New budgie a few questions.

[budgieowner]

I got my son a parakeet (same as budgie?) for his birthday on January 11th 2024. The cage we wanted to get him/her we couldn't cause they was out of stock so had to order it online. So in the meantime we used a small cage my dad had since his parakeet Sparky (all yellow) passed away a few years ago that we put him/her. We cleaned it a day before we got him. So he was in there for 13 days till his new cage arrived. When the cage arrived it was almost time for his/her bedtime so we waited to the next day to put him/her in their new cage. So the next day we put the cages in front of each other with the doors open and let him/her go in his/her new cage on his/her own time. Surprised us that it only took him/her a few minutes to go into their new cage.

So we have been covering him/her at night even with the old cage. But in his new cage when we cover him him/her would be on their perch closing their eyes around their bed time. So when we cover him/her they will move around the new cage. He/her didn't do that in the smaller one. Or will will hear him/her eating after the cover is on. Is this normal?

Also i'm reading conflicting views on how many hours that parakeets need to sleep. Some say 8 to 10 hours others say 10 to 12 hours of sleep a night. So i'm not sure which one to believe.

His cage is in the living room (family room/sitting room) and my wife and i watch tv and i'll be on my pc which both is in the living room. Does this disturb their sleep?

I have kept him on the same seed that the pet store was giving him/her. It looks like a mix between seeds and pellets. I'm not sure if he/she is eating the pellets but i know they are eating the seeds cause hull's are every where lol.

Can give him like a tablespoon and count the pellets and see if he is eating them. Also how often to change the seed every day? As that is what i was doing and throwing away their uneaten seed, but i'm wondering now if it is a waste? I know if he poops in it to change it and to blow the hulls off to reveal the good seed. And how much to give him daily? Also do i leave his food in 24/7 or do i take it out at night? Not sure if they get up and enjoy a midnight snack lol. I know water is changed everyday. Is tap water safe for them? I live in the Mid Atlantic states of the USA.

Do i leave his millet in all the time along with his treat sticks?

Here is a picture.

I know not to ask about health problems here but i was wondering if this is normal of him/her opening his mouth a lot. It's not beak grinding as he wasn't making any noise. In the video it's after what i considered a yawn. So around the 13 second mark.

Here is a picture of his cage is it big enough? I know i need to get more toys for him and i get paid tomorrow so i'm going to be buying him a lot of stuff. I Know for the cage wider is better. Yes i'm getting rid of the dowel rod perches that came with the cage. I just need to find out what toys are safe. I guess i could make my own but don't have the tools since i live in a 3 bedroom apartment with little room.

So sorry if this is to long an sorry if i broken any kind of rules.

[Loz]

Hello budgieowner! That's a lot of good questions and information there.

Budgies often shuffle about when being covered. If you take it slow, they will adapt to it. I do like to make sure that the budgie is on a perch at the end of covering, if the cover is light-proof - hard to find a perch in complete darkness. Covering is important in your case as, like my birbs, Rocky lives in the room with the TV. Although TV noise is unlikely to disturb the birb, (flickering) light does affect their sleep.
I'd say 10-13 hours at night is normal. I have a large flock, which leads to a different pattern in my case but you should aim for the 10-13 mark.
A mixture of seeds and pellets is good but if Rocky can fill up on seeds, the pellets are wasted. My experience tells me, give slightly less than the amount of seeds that she wants and hope that she will try the pellets in order to make up the shortfall. In my case, the birbs have ample access to fresh veg and some fruit. This is best for their health and advice on the what and the how can be found on the Forum. I don't leave millet available, I use it for treats & training.
The beak opening looks normal (and very cute) to me.
Rocky's cage looks a good size. However, out of cage time is essential for the health of the budgie. This is a big topic that touches on training - use of millet helps here! Others on the Forum are better at explaining the theory.
As for toys and perches, natural materials are best. There is a UK supplier that a lot of us use here, The Natural Bird Product www.naturalbirdco.co.uk but the turnaround time is six weeks - they are very busy. The website can give you ideas for solutions if you aren't UK-based, or while you wait for their lovely products to arrive!

Others here will come in with great advice for you, I have no doubt.

