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Post by BonnieTheBudgie on Sept 3, 2018 11:04:35 GMT
Alright so let me be quick as possible as I can. Two and a half weeks ago I got a budgie from my sister as a gift. She is a hand fed budgie and her name is Bonnie. I personally wanted to get a cockatiel on my own, but I was glad to receive a feathery friend. She is my first budgie, when I was a kid I had some australian finches but I didn't have any interactions with them. Some pics: When I first got her she still wasn't able to fly, she would climb on me and hide under my hair, some days later her feathers grew and she found out she could fly. She has been acting very aggressively since her feathers grew. She has been jumping, screaming and mostly trying to get out of the cage by lifting the doors etc. She has no interested in me or my partner (generally in humans) Every time I let her out she flies away to a high point and doesn't want to come back to her cage. I even tried putting the cage near her and she wouldn't go in. (and mind you she was out of her cage for 3-5h) The only things she would accept were millets from my hand but even then she hesitated because she knew I would try to put her back into the cage. I have read some tips and tricks, I have been talking to her, feeding her from my hand, playing her calm music and keeping her in the cage near my work station for over a week now and she still acts the same. The problem is that she won't jump on my hand when I don't have a treat, she avoids it at all costs. I have kept my hand in the cage for a couple of minutes without a treat every day and she ignores it, she only jumps on it when she thinks she can escape. I am not sure how old is she (the breeder said less than 3 months) or if she's even a female (also breeders statement) but she really became angry and overall sad in the cage. No matter what I do (give her a new toy, put her a small ball to play with) she only wants to escape and fly away. And the breeder is not helping at all, she doesn't know where this behavior came from (she was sweet and cuddly from the very beginning) and she has no idea what else to do. She only "sells" hand fed birds at a young age and that's it. Is trimming her wings going to be the only solution to this? I personally wouldn't do it because I fear she might become depressed and that it might affect her mentally. Should I let her out daily even tho she behaves like this? I will also visit a vet when I get my funds and ask them about trimming because I wouldn't do it on my own. I just wanted to ask you guys first. And she also eats only one type of seeds, she throws away most of the seeds I give her. She is prone to biting as well. The only thing I want for her is not to be afraid of me and to live a happy life. If you have any tips or advices I would really appreciate it. Thank you in advance and sorry for my bad English!
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Post by Hezz on Sept 3, 2018 19:49:25 GMT
Firstly, your little girl is a little boy, but that doesn't rally change much at this stage, regarding his behaviour. It doesn't really sound like the breeder was actually interacting with the birds, but rather only feeding them. Big difference. Also two and a half weeks is not long in taming time, so put your patience hat on and be prepared to sit in for the long haul. I suspect that the breeder has been catching the babies to feed them and then putting them straight back in the cage. I can understand how this could be very scary for a young bud taken from the nest. Trimming his wings is not the solution. What you need to do is be patient, spend as much time as you can with your bird, have him around you as much as possible, which you have been doing by the sounds of it, and allow Bonnie to begin to trust you. Don't look at him straight on - wink, blink, look at him sideways, close one eye etc all break up that predator stare of two eyes in the front of the head, talk quietly, continue to offer treats in your hand - it will take a while before he will be prepared to come to your hand without a treat. Until you are more settled in your relationship, I wouldn't let him out of the cage unless you have a sure way of getting him back in; at this stage it doesn't sound as though that is happening yet. Sorry; gotta run, but hopefully this has given you some reassurance to go on with.
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Post by ffiscool on Sept 3, 2018 22:39:48 GMT
What a beautiful colour.
Are their toys in his cage? If he can get used to playing it might help
He was scared at the beginning, couldn’t fly. Now it’s a whole new world. But totally patience is key. Talk quietly. As Hezz said, blink slowly if you are out, put a radio on.
