Getting prepared for my special needs budgie

[Arin]

Hello to everyone! I have a baby budgie in the nest who has splayed legs. I have tied the legs but so far no success (I tied them since she/he was 1-2 weeks). A lot of people have been saying that they don’t think she/he will overcome his/her splayed legs so I thought about making a thread here. I have a lot of questions (because this will be my first time) such as:

Cage setup ideas? Pictures? Videos?
Your experiences with splayed legged birds?
Different diet?
Physiotherapy?
Clip his/her wings?
Anything else I need to know?
I am also looking for a name for this little one (she/he has black wings, a white face with black dots and a blue body)
What about the name Legs? I got the name after I saw a thread for splayed legged parrot called Legs

Thanks and sorry for having so much question, I bet I am very annoying

 

[Kiwi & Co.]

@Ripshod

 

[Mybluebird]

Oh no! Please don't name your baby Legs - instead name him/her after a personality trait that you notice or after your best friend, favorite actor, someone you admire, etc.

Sorry I can't help with his/her problem but there are others on here who can help. So glad you are thinking ahead to make life comfortable for the little one.

 

[Arin]

Oh no! Please don't name your baby Legs - instead name him/her after a personality trait that you notice or after your best friend, favorite actor, someone you admire, etc.

Sorry I can't help with his/her problem but there are others on here who can help. So glad you are thinking ahead to make life comfortable for the little one.

Alright, I will keep searching for a name and thanks for the suggestion

 

[Kiwi & Co.]

Name ideas:

Jupiter
Typhoon
Violet
Zephyr
Nebula

 

[Zara]

I agree, legs is not a nice name IMO.

Please do not clip the bird. I have a lovie with a closed foot, and because she has her wings, she has been able to upgrade into a flight cage. Her wings really do help her get around the cage to different perches and areas.

@iamwhoiam may have some good ideas

 

[Arin]

Name ideas:

Jupiter
Typhoon
Violet
Zephyr
Nebula

Wow thanks! I will wait for her/him to actually come out the nest and then I will give him/her a name.

 

[Arin]

I agree, legs is not a nice name IMO.

Please do not clip the bird. I have a lovie with a closed foot, and because she has her wings, she has been able to upgrade into a flight cage. Her wings really do help her get around the cage to different perches and areas.

@iamwhoiam may have some good ideas

Yeah know I think about it Legs is not a nice name

Yeah I wasn't sure about clipping either because it can cause many mental and health issues but just wanted to confirm so thanks. I think I saw your thread about your bird, Adelaye (I think that's how you spell it)

 

[Ripshod]

I really had little experience with my only splay legged budgie, she passed surprisingly early. It's about watching your budgie to see what you can do to help it. My Holly could latch onto perches with her front toes so I vet wrapped her perches so she could latch on securely. Then other than adding a couple of platform perches I let her live her life with the flock and she did really well.
Please don't get it clipped, that'll just be another disability, and an unnecessary one at that. Let your budgie enjoy itself.

 

[Arin]

I really had little experience with my only splay legged budgie, she passed surprisingly early. It's about watching your budgie to see what you can do to help it. My Holly could latch onto perches with her front toes so I vet wrapped her perches so she could latch on securely. Then other than adding a couple of platform perches I let her live her life with the flock and she did really well.
Please don't get it clipped, that'll just be another disability, and an unnecessary one at that. Let your budgie enjoy itself.

Aww sorry for your loss. My baby just lies flat on the floor but I will wait for weaning to see how he/she is then.
I am definitely not going to get him/her clipped now. I agree with you completely and wouldn't want to put him/her through the mental and health issues following it.

 

[iamwhoiam]

No experience with birds with splayed legs but do have experience with my sparrow, Spee, who has two non-functional legs and one sort of functional foot. He has never been able to perch but was able to pull himself up onto things with the one "good" foot. He's 12 years old now and having more difficulty with mobility. Spee has a resting bowl that is lined with paper towels. I set up some ramps for him once but he would not use them. He would generally fly to get to places in his cage. If he was on the side opposite his bowl, he would fly to the bowl and land inside it (perfect landing, btw). Doesn't do that any more. Your bird will have much more mobility than Spee. His food and water dish are adjacent to his resting bowl so he can easily reach into them to eat and drink. I have done some gentle manipulation with Spee's legs to exercise them but don't do much of that any more. He doesn't like it very much and gets stressed. Spee does have a multi-branched natural perch on the bottom of his cage and he sort of perches on it = he puts his "good" foot on it. He has an inverted rectangular food dish that is wrapped with a paper towel. He used to rest on it sometimes. Now he uses it for support when he gets to that area of the cage.


I also have a 'tiel, Callisto, who has a broken foot that never healed properly. She doesn't have the best grip with that foot and 3 toes are usually forward instead of 2. She can generally perch OK but has difficulty when it comes to climbing. Climbs up the bars OK but has difficulty climbing down. Her water and food dishes are low and placed near the perches for easy access. She also has a vet wrapped platform.

You need to observe what your bird is able to do. How well does he/she perch, how well can he/she climb, etc.
I recommend using flattish types of perches if you can find those or regular perches and vet wrap those. Also get platforms and those can be vet wrapped, too. See how your bird does moving around in the cage. You may need to get multiple platforms and put them at different levels. You can also consider getting a ladder to help with climbing.
Keep everything low until you can see how he/she fares moving around the cage. Also get a cage that is wider than it is high.
Do not clip the wings!