[blueelephant]

In terms of moving around the cage after the cover goes on, one of my birds hangs upside down and climbs around the ceiling after I cover it! He's a bit weird.

My two often sleep in the room with the TV. We cover them though with a dark blanket and they tend to settle well.

Your little bird looks lovely.

[budgieowner]

Jan 26, 2024 8:59:30 GMT blueelephant said:

In terms of moving around the cage after the cover goes on, one of my birds hangs upside down and climbs around the ceiling after I cover it! He's a bit weird.

My two often sleep in the room with the TV. We cover them though with a dark blanket and they tend to settle well.

Your little bird looks lovely.

Thank you.

[budgieowner]

Jan 26, 2024 7:20:52 GMT loz said:

Hello budgieowner! That's a lot of good questions and information there.

Budgies often shuffle about when being covered. If you take it slow, they will adapt to it. I do like to make sure that the budgie is on a perch at the end of covering, if the cover is light-proof - hard to find a perch in complete darkness. Covering is important in your case as, like my birbs, Rocky lives in the room with the TV. Although TV noise is unlikely to disturb the birb, (flickering) light does affect their sleep.
I'd say 10-13 hours at night is normal. I have a large flock, which leads to a different pattern in my case but you should aim for the 10-13 mark.
A mixture of seeds and pellets is good but if Rocky can fill up on seeds, the pellets are wasted. My experience tells me, give slightly less than the amount of seeds that she wants and hope that she will try the pellets in order to make up the shortfall. In my case, the birbs have ample access to fresh veg and some fruit. This is best for their health and advice on the what and the how can be found on the Forum. I don't leave millet available, I use it for treats & training.
The beak opening looks normal (and very cute) to me.
Rocky's cage looks a good size. However, out of cage time is essential for the health of the budgie. This is a big topic that touches on training - use of millet helps here! Others on the Forum are better at explaining the theory.
As for toys and perches, natural materials are best. There is a UK supplier that a lot of us use here, The Natural Bird Product www.naturalbirdco.co.uk but the turnaround time is six weeks - they are very busy. The website can give you ideas for solutions if you aren't UK-based, or while you wait for their lovely products to arrive!

Others here will come in with great advice for you, I have no doubt.

We use a flat/top sheet to cover his/her cage. So it might be thin and letting light through. Maybe i can buy a few of them and have my wife sew them together to make them thicker. 3 or 4 might be good.

So sorry for my slight. Thank you so much.

[Hezz]

To clear up the point questioned in your first sentence, a budgie is a parakeet (small parrot with long tail by definition) but a parakeet is not necessarily a budgie. Parakeet is a descriptive term, budgie is a specific species.

If it is possible for your budgie to sleep in another room, this would be ideal, otherwise a cover that blocks out most of the TV lights and noise will help. With regard to water, if your tap water is good enough for you to drink the budgie should be fine also. It can be helpful to use cool boiled water to decrease the chance of bacteria being present. I always boil the water what with living in the tropics (bacteria’s first two needs are heat and moisture.)

Sleeping hours do need to fit around the family somewhat but try to follow the seasons as much as possible. Birds wake up when it gets light, even under a heavy cover, and if left to themselves will go home to roost when it starts to get dark. Mid-Atlantic states of US I take to be up the cold part of the country, so a heavy blanket type of cover should be able to be used most of the time, the exception possibly being mid-summer.

Diet: get this little one eating their fresh foods asap, limit the amount of fruit given, use seed sticks as a treat only, the same for millet once you know that the bird is actually eating it. Once there are husks being left remove the millet spray and use as a training/taming tool. Most budgies love millet sprays and would walk over hot coals to get some, or even step onto a hooman’s finger. It is a great feeling to have a new budgie sitting on your finger hoeing into a piece of millet. For everyday feeding, try to incorporate fresh foods early in the day when they first go looking for food. it can help to remove the leftover seed/pellets for a time beforehand but never leave your bird for any length of time without any food. you can also limit the amount of seed you add each day - an amount of seed that is about the size of the budgie's head is a good measure, so not much more than a teaspoon. Pellets make a good foraging tool even if the bird isn't eating them straight off. Budgies are very prone to fatty liver disease and lipomas so we need to be careful not to allow their diet to be high in fats which many seeds are, and inside birds get nothing like the amount of exercise that a wild budgie does. What works well for me is fresh bunch of seeding grasses (their natural food) in the morning, blow out and top up their seed/pellet mix just before dark. they eat the seed straight away but that leaves them pellets and grass for the rest of the night and then fresh grass once again in the morning. Browse is a great foraging tool if you access to anything that is safe. there are plenty of on-line sites that will give you lists of bird-safe foliage. making them work for their food keeps their brain active and also means they take longer to eat the same amount.

