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Post by FFG on Apr 23, 2015 3:23:46 GMT
Hi I am new to this forum so hello everybody and I am glad I have found it. A great site I have been researching and am about to build my first aviary. It is not going to be huge but a conversion of a Wendy house that I built my daughter a while ago with an outside flight added on. We currently have two young male budgies that will be going into the aviary. I would like to get a few more (maybe 6 in total). Should I just stick with my two until they are used to their new environment or would it be better to get new guys in there first and then introduce mine after, or introduce them all together? Also any advise on the mix? Thank you
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Post by birdguhl on Apr 23, 2015 8:05:55 GMT
Hello firefighterg and welcome to the forum - glad you found us.
I'm sure aviary people will be along to give opinions in a while - there has been a thread on building a new aviary quite recently (you could try do a search for this) but as for your question on when to install birds etc, I'm not sure. Hopefully some ideas soon though.
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Post by Shirls on Apr 23, 2015 8:12:21 GMT
Hello and welcome FFG. Some pictures of your budgies, and names of them, would be nice. Sorry I can't answer your questions but more experienced members will be on soon to help you. Some things to consider too is if you want to breed your budgies when you get them all.
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Post by OP on Apr 23, 2015 8:21:55 GMT
Hello and a warm welcome FFG. There are a few members that will be able to answer your questions, I unfortunately can't. I like the idea of re-using the Wendy house.
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Post by Hezz on Apr 23, 2015 10:00:35 GMT
If it were me, I would introduce everyone to the new house at the same time. That doesn't mean to say that you could get your other buds beforehand - this would give you a good time to do your four-week quarantining - and once the aviary is ready to be moved into, introduce everyone together, stand back and watch what happens. You may need to pop them back into their own cage for the evenings or other times during the day if they are now sure of each other. Usually introductions go pretty well, but sometimes there can be one or two who will resent an outsider, which is why I would advise putting them all in at the same time. Make sure your wendy house and flight provide enough room for the numbers you are thinking of to have their own space. By "the mix" do you mean mix of sexes? If so, I would suggest even numbers.
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Post by Budgies Retreat on Apr 23, 2015 10:15:52 GMT
Hello FFG. I have just built my new aviary which is attached to the side of the my bird shed, see here budgerigarsforum.proboards.com/thread/10724/new-outside-aviary-flight I would build it now and get your two in. Will they have an indoor flight as well so they can go in and out when they please? When you get more buds, they will (should) have to go into quarantine anyway and then just put them straight in when they are cleared. If they only have the outdoor flight then you have to think about how you are going to provide food without having to open the flight door in case any escape. I have a small door between the indoor flight inside the shed and the outdoor flight, so I can close one part off if I need to do any work in either. It is also advisable to fit a security door over the main shed (wendy house) door. What I would say is this; If you think that you are going to get into budgies in a fairly big way, like building an aviary, possibly starting out with breeding on a small scale, like me, then I would suggest that if funds allow to not use a wendy house, but buy a new shed outright, which will give you much more room and you can then grow into the hobby. If you spend a few hundred quid on building your aviary now, and then find in a years time that the wendy house is too small, you may have wasted that money, only to start all over again, unless you can adapt what you have built. My new outdoor flight has cost me £200 so far. I don't think that there is any more expenditure expected, apart from the LED lighting. I hope I have helped in some way. There are plenty of aviary builds and shed/bird room builds on here to help you along the way. But please read as much as you can, so that you can build it right, and build it right the first time. Think about what you want, but more importantly think about what you NEED in a flight. Length is best over height, birds fly horizontally. If you watch birds in a small flight they will just hop from one side to the other with a quick flap of their wings to assist. However, make it longer and they will fly properly, giving them more exercise. You also want it to be low maintenance. Vermin proof, predator proof, and escape proof. Also you want it to last for as long as possible, so don't buy thin wood for the frame, get some decent stock around 2" x 2" and use water based preservative in case they chew the wood (THEY WILL CHEW THE WOOD!!!) Use decent felt for the roof again to save you having to change it regularly. Unless you are using corrugated sheet material of course. They will need a shaded area also, which is why I just went with a solid roof. A solid roof also stops wild birds pooping into the flight and spreading any nasty diseases to your birds. Best wishes Daz
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Post by suesbird on Apr 23, 2015 10:50:30 GMT
Just saying hello firefighterg
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Post by jellybean on Apr 23, 2015 11:02:36 GMT
Hi FFG, welcome to the forum.
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Post by steve05412 on Apr 23, 2015 16:06:02 GMT
Greetings and welcome to the madhouse forum, I would agree as daz says regarding the aviary, think of where you will be in a few years time , maybe if funds permit a new shed to start with...hth enjoy the hobby
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Post by FFG on Apr 23, 2015 18:16:51 GMT
Hello all. Thank you very much for your welcome and advise. I have tried to post some pics but not quite sussed it out yet Shirls ?! I have been doing some drawings and planning over the last week trying to see how I can convert the unused Wendy house we have but part of me does agree with you dazandloz. Rather than build around what I have got it may be easier to take it apart and start from scratch. I am getting the slabs for the floor at the weekend and the mesh is on its way too so I will be making a start on it one way or another . I am really only planning on having maybe 6 birds in there to start so yes by the mix Hezz I meant how many males and females. I would love it in the future if maybe they had babies but I am not building the aviary to breed if that makes sense. Not that I want to but is it possible to just keep males? I have just started a 12 hr night shift and have a feeling I will probably spend most of it on here!
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Post by skysmum on Apr 23, 2015 18:26:06 GMT
Hi and welcome from me too. Yes it is possible to keep all males they get along just fine, its the hen's that are the problem . But to be serious an even number of hens to cocks is good or more cocks to hens, says she who has three hens and two cocks but im working on that, an extra hen slipped in who wasn't really planned . Good luck with you build, look forward to watching it evolve
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Post by suesbird on Apr 23, 2015 18:29:25 GMT
(rofl)I am saying nothing Skysmum, we always end up here one way or another!
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Post by FFG on Apr 23, 2015 18:33:40 GMT
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Post by FFG on Apr 23, 2015 18:39:14 GMT
Nope that didn't work (picture!) Thanks Skysmum. As much as I love the little fellas and would like to be able to breed a few, I am a bit worried about having too many. I guess I need to research more if I could home some if it came to it further down the line
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Post by skysmum on Apr 23, 2015 18:45:29 GMT
They wont breed unless you provide the conditions, ive kept mixed groups for years and never had any unplanned babies, just well planned ones
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