Hello! - 1st time baby budgie

[redlime1222]

Hello to everyone on this like-minded birds family community! As first time pet bird owner, I am very excited to be a part of and learn from you.

I have (I think) a Dominant Pied Violet (blue?), budgie female for about 2 1/2 months now. Breeder told me she/he (my 16 year old son named her Eggnog) was about 2 months old (Dec 15, 2020), but I am not entirely sure. She came flighted and such a tiny beautiful thing! First month or two had been rather slow going/bit frustrating at times, she bites, flew away all the time or pretty much stay on one spot on the highest perch in her cage and only move to eat from my fingers or her bowl... she is finally tamed and not scare of me to move around a bit more. But she is still pretty quiet and stationary most of time, (is this just her personality?) but she does chirp, preen, starts to explore our room(s) more even to the floor a bit this week! She loves getting scratches on her head and neck, probably because of new pin feathers, she is the cutest thing.

Currently, I am also waiting for a baby cockatiel to be ready to come home and researching as much as I can.

I am so new to being a parrot mom as well as forum posting... so please forgive me for going on and on, not being very succinct. I am sure I will be asking lots of questions soon enough and learning how to be better at it. Please do share your experiences and any advice for this new Budgie/Cockatiel mom.

I was going to attach a photo of Eggnog from my computer but insert image button only ask for image with an URL...

[maxollie]

Hi, Catherine and welcome to the community. And congrats on bringing home sweet Eggnog. She is doing sooooo well. You are amazing in the way you have bonded with her. I cannot think of one thing you have not done to help her adjust to her new home. Females are a little more quiet than males. They are very loving, and do like to be scritched. I would suggest that you try to avoid petting her on her body area, and stick with the top of her head, because by the time she is 6-9 months old, she will go into puberty, and then she can get hormonal which means her cere will turn brownish color, and then she can lay eggs. Even single hens lay eggs, and if possible we don't like to encourage that because a hen can turn into a chronic egg layer, meaning she could lay eggs every two or three months, and if is very stressful and not good for her health. Also, do not feed cooked foods, but rather fresh veggies and fruits are best. Soft or cooked foods tend to make hens go into hormones.

I can only imagine how beautiful Eggnog is and all of the fun you and your son will have with her. Budgies are very loving, hardy, and sweet little birds who love their swings, mirrors, foods, seeds, and water. And most of all they love us!! Also, play a cd or radio with soft music, and let her watch Disney TV. Read her a kids book, while sitting next to her cage, and eat a snack while she eats a snack, such as millet. Budgies love millet seeds.

Enjoy the journey! We will welcome updates anytime. Sending hugs to you, and your son, and many scritches for Eggnog!

[redlime1222]

Thanks so much, Ellen, for the welcome message and great suggestions! Understanding about hormonal issues is so helpful, I will definitely keep that in mind. She does seem to enjoy music, even chirps with it sometimes... and her spray millets, and so funny about Disney TV! I will definitely try reading kids book to her, sounds fun!

I am having thoughts of maybe eventually introducing a male budgie as her companion once we are bonded and trained for a while... I would also like to train and bond with that budgie, is that possible before they bonded as a pair? do you think it is a good idea? Considering hormonal issues? I do not mind breeding her occasionally but not if it is affecting her health in the long term. I am curious what parrots community thinks in this regard... I will post this question on the budgie forum too.

Thanks again for your sweet message and sharing your experience! I am really happy I can learn and share this beautiful experience in this forum.

[maxollie]

Yes, you could get her a mate. Did the breeder have her dna sex checked before you got her, so that you arec100% sure you have a girl? Because, if not, I would want to be sure of the sex. If for any reason you were to end up with two females, they sometimes do not get along good together if one or the other lays eggs. Hens do not have to have a male mate, to lay eggs, and with any hen they are very protective of the eggs she laid, and two hens can get aggressive over the other ones eggs, so I suggest, you have the tests done, IF you get another budgie, before you bring it home. Then you won't end up with two females.

Two males get along fine together.

[maxollie]

I went back and read your first post,, and see that Eggnog was not sexed, so, in my view, get her dna sex tested. The breeder should be able to recommend someone. Or, you can search on line for budgie dna sex testing kits. They send you the kit, and then you send them back a few feathers. They send you the result.

Then, you would ned to pick out a baby again, at the breeders, but before you get it have the breeder pull a few feathers from it, and get the test done before you buy it so then, you will know if you have a pair.

The thing about ceres these days is that there are so many different mutations now, that a male cere can be bluish, but still could be a girl.