I think that will do for now … enjoy your new family member!

[budgieowner]

Jan 27, 2024 1:14:48 GMT Hezz said:

To clear up the point questioned in your first sentence, a budgie is a parakeet (small parrot with long tail by definition) but a parakeet is not necessarily a budgie. Parakeet is a descriptive term, budgie is a specific species.

If it is possible for your budgie to sleep in another room, this would be ideal, otherwise a cover that blocks out most of the TV lights and noise will help. With regard to water, if your tap water is good enough for you to drink the budgie should be fine also. It can be helpful to use cool boiled water to decrease the chance of bacteria being present. I always boil the water what with living in the tropics (bacteria’s first two needs are heat and moisture.)

Sleeping hours do need to fit around the family somewhat but try to follow the seasons as much as possible. Birds wake up when it gets light, even under a heavy cover, and if left to themselves will go home to roost when it starts to get dark. Mid-Atlantic states of US I take to be up the cold part of the country, so a heavy blanket type of cover should be able to be used most of the time, the exception possibly being mid-summer.

Diet: get this little one eating their fresh foods asap, limit the amount of fruit given, use seed sticks as a treat only, the same for millet once you know that the bird is actually eating it. Once there are husks being left remove the millet spray and use as a training/taming tool. Most budgies love millet sprays and would walk over hot coals to get some, or even step onto a hooman’s finger. It is a great feeling to have a new budgie sitting on your finger hoeing into a piece of millet. For everyday feeding, try to incorporate fresh foods early in the day when they first go looking for food. it can help to remove the leftover seed/pellets for a time beforehand but never leave your bird for any length of time without any food. you can also limit the amount of seed you add each day - an amount of seed that is about the size of the budgie's head is a good measure, so not much more than a teaspoon. Pellets make a good foraging tool even if the bird isn't eating them straight off. Budgies are very prone to fatty liver disease and lipomas so we need to be careful not to allow their diet to be high in fats which many seeds are, and inside birds get nothing like the amount of exercise that a wild budgie does. What works well for me is fresh bunch of seeding grasses (their natural food) in the morning, blow out and top up their seed/pellet mix just before dark. they eat the seed straight away but that leaves them pellets and grass for the rest of the night and then fresh grass once again in the morning. Browse is a great foraging tool if you access to anything that is safe. there are plenty of on-line sites that will give you lists of bird-safe foliage. making them work for their food keeps their brain active and also means they take longer to eat the same amount.

I think that will do for now … enjoy your new family member!

We have a small 3 bedroom apartment so very sadly we can't put him any where else cause my kids take up 2 of them and my wife and i have the other. I'm looking for a cover that is long enough to go to the floor and darkening instead of flat top sheets.

I didn't think of the boiling the water first as i thought it would take out the needed minerals. But that is a great idea as the city here puts chlorine and i think fluoride in the water.

Do i need to put any type of supplements or vitamins in his water?

It is winter time here till around March 19th when it becomes spring. So should we put him to sleep when it gets dark around 17:30 and then at 07:30 in the morning uncover him/her then change it when it gets light sooner and dark later in the summer? Will that hurt him/her any not keeping him on a constant sleep schedule as i read it could make them sick. That is why am asking here to be sure.

His food he has now is seed and pellet mix. So i will try and take out most of the seed and leave the pellets and mix in the some seed with mostly pellets.

I'm sorry but i don't understand what you mean by seeding grasses. I looked it up but all i was finding was grass seeds for the lawn. Also again i'm sorry as i also don't understand "Browse is a great foraging tool if you access to anything that is safe.". Do you mean the internet or getting stuff from outside to use in his/her cage.

