2 week old budgies

[laurad1987]

Hi,
My hen has had 3 budgie chicks, eldest being 14 days old now and he's coming along nicely. However the other two chicks are not even a quarter of his size, they are tiny. Is this normal and will they develop?
Also they keep getting caked in poo, round there tail and feet, although we clean them wherever we can and change the wood shavings every few days. Should she be cleaning them up? Sorry for the vagueness but I'm a first time breeder!

Rgds
Laura

[laurad1987]

also any ideas on what colour the big one will be? See attached photo. Thank u. 

[jujubiiird]

How old are the other two babies there?

Lovely photo!
Maybe if you post a picture of the parents then people might have a go at guessing his color.

Someone should be on soon to answer your questions.

All I can think to say is that nature will run it's course and if the mother is feeding them like she did the 1st then they should grow just like he is, but because they hatched at different times they wont grow at the same rate(that is why he looks so much bigger, amazing how fast they grow from a little wiggle into a puff!). So he will get his feathers first and so on...

But someone else more experienced might have more insight for you, I am no breeder.

[laurad1987]

Thank you so much,
They hatched a day apart, but the youngest one is still so small,
Mum is green with a yellow face. Dad is turquoise with a yellow face and black wings. Hopefully the feathers will grow though more in the comin days. So maybe I'll kmow mor shortly.
I just wondered about the colour as it looks grey and white on his wings but can't really tell. He is adorable though!

[jujubiiird]

The color can also depend on the grandparents' colors, so if they do happen to be a different color, it is because one of the parents is carrying that gene from its' own parents. It can get pretty complicated, and its hard to tell at this stage because he doesnt have quite enough feathers to tell yet.

I suppose all you can do is wait and see, if you want to read up on this kind of stuff look in the: Genetics&Colours section. It is pretty imformative and can give you an idea of what to expect.

Otherwise, it is just a waiting game.

[Hezz]

It is up to you to keep their feet clean; clean them each time you change the concave and clean up the box. This should be every day or two. If you leave muck stuck to their feet, the feet and/or nails will grow deformed.

[laurad1987]

Thank you for all your help and input.
The smallest has opened his eyes this morning. So I'm hopeful he will do well. Also the big one looks as though his head is going yellow, which makes sense as both parents have yellow faces!
I noticed a huge lump of poo stuck to the back end of one of them. Had to dampen it and take it off, they poo a lot! Will also use a cotton bud to clean there feet later.
Mum is very scruffy at the minute, long story short she does all the feeding herself as the one she is now paired with is not the budgies dad, we had a accident where another male got through a gap in the aviary. So I'm guessing she's not too bothered about cleaning herself with having to feed 3 chicks on her own...

[laurad1987]

How adorable. Just as I found him this morning !

[Hezz]

Just something to watch as well, make sure that their beaks are cleaned up as well, when you are checking their feet. Not so much if mum is feeding them, but if they are being hand fed food can get stuck in and on their beaks and the beaks will grow deformed as well. Sometimes it will grow out, depending on the amount of damage done.

[leanne21071]

So very cute! I love to see them grow!
From what I have been reading if mom is green split to blue than the blue can come through. If not they will be green. If the wing and tail feathers come in white then the chick might be blue. If they grow in yellow then green would be the dominant color.
With that said if you know the back ground of the parents.... Lol

I'm waiting patiently for my own chicks to grow so I can tell color. I have no idea about the background of their parents. Mom is green pied and dad is real and grey.
Keep us posted

[laurad1987]

hi guys. Thanks for the help and advice again much appreciated. These are the little guys this afternoon. So cute. I can see a little blue under his eye, but the head is yellow/green. Can't wait to see how he looks in another few days. X

[jujubiiird]

Im glad no one is home to hear the squeal I let out just now, besides my budgies of course! But they should understand...the level of cuteness is just too high.

They just look so sweet!

[laurad1987]

They are just the cutest.
He's holding his head up well now, and he's walking around the nest. Amazing how fast they grow! Mums doing a good job.

[laurad1987]

Youngest - even though there is a day between. He's so small ;(

[jujubiiird]

So tiny wonderful! Soon he/she(?) will be big like mommy and daddy!