The Good, The Bad and the Ugly about BUDGIES!

[DesertBird]

I wrote this in another thread, but I was asked to put this here too.

I think it's really important that people new to the parrot world are able to make educated decisions about what parrot they are going to get, so they don't end up with a bird they can't properly care for.

Let me start this by saying that I love budgies. They're smart, funny, and relatively low maintenance (in relation to other parrots). Not to mention their incredible cuteness. But, I do not think they are suitable for most beginner parrot owners. Let me explain why.

-Budgies can be difficult to feed. Though their diet is nothing complicated (seed mix, pellets, and fresh vegetables), most budgies are weaned onto seeds. This means that the only thing most baby budgies are used to eating is seeds, and they can be very stubborn when it comes to trying new foods.

-Budgies are small, and therefore more timid than other parrot species. This makes them less likely to bond closely with humans, especially if you have more than one (which is recommended). Of course, you can absolutely have a bond with a budgie, but gaining their trust can be hard and requires a lot of time and patience. This can be very frustrating for new parrot owners.

-Because they are more timid, they can be harder to train. They are very smart and can learn lots of fun tricks, but it definitely takes time and dedication to teach them things. It's easier to train them if you already have experience training parrots.

So, for any people looking to get their first parrot, please consider if you can really dedicate a lot of time and effort into training and socializing a budgie. They can make amazing pets, but you really need to work hard to form a bond with them.
There are so many people that get budgies because they see them at Petco, where they are advertised as great beginner pets. But the reality is, they need a lot more care and attention than people realize. So, before getting a budgie, please ask yourself, is a budgie right for you?

 

[Aksarben]

Budgies can be difficult to feed. Though their diet is nothing complicated (seed mix, pellets, and fresh vegetables), most budgies are weaned onto seeds. This means that the only thing most baby budgies are used to eating is seeds, and they can be very stubborn when it comes to trying new foods.

I'm a new Budgerigar/Budgie/Parakeet owner, never having any Budgies until around first of December of 2021. I got them to eat Roudybush Nibbles pellets on a totally pellet diet in about 5 days. I weigh how much they consume each day and they eat about 10 grams between the two. I do give them seeds and Roudybush pellets during the day in hand feedings, and they are getting used to the "HAND" that way and since they are in the kitchen just a few feet away from my laptop, they see me and activity during the day.

If not Parakeets for a new parrot owner, then what parrot would be a better choice for someone looking to get a parrot? I've heard Lovebirds are biters. The bigger the beak the bigger the bite. Just how many fingers does one loose to become a "seasoned" parrot owner?? Laughing

 

[DesertBird]

I'm a new Budgerigar/Budgie/Parakeet owner, never having any Budgies until around first of December of 2021. I got them to eat Roudybush Nibbles pellets on a totally pellet diet in about 5 days. I weigh how much they consume each day and they eat about 10 grams between the two. I do give them seeds and Roudybush pellets during the day in hand feedings, and they are getting used to the "HAND" that way and since they are in the kitchen just a few feet away from my laptop, they see me and activity during the day.

If not Parakeets for a new parrot owner, then what parrot would be a better choice for someone looking to get a parrot? I've heard Lovebirds are biters. The bigger the beak the bigger the bite. Just how many fingers does one loose to become a "seasoned" parrot owner?? Laughing

I'm glad your budgies took to the new food quickly. However, just because your birds are like that, doesn't mean that everyone's budgies are like that too. I also never said that beginners can't have budgies. What I said was that they may not be the best choice for everyone, and they aren't as easy to take care of as people think.

 

[Sparkles99]

They were definitely the best choice for me.

 

[DesertBird]

They were definitely the best choice for me.

For me too. They are just so precious!

 

[Aksarben]

If there was another parrot species that is better for beginners than Budgies, then what would that be? African Gray? Conure?

 

[Sparkles99]

I don’t think whether or not you’ve had birds before has any bearing on what species is best for you. Space, time, budget, ethical considerations & comfort level with a wild animal won’t necessarily change just because you’ve had budgies before.

I will always keep budgies!

 

[FeatheredM]

The good: they are very gentle, their tiny beaks may hurt once in awhile, but you can bet that you won't get hurt. They are very smart, so training them is alot of fun. They also are so different from each other, such big personalities
Bad: despite the tiny, they can get messy! Compared to other birds, they are not really. But deos not change the fact that they are messy.
Ugly:they are easily spooked, so you have to be careful to sneeze quietly, not knock anything over. I've flipped a page of a book, and they freaked out. They are very hard to tame, so you have to be super consistent

 

[PRETTYBOY]

Ahhhh UGLY not UGLE, sorry!

