Friday, November 20, 2009
Kitty N Budgies
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Another Great Parrot Video
Easy Come, Easy Go
Saturday, October 31, 2009
It's True-Nature Abhors a Vacuum
I have been sadly missing our sweet Magoo....but must admit the budgies are getting along better, cage maintenance is WORLDS easier...
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Budgie Care List (for adoption of Budgies, in this case, Magoo)
Magoo is being adopted by a very nice person who works with K. She is excited to have him as a pet, and will take good care of him. It is a necessity as he and Sutcliffe are fighting badly, daily. Someone will eventually be hurt. They are knocking each other off perches and pinning each other down on the ground or side of the cage.
Budgie-General Care
Our vet is: Animal Avian Hospital of the Village, in Rice Village. They are really into birds. 2422 Robinhood, Houston, Texas, in the Rice University Village. 713-524-3800. He doesn’t really need any care, unless you want the vet to clip his wings for you.
Food-
It is good to give them food that has a mixture of seeds and pellets. We use “eggcite” but other types are also ok.
Regular feedings:
They need their bowls filled every day. Even if it looks full, the empty husks are left on top by the budgies and they can’t find food underneath the husks; therefore, some budgies starve because their owners think they have plenty but they really don’t know how to get at it.
However, if you want to leave the budgie(s) alone for several days, leave plenty of hanging “snack sticks”. About ½ stick per day per budgie seems to be the right amount. We have left the budgies up to a week with these and while the cage is a bit messy on return, the budgies do fine.
Special foods:
They shouldn’t get treats every day, as that will make it harder to train them. Use millet seed in your hand to tame the budgie. You will have to be patient but if you try every day, in a couple weeks or so the budgie will eat millet seed while sitting on your hand!
Vegetables and fruit:
They like cilantro or lettuce, and you can give that as often as you like. (Once it is wilted it has to be removed or they get runny stools). They also like strawberries, but even ½ strawberry is more than they can eat. I usually put ½ in the cage and then when they have had it for a day, take it out before it gets gross. Apparently they aren’t supposed to eat avocado. If you want to try a new fruit or vegetable, put it in every day for a couple of weeks. The budgie will ignore it for a while then get used to it and eat it with joy.
If the budgie can’t reach his beak to get at the food, then they won’t eat it. Ditto for water bottles. So the food has to be hung near a perch at “beak height” or so.
Water:
Fresh water is important. I use a hamster style bottle. Some people use water bowls/trays. I also give them “showers” with a spray bottle about once a week. They really like it! Of course the spray bottle should be used for water only.
Perches:
It is important to have wooden perches, as budgies like to chew to keep their beaks clean and trimmed. They like pecan or maple or any fruit tree branch. Don’t use cedar or magnolia. You can also buy wooden perches. Some plastic perches are ok too, but not all perches should be plastic as that can irritate their feet. It is important that perches are placed so that they can easily stand and access food and water.
Dangers:
Sprays that smell like cleaning sprays, fluids, are dangerous. Budgies are very sensitive to chemicals (remember the “canary in the coal mine”). Sometimes they can get a toenail caught in something in the cage, so any wires used should not have loose ends sticking into the cage. Doors on the cage should be closed with a “twisty tie” so the budgie doesn’t escape. Some human foods are dangerous; check on the internet before trying if you are unsure. If they are out of the cage, getting slammed in a door, stepped on, etc are all dangers of course.
Communication:
Budgies like to be talked too. They seem to know their names, maybe. leave the radio on for them during the day to prevent loneliness and give htem something to sing too. A quiet “jngle” means “danger” so the sound makes them feel reassured. They also like to be talked to.
Training:
With a lot of attention, a budgie can get very tame, especially if talked to. Also budgies get tamer if they are the “only bird” as they see you as their flock. But don’t be fooled by affection; if the budgie gets away outside, he will fly away (mainly due to getting disoriented). The most elemental training exercise is “finger sitting”. If a budgie is not paying attention, “finger ladder walking” is a good way to help him focus.
Other thoughts:
We put the birds out in the AM (weather permitting) and inside in the PM when the weather will not go below 60 degrees. Below 60, it is too cold for them. I also like it as then seeds don’t make any mess during the day. They do throw seeds around when they eat, because they “hull” (peel) the outside of the seed off and discard it (drop it). The hull is very fine so it floats down. I use a netting around the cage that you can get at the pet store to cover the cage and it helps quite a bit.
Budgies combine urine and feces into one type of elimination. Normal is white with blackish/green middle, more or less.
History of Magoo:
Magoo was hatched in 12/07. You can see a lot of documentation about him here. http://boobudgie.blogspot.com/2007_12_01_archive.html and other places on the blog (ie, this blog!!!).
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
....and FRIENDS?
