the front the other day and a budgie was sitting there. He looked a bit stressed ( we haven't had a day under 40 for a while) so OH bought him inside. We think he may be a pet as he hasn't gone nuts in the house and doesn't protest too much about being picked up. we have put signs up around the town but no one has called yet i have never had birds before so a few questions Are wild budgies a certain colour or could this one be wild? is the leg ring compulsory in australia or is it optional. This little fella doesn't have a ring He isn't flying very well. Could it be because of his short tail feathers? i think he is molting Is there anything i should be doing to make sure he is healthy? the vet doesn't come back here until February so i can't take him to the vet. I am sort of hoping that no one calls as he is a cute little thing. If no one calls, i am going to have a lot more questions for you guys Here is a couple of pics. Excuse the makeshift cage but there are no pet shops around here so it is a 2 week minimum wait to get a cage delivered.
December 30, 201014 yr Great job on the rescue !! Your budgie isnt wild. SHE ( not HE ) is a blue spangle. Are wild budgies a certain colour or could this one be wild? THIS ONE ISNT WILD. SHE HAS BELONGED TO SOMEONE. is the leg ring compulsory in australia or is it optional. LEGRINGS ARE PUT ON BY BREEDERS LIKE I AM A SHOW BREEDER AND I RING ALL MY BIRDS. This little fella doesn't have a ring DOESNT MEAN ANYTHING IMPORTANT EXCEPT IT WAS BRED BY A BREEDER WHO DIDNT RING THE BABIES He isn't flying very well. Could it be because of his short tail feathers? i think he is molting LOOKS LIKE MOULTING AND IT IS MOULTING SEASON IN MOST PLACES Is there anything i should be doing to make sure he is healthy? the vet doesn't come back here until February so i can't take him to the vet. I am sort of hoping that no one calls as he is a cute little thing. If no one calls, i am going to have a lot more questions for you guys Here is a couple of pics. Excuse the makeshift cage but there are no pet shops around here so it is a 2 week minimum wait to get a cage delivered. Edited December 30, 201014 yr by **KAZ**
December 30, 201014 yr Author Thanks for the reply Kaz A girl budgie!! Show you how much we know about them. We have been doing some reading online since she came to us and the OH said she was a boy!! Looks like we have a lot more reading to do Thanks for your help
December 31, 201014 yr Hi Melave, I was an accidental budgie owner as well, much the same as you. Mine flew into the house as a baby and I never found his owner. I've had him for around four months now and he's a naughty little darling. If you can't find where she came from, the best advice I can give (having been there myself) is find a good cage. I'm in inner Sydney and the pet shops were absolutely hopeless - both for toys and cages. Get the right cage at the start and you're sweet. Look for something called a flight cage. They are wide, rather than tall. Budgies like to be up high and don't use the bottom part of the cage (think like a budgie and you'll figure stuff out). High feels safer. Get a cage that's as wide as you can, so they can get some flight room. Natural perches are great too. You can make one out of a eucalyptus branch. Find an interesting, knobbly branch and attach it to the side of the cage with a perch attachment - a screw thing, a couple of washers and a wingnut thingy. You'll also want three little food bowls. One for seed, one for water, and one for veges. Getting them to eat veges can be a pain. Mine would only eat them if I chopped them up into really miniscule little bits. Cucumber, red pepper and parsley seems to be the go for mine. And he only eats less than a teaspoon's worth. Just check out the FAQ's on what NOT to feed her, and give her go at everything else. And just persist. Eventually she'll give it a try. There's a great Australian online shop for parrots you can check out for toys as well as ready made perches. Reliable posting service and brilliant toys....myparrotshop.com I think. I tried the local pet stores, but they are filled with toys made in China with poisonous glues and dyes. My guy loves his sisal rope perch, his jingle washer hanging toy and this stainless steel bell hanging off eucalyptus knobs. (He like to chew the bark). I've spent a small fortune at that online store. It's seriously addictive. Don't get anything with a mirror on it. Mirrors make them act weird. If you've got seeding grasses around, grab her a bunch of that as well from time to time. They love it. I usually stick a small frond of eucalyptus leaf in his cage as well. Give it a good wash first so you don't pass on any diseases from the wild birds and possums who use the trees. (stick some cheap white vinegar in the water when you wash it, it's a natural antiseptic). Others on here a way more experienced than me, so read through all the advice about taming and feeding, and good cage setups. By the way, when my little guy first arrived he didn't fly very well either until he grew his proper tail flight feathers. Once he had his first moult his tail grew to be twice as long. Now he scoots around the house like a speedway racer.
December 31, 201014 yr stace as has some great info there, the cage advise is great, wider is much better than hight. good luck with her, i think you were confused with the gender as she isn't in breeding condition (too young) which gives the hens the well known brown cere but a pale blue/white cere. She doesn't have any tail feathers by the looks of it which will affect her flight.
December 31, 201014 yr Author Hi Stace and nerwen thanks for the replies. I am currently looking for a cage. I will go post in the cage section a couple i have found. The OH went into the next town today and got some toys and bowls but i will look for some better ones online. She seems to like the mirror, chirps away to herself how do they act weird with a mirror? She is giving flying a red hot go!!! we manage to get her up onto a stick and move her around slowly, We have heaps of ghost gums around here which are a type of eucalyptus, so they should be okay right? from what i have read i am thinking she is over 8 months old. Does that sound right? Another thing i have to read up on is introducing her in with our dogs. we don't let them near each other at the moment. I am hoping that will all get used to each other. Thanks again for the warm welcome and the advice. It is a steep learning curve at the moment and a bit daunting, but also very exciting!!!
December 31, 201014 yr how do they act weird with a mirror? Mirrors do their head in. It makes them think the reflection is another budgie. Males will "feed" this other budgie they see in the mirror most budgies "protect" their friend in the mirror. Best they dont have mirrors. from what i have read i am thinking she is over 8 months old. Does that sound right? Give us a close up photo of her eyes ........a nice clear macro shot
January 1, 201114 yr Welcome to BBC. Natural perches are great too. You can make one out of a eucalyptus branch. Find an interesting, knobbly branch and attach it to the side of the cage with a perch attachment - a screw thing, a couple of washers and a wingnut thingy. When using natursl brsnches you need to be careful. Do not get any branches that are near busy roads, are those that have been sprayed. Edited January 1, 201114 yr by birdluv
January 1, 201114 yr Hi All the info is great above and these boards are a treasure trove of great information. Just pipping in here to let you kow that I introduced my budgie and dog and they are best pals now but it is a slow process and you do need to monitor them carefully every step of the way. I introduced my boy when he had his wings clipped...every day we would have playtime with him and the dog - we would all sit down on a square of fabric on the ground with the budgie's toys there for him to play with...at first i didn't let the dog close to the bird but, overtime, they got used to each other and the budgie was allowed to go to the dog as he felt comfortable. In addition my dog would sit on my knee and watch the bird in the cage as I practised talking to the bird...but I stayed calm assertive every step of the way and didn't allow the dog to get in an excitable state at all. I have to say though - the budgie is the boss between the two of them and the dog just coasts along with whatever the bird wants it's great seeing these two so cool with each other but it is only because i have the wolds chillest and most laid back dog in the world - although I confess I still keep an 'eagle eye' on them when the bird is out of the cage.