I´ll go first

The Good: Well, they are adorable, very sweet and quite ¨cheap¨to keep. Cheap in the sense that I am sure the quantity of food they consume is much smaller than that of a macaw and the toys for tiny birds are also cheaper than those for big birds, and they last longer. Mine last forever but my birds are not avid chewers. Budgies don´t have temper tantrums (at leats mine don´t), they are very emotionally ¨stable¨ and chirpy. They are active, curious, playful little clowns.
They are great apartment birds. Mine are never aggressive and they are never territorial. The females can be little meanies sometimes!

The Bad: For me that would be their relatively fragile health and short lifespan. They are extremely picky with food and they are known to rather starve to death than eat pellets instead of seed, for example. Very stubborn. I´ve also read egg-binding and liver problems and tumors are a common issue. Also, if you don´t like hearing chirp chirp chirp squawk squawk ACK ACK all day long, a budgie is not for you They are not loud but the noise is constant. Especially if you´re watching a movie. Get headphones!

Also, if you get a bird from a budgie bin at a random pet store, getting it to trust you takes a very long time and a lot of patience. I know many people say they are not cuddly birds (mine are not) but they CAN be, it depends on the individual bird. However, like I said, taming them takes an eternity. It is worth it though. But if you´re looking for a bird that will sleep in your shirt from day 1, a budgie might not be for you. And they are very skittish.

Another thing is that they do better in pairs or groups. They are extremely sociable creatures and they´re wired instinctually and behaviorally to be part of a flock. Depriving them of a flock is, well, a little sad. Then again, a budgie will always choose another bird over you, so it might be disappointing (for you).

The Ugly: Can´t really think of anything here...

yes...agree with everything posted by others on Good/Bad/Ugly - but after 4 budgies - my current (4th) budgie is AMAZING when it comes to interaction. This my summary including some of my current budgie's antics:

THE BAD:
* taming does take a LOT of patience
* Impossible to 'poop' train. Had a friend with a king Parrot that never pooped on you - she prompted it to "do poopies" in a jar lid much like an ashtray. Try that with a budgie.
* 'cage anxiety' - they will fly back to their cage if you take them too far away and they can see their cage or know their way back to it from another room. Getting their wings clipped solves this problem - when budgies know they can't fly, they rarely try ...unless spooked.
* Skittish - fear of unfamiliar objects - new toys etc. They spook easily ...although this depends on their personality and the environment they were reared in. Hand-reared birds (outside of a cag) are more curious than nervous about objects - I had a hand-reared budgie that would chew and play with anything new - no fear (but he was exceptional).
* THE WORST: They scare easily and can hurt themselves in a cage when spooked. They will try to take flight when other birds scatter or get alarmed. If their wings are too harshly clipped they will nose-dive off your shoulder and hurt themselves. I had a clipped budgie that went everywhere with me on my shoulder but he was easily spooked and injured himself.
* Fussy eaters - the most i could get them to eat (apart from seed) was shredded carrot, spinach leaves and corn, some even nibbled my wholemeal toast, but it takes forever to get them to try something other than seed - they even they pick out their favourite seed (usually millet) and leave the rest unless they are Very hungry.
THE GOOD:
* Can Be Very playful - they love games - depends on human interaction. Even non-handraised budgies will warm to you if you put in the time. Clipped budgie's spend more time on you so more playful. I had one that would run down my arm when i was watching TV, chew my watch strap and run back up my arm when i tried to grab him with my other hand. Soon developed into his favourite game: single-handed 'budgie wrestling'. He'd play until he fell asleep on my lap or upside down in my shirt pocket. Sometimes when you play with their toys they join in - current budgie loves it when i hang his pendulum ball on the outside of his cage and I tap it to make it swing. He quickly joins in and chirps and gets excited and we play together. He'll fly onto my hand or climb down the cage to play "pendulum". If i'm busy he'll prompt me to play by hitting the ball himself and looking over at me and bobbing his head up and down. The secret to developing this rapport is to position their cage near you (i work at home at my PC) and to PUT IN THE TIME. Play with them and talk to them and handle them on and off a few hours every day.
* They are intelligent and have plenty of EQ. If you spend enough time with them they get to know your moods - happy/sad etc, they absolutely know when you are laughing and that encourages them to play (and bite) ... and they know the difference between playfulness and tenderness. When you have a parrot or parakeet that backs off on the biting pressure after you make the right sounds, and they also know never to bite you again in the wrong places (i.e. the face) ...and they never bite you hard when you are helping them ... well these are signs of EQ.
* They can be affectionate - but it takes a lot of interaction to get there. Prettyboy can play hard and bite hard but there are rare moments when he will actually return a kiss by very gently pecking my lip or mouth and sometimes offering up a regurgitated seed (Yuk). Budgies make a sort of chuffing sound - its very subtle and easy to miss - and you won't hear it in a noisy room - but its definitely a sign of affection.
* They can talk - really well. "Hello pretty boy", "yes you are", "what-ya-doen" "kiss kiss kiss" "yes you are" and "thankyou" which is really embarrassing because it sounds like "heck you" to every visitor.
THE UGLY:
Like all parrots - they can bite hard!
They only have a beak to explore and interact with and so naturally they like to bite when they play - and a socialized budgie will rarely hurt you when playing or objecting to being touched - but they can lose control when they get really excited during play. They don't mean to...it doesn't make them vicious ... they just lapse into instinctive biting and get a bit carried away - and that's when they can bite really hard. You'll notice their pupils contract to a pinpoint - almost disappear - and their eyes become whited out when they lose control - same thing happens when their humping your hand (as my budgie does). They don't mean to ... its simply a lapse into instinctive behaviour.

