How To Breed Budgies Correctly

Many think that it’s as easy as buying two budgies and adding a nest box and the money will flood on in. First I will make this clear:

YOU WILL NOT GAIN MONEY BY BREEDING BUDGIES!

There are many things that need to be considered before a nest box is even put down on the shopping list.

Age:
The age of the bird must be known so that you know they are mental and physically ready to rear offspring. The youngest that most breeders accept as safe is a year. Many feel that 18 months is better. Budgies themselves are physically ready to breed by the age of 6 months, but this equals in humans 13 -14 years of age. They are simply not mental ready for the task of breeding. They can start to eat eggs, which once started can me hard to stop a bird from continuing, they can abandon nests and eggs or worse attach they young when they hatch.

Birds from a breeder you should expect a correct month of birth if not the actual date of hatching. I’m not meaning off the top of they heads but they should have it some where in their records. Older birds in the show side should have coloured bands on their legs which will give you a year of hatching. Ones from pet shops can come with leg bands but if you clearly tell them why you want to know the correct age they should be able to tell what info the breeder gave when selling them. You still take these ages at a risk that they picked a figure from air to tell you for a sale.

You also need to know if your birds are too old to breed. Hen should not be used over the age of three, sometime a breeder will removed eggs to another clutch on a four year old hen if the hen if is high value. Males shouldn’t be used over the age of 6.

Once you know if your birds are ready or not you can look at other issues.

Health:
Both the mother and farther need to be in tip top health. This is making sure there are none of the normal signs of illness: Sitting fluffed up continually, Discoloration/discharge present on feathers above nostrils, Lethargy, Vomiting, and Inability to balance, Stains or accumulated poop on vent feathers. If you can’t tell this apart rethink your idea of breeding them right now and study behaviour. You can also take the birds to your vet to get an all well check up. They also need to be in breeding condition. The hens will have dark brown cere or turning brown while the males cere will be a deep and even blue.

Relationship:
The closer the bird the more risk of defects and problems arising. Beginner breeders should not even t think of starting of with line breeding it takes a lot of effort to do correctly. The closest most people deem acceptable is grandparent to grandchild or aunt uncle to nephew niece. But Line breeding or inbreeding can not be taken lightly
How To Breed Budgies Correctly
Set up: 
Yes using a normal bird cage can work but you need to think about where to put the box, and if it’s inside the cage is there enough room for 6-10 birds still? Making sure you have enough clear space around the sides or ground to either hang or play extra seed dishes and fresh food plates.

Hand feeding: 
You will need to have hand feeding formula before any babies appear for the in case moment of having to feed a newborn chick. Added to the food are syringes for problem feeders and a spoon bent into a spout. It would also help for you to visit a breeder or a vet that handles bird who can show you the way to feed them correctly.

Afterwards: 
What are you going to do with the chicks? Give them away to friends and family, sell them privately?, sell them to a pet shop or even keep them. What ever you choose to do it needs to be thought over first. 

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Photographing Budgerigars

Photographing Budgerigars

UPLOADED  BY MASTER LOFT

 

I have been asked on a number of occasions over the years to write an article on photographing cage birds, and in particular budgerigars. I have always declined, as I was unsure if I could put into words anything that was interesting. So when George Booth asked me to write one for the Budgerigar, it was with some trepidation I agreed. If you feel having read the article. I have failed to make it readable I apologise now, only I find it difficult to say no to George, maybe it's because he is a J.P.? Whatever it was I agreed so here goes.

The Beginning

Around 1988/89 I started to breed a few reasonable budgerigars, for a beginner that is, and as beginners do, I wanted to record my efforts, not only in my breeding record books but as pictures also. The idea was for me and me only to be able to compare my progress within the hobby, by picture form.

Bearing in mind at that time there were no digital camera's to speak of, no mobile phones, which all have digital cameras now, just film. So armed with my very cheap film camera I began to take some photo's, initially only of birds in the flights, with the on camera flash. I completed the roll of 24, waited for them to be developed, and it was with great expectation I opened the print envelope on return to see what I had captured.

