My new budgie was traumatised on day 3... advice please!

[StormyPica]

Interesting. A shame they are sold specifically for birds.

I did some reading on the subject and it seems the primary risks are entanglement after the bird has a chance to tear the fabric up a bit. And, protective nesting instincts as you alluded to.

I’ll go ahead and remove it. After a quick wash, it’ll be perfect for one of my hamsters.

Dowel perches are also not good for their feet. The cage is an OK size, as long as you give Chedder plenty of time out of the cage, but having millet AND a seed mix in there 24/7 is really bad. Budgies are prone to fatty tumors, and millet has a LOT of fat, so does seed. I recommend transitioning him onto a chop and pellet diet with a healthy seed mix added in.

You should look into natural perches, platform perches, a bigg flight cage, and more toys. You should also research diet conversion in budgies. They need much more than a PetSmart employee will tell you. This is a great source for info!

Welcome to the forums!

 

[caintowers]

Dowel perches are also not good for their feet. The cage is an OK size, as long as you give Chedder plenty of time out of the cage, but having millet AND a seed mix in there 24/7 is really bad. Budgies are prone to fatty tumors, and millet has a LOT of fat, so does seed. I recommend transitioning him onto a chop and pellet diet with a healthy seed mix added in.

You should look into natural perches, platform perches, a bigg flight cage, and more toys. You should also research diet conversion in budgies. They need much more than a PetSmart employee will tell you. This is a great source for info!

Welcome to the forums!

He doesn’t have a seed mix. He is on a high quality pellet diet.

Additionally, the treat based items are in there currently to entice comfort in his brand-new home. Cheddar has a long term diet plan written that I’ve created based on research, as I do for all of my animals.

As for the perches, I already said above that I had new ones on order and others to rotate out (of different thicknesses). I also already said that I have other toys to rotate out on a weekly basis.

The point of this post was to gain insight on recovering a good bond with the bird, and that’s because I intend on having him out with me whenever possible.

I know you don’t know me, but I’m very thorough, and I do a lot of research before acquiring new animals. I’ve read about birds specifically for years, and own a couple books on the subject.

 

[StormyPica]

He doesn’t have a seed mix. He is on a high quality pellet diet.

Additionally, the treat based items are in there currently to entice comfort in his brand-new home. Cheddar has a long term diet plan written that I’ve created based on research, as I do for all of my animals.

As for the perches, I already said above that I had new ones on order and others to rotate out (of different thicknesses). I also already said that I have other toys to rotate out on a weekly basis.

The point of this post was to gain insight on recovering a good bond with the bird, and that’s because I intend on having him out with me whenever possible.

I know you don’t know me, but I’m very thorough, and I do a lot of research before acquiring new animals. I’ve read about birds specifically for years, and own a couple books on the subject.

Ok, well, in that case, just keep doing what you're doing

 

[wrench13]

Trick training is a great way to increase the bond with your parrot. Improves the verbal and non verbal communication, stimulates their minds, a lot, improves coordination and problem solving. A 15min daily session, one on one, at a specific time every day, introducing new actions and tricks is a real boost to bonding

 

[caintowers]

Update: Today has been a great day with Cheddar. He has eaten food from my hand a few times now, and once he allowed me to gently pet his chest and after that he put one foot on my finger— very close to a step-up— and continued eating. I take this as a good sign. He’s also been exhibiting a lot of positive body language in my presence.

 

[caintowers]

Update: Cheddar has stepped up and eaten while perched on my thumb.

 

[RavensGryf]

Fantastic. Thank you so much for telling me what I already know, and already said I was going to act upon, without providing any real answers to the question I actually asked.

Obviously, I have no intention of allowing these two pets to have the ability to touch one another or “play” with each other, like the videos you referenced.

Have a nice day.

I don’t think Al meant it that way. But I understand your frustration when receiving a post with something elementary that we already know or have previously explained. I get it. But maybe good info and reminder for some others to read

 

[Eudie]

Hello y'all and thanks in advance.

I've been wanting a pet bird for years, and years, and years, and finally felt I was in a place where I could adopt one. I purchased a beautiful blue budgie and got him set up in a lovely cage with everything a bird could desire.

He spent the first day sitting very still, very quiet, on one of his perches. I checked in occasionally, gently talking and singing to him. I named him Cheddar.

Day two was pretty great, as he ate some millet for the first time in his new home! And, he actually did it in my presence while I was talking with him. He inched closer to where I was standing. I felt this was a good sign that he was getting at least a little more comfortable.

Day three was progressing well, until my cat (Precious) decided to get off her lazy ass and realize there was something new in the room. She's not ordinarily much of a hunter, and she's always gotten along with our rabbits (always supervised, of course). While I was at work, and with my fiancé out of the room, our cat decided to paw at the cage and eventually tried to get on top of it. It ended in disaster, with the cage falling over and spilling the food, water, and Cheddar out. The bird flies away, and my fiancé booted out the cat and put everything back in order. It took some corralling to get Cheddar back into his home, but he appears to be physically OK (if quite frazzled).

I'm pretty devastated, and feel quite horrible. I wanted to provide as smooth of a transition as possible, and really set things up for a good bonding experience with my new bird. Now I feel that this will present quite a setback.

I'm looking for advice on how to help restore Cheddar's sense of security and safety. Obviously, the cat is banished from the room for the foreseeable future. And the cage will be secured to the table ASAP.

