Help with weaned baby budgie care?

[Pudgerigar]

Hey folks! I'm about two months into preparing for my first bird. I'm very lucky and have a local bird specialty shop, where the owner (accustomed to larger parrots and the like) is handfeeding a clutch of American budgerigars for the first time. I've met the babies, selected my favorite, and observed that the clutch of three is happy, healthy, and strong.

Three more weeks until they're weaned and out of their watch period, and into my home my little lemon Bonnie bird comes!

The trouble is, I can't seem to find info on the specifics of very young budgie care. Everything is either "how to handfeed and wean" or for those whose birds are already 3+ months old. My google-fu is weak today.

I'm hoping y'all may have links, guides, or personal advice on caring for a just-weaned baby. Should I start her off in a smaller cage? Should I take her to the vet for the first time before or after she settles in? Should her perches be smaller at first? What kind of watering device would be best to get her? I'm so fuzzy on all of these "fringe" questions the books and blogs gloss over!

 

[RavensGryf]

Hi, I can understand your excitement! I'd take the baby for the vet exam right away. She/he'll be fine, and doesn't need to necessarily 'settle in' first. Actually, sooner the better.

Once your baby is weaned and eating completely on it's own, the care aspect shouldn't be much different from having an older juvenile. In other words, if there is still too much specific care, then the baby is not ready to go to the new home just yet.

Once a new budgie comes home, it's not uncommon for them to not eat for a couple days. I've had experience with 3 budgies, and all of them started out fasting, then ate only the tiniest amount for the first week or so. Don't worry if they don't eat right away, but do offer a variety of finely chopped foods to choose from, in easy to access dishes. Make sure the feed and water are in easy to find locations. You can observe the poop to judge the food intake, you can feel the keelbone down the breast, and make sure he feels 'meaty' on each side of the bone. I'd also get a digital gram scale to monitor weight. It is said that they shouldn't lose more than about 10% of their total body weight, so a gram scale is important.

Provide several budgie size appropriate toys. They love swings and bell toys. Mine also love shreddable materials such as wicker, soft balsa wood, cardboard, etc.

Don't push your budgie to interact with you more than it wants to at first. It will take a little while to adjust to new surroundings. As a handfed single pet budgie, you should most likely have a friendly little guy or gal who is bonded to you, provided you spend time with your bird daily. Some single budgies even learn to talk.

 

[Pudgerigar]

Thank you so much! Apparently my girl was the first of the clutch to go for it and try some seed today! She's a go-getter! I'll go ahead and make her vet appointment for a couple days after the guess of her go home date to be safe, and if there's a gap she can stay at the store until then. This is exactly the info I was looking for, I appreciate it so much.