To say I was disappointed would be an understatement; the birds were that far away, they looked like a spot on an elephant's bum. So there was my first fiver down the drain, that was the cost of film and developing. I have to say it didn't get much better over the next few months, but by now I had a determination to achieve something better.

I visited all the camera outlets locally, and tried to explain to the staff what I was trying to achieve. I made the mistake of mentioning budgies, laughs all round, you know how it goes, any going cheep etc. I knew it was possible to achieve front cover quality because Les Lockey was doing it, but I never had the nerve or the cheek to contact him. Yes I know that seems hard to believe for those of you who know me, but as a beginner I was very shy.

The guys in the camera shops were trying to be helpful, but it was quite daunting, knowing nothing about camera's or lens for that matter. Try this try that, you need a ring flash, you need a new camera, a new lens, the list went on. I did purchase quite a few pieces of equipment, at some cost, but to no avail. I was getting through film at an alarming rate. Rolls of 36 were sent for development, I had note pads full of flash setting, distances, etc in an effort to find the correct settings to give me some results. I was very close to packing it all in, but I have always had a desire to succeed at things I am interested in, so my efforts continued.

The results were improving, and I was getting reasonable pictures, but nothing like I wanted. Eventually the lads in the shop would lend me equipment to try and return, at least I was now not paying for gear that didn't do the job. In the end the Manager offered his services to me, by suggesting he visit my house and see what could be done. A fantastic gesture I think you would agree. We have become very good friends over the years.

Once we had messed around for a few hours we got some decent images. I sent some of these photo's to Cage & Aviary birds, and received a very encouraging letter from the then Editor Brian Byles, who invited me to send in some more, he also said he would try and use some of my images in the magazine. Boy was I chuffed.

Roy Stringer also of Cage & Aviary birds fame was very encouraging and still is to this day. Pity he is a Villa fan. Cheers Royal.

I think the break through though for me came when Les Lockey wrote an article for the Budgerigar in 1991, and actually printed a picture of his set-up. It was also in this year that I approached Les at the BS club show, and asked his advice, he invited me to watch him take pictures of the winning birds, and it was a great help to me. Thanks Les.

Bigger Investment required

I had decided I needed to make a bigger investment if I wanted to reach his quality, and I was now earning a few bob from Cage & Aviary birds so I used this return to get the set-up I had been chasing for so long. Two studio flash, an all wire cage, Minolta camera and 70-200mm Lens. I started to produce images that the Budgerigar Magazine would use on the front of their magazine, a real kick for me.

People appeared to take interest in my photos, and started to ask me about them. I think out of all the questions I have been asked about photographing birds. The one most asked is how do you take the picture without the bars? My standard answer is open the door and hope it doesn't fly out, the reaction to my answer is as though no one believes me, but that is how it's done.

I have to say it is not as easy as some might think photographing a living thing, some are natural showman and are a delight to work with, B & C Heales club show winning grey green cock was a good example, it just never moved, and showed himself to perfection. Others just don't settle, and I made the decision very early that I would not continue to photograph a stressed bird, it is not fair to the bird, and certainly not to the owner.

I have been taking the pictures of the Budgerigars at the B.S. Club show since 1994, and always consider it to be an honour to do so. And I feel so privileged to have seen the Countries best exhibits at close hand. Although it has not been quite as enjoyable since the BS made the decision to photograph only through the bars of the exhibitors show cage. I hope they revert back soon to the old way. I feel it a backward step at present.

Impact

To add impact with the image it is desirable to fill the frame with the bird, this is why you usually only see the birds from the perch up. I know this upsets some, and the BS had a few written complaints some year back. They asked me to do a series of the varieties in full length. I don't think any were published, certainly not on the front cover. Yes it's nice to see the full bird at times, but below the perch we have two tails, not a lot more to see. Oops what have I said!