First, I have birds and cats and I have the cages set the cats cant get anywhere near them. Closing the door wont keep the cat out long as they are sneaky. 1. birds need a safe spot to sleep in so cover a part of the cage with a pillwcase or other cloth and leave it on all the time.
2. get some plexiglass and cut it to fit the sides of the cage on all sides except the door. Drill holes in the corner so you can attach it to the cage on the top and yet be removeable so you can wash them. S hooks are a good way to secure them. Keep a cloth on the top of the cage as well so nothing can reach down into the cage. It will then feel secure.
3. They sell a mat that has plastic points all over it that you put on the floor next to the cage. The cat wont like stepping on it. I alos bought a roll of mylar (it is silver foil used as in camping to keep you warm. It crinkles when touched. Put it on the florr and around the cage squished , so if the cat touches it it will sacre the cat. My cats hate and stay away from it.
Kepp talking sweetly to your bird and sing to it. Have its wings clipped so it wont fly away if it gets scared. Birds like watching cartoons so if you have a small tv put itin the room with the bird and eave it on in the morning , a timer to turn it off for part of the afternoon-bird nap time and then later in the day.
COver the cage at nice so it will know it is time to sleep. Keep food and water in the cage all the time. Put a kale leaf in the cage as they need greens. Also give is a very small piece of hard boied egg white in its bowl for protien. No pellets. Millet is good but they need more than that.

SPritz it with a little water (warm) for a bath or get it a bird bath and put it in the cage with a ittle water for a short time
Do not use pots with Teflon as overheating them produces a gas that kills birds so no non stick pots that may have Teflon on them. Ceramic coating is OK.
give your cat some toys tokeep it busy when you are with the bird or it will hate the bird even more. It is natural for a cat to want to eat a bird. dONT LET IT. good luck

 

[Eudie]

Hello,

Absolutely.

Currently, I have a wire cage set up with:

• Food dispenser with high quality pellets
• Water dish
• Millet
• Cuttlebone
• 2 perches and 1 ladder
• A mirror toy
• A shredding toy
• A fabric hide
• 2 containers with harvestable nesting material
• A liner

I also have several additional toys/perches to rotate out every week. I’m awaiting delivery of some perches that will naturally wear the nails.

get a small swing as they love swinging and they love a little safe well made bell with clapper in it.
THey like mirrors because they thinkj there is a mate in it. If it feeds the mirror, take it out as it will loose nutrients

 

[Squeeing_Onion]

That is fair. I understand that with these unique creatures, there is a lot of valuable knowledge to acquire. Perhaps, I simply disagree with those using my own plight and request for knowledge as a springboard for educating others. It is simply unhelpful, and sometimes offensive. I suggest that those who wish to educate others merely create their own separate posts. If they have something specifically helpful to my request, then please tell me!
After all, I am an experienced keeper of animals. Not only have I worked as a keeper at a local zoo with everything from primates to farm animals, but I personally have owned guinea pigs, rabbits, hamsters, reptiles, felines, canines, fish, and now a bird.

I will try to keep your advice in mind and not take advice so personally. Thank you for your advice and welcome. I really was looking for comfort in knowing my relationship with my new bird is salvageable.

I want to add, when it’s not posted “just for lurkers” reading to gain extra info, it’s also because most if not everyone posting in response to your advice request is because they DON’T know you, don’t know what you know, what lessons you have already absorbed or what ones you may need to hear re-worded or emphasized. I had no idea you worked at a zoo until I read that in your post (WHICH IS SO COOL! DREAM JOB!), for example.

You don’t know what someone already knows until you find out, and a lot of folks are simply pitching in the advice they want to make sure is covered “just in case.”

Text is also incredibly hard to read any sort of body language or tonal inflection in: the same words written by someone with nothing but the kindest of intentions can be read as snotty or sarcastic because words themselves are so limited.

I have learned a fair bit reading this thread, and your primary question has already been answered by other wonderful users.

You may not be an idiot, and forgive my harshness here, but many people who’ve posted help requests ARE. And not just on this forum, I mean in general. I have seen so many people over the years who bring an issue in, get answers on it, and they have the same issue happen because while they addressed other things that were suggested… somehow they didn’t make the connection most people would consider obvious.

Either way, whether we see eye to eye on that or not, I gotta admit, it really wasn’t fun watching other people get shredded for advice that was well meant if not what you wanted to hear. I love this forum for the fact we have so many understanding members who can get along and be civil, even when they disagree on some things. I’d love to see that community spirit continue to grow.

Good luck with your little blue floof! Budgies are so adorable, and I have every faith you’ll earn trust with him again

 

[Briburd]

Cheddar will come around. The good thing that can come of this is he will surely know now that kitty is danger. As for you and cheddar bonding I don’t think you will have to worry time and a lot of love will prevail.

 

[Vampiric_Conure]

fabric hides are dangerous for birds
First birds re dangerous because birds can chew and swallow them and birds cannot digest them. It can also cause crop infection,the only way to treat crop infection is through surgery which is very risky and dangerous for your birds and there are many more risks about fabric hides and can cause hormonal problems which are bad there are many amazon's happy hide that there birds got strangled from the happy hut strings if you think your bird needs a happy get a natural hide for bird a bird can't get a crop infection from the natural hide but can get hormonal proplems

i really like the setup of the cage its amazing

I've been told coconut shells with both ends cut open are a good alternative.

And I agree - Cheddar and his cage look amazing !!