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The Good, The Bad and the Ugly about BUDGIES!

AzaleaMist

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Wait... Only the females make the annoying ack ack ack sound? The one that sounds like they are mad? Maybe I am thinking of a different sound because I have always considered it a scolding sound but I also have not heard Cuppy do it. Hmmmmm
 

cassiesdad

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Only the females make the annoying ack ack ack sound? The one that sounds like they are mad?
All my budgies make that noise when some other birdie invades their airspace or dares SIT on their cage! It is then followed by "Budgie Toe Patrol"...they try to bite any foot on the cage..:jawdrop1:
 

BeeBop

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The good: Very cute, fun personalities. I have only had one but in my experience they will get very bonded to you. BeeBop was bought from a pet store but he is very attached to me anyway. They are also not as much upkeep as larger birds.
The bad: Chirping constantly. All day. Not loud, but all day.
The ugly: Very fragile, short lifespan compared to other birds.
 

animallover9

Walking the driveway
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Nebraska
I have 4 budgies who all have noticeably different personalities but here is an over view from what I have experienced with my flock.

The Good: They are very active and love swings and especially jewel will go crazy on them swinging all around like a little monkey. They make some very beautiful noises and are not nearly as loud when they get worked up as bigger birds. If I close the door to the room they are in you cant even hear them. Mine are not tame but they are always curious what I am doing and one of my males will whistle back and forth with me.
The Bad: They are constantly making noise rarely are they ever silent. It isn't a loud noise but chirping all day long. My oldest female and kind of one of my males is very picky in what they eat. The female Lola will not touch any veggies or fruits and is very picky with the kind of pellets she will eat. It takes a lot to persuade Loki to eat as well but eventually he will. The younger two will eat anything and everything though.
The Ugly: There is no real ugly to them they are adorable little creatures who are a joy to have.
 

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Sky&Sunshine

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definitely a good idea for people who are wanting to get budgies, to read through this first!!
 

SquawksNibbles

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Kiera
I know this is a late reply, but why not share my experience?

Yes, Budgies are very social animals! It's important that you have two or more! However, sometimes my budgie, Skittles can act like a bully to my other, Nico. Sometimes he'll try to keep the birdbath to himself and he'll just try to start fights with Nico. Like pecking him in the face, or trying to anyway. Obviously, he's never drawn blood or actually injured him or anything. Plus, if you just make a "Pssst!" sound he'll stop. Overall, they're really bonded together and couldn't live without each other. They just have a tiny fight every once in a while. But don't let that scare anyone away from getting 2 or more Budgies, because you should!
 

Mer Boy

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Nice thread! I would love to adopt some budgies later down the track.
 

BeeBop

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Since I now have two budgies and a little more experience, why not update my “review”! :joyful:

The Good:
They are very comical and outgoing birds that will make you smile everyday. They also get excited a lot and its funny to watch them fluff their heads up and talk. Mine are like Velcro. Very hard to get them off my shoulder and back in the cage.

The Bad: Personally, I don’t find what I’m about to list as all that bad, but it might be for other prospective budgie owners. 1. They chirp ALL day. They aren’t super loud, but you might hear them in the next room, so that could be a con if your wanting to relax or do some work. 2. They don’t like to be touched. They will find their own way to be affectionate to you (flying to you, giving you kisses, nuzzling up to your nose, etc.) but don’t expect them to be a hands-on bird. 3. They are small. Ok, weird one, but take this into consideration. If they fly off around the house its hard to find them lol. Although they will chirp so that makes it easier.

The Ugly: They are pretty delicate. You don’t want dogs/cats/children who don’t know how to handle them, etc. around budgies. I had a close call with BeeBop and my dog once. The dog was just playing but BeeBop got roughed up and scared quite a bit. So be careful with that kind of stuff. Also if they can fly, there’s twice the risks (as with any parrot). Not saying that it’s bad to let them fly or anything just saying you have to be extra vigilant when they are flying. Edit: (Keeping doors and windows closed, pets away, making sure everyone in the house knows not to go outside, putting potential hazards away, etc.)

Ok sorry for that long post but hopefully it will help someone! Overall, I would recommend budgies in a heartbeat!! :heart:
 

Birdsareme

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I remember Floppy he was never a cuddle bird but would occasionally go on my shoulder and chirp but he died of liver disease I still miss him very much.
 

