Mommy PLEASE!!!

[Bunnicula05]

Yesterday My Mom, little brother, and I went shopping at Wal-Mart. In the parking lot they were giving away puppies and I saw an orange cat they were also giving away! Since I no longer have my cat because I had to leave it at my old house because we live on a busy street, I SO wanted this orange kitty cat!!! But I only wanted it if it was a male. I have a thing for orange or orange and white male cats. They're my favorite! Anyway, I BEGGED my Mom all the time we were in the store. I was to the point that I wanted to buy the cat food with my own money! Mom kept saying no, and by the time we were done shopping all the puppies and the kitty cat were gone. GRRRRRRRR! I WAS SOOOOOO MAD! I WANTED A KITTY!
Then after Wal-Mart, my Mom went to Aldi's and I went to Orscheln's. I was looking at their fish and this guy that was obviously a fish fanatic was counting how many dead fish there were. It was sad. They wouldn't even clean out the dead fish! They were five that me and this guy counted. They have a poor display of animals, the Orscheln in the town that I live in has a much cleaner and neater facility for their animals. But anyway, I bought some salt and mineral licks for my buns. They needed a treat. I'm also falling in love with this parakeet at the Orscheln in my town. It's white with an aqua breast. I really really want it, but I have no knowledge of birds. If any of you bird lover's can give me any tips, that would be appreciated. I'm thinking I want to save up my money to get one and all the things it needs. But I need to know what feed is the healthiest and so on....

[luckies4me]

Hey there Bunnicula! What kind of questions do you have? Ask away and I will answer. Is the bird that you are referring to a parakeet? If so they are fairly easy to take care of if you have time, money, and patience. Most parakeets that come from petstores are not tame, which means in order to play with the bird you must tame it down yourself. Parakeets are flighty birds and can scare fairly easy. We will talk about taming if you decide to get the bird. However if you are lucky and you come across a baby who is allready tame then we can skip this all together.
Here is some general care guidlines for parakeeets as well as some helpful info.
First off you must know that all exotic birds carry an organism that can cause "parrot fever". This goes for cockateils, parrots, keets, lovebirds etc. This can kill a bird and is highly contagious. People are also infected as well through contact with bird fecal material. It can however be treated in humans with antibiotics through your doctor. Don't get discouraged, this is just a fact and most likely you won't have this problem but it is a good idea to know about this so you can be prepared.
Most parakeets in pet stores are fed only a seed diet. This is very unhealthy for the bird as it does not provide the neccesary vitamins and minerals a bird in captivity should get in a daily diet. I would recommend a pelleted diet. THis is a lot healthier for the bird. I would recommend Harrisons pelleted parakeet feed. They can be giving seeds as a treat in a seperate food dish.
They must be given fresh water daily. Keets are prone to respiratory illnesses. Try to place the water dish where they are not sitting directly above it. This helps illeminate waste from being deposited into the water and helps it stay clean longer. I keep a stockpile of Ornacyn-Plus (treatment for respiratory diseases of pet birds. Also corrects diarrhea and vitamin dificiencies) just incase my keets look like they are getting ill. I would advise people who are not familiar with bird illnesses to first see a vet to make sure you know the exact cause of illmess. I am familiar with bird diseases and can spot them easily (comes with vet training) because of years of experience.
If I buy a new bird from the petstore I usually give it a weeks worth of this Ornacyn-Plus to boost the immune system which is weaker in times of stress (moving to a new home, vet visit, attack by cat etc.) and to also make sure that they have all the neccesary vitamins and amino acids a bird needs to be healthy. I do this because most birds are not fed the pelleted food and tend to be unhealthy.
A bird who is sitting on the bottom of it's cage, has ruffled feathers, who only sits on both legs and who has loose stools is a sick bird and should not be purchased.

[luckies4me]

I'm back. He he! I am adding more info because it didn't fit into the other post. I think I just like to talk too much.

Anyhow. Do not purchase a bird form a pet store that has filthy cages and dirty water. These birds most likely are sick and may have mites. You should not rescue a sick bird from a store because you could end up bringing something home you don't want to as well as having to see your new birdie die, which is even worse.

Birds are prone to lice and feather mites as well as scaly face mites. You can buy cage protectors from your local pet store. These are round disks that you hang on the outside of the cage to protect the birds from lice and feather mites.

If you notice a bird with crust on it's beak do not purchase it because it most likely has scaly face mites. This can be tragic to the bird if not treated. It causes the beak to be deformed and if not treated the bird will die of starvation. This is also easily treated with Ivermectin. Ivermectin is an anti mite solution that is applied to the jugular vein located on the neck of the bird. With about three doses and a beak trim it should clear up.

I won't spend anymore time about diseases as this covers the more likely ones. However if you would like to know more let me know.