I like a bird with a wide face and would prefer to show this through the lens, so a full on image is required, easy aye. Not so. Due to the breeder's quest for directional feather, the birds don't see so well looking forward, and always turn their head to look at me with one eye. So now we have the problem of enticing and waiting for the bird to face the camera, waiting is the worst as you need to be concentrating, and consistently re-focusing as the bird moves along the perch, ready to press the shutter when you see the required pose.

Back to Camera

Some say the camera never lies, but it is possible to make a bird look better than it actually is. It is also possible to make a good bird look not so good. This is where the skill of the photographer comes in. I sometime like the pose where the bird has it's back to the camera, and then looks over it's shoulder (See our club show winning cock) Also a profile shot with the bird looking at the camera is very effective. I tend most of the time though to take the images the fancy and magazine etc requires, i.e. face on.

The actual taking of the photos is the pleasurable bit, and to achieve the results required for the front cover. I believe to effect these results a SLR (single lens reflex) camera is required, along with a zoom lens. I used a very cheap Minolta body for over ten years costing only a £130.00 new, with a Vivitar zoom lens costing about £70.00. I recently picked up a 35mm Canon EOS 50 E from Ebay for £62.00, brand new, a few years back this would have cost £400.00 plus. What a bargain! . A zoom lens to suit with a range of around 200mm is required.

It is important to use as small an aperture as possible F22 and F32, this will help to maximise depth of field and allow a greater working distance between the subject and the camera. I tend to be positioned three to six feet away, depending on the image required, full bird or a head shot only. This type of working distance will allow the bird to relax more, helping you to get that desired shot. Focusing is concentrated on the cere of the bird, as this will make your image look in focus, even if the ideal depth of field is not reached.

Bounced flash or diffused flash is better that direct flash as this will help to avoid the harsh shadow from an on camera flash, just a piece of tissue over the flash it's self can make all the difference.

Studio set-up

If the photographer wants complete control and consistency, a studio type set-up is required; I use this for all my cage bird images now. It consists of the same camera and lens, but incorporates two studio flash heads, two stands, two brolly reflectors and an all wire cage. This will give the perfect "Budgie"portraits.

My cages, and I have several of them, in differing sizes, are made from Twilweld mesh, held together by cable ties. The door needs to be large enough to frame the subject effectively and allow for movement of the subject along the perch. The perch is best placed diagonally in the cage from left front to right back, or have a revolving perch set-up to give more flexibility.

I find the birds seem to relax more in the all wire cage, more so than if a show cage was used, maybe it is because the are used to this cage type set-up back home in the bird room. Different colour mounting board backgrounds can be experimented with, black is an old favourite, which will hide any shadows, but I have decided on a dark blue, it seems to suit most colours, including blue birds, believe it or not.

I have to say with the onset of digital camera technology, everybody now seems to be a photographer, everyone has a camera of some sort, and how easy it is for any serious budding bird photographer to see his or her results instantly. No more sending away for developing, no need to make notes of settings etc, and all for free, once the initial purchase has been made.

I have to admit to having no experience of the pocket type cameras so I am unable to comment, but I have gone digital. Around five years ago I purchased a Canon 20d, and I am so glad I did a very versatile camera and a joy to use. The cost at that time was around £850.00, the same camera second had on Ebay are fetching around £350.00 today, a bargain in my opinion.

My lens is a Canon 70-300mm usm zoom image stabilising lens, costing £999.00 a real beast of a lens, but I have to say it was purchased with other work in mind, not just the budgies.

There are much cheaper options in both camera and lens; it will be down to the individual on how much the budget will be. I would say at this point I still prefer to take pictures with film, transparencies in particular seem to produce a better end product. The choice is yours.

I hope this article has in some way helped any budding budgie photographer out there, and has not been too boring to those of you who are not so interested in how your magazine front covers are achieved. I would just like to say to those who criticise the bird pictures in the various magazines, that it requires a lot of hard work by the various photographers to capture these images on your behalf. And on a personal note, if it were not for my Budgie partner and very good Mate Ian Ainley, particularly during the BS club shows weekend, I would not be able to achieve what I do. Ian walks miles fetching and returning the exhibits with very little praise. I thank you now mate

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WHAT SHOULD THE JUDGES DO?