I'm not a fan of the name "Legs". Base on name on your bird's personality, colors or something that interests you. Try out different names and see if any of them are a good match. Sometimes it takes me a long time to name my birds.

 

[Arin]

No experience with birds with splayed legs but do have experience with my sparrow, Spee, who has two non-functional legs and one sort of functional foot. He has never been able to perch but was able to pull himself up onto things with the one "good" foot. He's 12 years old now and having more difficulty with mobility. Spee has a resting bowl that is lined with paper towels. I set up some ramps for him once but he would not use them. He would generally fly to get to places in his cage. If he was on the side opposite his bowl, he would fly to the bowl and land inside it (perfect landing, btw). Doesn't do that any more. Your bird will have much more mobility than Spee. His food and water dish are adjacent to his resting bowl so he can easily reach into them to eat and drink. I have done some gentle manipulation with Spee's legs to exercise them but don't do much of that any more. He doesn't like it very much and gets stressed. Spee does have a multi-branched natural perch on the bottom of his cage and he sort of perches on it = he puts his "good" foot on it. He has an inverted rectangular food dish that is wrapped with a paper towel. He used to rest on it sometimes. Now he uses it for support when he gets to that area of the cage.


I also have a 'tiel, Callisto, who has a broken foot that never healed properly. She doesn't have the best grip with that foot and 3 toes are usually forward instead of 2. She can generally perch OK but has difficulty when it comes to climbing. Climbs up the bars OK but has difficulty climbing down. Her water and food dishes are low and placed near the perches for easy access. She also has a vet wrapped platform.

You need to observe what your bird is able to do. How well does he/she perch, how well can he/she climb, etc.
I recommend using flattish types of perches if you can find those or regular perches and vet wrap those. Also get platforms and those can be vet wrapped, too. See how your bird does moving around in the cage. You may need to get multiple platforms and put them at different levels. You can also consider getting a ladder to help with climbing.
Keep everything low until you can see how he/she fares moving around the cage. Also get a cage that is wider than it is high.
Do not clip the wings!

I'm not a fan of the name "Legs". Base on name on your bird's personality, colors or something that interests you. Try out different names and see if any of them are a good match. Sometimes it takes me a long time to name my birds.

Thanks a lot for the suggestions. I will most certainly try the bowl approach you have used! I was thinking about physio therapy because I want to help as much as I can even if it gives the slightest of results. I will just have to wait for her to come out of the nest or be fully feathered to try everything out. Im just making a lot of notes and cage setup ideas right now.
Clipping the wings is now completely crossed off!
Yeah, know I think about it the name "Legs isn't so good after all. I will wait a while but I also got a name suggestion for Bambi which I think is kinda cute.
Thanks alot for all the advice

 

[tka]

Tagging @enigma731 - she's had some disabled birds

Really I think it's about trying to give them as full a life as possible and setting up their environment so they aren't further disabled by it. You'll have to see what your little one is capable of and respond to their individual needs.

Have you seen an avian vet about this baby? If they're young enough, splayed legs can be corrected but you do need expert guidance on this.

 

[Arin]

Tagging @enigma731 - she's had some disabled birds

Really I think it's about trying to give them as full a life as possible and setting up their environment so they aren't further disabled by it. You'll have to see what your little one is capable of and respond to their individual needs.

Have you seen an avian vet about this baby? If they're young enough, splayed legs can be corrected but you do need expert guidance on this.

Yeah I agree with giving them as full a life as possible and I am just waiting for him/her to grow up so I know what he/she is capable of.
I am getting a call by my vet tomorrow regarding their father as he seems unwell. I will ask the vet about the baby aswell

 

[tka]

I don't know if you're aware of it, but it looks like there's a specialist avian and exotics practice in Manchester

Avian and Exotics Clinic

We offer specialised treatment for exotic animals including birds, reptiles and small mammals | Local Exotic Animal Vets in Chorlton

www.vets4exotics.com

 

[Arin]

I don't know if you're aware of it, but it looks like there's a specialist avian and exotics practice in Manchester

Avian and Exotics Clinic

We offer specialised treatment for exotic animals including birds, reptiles and small mammals | Local Exotic Animal Vets in Chorlton

www.vets4exotics.com

Oh I didn’t know but thanks. The vet I’m with currently does have avian specialists. I would have made an appointment to go to my vet but at the moment it’s emergencies only because of corona so they said they will do a video consultation some time today. Maybe they will then make me an appointment, I am not sure because I am pretty new to my vet surprisingly.

 

[Mybluebird]

Let us know how it turns out. A video consult is less stressful for the baby budgie. Good luck, hope the vet can give you a plan to help the little guy (or gal).

 

[Arin]

Update about the vet:
He called and asked about my budgie that is unwell and he booked an appointment for me to see him tomorrow. I will then take pictures and videos of the baby so he can look at them. I may need to book a separate appointment for the little one but for now I will have to wait

 

[iamwhoiam]

Keep us updated. Hope the dad will be OK.

 

[Arin]

Keep us updated. Hope the dad will be OK.

Thanks. I will be going in an hour, fingers crossed