When is a free cage not just a free cage???

[willowsmum]

When it includes two budgies who need a new home!! Introducing Blue and Belle!



This update is loooong overdue but in summary I contacted a lady advertising a free cage as I thought it might be useful as a hospital cage but her reply stated that it also included two budgies that she 'wanted rid of'. It was a bit unexpected and we didn't really have plans to expand the flock but it was clear that they needed a new home pretty sharpish so we collected them a couple of days later. Lets just say that I'm glad she decided to rehome them. Apparently she originally had 4 but the cat killed two of them. We didn't even attempt to transfer them into a travel cage, we literally zip-tied the doors, picked the cage up and left. I hadn't realised how much rehoming from rescue societies like the SSPCA had sanitised the process for us so far, collecting directly from the owner is certainly an eye-opener (hats off to you Marianne Marlow and everyone else for all of the rescues/rehoming you do).



Fast forward a few months (yes, I've been that tardy in my introductions) and we have a happy flock of 6. Little Sorrel is madly in love with Belle (who left Blue without a backward glance). He constantly feeds and preens her and I've actually caught them getting jiggy a couple of times which is no mean feat for Sorrel as he is half her size and still squeaking/not fully well. Meadow loves Blue but Blue loves Willow who isn't that fussed to be honest. It's like a constant feathery soap opera but ultimately they are all very happy and chirpy little souls. Both Blue and Belle are ringed and therefore I can see that Blue is 4 years old and Belle is 5 but I suspect neither have ever been out of their cage (probably just as well in view of the cats). With some encouragement and a few failed approaches Blue has taken to flying well but even a couple of months on Belle struggles. I've never seen such a sedentary bird. She flies out of the cage in the morning, spends the day snoozing and being preened/fed by Sorrel and can only be tempted into activity by the provision of something shreddable which she will happily destroy.



Unfortunately since drafting this intro Belle has been unwell for a couple of days, her behaviour hasn't changed, still eating/drinking/preening/shredding but I have seen her vomit undigested seeds. I'm keeping an eye on her at the moment and nebulising with dilute F10 twice a day just in case it helps. She's still begging for food from little Sorrel (who is run ragged bless him) and if I hadn't seen her vomit I probably wouldn't have known anything was wrong. Not sure if it could be due to over-feeding by Sorrel maybe? We weren't able to get to the bottom of Sorrel's squeak/click on breathing and he still sneezes fairly frequently and if it was contagious then I would expect Belle to be most likely to catch it (the whole flock has been together for about 3 months now but the Sorrel-Belle contact is definitely the closest) however she's not displaying any similar symptoms. I'll be keeping a close eye on her anyway.



Other than our increased flock since we last 'spoke' we've successfully rescued and released Dave the feral pigeon (broken left wing) and Bob the crow (broken right wing) and currently have 22 wild mallards on the pond - eating us out of house and home!



Tink that's it for the mega update. Sorry for yet another long absence. Really hope you and your buds are all well. I've been thinking about you all lots and as usual I've taken an eternity to jump back in to the forums but better late than never. I'll focus on catching up on all of your news now - lots of budgie pics to look forward to

Blue (left) and Belle (right)




Belle and Sorrel




Willow and Blue




Belle looking moody




The whole gang (l-r Bramble, Willow, Blue, Belle, Meadow, Sorrel)




Bramble, Willow, Blue and Belle




Dave




Bob




A few of the ducky clan on what used to be our grass

[Marianne Marlow]

It's really nice to hear from you willowsmum.

Well done on rescuing Belle and Blue. It's so sad that their former cagemates were not able to be rescued before the unfortunate incident.

Yes, it can be an "experience" rehoming budgies. You get good owners and not so good ones. Some with good intentions and some that don't do any research and don't let their budgies out to fly. All sorts really.

I don't talk about some of the really bad situations I have seen that often because I don't want people to stop rehoming their birds to better places, so shaming them is not the way.

I hope Belle is okay and that it is that she was being overfed.

[ffiscool]

Thank goodness you rescued them, doesn’t bear thinking about the other 2 poor little ones.

So pretty, I hope the nebulising helps

[Loz]

Nice to hear from you Willowsmum.

I'm thankful that you were able to rescue two buds in very great need.

I hope there's nothing seriously wrong and that ypur great care will see improvements in health. And I hope you'll be able to keep us updated!

[willowsmum]

Thanks all. Yes, I'm going to do my best to keep in touch this time rather than disappearing, sorry about that.