[maxollie]

Breeding a pair is fun, but sometimes unexpected issues happen. And, pairs are always into mating and it is impossible to stop it. So, the hen is always under alot of stress. But it is possible to replace real eggs with dummy eggs, or, boil the eggs and give them back to the hen for the 21-25 days she would set on them.

Do some research on line...... breeding budgies and after reading bit you can better decide whether you would care to try it.

[redlime1222]

Great point, Ellen! I have been wondering too. Breeder could not tell me his/her sex, Eggnog was only two months old at the time. For the sake of easier on reference, I was leaning toward female based on her quiet nature and activity level. Eggnog also seem small (only 30g) compare to other American budgies I see, but I have no idea if that is a feature at all for female budgies... Her cere at 4.5 months old is still white with a light blue tint. But, recently I have read that pied mutations may be different to read regarding their cere coloring, is that true? I am only just starting to read and research more on breeding and mutations, it is very fascinating. So much to learn.

Thank you so much for the recommendations! You are right, I will do a lot research before deciding on breeding or new budgie(s)... dna sexing may be the best way to go for the baby boy too. I am hoping the new baby cockatiel will be Eggnog's friend/companion, but do understand that having your own kind is not quite the same... bit of a quandary.

[maxollie]

Well, your main goal is to have the budgies in one cage and the cockatiel in its own cage. My budgie, Muffin is ten years cold. He has his own cage. Penny, my cockatiel also has his own cage. I set the cages side by side. They both love to interact with each other in their cages. If you let them out of cage then do it separately, and bond with each one. Tiels and budgies do not get along very well in one cage. Budgies are smaller. And they seem to be a frustration to tiels because they are smaller, and tend to go after tiels feet and chase them too! Penny is soon to be three years old. Both species are very intelligent.

[maxollie]

Usually genetics play a part in the size of a budgie. However, if there are 8-10 babies to feed, often times the last few to hatch will be smaller, because that.many is a lot for mom and dad to feed, and when they grow up, the budgies may be smaller. One suggestion I have for you, is to not bring a new baby home until at least 12 weeks of age, because they need to remain with parents until the 12 weeks are over. The parents bond with the babies, and should have the 12 weeks to do so. Some who are younger than that, like Eggnog was, at 8 weeks, have problems not still being with parents,. But in Eggnogs case, she is doing fine.

[redlime1222]

Thank you! Good to know. I wonder how little Eggnog would do once the baby Cockatiel (possibly male) comes home... she being fairly mellow & fairly quiet. Maybe she will come out of her shell being the older (first dip on the whole new environment?) I am planning on separate cages for each, possibly separate room in the beginning until the tiel settle down. I will remember to look for an older baby budgie next time... I was inexperienced, also surprised the breeder was ok letting the 2 months old go... she was already in a separate cage with other young ones from the parents.

[maxollie]

Well, on occasion breeders send the babies to the stores for resale a little early. I do not think you will have any problem at all with the two sitting sure by side in their cages.

My budgie can mimic every sound, whistle, or word that my cockatiel says. They love to interact with each other. When you do get another budgie, you will want to get one about the same age as Eggnog. Generally it is best, because on occasion, an older one will be dominate over the younger one. And one that is younger may cause Eggnog to be more motherly toward him or her. And it is best for them to be friends and a pair especially if you are going to get a boy. An older male could be aggressive towards Eggnog as well!

[redlime1222]

Thank you, Ellen! That is very interesting about the age and gender dynamics... got more to think about. I guess Eggnog can be a girl or boy, if the future companion is a boy... It would be great to have a companion without the need to breed, if that is possible.

Your Muffin and Penny sounds so cute together!

[maxollie]

Awww!! They are my best friends! Just now, Muffin is chirping away, and Penny is doing his yoga for today!!lolol. He has a toy with three plastic balls hanging in the cage, with his perch right under it. So he backs up, to the toy, and puts his long tail in the hanger and just sits there for quite along time. Soon it will be time for his daily rhythm drumming. He beaks his rhythm on the cage floor, or his food cup, and then he waits for me to do the exact same rhythm on a jar lid!!!! Lolol. If I don't get it exactly like he pecked it, he quits and does something else! Lololol

[redlime1222]

That is hilarious!! They must be such wonderful joy to be around and such personalities! I would love to see pictures of them if you have any? Thanks for sharing their antics, I just love to hear all the amazing little rituals, tricks and games that they do... so smart. I have a dog and a cat, and five backyard hens, I love them all but I would have to say the parrots are just so intelligent and fun to watch... its additive.

[DavePound]

Welcome to the forum I am new and glad to meet you!