[Beckett’s had the occasional coughing-thing, which I thought was similar to Percy’s molting-sneezes. But this morning he had such a coughing fit he actually woke me up and I thought he was choking.
So we’re calling the vet and getting him checked out. Think good thoughts!]
For those asking, the big cage is just an economy flight cage I got from Drs Foster & Smith.
There’s a storage shelf underneath that isn’t super tall and the rolling wheels don’t come with locks (I’ve found putting it on a towel or mat prevents any accidental sliding tho), but the cage itself has 4 side feeding doors, two places to attach a nestbox, and two big swinging front doors. 🐦👍
So, I have just adopted an eight-year-old budgie from my 98-year-old grandmother who knows nothing about taking care of birds. She gave her to me in a cage the size of the carrier. Every perch except one was a sand perch which breaks my heart, and she is 100% addicted to the mirror in her cage and eating a diet of only seed. This poor baby has never been groomed, socialized, or properly taken care of. She deserves so much better than she’s gotten so far and I’m praying that she will be happy and warm up to her new home. If anybody has any tips on how to wean her off of the mirror it would be greatly appreciated. I am also wondering if it would be better just to get her a mate for the cage rather than try to put her through hand taming and socializing. I have two fishers lovebirds, one is way too skittish to socialize with other birds, and my baby Zero I worry about being aggressive because she is so much smaller. My only concern about getting her companion for the cage, Is that she is an older bird. And I worry about the impact of getting a really young budgie to keep her company and then having to pass away and leave the companion alone. Hoping someone has gone through similar experiences and has some helpful tips! Thank you in advance!
For the mirror problem try introducing new toys to her cage to draw her attention away from the mirror. I watched a budgie awhile ago that had a mirror problem, he even tried feeding his reflection, & I replaced it with shiny bell toys. He couldn’t see himself clearly in the bells so he didn’t think it was another bird. I’m not sure if it’d be better to remove the mirror before she gets hooked on a new toy but if she trying to regurgitate seeds on to it you might want to take it out now.
I’m not the most knowledgeable on budgies but maybe some my followers can help you. 😊
I got a parakeet from a parrot shop back in August. They gave me the full rundown on what I need to feed him in addition to pellets, fresh fruit and vegetables, grains etc, and even gave me a list of harmful food not to feed him.
Since September I have been trying to get him to eat fresh food with absolutely no luck.
I’ve tried:
> Chopping it into little pieces and putting it in a bowl next to his food dish. He ignored it totally.
> Putting it in his food dish. Also ignored it.
> Coating it in millet or pellets. He’d just pick the pellets or millet off and leave the fresh food untouched.
> I also tried burying the pellets under the fresh food to make him dig through it, but once again he’d just eat the pellets while leaving the fruit untouched.
Once he eats all of the pellets from his bowl, he kicks up a fuss until I remove whatever fresh food is in his bowl and give him more pellets.
He used to eat dried corn from the mix of dried veggies the parrot shop gave me to give him as treats, but he won’t even eat that anymore. All he wants is his pellets. I have no idea where to go from here, does anyone have any advice?
This is such an unusual problem since he loves the pellets more than anything else. I normally eat the fresh food in front of them to show him that its yummy & safe to eat, this only really works if he views you as a flock mate. Another thing that I heard that works for some people is to add chopped greens, like you would do for a salad, to his water & he’ll get a taste of the greens when he gets a drink. Another thing I do for my birds who hate to eat their fresh food is to bake birdy bread with the fruits & veggies in it. If anyone has any tips please help. 😊
So my budgie has a special bowl her treats go into. Nutriberries, the occasional seed serving, her birdie bread. As soon as it goes into the cage she jumps to it because she knows it has good stuff.
Then I started putting chop in the bowl and (since she knows this bowl is full of good stuff) she tried it.
Another trick I’ve used with my bird (since she likes shredding paper) is I’ve hung leafy greens in her cage like I would paper or tissue and she’s got a taste for it while tearing it apart.
This may look like a cute photo. But it’s actually a W A R N I N G.
So today, while taking a photo of one of the parakeets for a potential owner, they all flew out and started to dart around the room. Three of them landed safely on the counter, where I snatched them up and moved them back into their cage. That’s when I heard the most heart wrenching THUD. This beautiful baby parakeet hit the window of our glass sliding door. I ran over, he was motionless on the ground save for a few twitches. I scooped him in my hands and called my avian vet.
It was then that it was suggested I wait with him until he (if he) regains consciousness – as the travel may be too traumatizing. When he woke he was still very much out of it. But through the advice of my vet, and the few hours I had I talked to him, and held him and he began to perk up. However, this story doesn’t have a happy ending.. I’m afraid. While he’s alive, he suffered neurological damage. His left foot no longer works and while he may at some time regain the ability to perch, there is more damage that was done within that we cannot pin point. His balance is awful. He can’t lift himself off the ground and wobbles everywhere.
So be EXTREMELY careful when any of your birds fly free. This is why some people clip their birds. And be aware it can happen to any of us, even those who are very very careful. He’s in a safe place with me now, and we are taking the steps needed to give him a happy, comfy life.
I would really appreciate some tips and advice! I’ve seen some great parents on here and I need your help. I’m planning on adopting a cockatiel from my friend’s parents. I have experience in caring (poorly) for birds. I had budgies when I was much younger. I need to be a 1000000% better mom. I will do more research on cockatiel care but hearing about first hand experience would be beneficial as well. He comes with a very large cage, food, and toys. Any advice is greatly appreciated!
What would you like to know? Cockatiels are my favorite bird & I know a lot about them (I also own 6 of them).
That’s a pretty purple cere, I’m thinking boy but I’d be curious to see what the DNA test says!
[That’s definitely what I thought. But the vet said based on their age and color the cere could still turn brown *shrug*. (According to the assistant, Beckett also bites like a girl, haha.)
Helping out a neighbor look for a new home for her female cockatiel!
I don’t know it’s age but the owner unfortunately found out she is allergic to it. The bird will cone with the large cage & plenty of toys, owner is also willing to provide food for it for the first few months, just wants her to go to a good home.
Please if any bird blogs with a bigger fan base can reblog this & help me out that would be awesome! This bird is licated in San Antonio, TX
Flock of Wolfes 