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The Lowly Little Budgie
Budgies are a little bird with a very large heart. These gregarious wee birds make the best pets for young and old. A handfed budgie is the nicest pet going. A parent raised budgie is also but the results from a handfed are instant. Lifespan for a budgie is on the average 8-12 years but can live longer.
Budgies will eat almost anything you offer them. Budgies enjoy a good seed mix created especially for a budgie. However, a budgie can certainly be switched to a pelleted formula of food with patience. I have added pellets to older "seed only eaters" with great success. This did not happen over night but over a period of time. Some even took up to three or four months. Persistence and patience is the key. A good rounded diet is recommended; seed, pellets, fresh fruits and veggies. New foods are best offered in the morning because that is when the bird is hungriest and is most willing to try something new. Of course monkey see, monkey do works well, too. Whatever you eat your little bird will surely want to try, too. Be sure to keep it nutritional. No chocolate, no avocado, no alcohol, no caffeine, no milk or diary unless cooked (eg.- bread)! Also a no smoking ban in the home is best for your bird.
Budgies are prone to tumors. They must have an iodine block or a mineral block with iodine as an ingredient provided for in their cage at all times. The iodine helps prevent tumor growth. Note: Grit is not necessary for a budgie as budgies husk their seeds. Grit is needed most for birds such as pigeons and chickens who do not husk seed and need the grit to "grind" in their crop for them.
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A budgie's talking ability is vast. Not all budgies will talk. A bird, any bird is either interested in human speech or it isn't. Contrary to popular belief the female budgie will talk with the same equal enthusiasm as a male budgie. I have handfed many budgies and have had many reports back from customers that their bird is talking whether it is male or female. "Hemsky" is owned by Shea Long (one of our future veterinarians) and is a budgie I raised in the past year. Shea just emailed me to tell me Hemsky's vocabulary now consists of: "Pretty, Birdie, Budgie and Hi Cutie". Shea also adds, "Hemsky is a very smart little girl, always entertaining." Hemsky was only five and half months old at the time of that email.
I could also go on about the little bird I gave to my parents as a gift....funny how the main topic of their aches and pains went to the wonders of R.B.'s adventures. Their little bird talks in sentences and knows precisely what he is saying. Just this past summer when I was visiting mornings would begin with R.B. being let out of his cage. He would head directly into my parents room to wake up my Mom vocalizing: "Going to have breakfast? Going to have juice?" Then once he was all done his breakfast he would fly to everyone and announce: "Mighty fine breakfast, eh?" (Ya, he is a true Canadian, eh?). R.B. has brought much joy and laughter to my parent's home. I could go on and on about the adventures of R.B. but remember this.
"You only get out of your bird what you put into it!"
Written By: Deb Brown |
