So, you decided to get a budgie.
Before you go to a store or market for him, determine the purpose of acquiring the bird: do you need it as a companion or will be used for breeding.
Further care for the budgerigar depends on this.
Budgerigars: proper care. How to choose a feathered pet?
Budgie rules
It is important to take the choice of a bird seriously and get it better from an experienced breeder, where you can personally assess the conditions in which the birds are kept and observe their behavior. The risk of buying a sick bird here is much less than in the bird market.
The selected bird must be inspected. Healthy parrots are active, their plumage fits tightly to the body and looks shiny, their eyes are clean and clear, without clouding. There should be 4 fingers on the paws (2 directed forward and 2 back) with claws, the scales should fit snugly against each other. A sick bird is sedentary and indifferent to what is happening, sits, having dried up, its plumage is dull and disheveled, and around the cloaca it may be stained with liquid stool.
A sick parrot is sitting up laughing
Buy should be young parrots aged 1.5 to 3-4 months. During this period, they most quickly get used to a person and a new place of residence. Older birds more difficult to tolerate a change of environment, worse tamed.
How to determine the age of the parrot?
In order not to be deceived by the seller when buying a budgie and not to buy an old one instead of a young bird, you should learn to determine its age yourself by the following signs:
1. On the beaks of the chicks up to 2 months there is a black "smear", which disappears as they grow older;
2. Parrots younger than 3 months old have a characteristic "wavy" pattern on their heads from the beak to the back;
3. At the age of 3.5-4 months, the first "juvenile" molt occurs. After its completion, the parrot will have a yellow or white “cap” on the head with the remains of barely noticeable “waves”;
4. Chicks have completely black eyes. By 5-10 months, the iris of the eyes brightens. Adult birds have a white rim around the pupil;
5. Throat spots at a young age, birds have a semicircular shape with blurry contours. Parrots older than 6 months have clear spots in the form of an oval;
6. Crown of young birds of a pale lilac or pinkish hue. After 4 months of life, the beak of the males becomes bright blue, and the female is beige or light blue. By 8-9 months, the female wax is acquiring a brown color;
7. Tail feathers in young animals are shorter than in adults.
The above criteria for determining age are not suitable for variegated birds, albinos (completely white) and lutinos (completely yellow). Their beak is always light, their eyes remain black (for albinos they can be dark red) for life. Therefore, it is better to buy birds of this color from trusted breeders who will not hide the true age and health status of their parrots.
How to determine the sex of a budgie?
Females and males can be distinguished by the color of the waxen (the beak, where the nostrils are located). At a young age, it has a pale lilac color or mauve in both sexes, only in females there are light rings around the nostrils. By the 4th month of life, the beak of the males turns blue and brighter. In females, the waxworm acquires a pale blue or beige hue, and after puberty (8-9 months) it becomes brown.
On the left is a female (brown wax), on the right is a male (blue wax)
Budgerigars: proper care. Selection and placement of cells. How to equip the "home" of a budgie?
Where to put a "house" for a parrot in an apartment?
The necessary criteria for a safe living of parrots at home are high-quality food, a bright location of the cage, and cleanliness in the cage.
It is best to put the cage in a bright place in the room. Putting on a windowsill is not recommended, as budgies are afraid of drafts. However, these birds need a long daylight hours - at least 12-14 hours in the summer and 10-12 hours in the winter. Therefore, in the autumn-winter season, additional lighting is required. In order for the feathered pet to quickly get used to the owner, the cage must be at the level of human growth.
How to choose a cell?
