Need advice regarding aquiring more birds

[Spreckles]

Well here is a little update to my post. I took the parakeet back today. I don't know if I am nervous Nellie with birds or have good instincts or not. I was worried about this bird. At the store he seemed happy with the other birds. I thought perhaps the bird just needed time to adjust from being stuffed in a box and driven in a car. BUT How LONG do you wait?????? Poor thing was petrified and sat on the swing or the perch not moving, didn't eat or drink wasn't in a relaxed posture kind of hunched looking.

Birds do make me a little nervous because I am on a learning curve here. Maybe the bird would have settled down and been fine but I figured 24 hours was long enough to try and nibble on something. At least check out the cage???? Was that too much to expect to fast?

I am a rock with humans because I know what to do. Little critters??? Well I hope to learn what to do. In the mean time he ( have no idea what sex) went back to Petco to let them sort out if he is healthy, sick, or just terrified. Not my stomach ache now.

I did take someone's advice, Elana's I think. Since I had a credit with the Finch Farm I ordered A White Crested Society bird and a Blue Capped Cordon blue female.

Last night with a big bird in town, locked in too by the way, my little Spreckles and Blue got into the finch nest TOGETHER!!!! They have never done that. Spreckles PS was up on top of the cage the parakeet was in, talking to it and looking at it but the parakeet did not respond. I cleaned up the cage so that was that. I don't think it even pooped didn't see anything.

Dylan I hope to become a bird whisperer too, just have to take it slower.

[Sheather]

Aw, I'm a bird whisperer? I didn't know I was that good.

I think what you've done is best for your situation. It's always an individual thing with finches and budgies. I didn't have any problems, but I was extremely vigilant in the beginning until I felt I could fully trust my birds together. I even had one pair breed in my setup, the female I'll admit was exceptionally mellow though and never minded anyone else around her nest. I have only three males now, two of whom don't even notice the finches and one who does but only in a playful way - he likes to preen the doves and sometimes gets just a little too boisterous with the canary trying to play (the canary is no pushover though and he stands up for himself if he feels his personal space has been invaded.

Budgies are fickle birds, and I find they're usually best kept as hands-off pet birds - UNLESS you can find one hand-fed or socialized as a baby. I've had little luck training entirely untame birds to do more than eat out of my hand, especially untame petshop birds, and only a few ever got that far. I would never personally get a pet shop budgie and expect to tame it, they're always going to be happier with another budgie as a companion. Only one of my budgies now is what I'd call truly tame - as in he steps up reliably, likes to be held and to sit on you, and interacts with people on his own because he wants to. That's Sam (also the one who likes to push his luck with the canary), and he was one which was born in our house and handled a ton to get him that comfortable. Our other adults (one found lost outside, another given by someone unable to house him anymore) aren't like that. They will sit on my hand for a treat if they're in the mood but that's the extent of their desire to interact, which is fine with me. My tame parakeet lives with the other two and this has not reduced his fondness for people at all, by the way. The three also share a cage and tend to spend time all day even out of cage with two tame male cockatiels as well. The five of them definitely identify as a flock and don't like to be separated from each other.

Generally, I have no problems with my menagerie. I put everyone to bed in their cages at night (ringneck dove has his own, canary has his own, all five parrots share one and the society finches share one with the diamond doves. But every morning I let them all out and they all spend the day together flying and eating and bathing together. It works for me, but all birds and all situations are different.

[lovezebs]

Spreckles

Hate to tell you this, but Budgies will very often go into a 'freeze mode' in a new situation and environment. They sit there like a statue, not eating, not drinking, not pooping, not even blinking. You'd swear that they were a little stuffed bird.

This is fairly normal behaviour. They are not sure of their new surroundings, and they are scared, so they make themselves as small as possible and stay in one spot. Sometimes this can last for days .

When you're not in the room, they will go and have a quick drink and a quick nibble, then rush back to the perch and rearrange themselves again.

Very often you'd swear, that these birds never eat or drink 'ever', but in reality they do, only when your not watching. They need to feel very comfortable to eat and drink in your presence.