Hi all I was hoping you guys could help a newbie like me understand budgie body lanuage(or behaviors)a little better. Ive had my budgie Pip Squeak for almost a week now. This morning I said good morning and went to pet Pip on her belly ( she lets me do this already without running away) as i put my finger towards her she seemd as tho she was going to bite me softly. i got a little freaked out cause i thought she might bite me and reacted pulling my hand out quickly. I was thinking about it all day and i dont think she was going to bite me at all. i hope my quick reaction didnt set our progress back:(

 

Do budgies play with their mouths?

 

Also, how do i know shes happy, playful, scared etc.

 

 

 

heres Pip Squeak

Budgies preen with their beaks....they preen themselves and other budgies and they also preen their human friends....possible Pipsqueak was going to gently preen your fingertips which they often do

Hi. Owning a bird for a week isn't enough time for either of you to get to know each others body language .

The bond between bird & owner is built over time. Click on the post bellow, you may find it will help you.

Yours B.J.

 

http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/index.php?showtopic=31805

I hope thatshe was trying to preen me. She really is a sweet little bird. Were taking it very slow. I sing and whistle to her everyday and she loves it. After being gone all day at work she gets excited to see me when I get home. when I walk to her cage she always bounceas around a little. My husbands home when Im at work most days so she always has someone to talk to which is good or her.

Like was said earlier, you need to take it slow and steady with her. She will preen you, she might bite you at different times, but keep in mind she is learning. Quick movements will frighten her and will set back any training you are doing.

 

If you are training her and she does bite, try not to react swiftly.

I find with my new budgie and also my previous budgie, they will "bite" your finger when they step up, this is just to balance themselves :-)

when they bite it dosent hurt like a dog or horse it is like a little pinch only sometimes will it brake the skin if you have tough skin like mine cause i am all ways doing stuff with my hands building and using tools so it shuldent hurt much

I have also found that when they are deciding whether to trust your finger as a possible stepping place, they will often nibble to test the safeness of your finger. This is like exploratory mouthing.

 

If some day your bird is very comfortable with you, and decides to test out actual biting, the last thing you want to do is pull your hand away. They learn very quickly that they can manipulate you, and then the biting will become worse. As was mentioned before, do your best not to react at all. If biting gets no reaction, they will give up on it.

 

As for your questions about learning their moods, I guess it just comes with observation. Like you have already figured out when she is excited to see you when you get home. She sounds like a fun bird.