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Oct 6, 2011 7:41:27 GMT
Marianne Marlow
Administrator
George, Daisy, Iris, Billy, Peter, Chipper, Dinku, Barney, Ayla and Rocky
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Post by Marianne Marlow on Sept 4, 2018 6:27:45 GMT
Also just to ask, how big is his cage? It looks like one of those tiny carry cages, sorry if it isn't. A bigger one would be beneficial to your budgie as you could give him more toys and he'll play more.
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Post by BonnieTheBudgie on Sept 4, 2018 8:56:27 GMT
His cage is around 40x30x30cm. It is still a "first aid" cage because I am still waiting for my funds to arrive so I could get a new cage. My sister got him too early, I wanted to wait for the funds and buy a big cage (100x50x60cm) and then get a feathery friend. Apart from the week he has been kept in, I let him out most of the day and he spends his time sitting on a high spot and not flying much.
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Post by BonnieTheBudgie on Sept 4, 2018 9:03:27 GMT
What a beautiful colour. Are their toys in his cage? If he can get used to playing it might help He was scared at the beginning, couldn’t fly. Now it’s a whole new world. But totally patience is key. Talk quietly. As Hezz said, blink slowly if you are out, put a radio on. Thank you for the advice! I've changed a couple of toys, the cage isn't big. For now he has a ball he likes and plays with. He didn't like the small mirror nor the string I put in firstly so I removed it. I have also read somewhere later that mirrors and strings can be bad for them.
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Post by BonnieTheBudgie on Sept 4, 2018 9:09:24 GMT
Firstly, your little girl is a little boy, but that doesn't rally change much at this stage, regarding his behaviour. It doesn't really sound like the breeder was actually interacting with the birds, but rather only feeding them. Big difference. Also two and a half weeks is not long in taming time, so put your patience hat on and be prepared to sit in for the long haul. I suspect that the breeder has been catching the babies to feed them and then putting them straight back in the cage. I can understand how this could be very scary for a young bud taken from the nest. Trimming his wings is not the solution. What you need to do is be patient, spend as much time as you can with your bird, have him around you as much as possible, which you have been doing by the sounds of it, and allow Bonnie to begin to trust you. Don't look at him straight on - wink, blink, look at him sideways, close one eye etc all break up that predator stare of two eyes in the front of the head, talk quietly, continue to offer treats in your hand - it will take a while before he will be prepared to come to your hand without a treat. Until you are more settled in your relationship, I wouldn't let him out of the cage unless you have a sure way of getting him back in; at this stage it doesn't sound as though that is happening yet. Sorry; gotta run, but hopefully this has given you some reassurance to go on with. Thank you so much for the advice! I had no idea he was a male. I spend my days indoors when I got him, I am only away if I need to do something (prepare myself a meal or other things). I work over internet and I'm almost always on my work station and he's besides me. I'll try to follow your advice and see how it goes! I can also keep you guys updated if you want me to.
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Post by Hezz on Sept 4, 2018 9:18:11 GMT
Strings, depending on length, can be a physical health issue, as they can get entangled in them by claws, legs or neck and this can lead to their deaths. Mirrors have a place, depending on whether your budgie gets too possessive of the mirror or begins to feed it continuously. As long as you are vigilant, and are aware of the mental issues of providing a mirror, and are prepared to take it away on signs that your birds is fixating on the mirror to the disregard of all else, then don't be afraid to allow him a mirror.
Patience, persistence and perseverance are your best friends when it comes to a timid and scared young bird. Don't try to rush anything, allow him to set the pace, because he has to learn to trust you, and that cannot be hurried. Please do keep updating your progress or lack of it, sometimes, as there will be times when something will crop up that you might not expect.
