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Post by starrymist on Jun 17, 2013 18:44:23 GMT
Hi, I've had my baby budgie for a couple of weeks now & was wondering what the best way is to let him out for the 1st time? He's still settling in but is getting more used to everything & sits happily on my finger in the cage. I've not let him out yet as I know that until he's realised that his cage is his own, safe, personal space & where he goes for food etc, getting him back would involve catching him & that would undo all my hard work building up his trust. It's 15years since I had a baby budgie & I can't remember how we did it: if we just left the door open or if I took him out. I do remember him flying into the window (ouch) & me having to teach him that he could sit on top of his cage etc. I've wondered if a play gym type thing place near the cage would be an idea? Any advice welcome! Thanks, Amy x
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Post by Hezz on Jun 18, 2013 1:29:16 GMT
Hey, Amy ..... so ready for the big wide world? Everyone has their own rules they follow, but these are mine. Take the cage into a small room that you know is perfectly safe, or make it that way. A room that has somewhere for ...... what is his name? to perch. I use a small bathroom downstairs as it is away from the other birds and so doesn't break the quarantine either. It has a shower screen and a vanity cupboard up high, so they usually find themselves perching on either of these. For me, this is the next stage after I have them perching on my finger in the cage and not going mental when a hand comes along, so while out in the small bathroom I go through the step-up routine for around 10-15 mins at a time, and as often as possible during the day. There will be days when all goes swimmingly and others when you just have to count your losses and put him back in the cage, shut the door and walk away. By using the small room you don't spent all you time chasing them from one side of the room to the other while they flit from one perch to another. That can be very frustrating, wastes a lot of time, and your 10-15 mins is up with no training being achieved. Also leave yourself lots of time to get him back into the cage as sometimes they just won't cooperate. I take a spare perch/piece of dowel in with me to get them onto if they find a spot you can't reach, and in the early stages they are often more likely to accept the perch putting them back into the cage rather than stay on your finger for that long. Sorry this is a bit long. If your small room has windows, pull the curtains/lower the blinds or if there is no window coverings I use blutak to stick up sheets of paper over the glass - they don't have to cover all the glass, but break up the expanse so that the bird doesn't think he can just fly through. If you are using a bathroom, put the lid down on the toilet, make sure razors have a cover (I once had a budgie perch on a razor and cut his claw too closely when he pushed off to fly). A play gym is good to have regardless, and can be used as somewhere to perch in the small room, especially good if they are already familiar with the gym and it is a favourite place to hand out. One last thing, I have always taught my buds to wait until they are invited out of the cage, initially. I doubt if any one else does but in the event that a cage door hasn't been closed properly, and it has happened, I haven't had an escapee. During the day they are free to come and go as they please ....... it's also a good excuse for me to give them a kiss first thing in the morning!
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Post by starrymist on Jun 18, 2013 18:39:01 GMT
Thanks Hezz, lots of useful info there. I'll let you know how we get on, I'm going to leave it for a few more days just to build up more trust. Do you have any recommendations for play gyms? Good or bad or indifferent? Amy
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Post by stace on Jun 18, 2013 23:15:43 GMT
Thanks Hezz, lots of useful info there. I'll let you know how we get on, I'm going to leave it for a few more days just to build up more trust. Do you have any recommendations for play gyms? Good or bad or indifferent? Amy Have you, or someone else, got a bit of kit to make one? Or do you want to buy one?
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Post by Hezz on Jun 19, 2013 0:25:36 GMT
Thanks Hezz, lots of useful info there. I'll let you know how we get on, I'm going to leave it for a few more days just to build up more trust. Do you have any recommendations for play gyms? Good or bad or indifferent? Amy Sorry, no I don't. I made my own as I thought the ones available were rather expensive. It usually sits on top of the cage, and is still rather popular: And in use: The other thing they have is this tree I also made. It lives on the opposite side of the house so as to maximize flying distance. Here it is in it's bare bones:
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Post by mizloco on Jun 19, 2013 6:20:59 GMT
This would be a good stickie
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Post by stace on Jun 19, 2013 6:25:52 GMT
This would be a good stickie I thought so too. I started a new thread, What's your play gym set-up. If enough people post in there, maybe we'd have enough for a sticky.
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Post by mizloco on Jun 19, 2013 7:03:34 GMT
Good idea.
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Post by starrymist on Jun 19, 2013 11:09:53 GMT
Thanks for setting up a new thread for play gyms. I don't have the skills to make one so I would be buying it.
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Post by Hezz on Jun 20, 2013 0:58:03 GMT
There are a few companies in the UK that our members swear by. Maybe they can add their favourite links so you get to see the best of the best.
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Post by starrymist on Jun 23, 2013 15:54:52 GMT
So, Brodie's out for the 1st time today! He's been sitting on the curtain rail for the past 3hours, he keeps looking down at his cage as if trying to work out how to get back there. Am I right in just leaving him be for now? I'd rather let him figure it out than have my dad go up to get him which I think would stress him more. (Apart from anything else my dad's done no training with him but I'm unable to get him myself due to disability/illness). If Brodie's still up there in a few hours though he'll need helped down &/or caught. He seems ok for now though, giving little question chirps & having the odd nibble of the curtain!
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Post by stace on Jun 23, 2013 22:36:22 GMT
They do this kind of thing for a while when they first learn to come out. I had to keep a big ladder in the living room for around a month, six weeks, to get the little blighter down from the chandelier.
They head to the highest spot, where they feel safe. Getting them to learn to go back in their cage can be troublesome at first.
Try to get a length of perch to reach them for them to step up onto. They need to learn that their cage is where their food is, so they'll return there when they get hungry and when it starts to get dark.
If he's still there as it gets dark, turn the lights out/down and try to get them then.
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Post by starrymist on Jun 24, 2013 12:48:02 GMT
Thanks, it was TRAUMATIC for all concerned! He was still out after 8hours so my dad went up to get him. Brodie was unwilling to step onto his finger & just kept flying away. He's so quick so in the end it was down to catching him, a whole new level of stress! In the end we put out all the lights (we did this for my old budgie but neither of us remembered for some time & I hadn't seen your message stace till today).. Anyway the 1st attempt in the dark failed in that dad ended up with just his tail feather, I feel so guilty, my little baby was plucked But happily the 2nd attempt was a success & he was back home eating his millet. He seems no worse for wear today even minus his tail & has been sitting on me fine in his cage & eating from me. We've wondered about popping a landing perch onto his door & just leaving him to come out on his own, would that be an idea? Definitely one of Brodie's problems was that while he knows his cage is where to go for food & he seems to recognise it as his own safe, personal area, he has no concept of doorways or even that he can sit on top of his cage, any ideas how to teach that? And we may well try the bathroom tip from Hezz. I'd forgotten quite how stressful being a baby budgie's mum is!
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Post by stace on Jun 24, 2013 23:18:51 GMT
A landing perch or platform for the door is a good idea. You can train him to use certain places by placing him there when doing step-up training and/or pinning up something like millet there, plus putting a toy he likes in that area as well.
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Post by Hezz on Jun 25, 2013 0:37:35 GMT
I wouldn't try teaching a budgie stepping up in a large room. You have no control over where he goes, whereas in a small room when he goes somewhere you don't want him to, fetch him back, he starts to learn what you are asking of him. As for sitting on top of the cage, this is where a gym or landing stage is good, as they know what to do with a perch. Otherwise simply bring him out of the cage on your finger and put him on top of the cage, with a "step down" as you do so.
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