Milestone

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I'll talk about BBB.

The Good:
He is by far the most sweetest budgie (maybe even bird) I have had. He is very gentle, cuddly, and sounds beautiful pretty much all the time. I don't have a problem with his noise, it helps that he doesn't do that typical mad budgie sound much and he is a great talker. Loves to be rubbed on his head, even demands it 24/7 through the cage bars! He is an expert flyer now even though he used to suck, he flies to everyone to visit them. He's super patient with even toddlers poking at him.

The Bad: He's kinda messy (like all birds) . Picky about what he eats although he's not the worst. He refuses to eat spray millet anymore. Somewhat uptight about eating and drinking, things have to be perfect. He often eats at night in the pitch black. He goes through a somewhat depressed period when his cage is cleaned. And finally he's brave but sometimes stupid and jumpy. 1519517597015-752347776.jpg

The Ugly: ?
 

avieriley

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Just call me Avie (:
I have two rescue budgies, one boy, Buddy aka Mr. Noodles, and one girl, Valentine and they are my babies :) I have had them for a little over a year, so don't consider me an expert but I do love the little things :budgie::budgie: :heart::heart:

The GOOD: They are so sweet and affectionate to each other. They have so much love and care for each other, that I call them Romeo & Juliet sometimes haha. Also, although they are shy and standoffish sometimes I know they love me too. My mother is *not* a bird person (her words: "Bird people are weird" (love you mom)) but as soon as she met my budgies she fell in love like nobody's business. THEY ARE ADORABLE. What can I say about budgies? So many things. Boy I love the birds. Their chirping might be a little obnoxious sometimes but it is music to my ears:dance3::chickendance::ballerina:

The BAD: Not much. If you are busy busy like I am and aren't able to spend as much time with them as you want to/need to, then they get grumpy fast. They eat and poop a heck of a lot too. They are messy and can be loud. Their wings need clipping a lot too if you plan to do that. Otherwise I don't think any of that should deter you from getting a budgie unless you don't think you don't have enough time to give the attention and love they need. If you are busy, definitely get two budgies. Get two because they will keep each other company and won't be lonely when you're gone.

The UGLY: The only thing is, I have, and many people have, "bird fancier's lung" or an allergy to the dust that floats off their feathers and droppings. Yeah. My budgies make me sick, literally. It makes me really sad. I have to keep their cage far away from my room so they don't make me sick. I get flulike symptoms if I'm in an enclosed room with them for too long. I learned that the hard way when I kept their cage in my room with me. So just look out for that.

Much Love,
Avie Riley
 

SquawksNibbles

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Kiera
Will be writing based off the experience with my two guys, Skittles and Nico, :yfbudgie: :budgie: And my past Budgies - :pbbudgie: :budgie2:


THE GOOD: First off, they’re so entertaining to watch and interact with. Every day they bring a smile to my face. Whether it’s when they’re on a cage adventure, or they’re putting on a little head-bobbing dance for me, these little parrots crack me up! They’re also very curious critters. And they’re so sweet! In my experience, they aren’t very fond of hands, but they do love to perch on my shoulder/arm and preen my hair. They also don’t have very loud voices or beaks like other birds, though they can chirp and make noise as well. And they’re smart! They’re chirping is delightful to my ears.

THE BAD: Remember how I said that they’re very curious creatures? This is true, for my birds at least. Sometimes they get a little too curious. Always keep an eye on them when they’re out and about out of the cage - they could get themselves in to trouble. And although their chirping is not as loud as a larger bird’s, I would not exactly call it quiet either, in my experience at least. And it is a CONSTANT chirping, too. My birds chirp and squawk all day long; some may find it annoying. I love it because my birds and I have our own little thing where we chirp the same tune back to one another; and it sounds like I’m in nature. :D And my birds are actually pretty messy for being little creatures. They love to make a mess of their food, and when they’re finished with a foraging toy they will throw it on the floor. Definitely not as messy as larger birds like a ‘Too, but they do make messes, in my experience.

THE UGLY: Don’t have anything to say here...


I would not trade my Budgie boys for anything. Budgies are a wonderful animal that are just too cute! A lot of people refer to them as ‘great beginner birds.’ This label should not be on them as people then think it’s okay to try out bird ownership with them only to abandon them and go for the bigger birds. I stand by what others have said before, they are simply big personalities in a little body. There’s a reason why I’ve had Budgies all these years - they’re fascinating parrots that should not be underestimated.
 

