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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 18, 2012 15:55:48 GMT
Budgie Terminology From A to Z ADULT Once a budgerigar moults out of its baby feather it is then in adult feather. For exhibitors an adult budgerigar is one that carries a closed ring dated prior to the current year. A opaline spangle sky blue in baby feather A cobalt cock in adult feather
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 18, 2012 16:03:18 GMT
Avian Vet; Not to be confused with a vet which in my opinion is like comparing a GP to a consultant. An avian veterinarian is a veterinarian who specialises in treating birds.
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 18, 2012 16:55:25 GMT
Air Sac Mites Symptoms ; Sneezing, coughing, wheezing, squeaking, wet nostrils, and labored / open -mouth breathing. Other symptoms include tail bobbing, weakness, weight loss and sneezing and clicking sounds while breathing. Those symptoms are often more noticeable after a strenuous activity, such as after a flight. TREATMENT :Ivermectin - a Systemic treatment which kills Internal and External Parasites. Once the Air Sac Mites have entered the respiratory system the need for Ivermectin is apparent. Hold the bird in your one hand and either blow the feathers to the side or wet the feathers of the neck under the bill and comb them to the sides exposing the trachea or windpipe. If one bird is diagnoised with air sac mites all your birds must be treated Sometimes upon careful inspection and the use of a light source on the side of the neck you may even see the mites as tiny black spots under theskin and located along the trachea, (depending on how bad the infestation).Place a healthy drop of Ivermectin directly upon this area and hold the bird until the Ivermectin has absorbed.Remember the rubber gloves! Do this once every two weeks for a total of three treatments in infected birds. This will help to kill mites in the larva, and egg stage, that may not be affected by the first application.Placing Ivermectin under the wing or back of the head will only slow the eradication process down as it has to absorb into the blood stream and then be carried to the area of infestation
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 19, 2012 5:24:29 GMT
Antibacterial ,Antibiotic ; An antibacterial is a compound or substance that kills or slows down the growth of bacteria. The term is often used synonymously with the term antibiotic(s There are many different brands of Antibiotics used in the world of avain medicines, my first aid box always includes a bottle of Baytril.
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 19, 2012 5:32:44 GMT
Aviary; An aviary is a large indoor or outdoor enclosure for confining birds. Unlike cages, aviaries allow birds a larger living space where they can fly, aviaries are also sometimes known as flight cages.
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 19, 2012 10:35:30 GMT
Air Purifier; An air purifier is a device which removes contaminants from the air. Dust, pollen, pet dander, mold spores, and dust mite feces can act as allergens, triggering allergies in sensitive people, the dust from our budgerigars can damage our lungs. Just a plain and simple cooker hood which removes the dust and circulates clean air My favourite which is no longer made, kills all the nasties , collects the dust and circulates clean air
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 20, 2012 6:45:49 GMT
Anatomy; Here we will display with pointers some of the basic parts of the budgerigar. Later in our A to Z we will discuss each pointer. Many thanks to BB for the tags and pointers
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 20, 2012 20:08:54 GMT
Barhead; A barhead is a baby budgie that has not broken its bars, all that means it has not started to moult into its adult feather. The bars are the markings on top of the head. A light green barhead showing the bars behind and in front of the eyes The sky blue budgie is leaving is barhead stage and becoming an adult
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 21, 2012 4:53:11 GMT
Breeder; A breeder is a person who practices the vocation of mating carefully selected specimens of the same breed to reproduce specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics. This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist, or hobbyist, and can be practiced on a large or small scale, for food, fun, or profit. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Breeder Budgerigar; Is a budgerigar that is old enough to breed which is normally between the ages of 12 months and three years. A matched breeding pair
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 21, 2012 5:16:02 GMT
Back Skull; Is a collar of feather which extends up from the shoulder region, filling in the portion of the bird which starts about the crown of the bird and flows over to the back of the bird in one extended graceful sweep. Back skull is the feature which gives the birds the appearance of having a beautifully rounded head from which ever angle you view the bird, this is often called blow as the bird appears to blow his head feathers forward over the eyes. A spangle grey cock showing super blow An opaline sky blue cock who lacks the desired back skullrequired in todays exhibition budgerigars
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 22, 2012 7:39:41 GMT
Beak; A bird has two jaws: the upper is the maxilla and the lower is the mandible. The beak is comprised of the jaw bone covered with a lightweight sheath called the rhamphotheca. The rhamphotheca is made of keratin, which is the same substance as our fingernails. Periodically thin splinters will chip off the tip of a budgies beak. This is a normal part of the renewal of the beaks tissue. The beak is used for cracking seed ( dehusking) which then allows them to reach and eat the kernel inside. A budgerigar will also use the beak for climbing and testing the perches are going to support their weight. We all know the hen can bite the hardest, this is because a predator reaching her nest often means the cock bird was killed or maimed and she is now the last line of defence. The beak has a blood supply and any sign of bleeding must be addressed asap, my experience with bleeding beaks was to slap a dollop of vaseline on the bleeding area, it works for boxers also.lol
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 25, 2012 4:18:35 GMT
Box bound hens. Box Bound A hen may produce infertile clutches even when paired to a proven cock and the cause is often the hen refusing to come out of the nest box and mate,this is where we need a vigorous cock that will chase her out of the nest box for mating.
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 25, 2012 4:22:27 GMT
Breeding Card This is a card that we record all details of eggs laid, hatch dates and ring numbers. These details are then recorded in the pedigree book after each round.
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 25, 2012 6:06:31 GMT
Buff
Buff -this is a wide feather, the bird appears fluffy, especially under the tail and on the head. Because of the wide feathers, spots are often large and round.. Double Buff - These birds can look out of type with little show deportment. Lots of wide long feathers. They are very hard to condition for show and hard to breed. If a feather is plucked out, it has a heavy down at the base of the feather. Many of these birds never grow tails.
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Post by barrieshutt on Apr 25, 2012 16:56:02 GMT
Blood Feather Blood / Pin feathers are a developing feather which can be a new feather in a young bird or a replacement for a moulted feather. A pin feather which looks like a feather shaft has a blood supply running through it, these feathers are sensitive and the less handling of a moulting bird the better this is for the bird. If these feathers become damaged they will bleed heavily. This can be very frightening for the bird’s owner and all the more reason to have the correct items in our first aid box to stop a bleed. Corn starch will stop a bleed and needle nosed pliers will remove the broken or cracked feather. Using the pliers pull the broken feather out in the direction it grows in, the bird might start bleeding from the follicle, if this happens put some corn-starch on the area where the feather once was and apply some pressure, bleeding will soon stop. As the pin feather grows longer, the blood supply is concentrated in only the base of the shaft, and the tip of the shaft encases the feather itself, in a waxy coating. As moulting birds preen, they remove the waxy coating, and the feather unfurls. Needle nosed pliers
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