With fresh fruits and vegetables what is safe for them to eat and what to avoid? I know the safe ones are broccoli stems and florets, apples (no seeds), strawberries, peas but only the inside of the pea the juicy part, carrots. I heard avocados are toxic to them but then i seen other places say they are fine so kinda conflicting on this one.

How do i wash the fresh fruits and vegetables. I read just hot water and rub them while washing them. Then i read soak them in 3 parts water to 1 part vinegar for 10 minutes then rinse very thoroughly.

 

Do they need a bath every day using a bird bath or only 2 to 3 times a week? Do i turn the heat up a few degrees when he/she takes a bath? As i know to always keep the temperature in the house around 70 to 80 degrees in the winter time. Not sure in the summer time. But i read that if the human is hot the bird is also probably hot. Is using an air conditioner in the summer fine since it does cool down the inside of the house?

If i can't use an air conditioner in the summer will the air coming in from having the windows open in the summer make him sick as i heard drafts will make them sick.

Are they scared of loud noises like music, vacuums, pots and pans banging around when cooking etc.

Would this be good for him/here a Avian Sun 5.0 UVA/UVB Compact Fluorescent Bulb?

I'm so sorry for asking to many questions, so i hope you can forgive me.

[Hezz]

Supplements will depend on the bird’s diet. If it is happy eating a variety of fresh veg in all colours of the rainbow this should cover all the necessary vitamins and minerals. There are a few things that aren’t readily available in a bird’s diet such as iodine so an iodine block is useful to have in the cage. You can get the same sort of thing for calcium and minerals, some are combined. These should be readily available at a pet produce store. One birds will totally ignore these blocks and others will self-medicate as needed. Some people add supplements to their bird’s water every day, or every second day. This shouldn’t be necessary if the diet is good. A helpful additive is a couple of drops of apple cider vinegar into the water as this keeps the crop pH slightly acidic, preventing the over growth of any yeasts such as Candida that may be present.

Regarding their sleep times, think of it this way: birds in the wild adapt to a gradual swing of day/night times with the movement of the seasons, so doing the same with a pet bird is not an issue. The occasional change in routine, a later than normal bedtime or uncovering is not a health risk at all.

Seeding grass is just that - grass, usually pasture grasses, that have a seed head present. If you are down-town city living then your chances of these is pretty limited although I understand from other members that you can purchase grass-raising kits. Something that you could do though is to try sprouting some of your budgie’s seed. Sprouts have much less fat in them than commercial grains so are a good food source. Browse - small twigs, branches and leaves of bird-safe plants, using these to hide the food among the leaves. Herbs are also useful and easy enough to grow in a pot on a kitchen window sill. Just don’t let him get into the potting mix.

Fresh foods that you more likely to have success with: carrot, broccoli, sweet corn, snow peas are real favourites in my house. Dark leafy greens are better than pale, think kale, spinach and Asian greens. Things such as iceberg lettuce, cucumber and zucchini don’t have a lot of nutritional value annd can cause runny poops due to the high water content. Others may have different veg that work best for them. Don’t try to change his diet quickly; that can lead to the bird starving itself, gut upsets and/or sloppy poops. Any changes should be gradual, although adding fresh food to the diet can be started straight away. I don’t know anyone who has gone to the extremes of washing their fresh food in the way you have mentioned. Organic if you can get it, peal veg such as carrots but otherwise a rinse off under running water should be all you need to do. Using fruits such as apple or grapes can be handy in getting Birdy recognising different foods as food - budgies love the sweetness but the extra sugar is not needed. The biggest no-no’s for birds: avocado, chocolate and coffee. Then there are the toxic fume emitters such as overheated teflon cookware, scented candles, insect sprays, perfumes, hairsprays and the list goes on. Never use the self-cleaning function on the oven with birds in the house.