Jiffy

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Elliana
What happened with me and my budgie, my dad got her for me when I was young, it was a surprise. I DO NOT recommend getting a child a surprise budgie (because it happens a lot.) Reason for this is because the child will more than likely not do the research, or take good care of it. I didn't when I first got her, she was miserable. It was a good thing I actually turned out to be a huge bird person when I got older. She had a sad childhood because I was still young and naive.

PS - - She's super happy and healthier now, she has been for a few years :) But it is foolish to think a child (In most cases) will give a bunch of love and bring good health to a bird. Just because they are very cheap does not mean you can just set it down and leave it to die. Wouldn't recommend buying any bird from a pet store either. Next budgie I get will definitely be from a bird breeder. Now that I've gotten that off my chest, let's talk about the whole topic this forum's about. This is in my experience as a budgerigar owner.


THE GOOD

There's a lot of good things about parakeets, one being how lovely and adorable they are... They aren't very expensive, so if you don't have a lot of money (money in the sense of owning a macaw) and you're a bird person I would recommend these cute birds. They do chirp, but most of their sounds are very pretty, unless they do an annoyed squawk, which in my case doesn't happen very often. If they are tamed, they have the potential to be super cuddly. Even though they are very small, each and every one of them have a huge unique personality. For example, mine doesn't like hand contact, or to cuddle, she refuses to eat fruits, she loves mirrors, but there are some that are the complete opposite :laugh: Their cages are super easy to clean, their poops are even easier to clean considering how small they get and how fast they dry. (mine watches TV.... it's super cute)



THE BAD
They are FU-SSY:faint: Mine personally will fly in circles when I bring my hands remotely close to her. Her bites are bad, but she doesn't latch on and stay there like a cockatiel would. She hates baths, which is very frustrating because they need one at least once a month, so it's he** trying to spray her with a water bottle. They are very picky eaters. Mine won't eat fruits and will only eat seeds (which is bad for a bird's diet). So I have to make sure I get her a seed brand that gives her all of nutrients and vitamins she would get in fruits. Very expensive compared to the regular seed blend you would buy... Another big issue that at least mine has, she won't take her frustration out on chew toys, like cardboard or paper toys. She won't even touch them, therefore she'll take her anger out on other things, like her cage bars, her mirrors... me :grumpy: BY the way, if you want to bond with your bird, and spend the majority f your time with it, I don't recommend putting mirrors in their cages. Since I just plopped them in her cage when I was younger, she bonded with all three of them, now if I take them away she will get depressed.


That's it, just remember to do tons upon tons of research before you get any animal, and you'll be set :)

:budgie4:Jem
:tielmu: :gcc3::budgie: Cinder, Kiwi, Jewel
R-I-P
 
Last edited:

SquawksNibbles

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Kiera
What happened with me and my budgie, my dad got her for me when I was young, it was a surprise. I DO NOT recommend getting a child a surprise budgie (because it happens a lot.) Reason for this is because the child will more than likely not do the research, or take good care of it. I didn't when I first got her, she was miserable. It was a good thing I actually turned out to be a huge bird person when I got older. She had a sad childhood because I was still young and naive.

PS - - She's super happy and healthier now, she has been for a few years :) But it is foolish to think a child (In most cases) will give a bunch of love and bring good health to a bird. Just because they are very cheap does not mean you can just set it down and leave it to die. Wouldn't recommend buying any bird from a pet store either. Next budgie I get will definitely be from a bird breeder. Now that I've gotten that off my chest, let's talk about the whole topic this forum's about. This is in my experience as a budgerigar owner.


THE GOOD


There's a lot of good things about parakeets, one being how lovely and adorable they are... They aren't very expensive, so if you don't have a lot of money (money in the sense of owning a macaw) and you're a bird person I would recommend these cute birds. They do chirp, but most of their sounds are very pretty, unless they do an annoyed squawk, which in my case doesn't happen very often. If they are tamed, they have the potential to be super cuddly. Even though they are very small, each and every one of them have a huge unique personality. For example, mine doesn't like hand contact, or to cuddle, she refuses to eat fruits, she loves mirrors, but there are some that are the complete opposite :laugh: Their cages are super easy to clean, their poops are even easier to clean considering how small they get and how fast they dry. (mine watches TV.... it's super cute)