A bird cage is selected according to the following criteria:
• Shape - the optimal one is rectangular with a flat top. In them, it is more convenient for birds to move around. In addition, it is easier to hang toys, a pocket mirror, a rocker from a flat "ceiling";
• Size - depends on the planned location of the cage in the apartment, the number of birds and their size. They select the size of the cage so that the bird can freely spread its wings, re-flip from perch to perch. Minimum cell parameters 25x40x40cm;
• The location of the rods - it is more convenient for horizontal birds to move the birds along the cage walls. Crossing over them, the parrot will not slip;
• Ease of maintenance for cleanliness - the simpler the design of the cell, the easier it is to monitor its sanitary condition. In various decorations parasites, dust, fluff accumulate;
• Safety for birds - parrots like to walk along the bottom of the cage, so it should be solid, and not from twigs. Otherwise, bird fingers or claws can get stuck between the rods, and the bird, trying to free itself, can easily break its paw;
• The cage needs to be cleaned every day, and spring cleaning is carried out monthly. For disinfection after washing, the cell is wiped with a decoction of wormwood or chamomile.
Cage equipment
In order for the parrots to feel comfortable in their home, different sizes of poles (at least 2 pieces), feeders, drinking bowls, bathtubs, toys and a pocket mirror should be installed in the cage.
Equipped cage for budgies
The poles are placed so that the bird can easily flip from one to the other and not contaminate its feeder and drinker with its litter.
Drinking bowls are best to choose glass or porcelain (the water in them is kept fresh and clean longer). Every day they must be washed with hot water and soda and wiped dry.
Porcelain or plastic feeders in a cage need at least two: one for grain feed, the second for soft.
Bathrooms with clean warm water are put into a cage periodically, especially on hot summer days. After the bird has taken "water procedures", the bathhouse is cleaned.
If the parrot lives in a cage alone, then you need to hang a small mirror on the ceiling so that the bird is not alone.
On a note! After purchase, all accessories and the cage itself must be disinfected, doused with boiling water, and wiped dry.
Budgerigars: proper care. Feeding, diet
The diet of budgies is quite diverse and includes grain mixtures, fruits, vegetables, herbs, mineral fertilizers.
Grain mixtures include peeled oats, canary seed, flax and millet of varying degrees of maturity. It is better to purchase such food in sealed packaging with a transparent “window” in order to visually assess the quality. In cardboard boxes, the grain may be moldy due to improper storage.
As a source of vitamins, minerals and fiber, vegetables, fruits, berries, and seasonal greens should be on the budgerigar menu. Birds with pleasure gnaw such juicy root crops as carrots, beets, cucumbers, zucchini, cabbage. Their favorite fruits are apples, peaches, pineapples, pears, citrus fruits. Of the berries, feathered pets will enjoy raspberries, strawberries, and strawberries.
In the spring-summer season, you can give parrots leaves of dandelion, clover, plantain, spinach, horse sorrel, and in winter grow oats and millet on greens.
Important! You can’t feed parrots with persimmons, mangoes, all kinds of nuts, celery root, dill, meat and dairy products, potatoes, cheese, chocolate.
For full development, birds need mineral nutrition. For example, offer sand of organic origin, chalk or sepia (skeletal cuttlefish). These substances enrich the body of parrots with calcium and other trace elements. In addition, gnawing chalk, parrots naturally grind a constantly growing beak.
Budgerigars: proper care. First days in the house
After buying and delivering the budgerigar home, the first 2-3 weeks it should be kept separate from other birds (if you have them).
At first, the bird will experience stress due to a change of scenery and transportation. Therefore, you should protect your pet from frightening factors: loud sounds next to him, the intrusive attention of children and other animals (if any). Communicate with the bird in a calm, affectionate voice, do not try to forcibly take it in your hands - so you will establish a trusting relationship with it. This process takes time, patience and endurance. After the bird gets used to you and fearlessly sits on an outstretched hand, you can start learning colloquial words.
Budgerigars: proper care. Budgie diseases
With improper care and poor sanitary conditions, budgies are subject to diseases such as scabies, goiter inflammation, and poisoning. Possible injuries of the paws, defeat of the lacunae.
Contaminated budgerigar (scabies) budgerigar
If the following symptoms are found, you should show the bird to the veterinarian:
• refusal of food;
• diarrhea;
• tarnished ruffled plumage;
• lethargy and apathy;
• discharge from the nose;
• growths on the beak and paws.
The health of a feathered pet is in your hands!