I just think I was so shocked at their living conditions, it was a real eye opener unfortunately. My default assumption is that everyone takes care of their pets as I would hope they would even though I know deep down that probably isn't the case. You are absolutely right Marianne Marlow, putting people off rehoming would be the opposite of what I hope would happen. I guess there are always going to be buds and owners in need for a whole variety of reasons and the more happy endings the better.

It's so lovely to be in touch again, I really hope you are all well x

[Azalea]

I hope that Belle will be okay. Good news about Dave and Bob!

[Azalea]

Jul 16, 2024 17:20:57 GMT willowsmum said:

Thanks all. Yes, I'm going to do my best to keep in touch this time rather than disappearing, sorry about that.

I just think I was so shocked at their living conditions, it was a real eye opener unfortunately. My default assumption is that everyone takes care of their pets as I would hope they would even though I know deep down that probably isn't the case. You are absolutely right Marianne Marlow , putting people off rehoming would be the opposite of what I hope would happen. I guess there are always going to be buds and owners in need for a whole variety of reasons and the more happy endings the better.

It's so lovely to be in touch again, I really hope you are all well x

Sadly, some people don't take pet birds as seriously as dogs and cats (and I say this as a loving dog owner, who has three dogs). They treat birds more like decorations. Budgies, in particular, are often viewed as toys for kids or "beginner birds".

At the very least, it's good if someone actually tries to rehome birds instead of setting them free. There is a big misconception that all pet birds are still "wild" and ready take care of themselves. People think you can release them and they will find their way to the native lands of their species. As we all know, this is like setting a Poodle or Cocker Spaniel free.

[Marianne Marlow]

Definitely not suggesting that you were shaming anyone by the way. I just re-read what I wrote and hope it was not taken that way!

I'm really glad you've checked in with us :-)

Jul 16, 2024 17:20:57 GMT willowsmum said:

Thanks all. Yes, I'm going to do my best to keep in touch this time rather than disappearing, sorry about that.

I just think I was so shocked at their living conditions, it was a real eye opener unfortunately. My default assumption is that everyone takes care of their pets as I would hope they would even though I know deep down that probably isn't the case. You are absolutely right Marianne Marlow, putting people off rehoming would be the opposite of what I hope would happen. I guess there are always going to be buds and owners in need for a whole variety of reasons and the more happy endings the better.

It's so lovely to be in touch again, I really hope you are all well x

[willowsmum]

No, not at all Marianne Marlow! I think I just found the who experience quite a shock but as you say Azalea it's good that the owner tried to rehome them rather than trying to get rid of them another way. Still confused about why she advertised a free cage and only mentioned the two buds at a later point in communications Anyway, they're here now which has made us all very happy (buds and non-buds alike). As I tucked them up tonight Belle was squishing little Sorrel against the cage bars and administering a very thorough head preen! All of this mutual preening wasn't tolerated here before Blue and Belle arrived and now they're all at it

[Azalea]

Jul 16, 2024 22:39:18 GMT willowsmum said:

No, not at all Marianne Marlow ! I think I just found the who experience quite a shock but as you say Azalea it's good that the owner tried to rehome them rather than trying to get rid of them another way. Still confused about why she advertised a free cage and only mentioned the two buds at a later point in communications Anyway, they're here now which has made us all very happy (buds and non-buds alike). As I tucked them up tonight Belle was squishing little Sorrel against the cage bars and administering a very thorough head preen! All of this mutual preening wasn't tolerated here before Blue and Belle arrived and now they're all at it

I suspect that she wanted you to feel bad for the Budgies, and feel obligated to take them along with the cage.

Great pictures of your beautiful birds. Thank you for sharing.

[willowsmum]

That's a thought. Doesn't sound like the best way to find a new home for your birds though

[Hezz]

I have seen this a few times recently on Marketplace - of course only the “little” birds (finches, budgies and a couple of cockatiels), nothing larger or more “exotic” (read that as the possibility of being able to sell for profit). Without looking into it, I think animals cannot, supposedly, be sold on Marketplace.

Congratulations on the expansion of your flock, and fingers crossed that Belle feels better very soon.

[willowsmum]

That might well explain it Hezz as it was advertised on Marketplace. Mystery solved!

[Marianne Marlow]

That is right Hezz. She advertised it that way because otherwise the advert would have been deleted.

[criswell]

Well done for rescuing Belle and Blue. It's lovely how well they've integrated in your flock. The photo of Sorrel and Belle is the cutest and it's really sweet how devoted he is to her.

It's great that you were able to help Dave and Bob too.