Tail bobbing and sound breathing

[ABM]

If you have a handheld crevice tool on your vacuum, you can gently vacuum up the hulls but I always add fresh seed on top. Budgies can be particularly picky about which type of seed they like so until their tastes expand it is best to offer fresh seed daily. As far as the droppings go, they do look a bit watery but it is difficult to tell from the pics as I can't zoom in. This runny consistency could be due to many innocent reasons so is it possible to get a closer up pic?

The pictures are a combination of yesterday and this morning.

 

[ABM]

Question: do parakeets take 5-10min cat naps?.... Mine naps off on n off through the day. Tricky to find the right time to spend time

 

[Lori D Pert]

Question: do parakeets take 5-10min cat naps?.... Mine naps off on n off through the day. Tricky to find the right time to spend time

Yes they do. As long as they are active the rest of the time and not sitting puffed up all day small catnaps are normal. As far as the droppings, I'm not seeing anything to be worried about.

 

[ABM]

Yes they do. As long as they are active the rest of the time and not sitting puffed up all day small catnaps are normal. As far as the droppings, I'm not seeing anything to be worried about.

Thanks Lori!

 

[ABM]

Yes they do. As long as they are active the rest of the time and not sitting puffed up all day small catnaps are normal. As far as the droppings, I'm not seeing anything to be worried about.

Great!
So after a day of "trust coming outta the cage" he refuses to fly out....
I tried playing bird music to entice him to come out. Kept the cage door open practically all day (apart from when I'm out of the house)
Millet treats to get him out....

Anything that could have caused the back tracking

 

[ABM]

Birdie

He comes to the door most of the time and chirps away squawking away.... Why doesn't he come out ?

 

[Ripshod]

Fix a short perch outside the cage just under his door. That'll encourage him to take that step out and give him an easy way back in.

 

[Lori D Pert]

Birdie

He comes to the door most of the time and chirps away squawking away.... Why doesn't he come out ?

I would actually attach a few perches of different types outside his door opening. Maybe a ladder and a rope perch as well. And patience. Let him find his way along with his own confidence. Baby steps.

 

[ABM]

I would actually attach a few perches of different types outside his door opening. Maybe a ladder and a rope perch as well. And patience. Let him find his way along with his own confidence. Baby steps.

Yes...."patience"...the toughest hurdle. I think I just scared him by trying "too hard" to communicate . Will back up and try less privacy invasive methods

 

[ABM]

I would actually attach a few perches of different types outside his door opening. Maybe a ladder and a rope perch as well. And patience. Let him find his way along with his own confidence. Baby steps.

 

[ABM]

Birdie

1. Can anyone help me understand this behavior in the video...? Standing on one leg too.

2. I feel he's been itching more probably starting sign of molting perhaps. Do I need to give him a bath.... In the sense try spraying some water Would that help with the itch?

 

[Farfah]

The video behavior looks normal to me. If he was fluffing up on one foot, it might indicate he is cold but that's not the case.

You could mist him with some room temperature water. Some bird like to take baths. Mine like to play in their birdie bath tub which has a mirror. You could also try hanging a bunch of wet greens - some birds like to rub against leaves but mine never do.

You can also try to very gently scratch his head but this depends on the bird and how comfortable they are with you. Good luck and I hope you have a good vacuum for molting...

 

[ABM]

Birdie eating

Video above.

So I recently changed his seed feeder to this one. Earlier I just had a bowl of seeds in a stainless steel bowl.
With the new feeder I'm noticing a couple of changes.

1. It makes far more mess. A lot more seems to fall off on the tray below.
2. More importantly I feel he is constantly eating all day!!! Do parakeets overeat? Do I have to go back to the stainless steel bowl and give him just a certain amount of portion every day?

 

[Ingenarel]

You first have to understand what is tail bobbing.

Unlike people, birds lack a diaphragm that separates the chest cavity from the stomach. The muscles located at the base of the tail help birds breathe by playing a part in expanding their lungs for air intake.

If a bird is having trouble breathing, the tail muscles work harder, causing the tail to bob up and down.

If it's a slight tail bobbing, it's fine. It's not actually tail bobbing, it helps the budgies to keep balance and stay in the perch.

BUT, when it's a bigger one, like this one:

you have a respiratory illness, contact the vet ASAP

 

[ABM]

You first have to understand what is tail bobbing.

Unlike people, birds lack a diaphragm that separates the chest cavity from the stomach. The muscles located at the base of the tail help birds breathe by playing a part in expanding their lungs for air intake.

If a bird is having trouble breathing, the tail muscles work harder, causing the tail to bob up and down.

If it's a slight tail bobbing, it's fine. It's not actually tail bobbing, it helps the budgies to keep balance and stay in the perch.

BUT, when it's a bigger one, like this one:

you have a respiratory illness, contact the vet ASAP

Are you referring to my bird having an illness (seeing my video) or referring to your video?. Sorry just making sure.

 

[Ingenarel]

Are you referring to my bird having an illness (seeing my video) or referring to your video?. Sorry just making sure.

My video

 

[ABM]

Birdie eating


Video above.

So I recently changed his seed feeder to this one. Earlier I just had a bowl of seeds in a stainless steel bowl.
With the new feeder I'm noticing a couple of changes.

1. It makes far more mess. A lot more seems to fall off on the tray below.
2. More importantly I feel he is constantly eating all day!!! Do parakeets overeat? Do I have to go back to the stainless steel bowl and give him just a certain amount of portion every day?

 

[Lori D Pert]

Birdie eating


Video above.

So I recently changed his seed feeder to this one. Earlier I just had a bowl of seeds in a stainless steel bowl.
With the new feeder I'm noticing a couple of changes.

1. It makes far more mess. A lot more seems to fall off on the tray below.
2. More importantly I feel he is constantly eating all day!!! Do parakeets overeat? Do I have to go back to the stainless steel bowl and give him just a certain amount of portion every day?

Why did you change bowls? Was there a problem with the stainless steel bowl? Budgies graze all day and it can certainly seem like they are always eating but in reality they only take in small amounts at a time. I would not limit their food but do make sure that their dish has enough actual seed and is not full of already hulled seeds. They may also take in more food when they are moulting or simply becoming more active.

 

[ABM]

Why did you change bowls? Was there a problem with the stainless steel bowl? Budgies graze all day and it can certainly seem like they are always eating but in reality they only take in small amounts at a time. I would not limit their food but do make sure that their dish has enough actual seed and is not full of already hulled seeds. They may also take in more food when they are moulting or simply becoming more active.

I changed the bowl in the hope of:

Avoiding frequent refilling of seeds (Id have to frequently remove bowl and blow off the top hulls....as he would loudly chirp away, getting my attention till I removed hulls so he could eat the seeds below).

Also I wanted to use the stainless steel bowl for food other than seeds, like fruits/veggies.

Q: Should I just fill the feeder with 2 tbsp of seed mix once a day and let him eat as much he wants?
Or should I put the same 2 tbsp of seed mix in the stainless steel bowl?
I'm just unsure of how often I should be giving the seed mix.

Thanks.

 

[Farfah]

I like to make sure there is always food available. So I usually keep a cup of pellets full all day and put out a tablespoon of seed at a time. If you’re not feeding pellets, you should always have seed available.