So I currently have 4 budgies and 1 cockatiel in my large cage, and I have room to add more budgies, and I was thinking, instead of buying more budgies I thought it would be neat to breed the ones I have. Two are too young to sex, but the other two are I THINK a male and a female pair. Buddy (who is my brothers bird) has a blue cere, and Storm has a brown cere. Storms WAS blue at first when she was younger, then it turned brown for a couple weeks, then went back to blue, and now has gone back to brown and its been like that for a few months, so I'm hoping she's a female? Because she is deffently more nippy then the other birds, and I read that females tend to be more nippy. Both are also always sitting next to each other and basicly acting like a "couple". The other two are too young to breed (under 12 months) so if there were to be any breeding going on it would be with Storm and Buddy. So my main questions are:

Can I let them breed in the cage (in the nesting box), or do I HAVE to move them to a seperate cage (I have 3 spare cages, only 2 are budgie suitable though)?

I've heard theres a chance that the parents wouldn't take care of the babies and ignore them, why would they do this and how could I prevent this? Is there a good chance this will happen (as I really don't want it to happen).

How many budgies am I looking at if they do bree?

These are just a few questions as I need to find out if I even want to breed and have the time etc. I'll ask more detailed questions later.

Now the big thing I need to mention is that I doubt I'll be able to handfeed if something does happen and the parents neglect them. I have school to attend and I just can't stay up all night feeding the chicks. Would this be a problem? Can I just let nature takes its course if this was to happen, or is this not acceptable?

 

And yes, I have plans for the babies. If there aren't too many of them (no more then 5) I will keep them, if there's more then that I have a friend who said she would love a couple (her parents will let her get any small animal she likes as long as she takes care of it basicly). I also work in a petstore so they'd be happy to help me find homes for them, also I know Mickey wants another bird () and she could always talk to her parents.

 

So feel free to say anything you like, also websites with helpful information would be appreciated.

I'll try to answer your questions as best I can.

 

First of all, I have to say that if you know you won't be able to handfeed, you shouldn't breed. It would be extremely unfair to the babies to allow them to hatch under your care but then be absent in their time of need. In the wild, nature runs its course. But under the care of humans, it becomes our responsibility to give every individual the very best chance at a good life. I would most certainly wait until you're out of school and have the time to give the babies all they need, even if that includes late night handfeedings.

 

That aside, if you decide to breed in the future, it's best to give your breeding pair their own cage. Many things contribute to parents not properly raising chicks but then there is always the case where there is no obvious reason. Maybe the parents weren't old enough, maybe the chicks have something wrong with them. Maybe the birds were inbred and have some issues of their own? Maybe their diet isn't quite right or something is stressing them. There's not always a solid answer for why this happens.

 

Keep in mind that while finding homes for budgies isn't always difficult, finding GOOD homes for budgies is hard. Maybe your friend's parents are okay as long as she cares for them, but can she afford the avian vet, a roomy cage, quality food, etc. all by herself? Furthermore, can you afford the avian vet care for so many budgies? It can get very expensive.

 

There are a million things to consider when you consider breeding. One more important thing to think of is: are you sure your birds are unrelated?

 

If you do decide that you want to breed budgies, it would be best to wait until you're able to provide everything they need, including handfeeding if that becomes necessary.

Thanks for the information eterri. I guess I won't breed then, becuase I wouldn't be willing to handfeed.

There's a good chance they're related too because I got them from the same pet store but at different times.

I'll be getting another budgie soon anyways, becaue after my boss heard about what happened to my baby budgie she gave me a gift certificate for a free budgie for Christmas Which I thought was very thoughtful. The thing is we won't be getting any animals in for a few months, might not be till April.

Don't forget to check out rescues and shelters too! I'm sure you could find some needy budgies needing a good home in a place like that. Or newspaper ads and such. At any rate, good luck finding a new budgie (or two or three?) no matter where you get them and yay for asking questions first instead of just throwing in a nest box. It's so great to see someone who likes doing things the right way for their pets!

Thanks

I've been waiting for a budgie to pop up at either our local humane society or the other shelter (those are the only two in town, the other shelter is a cat shelter) but haven't found one yet. The other shelter DID have a lovebird once, but that was it, they have never had any budgies! I might post an add in our local Swap N' Shop posting thing, people have adverstised cockatiels there but I did a search and there were never any bugies advertised :oliveb: Weird don't you think? Because I would rather adopt one then buy one, but at the same time I want to support the place I work.