Now I will talk a little more about the food a budgie needs. Along with the pelleted feed and the occasional seed treat you must also provide fresh fruits and veggies at least 3 times a week. I give my birds green leaf lettuce, collard greens, sunflower seeds, scrambled eggs (sounds grose that they are eating another bird but this is very good for them), millet sprays, honey sticks, blueberries, apple, mango, and grapes. Be careful not to feed too many grapes as this can cause diarrhea.

Budgies do not need gravel if they are fed a pelleted diet. You can give them some oyster shells as a source of calcium also. This is critical for hens if they are breeding.

During the time they molt they can get ill easily. I give mine a formula for birds that are in molt called VitaFlight. YOu should be able to find this at your local pet store also.

You will most likely not have any of these health problems if your budgie is well cared for. If you keep his cage clean (change food and water daily, paper daily and completely scrub out once a week) feed the right foods, have yearly exams at your vet etc. then you should have a healthy and happy new friend that will live fairly long. I hope this info helps and if you have any more ?s then just ask. If you want to know how to switch a birds diet from seeds to pellets let me know. Cya!

[Bunnicula05]

Thanks A LOT! Which gender is the best to get, a male or female? I have a male and female rabbit and I strongly suggest anyone that gets a rabbit, get a male who is neutered. My female rabbit isn't spayed and she is VERY aggressive. Is this true in birds? If you have any good bird/parakeet sites let me know so I can check them out! Thanks again!

[Daisylover]

I just bought a book last weekend on parakeets as I really wanted a pair of them...I just love to hear birds chirping and singing...

At any rate the book advised that parakeets really like a lot of human attention, especially when there is only one of them...that's how they learn to talk and develop a bond with their caretaker.

I absolutely love my bunnies to death and wouldn't trade them in for anything. Yet with my work at the sanctuary and my "real" job at U Mich, I feel like they don't always get the amount of attention they deserve...I try and spend one hour each night sitting first with the gang on the first floor and then with Daisy on the 2nd floor. It doesn't always happen that way so then I feel guilty.
So now with parakeets needing a lot of attention as well....well, I've pretty much decided against getting them.
I just thought you should be aware that they will require a lot of interaction with you too.

[Bunnicula05]

As soon as I get off the bus from school I go down and let my buns out. I do my homework on the floor with them, I talk to them, etc...I usually spend all my time down there when I get home, unless I'm on the computer. My Mom is really gettin' upset with me cuz I don't spend enough time with my family. LOL. I try to tell her that the buns are part of our family too. I also heard that parakeets can get depressed when there is no one around and that there should always be somebody home to interact with them..........hmmmmmmmmm.........lol. Anyhow, I think if I get a parakeet they will have a better life in my house compared to were they were living with 20 other birds in a crammed caged at the pet store and hardly NO intereaction at all.

[Daisylover]

You've got a point there about them being better off with you than at the store. Maybe you need to get 2 !!! so they can keep each other company !!!

[Bunnicula05]

Yea, but I don't want them to have babies, so I gotta know how to tell males from females. Hehehe.........anybody know the difference?

[Sam's My Baby]

I have had 3 parakeets in my life, and let me tell you, they are so much fun! If I remember right, you can tell the difference between a male and a female parakeet by looking at the area around their nostrils. A males will be blue and the female's will be a dull brown. Parakeets really do enjoy each other's company, myne used to groom each other all the time. When I had one we had a little mirror in his cage and he always used to look at himself and talk to his reflection and peck at it, so we got another parakeet to keep him company. Keep in mind that parakeets can live up to 12 years. Parakeets often get respritory infections, which caused one of my parakeets deaths, so you need to keep them away from drafts. I hope u get a new feathered friend soon!
Here is a website about parakeets:
http://ca.essortment.com/budgiesparakeet_pbc.htm
and another:
http://www.petcraft.com/docs/budg.html

[Bunnicula05]

Hey, THANKS! Those are really cool sites!

[luckies4me]

Here is a pic of my Bourkes Australian Grass Parakeets. Sams right about the nostil thingy but you can't tell them aprat til they are older as that is when the color will show. The nares will be blue in a male and light brown or tan in the female. You should try to buy from a store that can sex the birds themself. Well the file was too big so I am putting my new avitar on my sig and this includes a pic of my birdies. I will scan a pic of my regular budgies at a later date.

[Bunnicula05]

OKay, I'm looking forward to those pics!

[lovemymaltese]

My bird that I had as a child was a cockatiel named Sunny. Her favorite treat was millet. You can pick it up just about anywhere. Also be sure to keep the wings clipped so that she cannot fly away, that is such a heartbreak when that happens. I hope that everything works out for you.

[Bunnicula05]

Thanks, I know a breeder and she sells them to Orscheln's but I said when she gets some more I want a baby budgie that yet cannot fly so we can bond ealier.