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Post by BonnieTheBudgie on Sept 4, 2018 9:25:42 GMT
Strings, depending on length, can be a physical health issue, as they can get entangled in them by claws, legs or neck and this can lead to their deaths. Mirrors have a place, depending on whether your budgie gets too possessive of the mirror or begins to feed it continuously. As long as you are vigilant, and are aware of the mental issues of providing a mirror, and are prepared to take it away on signs that your birds is fixating on the mirror to the disregard of all else, then don't be afraid to allow him a mirror. Thanks for the advice! I also wanted to know if it is a good idea to pair him up with another budgie in a couple of months?(when I get a bigger cage and when he is fully trained so to say) Like maybe in 4 or 5 months. If he's a male he would be fine with another male, right? Or is it a bad idea overall? I wanted him to have a bit of company besides me.
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Post by BonnieTheBudgie on Sept 4, 2018 10:17:33 GMT
Here's some photos I took of Bonnie this morning. How can I properly determine his sex at a young age? I know that in a couple of months his cere should be blue if he's a male, but I don't know how to determine when they are young.
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Post by Hezz on Sept 4, 2018 19:38:18 GMT
Strings, depending on length, can be a physical health issue, as they can get entangled in them by claws, legs or neck and this can lead to their deaths. Mirrors have a place, depending on whether your budgie gets too possessive of the mirror or begins to feed it continuously. As long as you are vigilant, and are aware of the mental issues of providing a mirror, and are prepared to take it away on signs that your birds is fixating on the mirror to the disregard of all else, then don't be afraid to allow him a mirror. Thanks for the advice! I also wanted to know if it is a good idea to pair him up with another budgie in a couple of months?(when I get a bigger cage and when he is fully trained so to say) Like maybe in 4 or 5 months. If he's a male he would be fine with another male, right? Or is it a bad idea overall? I wanted him to have a bit of company besides me. Getting him a little friend once he has learnt to trust you is a good thing to do, but realise that you might not end up with him bonding with you at all, or as much as having a single bird. The joys of watching two budgies interacting together are huge, and more than make up for not having quite the bonds with you that you may have been looking for. To introduce another while he is still very young should not be a problem at all - budgies are social creatures, but you can sometimes get birds who do not get on when they are introduced as older birds. A bit like us, they do get set in their ways. Don't expect him to be fully trained in a few months. You might have him doing the basic things - stepping up and down, and going back into his cage, but be prepared for your relationship to be ever-evolving, and adding another will change the dynamics as well. Training needs to be on-going an continually reinforced.
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Post by Hezz on Sept 4, 2018 19:41:44 GMT
Regarding your gender question, your boy's cere has a uniform colouring, no whiteness around the nares, the pink/purple colour is very typical of a young male's cere, before he matures and hormones turn it blue. Unfortunately this doesn't apply to all mutations - some never get the blue cere, but the solid colouring definitely helps in determining gender.
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Post by BonnieTheBudgie on Sept 4, 2018 20:55:18 GMT
Regarding your gender question, your boy's cere has a uniform colouring, no whiteness around the nares, the pink/purple colour is very typical of a young male's cere, before he matures and hormones turn it blue. Unfortunately this doesn't apply to all mutations - some never get the blue cere, but the solid colouring definitely helps in determining gender. Thank you so much! And the last question, would it be a bad idea if I got a cockatiel and kept it with my budgie? I saw a lot of videos with people owning more than one species of parrots and they seemed okay to be around one another. I am just scared because a cockatiel is bigger than the budgie and it might hurt Bonnie. Other than that I was thinking about that option.
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Post by helenmat on Sept 5, 2018 6:24:20 GMT
You need to be able to handle your budgie first really, carry on with the training and getting him to trust you. I have had a cockatiel in the past and if they are not fully tame can have a nasty nip to the point where they draw blood, Budgies and cockerels are ok together but you will need lots of space for them if they are to live in the same cage.
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Post by Hezz on Sept 5, 2018 19:29:32 GMT
I really would stick with another budgie, particularly if you are wanting company for Bonnie. Cockatiels are rather needy birds, and if you don't have the time that they think they need, they can be nasty, both to you and to your budgie.
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