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Budgies Like Hanging out on the Porch
Gentle readers, I am sure you have been missing the budgie updates and worrying, needlessly as it turns out, about the cat.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Hanging a Cage
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Tiny Genome, big Personality
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
The new cage-suitable for hanging
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Yum! Basil today!
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Bills and...Kitties?
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Shredded
Friday, July 10, 2009
We're back!
The budgies arrived in the new house a few days ago. We don't have a radio set up and the house is largely quiet other than completely new strange noises (the clothes dryer, the air conditioner).They are currently staying in the mudroom. Naturally, the budgies seem a bit aprehensive, or at least, a bit more quiet then usual. I hope to let them sit on the front porch (pictured) a bit this weekend to see if they like the neighborhood! However, there are squirrels and I have heard the neighbors have cats so we'll have to be careful. Any advice re: budgie porch sitting in this setting? (Extra credit: Grammar: did we use "then and than" correctly in this post?Sitting and setting?)
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Riot of Parrots
Missing the Budgies
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Budgies in a Kennel
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
The Un-Fun for Budgie Owners-Is there an Art to It?
Friday, June 19, 2009
Magoo Gains on Boo
Friday, June 12, 2009
Unkind But True: There are "Schizo" Birds out there
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Downsizing
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Budging a Budgerigar
Budgies don't like new things, or at least, while they are still "new". In early days, I would often introduce greens, or strawberries, or a new toy, and the budgies would ignore, or more likely, avoid then new item. I would conclude they didn't like it and remove it. Now I realize that it can take days, weeks, or even months for budgies to warm up to something novel. Once they do, though, they can go wild with their enjoyment. Budgies are step functions, when it comes to acceptance of something. For example, I had to put strawberries in the cage for several days (after a day in the cage, they would be replaced with new ones) until the budgies would nibble on them. Now, they will often simply devour them (and make a bit of a mess flinging them, as well). Ditto with various types of greens, and treats. Magoo is by far the most adventurous, followed by Sutcliffe. This may be another "flock leader" behavior of males. If you have budgies, I recommend being patient in introducing new foods. Put the food in every day, and remove it when it wilts/gets old, and just do it regularly. It could take a week, or more, but the budgies will try it eventually and if it is greens or strawberries, probably like it. And if it is a toy, they will enjoy banging on it, when they don't get their way, after a few months. At least, this latter was true for Mary ann.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Magoo Update
Magoo is a very wonderful bird. He is energetic, playful, and very brave, sometimes even foolhardy. He has always been like this--after all, his first flight ended in near disaster as many of our gentle readers well recall! He has no fear of wandering outside of the cage, he is perfectly happy flying back to the cage from a finger--even if he lands on the floor, he will climb right up the cage from any angle and get right back in. He has found his role in the flock, and he is no longer courting Mary ann nor challenging Sutcliffe, but he is by no means subdued. He is tame but "bratty", he likes being the "decider" about what he is going to do, and finger sitting isn't always on his agenda! He was the first to play with the bell toy, while the others observed the toy with distrust for several more days. How much of this is his being young? How much is just testosterone? How much is Magoo's special unique personality independent of these other factors (I am convinced that personality diversity is just one more genetic trait that promotes survival of the flock). While it was stressful and not easy to organize, it really is nice to have Magoo in the flock, as he is clearly very happy and integrated well.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Singers and Song Preferences
- Singing for singing's sake ("Grooming song"): This consists of rather long, varied songs, usually executed by the males (Sutcliffe or Magoo) or less often, Boo, and least often, if ever, by Mary ann. When one of the birds is singing in this way, the three other birds tend to groom.
- Chirping to mate/flock: This vocalization is a loud "chHHIIIRRRPPP! chhuuuirrPPPPP" which is executed when any gender of budgie is separated from the cage/flock. When Sutcliffe or Mary ann are the isolated budgie and one of them makes this sound, their mate replies in kind. However, this reply may or may not happen if one of the other budgies is in the isolated circumstance (brought away from the cage and into a different room). The non-mated budgies are also less likely to make this noise when in isolation.
- Singing after trying new food: This is largely Sutcliffe's realm.
- Singing along to the radio or when one of us is on the phone: All participate. the favorite songs are Toby Keith songs. They seem to like K's calls to Oma.
- Greeting the day and the night: Budgies (all) sing with vigor, varied songs, all at once, first thing in the morning and when the sun goes down (or the lights in the house are dimmed as we all wind down). It is a joyous sound!
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Rethinking Budgie Priorities
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Prepare to Be Surrounded by a Large Flock of Budgies!
Thursday, April 2, 2009
What if Oedipus Rex Had a Happy Ending?
Sunday, March 29, 2009
The "Beak Hang" Sleep Position
Gentle readers: first, an apology for the long hiatus in posting. K has been studying for an exam, which has occupied much of her spare time. That is at last, over...at least for now, depending on results. It is said that regular postings are the key to maintaining readership, in which case, the Budgie Blog may have lost the few loyal fans it had...but we hope not!