Baby budgies not eating - quick help needed!!

[veimar]

Hi, I got two very young 1,5 mo old budgies today and just brought them home and put in their cage. They are not tame and are unclipped. They are very scared of me and are not eating or drinking. It makes me very worried. The breeder said they are fully weaned and were eating normal parakeet diet. I also brought a lovebird with them, and as soon as I put food in her cage she started eating. So how I encourage them to eat and drink?
Please advise ASAP!!!

 

[MikeyTN]

It's not unusual for them not wanting to eat right away for a day or so. Walk away, especially since they're not tamed and go back to check later to see if they've gone through the food dishes.

 

[veimar]

how long can they go without food?

 

[DannyA93]

I don't think you need to worry about them not eating. They'll eat when they get hungry enough they're just terrified at the moment considering they're not tamed and they just had to go through the travel and all that and they're in a new environment now and a human(predator) is lurking around their cage and they can't do anything about it lol just give em some time to settle in. They'll most likely eat when you're not around.

 

[veimar]

Just a little detail - I wasn't planning on them today, but the lady from whom I bought the lovebird told me their parents were plucking them, and they needed to go (they were not hand fed). I wanted parakeets anyway, so I'm glad I got them. They have some bald spots on the back of their heads and look so fragile and helpless.

 

[Kalidasa]

They'll be fine, but need some space to figure things out. Since they're scared they won't eat in front of you right now until they relax a bit. You could also hang a spray of millet in there (gently, and quick)) so they have something else highly visible to munch on. Since they're together, they'll adjust to the new routine pretty easily. Congrats

 

[MikeyTN]

They usually will start eating the second day. Like it was said above, put some millet within and try to place it above the food dish so they know where the food dish is. If they didn't touch any food on the third day then there's something to worry about. So be watchful right now.

 

[veimar]

Thank you so much! I put a branch of millet on the bottom of the cage (I didn't want to freak them out by trying to hang it). The food and water dishes are rather large and transparent so it's hard to imagine them not being able to find the food. The lady gave me their food in order for them to be familiar with them. I also put some seed mix on a paper towel on the bottom of the cage.
I was worried for them because the lovebird (who is also very young and not tame) started eating/drinking right away and didn't seem so frightened as these little guys.

 

[MikeyTN]

If they were starved, they would dig in right away like the two I rescued years ago in the middle of the winter outside in a parking lot roaming around. They were skin and bones! So I capture them, although they can fly, took them to the pet shop with me and bought a cage and food. The moment I put food and water in there, they started eating none stop.

 

[veimar]

Hope they will eat in the morning - I'm not gonna cover the cage for the night. They might also been too sleepy since it was pretty late already. That's so sweet that you rescued those poor babies - how did they do afterwards?

 

[MikeyTN]

We've had them for about 5 years now??? At that time when I found them they were about 2-3 months old. Both boys! Both are doing quite well as they just flies around the aviary with the Cockatiels, Cockatoo, and Canaries.

 

[veimar]

Aww - that's so nice! I have an UPDATE!! I put their food on a paper towel on the bottom of the cage, and although I didn't see them eating (I went to bed really late and got up late too) there is a lot of poop on the cage floor! So I guess they ate! LOL They even chirped a bit while I wasn't there, but went quiet as soon as I opened the door.

 

[MonicaMc]

Birds can poop without eating....


Instead of putting food at the bottom of the cage, put the food up higher near where they are perching. They may be afraid to travel down, but would feel more comfortable if the food was at a height they were comfortable being at. This should be especially easy with millet if you can clip it to the side of the cage or weave it between the bars.

 

[MikeyTN]

I usually find youngsters prefers to eat from the bottom instead of the top.

 

[MonicaMc]

I think if the baby budgies are comfortable with their setup and home, that would be perfectly fine.... but when dealing with a new bird that tries to get as high up as possible in the cage, since height = safety (in contrast, down low could equal vulnerability), providing food up higher may be better in the short run than providing it down low.

Once the bird is comfortable and willing to eat regardless of where food is it, then it shouldn't particularly matter where it's at in the cage... in fact, the budgies may enjoy a little 'foraging ground' at the bottom!

 

[veimar]

Well, there was a LOT of poop! Okay, now it's for sure - while I was away from home ALL the seeds from the napkin were gone! LOL There is a little bit on the bottom of the cage, but they ate most of them! Phew! BTW, Monica - they have a feeder too, I just wanted to make sure they have an easy access to food from any level. Unfortunately they don't know how to eat from a millet branch that I put on their perch.
They were already chirping today! I played budgie chirping youtube audio fro them today for a few hours to encourage that. And they are not afraid of my hands that much - I even touched them a bit with my finger, and they stared at it but didn't walk away. So hopefully it will work out. OMG, they are so tiny, that I'm afraid of them too!

 

[MikeyTN]

Out of hundreds of babies I've weaned....they've all eaten from the bottom instead of the dishes first. Once been weaned for a bit is when they start to go eat from the dishes. For the time being I don't find it to be a bad idea to feed from the bottom.

 

[veimar]

UPDATE! Re: Baby budgies not eating - quick help needed!!

They settled in just great and are eating very well - thank you for your advice! I let them fly around the room every day and they are really enjoying this. On the first two days I had to catch them and that was really frustrating for all of us, but yesterday they allowed me to pick them up and return to their cage - no screaming, no biting! They even attempted to land on me a few times. I'm kinda changing my mind about clipping them - maybe I shoudn't. I love to see them fly.

 

[Kalidasa]

Hah! They're real cuties! In no time at all, they'll figure out your home and cage, and no matter where they fly, they'll always put themselves back in.

 

[MikeyTN]

Yay!!! That's great news!!! They look like they're about 3-4 months old as they're getting white on their forehead. They're going to start losing those bars on the forehead pretty soon. I think the breeder left them in with the parents way too long thus the plucking. I don't think the breeder knew what to do with them cause the breeder should of separated them from the parents as soon as they're weaned and eating on their own. The father could easily have killed both of them. Good thing she give them to you!!!