 

[NEVRM0RE_]

Budgies it was a crow of all things that led me to adopting our first budgie.

The good: First of all - they are ADORABLE. Luckily and...crucial to the survival of...all of us, My budgies are completely unphased by the chaos of my 3 children. CHAOS. Wrestling, screaming, light up toys, costumes, furniture gymnastics, video game loss melt downs. They socialize with all of them (except the youngest, but we have worked really hard to teach him bird boundaries). Their personalities are SO big and funny. Our budgies were really "easy" to train. We didn't really....do anything specific we just gave them space and time, and never tried to force ourselves on them, or into their space. Our first budgie was a baby who was seed fed, she took to pellets and chop immediately without issue, our 2nd budgie was a rescue so he came from a large "community" cage and was more wild initially and less confident (still is) but the rescue also fed pellets and chop so we had no challenges there. Although Bartok, our resident queen B DOES bite - mostly only me, she has never drawn blood!!! Or done any damage.

I notice a lot of people mentioned like..even tempered or...not temper tantrummy and I have to say, that hasn't been my experience. Bartok is SAH dramatic with her temper but its also my favorite thing about her. I am the only person she won't let give her scritches. We have a routine of sorts and if I break it - she expresses her displeasure by knocking stuff over in her cage and the budgie equivalent of cussing me out with her bleep bleep bleeps. If I dare pay attention to Mordi (our male Budgie - poor soul, I suspect he has stockholm syndrome) she dominates him (swoops in, bites his feet & tail). If he ever considers trying to perch on me she intercepts - like literally knocks him out of the air. His confidence has grown, and he asserts himself back (thankfully). Although she is sassy, she has never injured Mordi (drawn blood or caused visible damage). There have been...supply chain issues all over the place so I have tried to feed a combo of pellets 2/3 types at a time to promote flexibility in their...palates and while they both transitioned "easily" I will say they are completely inflexible in the pellets they will eat. Roudybush, and tops. Nothing else.
If Bartok isn't happy with SOMETHING in her bowls she will storm the cage and knock every single one down hooks and all. If we are "late" to refill something (if chop is thawing or her water bowl has "noodles") she will knock the hooks over, dump the bowls and relentlessly ring the bell toys that are near the offending bowl.
Oh!!! Mordi learned to talk relatively quickly with...no effort on our end!!! He says "mordi" "step up" and "good baby". I guess....one medium ugly side effect of that is that Bartok is insanely jealous of his special talent, so she targets him when we show interest in his speech. The flip side to that is that she is DESPERATE to get the same interest/approval, she tries SO HARD to talk but so far, nothing discernable comes out. They are both super lovey, fluffy budgie long blinks and chatter are SO special.
Oh!!!! When friends and family heard the 2 biggest warnings we received were 1. BUDGIES ARE SO NOISY and 2. BUDGIES ARE SO MESSY.
They arent...quiet, they are always chattering away but their noise level is bearable, peaceful even. They dont scream!!! 2. They are messy BUT its not unbearable. My kids are WAY messier. My 80lb special needs dog was WAYYYYY MESSIER. Puppies are SO MUCH MESSIER. Even cats. Sure my budgies poop on furniture and the floor, but their poop wipes away and doesnt stink. Chronic ear infections from a dog, and cat poop/litter/cling ons from a cat are way more ick. Also, the comparison of our dog to our birds - our dog required regular veterinary care, medication, physio and special food that cost us hundreds to thousands of dollars a month (there was also a weird time where I stalked butchers when they slaughtered cattle in our area for icky bits to save on food costs and nights spent elbow deep in those icky bits that I will never miss). Our budgie vet check ups, and food are not even a fraction of that cost. I will never NOT have budgies if I can help it. I wouldnt call anything on my list bad or ugly, perhaps...cautionary if you are planning on bringing home a low maintenance "starter" companion.

