Canary Winged "Bee Bee" Parakeet - Surprise Surprise

[BudgieLoverNY]

So I visited the breeder yesterday in New Jersey and meant to just pickup more seed and see what they've been up to. Ended up seeing this sweet, melt your heart "Bee Bee" parakeet (that's what they're called here -- which are actually Brotogeris Versicoluris). It is hefty (67 gram) and maybe 3x - 4x the size of an American Budgie. It feels heavy and substantive. It's feet are large and curl around the fingers strongly. Its beak is long and strong and tongue is large. It's feathers are chunky and matte, far from the vibrancy and fluffiness of budgie feathers.

The breeder said they are finicky birds when it comes to breeding and only give offspring in April/May of each year. He was down to the last 6. I ended up bringing one home with me... It was 15 weeks old. Hand fed. Flight wings clipped 50%.

The first thing I noticed was that "Snuggles" -- the apt name we gave him-- is SO different from my 4 budgies. It acclimated right away, is always happy, graceful, calm, friendly, open, willing to try things right away (i.e. toys, red-ball type water bottle feeder, tidy seed corral, different foods -- they hold up any large piece with their foot and munch, so cute!). They snuggle with you and just want to be in your presence as much as they can. This one doesn't make much noise (yet) and I am just really excited!

Do any of you have a Canary Winged Parakeet?

Can you share your experience and some tips (feeding, playing, hygiene, etc.)?

Thanks in advance!


Here are some pics:


Bought a simple breeder box and put some pine shavings and millet spray in it for the ride home. Much better than the dark box some stores provide!










I gave him a bath as soon as we got settled, giving it a fresh start with all the dander and stuff from the breeder's shop washed away. I figure the ride and transfer is all stressful might as well get a bath in at the end while it is in transit mode:








Enjoying lunch today:

[budgiefriend]

Snuggles is such a little cutie! Great photos. He had made himself right at home.

[ffiscool]

oh how lovely! so cute

[lemonade]

Aww bless. He looks a bit like a wee conure.
I like your java branch with the food pot. Can you take a bigger pic of the whole thing? Is it a tree or large stand?

He is a lovely boy. Just maybe not let him out beside the budgies as his beak and claws could kill a budgie or take a leg off, even if he was just playing. Budgies are little bullies and dont realise how small and delicate they are, and would not be scared to annoy snuggles!

He is so lovely though

[starlingqueen]

Very cute. I think it's a parrotlet.

[Marianne Marlow]

He's very cute. But like lemonade said, probably best not to let him mix with the budgies. His beak does look sharp.
You must have a huge house!

[BudgieLoverNY]

Jul 23, 2015 12:51:18 GMT lemonade said:

Aww bless. He looks a bit like a wee conure.
I like your java branch with the food pot. Can you take a bigger pic of the whole thing? Is it a tree or large stand?

He is a lovely boy. Just maybe not let him out beside the budgies as his beak and claws could kill a budgie or take a leg off, even if he was just playing. Budgies are little bullies and dont realise how small and delicate they are, and would not be scared to annoy snuggles!

He is so lovely though

Hi,

Here's a pic of the whole Java perch thingy. Got it at the breeder's store for $99 (he said it was on special).
the branches are a bit slippery so snuggles slips a lot. I am wondering how to make the Java wood less slick.

[BudgieLoverNY]

Jul 23, 2015 15:12:26 GMT Marianne Marlow said:

He's very cute. But like lemonade said, probably best not to let him mix with the budgies. His beak does look sharp.
You must have a huge house!

Good advice. I do keep them separate anyway because I wasn't sure which will spook which more ;-) 
Good point about the sharp beak and claws.

[lemonade]

That's a great price for that java stand. They are so expensive, it would cost a LOT more over here. I wouldn't do anything to the wood. Snuggles will get used to it. It's very good quality and good for them to chew on. I'd really like one myself! (Not for me to chew on obviously! Ha! For my birdies!)

[samwiseg]

Snuggles does look similar to a Parotlett but have found some info on the species if anyone is interested:

Traits: The canary-winged parakeet is known for its agility and enjoys spending time hanging upside down on a playgym. They are also affectionate. These pet birds like to play, so provide them with a variety of choice of toys rotated often. Recently, canary-winged parakeets were separated into two species: the white-winged parakeet (Brotogeris versicoluris) and the yellow-chevroned parakeet (Brotogeris chiriri). According to the "Lexicon of Parrots" by Thomas Arnt, both birds are similar in appearance, but the yellow-chevroned lcks the white perch on the secondary and inner primaries that is found on the white-winged parakeet.

Behavior/Health Concerns: Canary-winged parakeets are susceptible to mites, PBFD, psittacosis, vitamin A deficiency and bacterial hepatitis.Tuberculosis was common among imported birds. Canary-winged parakeets need extra fruit in their diets, and some breeders recommend less protein to avoid gout. These pet birds can get somewhat loud and screech, but there is usually a reason for their periods of screeching and once that cause is eliminated the canary wings quiet down. Most avian veterinarians recommend a base diet of pellets supplemented with fresh produce. Recently, canary-winged parakeets were separated into two species: the white-winged parakeet (Brotogeris versicoluris) and the yellow-chevroned parakeet (Brotogeris chiriri). According to the "Lexicon of Parrots" by Thomas Arnt, both birds are similar in appearance, but the yellow-chevroned lcks the white perch on the secondary and inner primaries that is found on the white-winged parakeet. Other physical differences include the plumage color, which is much brighter yellow-green in the yellow chevron, while the white wing is a darker, more forest green. The white-winged parakeet has a larger bare facial pattern than the yellow chevron. The underside of the tail of the white wing is strongly washed in blue, and the nominate yellow chevron is green (one subspecies of yellow chevron, however, has a blue wash on the tail, although not as strong a blue as the white wing.) Finally, the yellow-chevroned parakeet has a darker pink beak than that of the white wing.


Expert Advice

“Canary-winged parakeets are also called the chevron-winged parakeet. While both the grey-cheeked and canary-winged are in the Brotogeris family, the canary wing seems to be slightly less of an alarmist than the grey cheek. While both are very loving and devoted to their owners, the canary-winged parakeet would be much more willing to interact with someone they don't know if properly introduced by their owner.”

Info sourced from Bird Channel

[OP]

So is snuggles NOT a Parotlett or just another subspecies? I'm not thinking of getting one as it would probably out live me.