Budgies are desert birds, not rainforest birds, so they haven’t evolved to bathe regularly. Their favourite, and most natural way to clean themselves is to rub themselves over dripping wet foliage hung in their cage. Otherwise a shallow dish such as a pie dish can work well, but never force the bathing issue. I’ve had budgies who have never jumped into a puddle of water willingly but most have been happy to use wet foliage as described above. It is best to offer the opportunity to bath early enough in the day for the bird to be completely dried off by nightfall when temperatures start to drop. Their core body temps run a fair bit higher than ours, around 40-41^oC and they will use up a lot of energy staying warm if they haven’t dried off. An air conditioner is fine to use for a time but obviously fresh air is better. Leaving their cage where a cold wind can blow through (a cold draft) can be fatal but normal daily fluctuations in temp are fine.

Are they scared of loud noises? Depends on the bird. Most budgies seem to get off on trying to out-yell a vacuum; some love to sing along to the radio or tv; some will jump at a sneeze but not bat an eyelid at a larger more dramatic noise. My budgies have all hated a broom and a ladder for whatever reason. They are funny little creatures.

An avian bulb can be useful in making the recommended UVB/Vit D available to your budgie, especially if you are somewhere where sunlight is limited for parts of the year. Of course direct sunlight is better but is not always practical. UVB rays do not penetrate glass or Perspex so having the cage in front of a window is of no help for Vit D production. If you do take him outside for some sun make sure never to leave him unattended for any time and always ensure that part of the cage is shaded so he can retreat from the sun if needed.

[budgieowner]

Thank you for this information.

[budgieowner]

Update: Well i tried the past few weeks to give him/her everyday carrots broccoli and a piece of apple. And he/she won't eat it. I even tried rolling it in seed and and all he/she will do is eat the seed off it and then that's it. Anything else i can try to get him/her to eat their fruits and vegetables? What sucks is where i live the only vets here only take cats and dogs not birds.

[Loz]

Have you tried spinach, kale, cavolo nero? Baby corn is another possibility but the dark-leaf veggies are best.

[Hezz]

Feb 16, 2024 21:23:12 GMT budgieowner said:

Update: Well i tried the past few weeks to give him/her everyday carrots broccoli and a piece of apple. And he/she won't eat it. I even tried rolling it in seed and and all he/she will do is eat the seed off it and then that's it. Anything else i can try to get him/her to eat their fruits and vegetables? What sucks is where i live the only vets here only take cats and dogs not birds.

Keep trying; persistence is key. Try offering it in different ways - some budgies like a chop with lots of small pieces, others like a chunk that they can bite pieces off and fling around. None of mine have been interested in small mouthfuls; they’ve all been more into the fun of bite-and-fling, but they are all different so you need to find what your individual prefers. One day you will fluke onto the magic combination and from there on you won’t look back.

To give a bit of perspective, I read a post from an owner a while ago, all excited because their budgie had taken it’s first bite of fresh food after either two or three years of ownership, so hang in there; there is still time yet.

[Azalea]

Feb 16, 2024 21:23:12 GMT budgieowner said:

Update: Well i tried the past few weeks to give him/her everyday carrots broccoli and a piece of apple. And he/she won't eat it. I even tried rolling it in seed and and all he/she will do is eat the seed off it and then that's it. Anything else i can try to get him/her to eat their fruits and vegetables? What sucks is where i live the only vets here only take cats and dogs not birds.

Try using a knife to "shave" broccoli buds off the bunch, into their food. Then stir, so it looks like little green seeds are mixed in. My Budgies and Cockatiels like broccoli this way. They don't want to eat directly off the bunch. As Hezz said, different birds have their preferences.

[Azalea]

I forgot to add: We keep six Budgies in a very similar cage to what you have, and they are fine. However, they spend at least five hours a day outside of the cage. I won't add a seventh Budgie to this cage, though.

This is a good cage because it's more horizontal. Contrary to what some people think, birds do not want a tall, narrow cage, like a tower. They want to fly across a space instead of being forced to go up and down.

[budgieowner]

Feb 16, 2024 22:01:03 GMT loz said:

Have you tried spinach, kale, cavolo nero? Baby corn is another possibility but the dark-leaf veggies are best.

I picked up some fresh spinach and kale but still no go as of yet. But i'll keep trying it. I couldn't find in none of the supermarkets here that cavolo nero. I'm not sure if it would be safe to order it online.