 

[Scorpi0]

Budgies it was a crow of all things that led me to adopting our first budgie.

The good: First of all - they are ADORABLE. Luckily and...crucial to the survival of...all of us, My budgies are completely unphased by the chaos of my 3 children. CHAOS. Wrestling, screaming, light up toys, costumes, furniture gymnastics, video game loss melt downs. They socialize with all of them (except the youngest, but we have worked really hard to teach him bird boundaries). Their personalities are SO big and funny. Our budgies were really "easy" to train. We didn't really....do anything specific we just gave them space and time, and never tried to force ourselves on them, or into their space. Our first budgie was a baby who was seed fed, she took to pellets and chop immediately without issue, our 2nd budgie was a rescue so he came from a large "community" cage and was more wild initially and less confident (still is) but the rescue also fed pellets and chop so we had no challenges there. Although Bartok, our resident queen B DOES bite - mostly only me, she has never drawn blood!!! Or done any damage.

I notice a lot of people mentioned like..even tempered or...not temper tantrummy and I have to say, that hasn't been my experience. Bartok is SAH dramatic with her temper but its also my favorite thing about her. I am the only person she won't let give her scritches. We have a routine of sorts and if I break it - she expresses her displeasure by knocking stuff over in her cage and the budgie equivalent of cussing me out with her bleep bleep bleeps. If I dare pay attention to Mordi (our male Budgie - poor soul, I suspect he has stockholm syndrome) she dominates him (swoops in, bites his feet & tail). If he ever considers trying to perch on me she intercepts - like literally knocks him out of the air. His confidence has grown, and he asserts himself back (thankfully). Although she is sassy, she has never injured Mordi (drawn blood or caused visible damage). There have been...supply chain issues all over the place so I have tried to feed a combo of pellets 2/3 types at a time to promote flexibility in their...palates and while they both transitioned "easily" I will say they are completely inflexible in the pellets they will eat. Roudybush, and tops. Nothing else.
If Bartok isn't happy with SOMETHING in her bowls she will storm the cage and knock every single one down hooks and all. If we are "late" to refill something (if chop is thawing or her water bowl has "noodles") she will knock the hooks over, dump the bowls and relentlessly ring the bell toys that are near the offending bowl.
Oh!!! Mordi learned to talk relatively quickly with...no effort on our end!!! He says "mordi" "step up" and "good baby". I guess....one medium ugly side effect of that is that Bartok is insanely jealous of his special talent, so she targets him when we show interest in his speech. The flip side to that is that she is DESPERATE to get the same interest/approval, she tries SO HARD to talk but so far, nothing discernable comes out. They are both super lovey, fluffy budgie long blinks and chatter are SO special.
Oh!!!! When friends and family heard the 2 biggest warnings we received were 1. BUDGIES ARE SO NOISY and 2. BUDGIES ARE SO MESSY.
They arent...quiet, they are always chattering away but their noise level is bearable, peaceful even. They dont scream!!! 2. They are messy BUT its not unbearable. My kids are WAY messier. My 80lb special needs dog was WAYYYYY MESSIER. Puppies are SO MUCH MESSIER. Even cats. Sure my budgies poop on furniture and the floor, but their poop wipes away and doesnt stink. Chronic ear infections from a dog, and cat poop/litter/cling ons from a cat are way more ick. Also, the comparison of our dog to our birds - our dog required regular veterinary care, medication, physio and special food that cost us hundreds to thousands of dollars a month (there was also a weird time where I stalked butchers when they slaughtered cattle in our area for icky bits to save on food costs and nights spent elbow deep in those icky bits that I will never miss). Our budgie vet check ups, and food are not even a fraction of that cost. I will never NOT have budgies if I can help it. I wouldnt call anything on my list bad or ugly, perhaps...cautionary if you are planning on bringing home a low maintenance "starter" companion.

Amen!!!