Normal baby budgie behavior?

[lly00n]

I recently got an English budgie around 4 weeks old. I didn’t know until later that getting an unweaned bird wasn’t a good idea but the breeder told us it was fine at the time, and even tried to give us a featherless baby for free along with him. It’s not something I will ever repeat. But he has been doing very well with hand feeding, and started eating some millet. I was concerned about certain things/behaviors that he displays, but the vet said she doesn’t see anything wrong with him and that everything I was worried about is normal. I’m still a little concerned, so I just want to know if this behavior is normal for 4 week old budgies. (Also I am aware that English budgies display more strange behaviors because of their genetically engineered breeding. That’s why I’m a little unsure if it’s an issue with health, or if it’s just because he is a young 4 week old budgie.)
1. Puffing up a lot. He is often puffed up when he’s in a cage for short periods of playtime. When he’s not out, he’s in a little carrier with a towel and paper towels in it for warmth. Is it just because he’s cold…?
2. Sleeping all day. He falls asleep so fast… Even when my dogs are barking or there are sudden noises, he just sleeps wherever. This is a sign of sickness in adults, but is it in babies?
3. Leaning forward a lot and having bad balance/clumsy gait. With this, I thought it might be because he’s an English budgie. I’ve heard many experiences with English budgie owners who have said that their budgie acts in neurologically strange ways, despite vets saying that there is no problem. Also he is young, so his balance wouldn’t be the best. But it seems like he stumbles a lot even on flat surfaces.
4. For this one, I’m a bit unsure if it actually even happened. He started getting good at eating millet, and he’s showing interest in other foods I lay out, but doesn’t really eat them. While he was eating millet, I noticed that there were some in his poop? I know this is a really dangerous sign in budgies, but I’m still unsure if it was actually something he pooped out or if it just fell in there. There was a lot of millet on the floor, and one seed each in three poops. One of the seeds wasn’t unhusked. If he actually pooped them out, is it because he just started to eat them and can’t digest it properly? Or could it be PDD? He did throw up one time, which is what made us go to the vet in the first place. But the vet said that it just happens sometimes in baby birds, and he’s never done it again after that.
5. Poop stuck to his vent. It’s not clumped on there or anything, but it isn’t clear either. Since he’s still eating mostly hand formula (3 times a day), his poop is obviously very soft and brown with a lot of liquid expelled. It was like that when the vet checked him and she didn’t mention anything.
6. Head shaking. He usually only does this when we try to introduce a new food. He smells lettuce, kale, or seeds, and shakes his head. However, he does it pretty often in a row.
7. Farting and air in his shoulders. I suspect he does this to expel the air in his crop (he begs a lot and eats a lot air. His crop empties well though). I’m not too worried about this, but I checked the with vet because I was shocked at the air bubbles near his neck area. The vet just said those were his air sacs, but I was still unsure because there was food visible inside.
Other than that, he has been completely healthy and has a large appetite. He started to climb the bars of his future weaning cage that we let him play in a little. These are all signs of a sick bird in adult budgies, and him being a baby makes me a little more wary. So if anyone has more experience with baby budgies, please help me out! I want to give him a good life even though the breeder sold him too early.

 

[lly00n]

Here are some photos. I’m even questioning whether the age the breeder told me was accurate. He said that he was around 4 weeks and would be turning 5 weeks old, so I can start feeding him seeds. But some photos online are leading me to believe that he might be a little less than 4 weeks. Tell me what you think!

 

[Wardy]

@Ripshod

 

[Ripshod]

What a messy little boy!
Either age could be right, but what does that matter. Have you tried him with seed? If he can hull seeds okay then offer it freely along with some softened pellets. Offer some soft vegetables as well. If he eats seeds and pellets regularly then just maintain the formula when he begs for it ensuring a good feed before bedtime.

 

[Ripshod]

@Britnicorn has recent experience you may appreciate.

 

[Ripshod]

How I missed your first post I don't know.