THE BAD

They are FU-SSY:faint: Mine personally will fly in circles when I bring my hands remotely close to her. Her bites are bad, but she doesn't latch on and stay there like a cockatiel would. She hates baths, which is very frustrating because they need one at least once a month, so it's he** trying to spray her with a water bottle. They are very picky eaters. Mine won't eat fruits and will only eat seeds (which is bad for a bird's diet). So I have to make sure I get her a seed brand that gives her all of nutrients and vitamins she would get in fruits. Very expensive compared to the regular seed blend you would buy... Another big issue that at least mine has, she won't take her frustration out on chew toys, like cardboard or paper toys. She won't even touch them, therefore she'll take her anger out on other things, like her cage bars, her mirrors... me :grumpy: BY the way, if you want to bond with your bird, and spend the majority f your time with it, I don't recommend putting mirrors in their cages. Since I just plopped them in her cage when I was younger, she bonded with all three of them, now if I take them away she will get depressed.


That's it, just remember to do tons upon tons of research before you get any animal, and you'll be set :)

:budgie4:Jem
:tielmu: :gcc3::budgie: Cinder, Kiwi, Jewel
R-I-P


Thanks for adding your experience. Something similar happened to me when I was young: my parents got me a single female Budgie, Bella, when I was like 8. Well, you can imagine what happened - I took bad care of her, yet nobody corrected me because nobody in my family really knew about proper bird care. So even though we loved on her and gave her attention every day, she most likely suffered health and enrichment wise. She also died young because of a mistake I made with her food. I felt so guilty, and still do, because it was just a stupid mistake that should have been avoided. But the same thing that happened to you happened to me. I became a bigger bird person later in life and now I have my two Budgie boys who live better lives than Bella. R.I.P, Bella. :pbbudgie:

My two guys used to not shred much, either. But I did get them used to foraging and that led to them starting to shred some more. Now some paper or raffia makes a great shredding toy for them, as they’re still not huge on shredding and therefore don’t shred wood.

Again, same with the diet. My birds used to be seed-a-holics, but I introduced pellets and vegetables, and now they enjoy their daily chop and ZuPreem pellets. My birds don’t like fruits very much, and a lot of people here agree that fruits are not nearly as important as daily vegetables. Have you tried vegetables? If you get them liking chop, you might be able to sneak some chopped up fruit in their chop. But even then, fruit isn’t necessarily good for Budgies to get daily, as it’s higher in sugar and they don’t need all of that sugar.

:)
 

Garet

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The only bad-ish things I can think of in regards to my current Budgies is;
  1. They like to poop on their toys and in their bath.
  2. They do not play with their toys or use their bath.
  3. They somehow manage to stick their butts into the covered water dish to poop in their water as well. It's one of those external dishes.
  4. They think they can take on my lovebirds.
  5. Pikachu doesn't seem to realize that not everybirdy wants kisses.
  6. He doesn't want to give me Pikachu kisses. :(
 

Jiffy

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Elliana
@SquawksNibbles Thank you for telling me that. I have not tried vegetables yet, but I will definitely try it. I would put fruit in a separate bowel in her cage, and she wouldn't come close to it. So, I tried putting it outside of her cage while she was out, and she just avoids it. I can't necessarily offer it to her by hand, because she hates hands. I still have to introduce her to pellets next time I visit the bird store. Right now she eats a seed blend called Pure Fun by ZuPreem. Says it's a premium blend of seeds, Fruit Blend, Flavor Smart Pellets, Veggies, and Fruits. Click here if you want to see the bag. It's normally 12 dollars where I buy it. I do not have nearly as much space as I wanted, so when I move in a month or so it will be so much easier to introduce her to things such as chew toys, and new foods. I was also looking into buying some foraging food bowels :p:yfbudgie:
 

Lady Jane

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Wonderful reviews of budgies. A few comment:

Most birds drop in their water, not just budgies

Mine are very loud in the morning.

My female gets very possessive of her sleep area and will let you know it's all hers.

You are very fortunate if you have a budgie that is hands on.

 

Garet

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@Lady Jane I'm fine with them pooping in their water, I just wish I knew how they manage to fit their butts in their water dish! They're like poop magicians.
20180621_134425.jpg 20180621_134712.jpg
It couldn't have been easy for our phantom pooper.
 
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