Budgies are the most popular cage bird and originate from the drier parts of Australia. They are affectionate and can be trained to talk. Choose a lively bird that is alert and not easily frightened. Make sure that it is a young bird; they can be tamed easily and can learn to talk. Budgies enjoy flying about the house rather than being in the cage all the time but you must let them get used to their cage first, before you let them out and ensure that doors and windows are shut.
Lifespan: 6 - 8 sometimes reaching 20 years.
Living Together: If you already have one or more birds and are about to introduce another you must keep them separate for at least 30 days to make sure the new one is not carrying a disease that the other birds might catch.
If the new bird is to be caged with others, make sure they will not bully, harm or kill one another. After the quarantine period put the cages side by side for a few days before putting them into the same cage so that the new bird can be gradually accepted.
Water The most important thing with any caged animal is that you make sure that they have plenty of water and that it is kept clean. Change the water regularly and straight away if you spot that anything nasty has managed to fall into it.
feeding Feeding: The basic diet of budgerigars consists of the seed mixtures that you can obtain from your local pet shop. However, to remain healthy, budgies also require minerals and green food.
Cuttlefish bone is a valuable source of calcium, which your budgie will enjoy. They will also need separate bowls for grit and water. Make sure that the feeding bowls are not placed under perches where they can become fouled with droppings. You can buy food pots with a hood, which will keep the food free from contamination. Your budgies water and seeds should be changed every day.
Millet sprays clipped to the cage provide an interest for your budgie as well as food. IMPORTANT Do not let your Budgie get used to eating millet as part of his daily routine, Budgies go mad for millet.
Fruits that are good: Apples, pears, plums, peaches, melon, pineapple, strawberries, raspberries & blackberries. Make sure that they are fresh and have not been stored in syrup.
Vegetables that are good: Broccoli, spinach, watercress, green beans, carrots.
Housing: The cage you choose must be designed for budgies, not canaries. A budgie cage has bars that are parallel and do not taper. It should be a rectangular metal cage; minimum size of 2 cubic feet, 1' x 1' x 2'. Ensure that the wire openings are small enough so that the bird cannot put his head through the bars. Your budgie should be able to stretch his wings and flap them for exercise without touching the sides of the cage.
Various perch shapes such as flat or oval will help to ease the stress on your budgies feet.
Find a safe place for your budgie's cage, away from cats. Do not place your budgie's cage on top of or too near your TV.
A note about toys It's very tempting to put toys with mirrors or plastic Budgies in your bird's cage, this is a big mistake as your Budgie will continue to interact, chatter etc with the plastic Budgie or reflection rather than you.
Care: A dirty cage can make your bird sick. His cage should be cleaned daily. Spread paper on the floor of the cage and change every day, cut several sheets to the size and shape of the cage bottom and remove the top sheet every day along with the droppings and seed husks. Daily changes prevent waste, which dries to a powdery material, full of bacteria, which can be blown into the bird's food, water dishes and the air it breathes. Do not use "gravel paper" on the bottom of the cage, this can irritate the feet. There is no need to pour gravel or grit over the cage floor, give your budgie a proper grit-mineral supplement.
The water and food dishes should be washed every day and the cage should be cleaned and washed once a week
Birds are awake during daylight and sleep when it gets dark. Your budgie's cage should be covered at night-time with a heavy cloth which shuts out the light and some noise so that he can sleep, remove the cover every morning. Budgies like a bath and it keeps them clean. Some like to splash in a shallow dish of water or a commercial bird bath may be attached to the cage. Some budgies may prefer to roll in wet greens or grass on the bottom of the cage. Give your budgie an opportunity to bathe once or twice a week. The morning is the best time for his bath to give him a chance to dry out during the day. Make sure that your bird has a warm draught-free place where he can dry out and preen his feathers.
How To Start your Budgie talking.
The first advice is to be patient; the budgie will take some time to pick up human noises.
The best time to train them is early on a morning when they are most active. You can also try repeating the same phrases when you first meet them in the morning and when you go bed for instance of phrases is "Hello".
Something that we did discover is that it takes a little while for your Budgie to understand that it can interact with you by making certain noises. Try to avoid whistling back to the budgie and instead only respond when the budgie tries to mimic a word. This will encourage it to try and interact more often.
For fun you can try to teach your budgie to whistle a song. keep the tunes simple such as nursery rhymes and your budgie should eventually have a go.
Listen Very Carefully When your Budgie does try to talk it may be difficult to distinguish, but as soon as it does talk make sure you repeat the word back to it, this helps the Budgie to become more clear.