1. Yes he may be feeling a little cold. But budgies will also fluff up when they're comfortable and resting.
2. Growing is exhausting so regular napping is common.
3. He doesn't have a full tail yet to help him with balance. His legs will get stronger too so no worries.
4. If you get some of the seed from his poop and it still has it's bull on it's likely just down to inexperience. If there's no Hull then it's likely he may need some probiotic added to his formula. He would naturally get this healthy gut flora from his mother.
5. Wet sticky poop is fine.
6. He doesn't want it, but don't stop offering
7. Just air in his crop. You've noted it goes down as his crop empties so don't worry too much. Have you tried spoon feeding yet?

 

[lly00n]

How I missed your first post I don't know.

1. Yes he may be feeling a little cold. But budgies will also fluff up when they're comfortable and resting.
2. Growing is exhausting so regular napping is common.
3. He doesn't have a full tail yet to help him with balance. His legs will get stronger too so no worries.
4. If you get some of the seed from his poop and it still has it's bull on it's likely just down to inexperience. If there's no Hull then it's likely he may need some probiotic added to his formula. He would naturally get this healthy gut flora from his mother.
5. Wet sticky poop is fine.
6. He doesn't want it, but don't stop offering
7. Just air in his crop. You've noted it goes down as his crop empties so don't worry too much. Have you tried spoon feeding yet?

haha no problem. Thank you for your response! What probiotics do you recommend me adding? And yes! I’ve been spoon feeding him around four times a day since we brought him home. I don’t think my feeding method is wrong? But I am suspecting that he might be aspirating a bit…
The “farting” noises that I’ve been hearing might be something else I’m concerned about. It sounds like a soft click that he makes a lot after eating and sporadically throughout the day. I mistook it for fartsHe also pants when he is in a warm place for a long time and adjusts his crop very often. Could this aspiration pneumonia…? Or some other respiratory issue?
Also he did sneeze a few times after the last time he ate. Two of the sneezes were wet, but it was clear like water and didn’t come back again so I’m not too concerned about that. But I’m still very paranoid LOL… sigh. It’s pretty difficult to distinguish whether he’s just acting like a normal baby English budgie or if he has an underlying illness I’m unaware of. I want to take him to see an avian specialist… but my parents don’t want to spend that much money if there’s no vivid signs of illness

 

[lly00n]

haha no problem. Thank you for your response! What probiotics do you recommend me adding? And yes! I’ve been spoon feeding him around four times a day since we brought him home. I don’t think my feeding method is wrong? But I am suspecting that he might be aspirating a bit…
The “farting” noises that I’ve been hearing might be something else I’m concerned about. It sounds like a soft click that he makes a lot after eating and sporadically throughout the day. I mistook it for fartsHe also pants when he is in a warm place for a long time and adjusts his crop very often. Could this aspiration pneumonia…? Or some other respiratory issue?
Also he did sneeze a few times after the last time he ate. Two of the sneezes were wet, but it was clear like water and didn’t come back again so I’m not too concerned about that. But I’m still very paranoid LOL… sigh. It’s pretty difficult to distinguish whether he’s just acting like a normal baby English budgie or if he has an underlying illness I’m unaware of. I want to take him to see an avian specialist… but my parents don’t want to spend that much money if there’s no vivid signs of illness

Okay I think the noises that he makes after eating are sneezes. I’ve compared the sound to many budgie sneezes online and it sounds very similar. Is it still normal for them to sneeze a lot right after eating and occasionally throughout the day?

 

[lly00n]

Okay I think the noises that he makes after eating are sneezes. I’ve compared the sound to many budgie sneezes online and it sounds very similar. Is it still normal for them to sneeze a lot right after eating and occasionally throughout the day?

Update: after today’s feeding he only made that clicking sound once and that’s it.

 

[Ripshod]

Sounds like he's getting some formula up his nares - no surprise looking at his just-fed face.
Kepp listening though. If he starts clicking again without a feed then he may have aspirated a little. The risk is low though since you're using a spoon.
I see @Zara has given you good advice in the other thread.

 

[lly00n]

Sounds like he's getting some formula up his nares - no surprise looking at his just-fed face.
Kepp listening though. If he starts clicking again without a feed then he may have aspirated a little. The risk is low though since you're using a spoon.
I see @Zara has given you good advice in the other thread.

He just sneezed again. I think he has aspirated a little, but I’m not sure how because he has been bobbing his head with a spoon. I’m considering taking him back to the breeder because I found out from an avian vet that it’s illegal for them to sell an unweaned bird. Anyways. Thank you for your response!