WHAT SHOULD THE JUDGES DO?
UPLOADED  BY MASTER LOFT

 

Each year the Budgerigar Society club show throws up a few comments re-judging, last year was no exception. Conversations ranged from the condition of some exhibits, to Flecking, also Variety content, along with many other issues. As a Budgerigar Society (BS) full panel judge I can sympathies with some of the points raised by the exhibitors, but I can also see it from the judges point of view as well.

FLECKING

One area that always seems to cause contention is the flecking rule, the BS instruction to judges is to penalise flecking severely, as there are degrees of this fault, commonly known as ticking, which is not as severe but still detracts from the overall beauty of the bird. This often leads to less experienced fanciers asking why do flecked birds still win? The reason is that the judge having taken into account these faults, may still consider the flecked exhibit to be superior to those opposing it in the class, and consequently it will be given a first place.

Potentially there is a problem for the judge, if all the better quality birds he gets to judge on the day are flecked, using this criteria it could lead to a situation where all the birds put forward for a higher award may also be flecked. So what should he do? Only award clean maybe far lesser exhibits or the better quality flecked ones? I can hear some of you saying put up the clean one, but on the other hand there will be as many wanting to see the quality birds put forward. Obviously it is desirable that a bird that is very black on the head should not win, sometimes they do, ticked birds very often win.

How can we overcome this problem for the judges? Should the BS ban flecked birds? Should the judges not put up flecking? . This issue has been discussed at length in the past and I don't intend to open it again in this article, but exhibitors can help, maybe we should not show them, this would alleviate the problem overnight, but there is no instruction to do so, they are not banned from the show bench! I personally prefer to judge only clean exhibits, but I can also appreciate the qualities of a very good-budgerigar carrying flecking. So as you can see they do and will continue to cause problems for the judges. I can see this being a cause of contention for many years to come.

CONDITION

This is another area that nearly always seems to cause concern to some exhibitors. As both an exhibitor and a judge I agree that condition is essential, as the BS instruction states, but how do we define condition? Should we only consider a bird that is full in feather, with fine or yellow feathering, as being in condition, I hope not. Most of the condition issues arise with buff/intermediate feathering, comments like "That bird should not win, it is out of condition" are often heard around the shows. This when the type of bird mentioned is in my opinion IN condition, it is just carrying a different type of feather, giving the bird a rougher look. Should judges discount a bird from taking a first place if it has a flight feather missing, or a spot missing, or maybe only showing one tail? These are temporary faults, and if missing when judged need to be considered, but do these exhibits need to be thrown out? Again there is no B.S. instruction to do so.

A common sense approach needs to be taken, let's look at it again from the judge's view. Our buff feathered bird is a super exhibit and a wonderful example of a top class budgerigar, but with a spot missing, or has one short tail feather, it is otherwise in condition. Up against it in the class are a number of poorer specimens in perfect condition, complete in feather, what would you do? What should the judge do? 

I personally would consider the faults carried by the good exhibition bird and if I considered this exhibit to be superior to the others in the class, it would be awarded a first place, I would hazard a guess so would most other judge's, so now we can see how some birds with faults can win. 

It is my opinion that we should try to continue to move the budgerigar forward, striving for even better specimens than we have today. I have heard all the arguments about birds becoming too big etc, but if the late Harry Bryan and Ken Farmer had rested on their laurels all those years ago we would not have the type of budgerigar we have today, and there are some wonderful specimens around. It is my opinion that size is not a problem, lack of style can be, but size and style can be brought together, it is down to the breeders to achieve it.

VARIETY CONTENT

Variety bird breeders seem have an on going problem, do the judges, select on the actual variety content of the exhibit as layed down by the BS scale of points or do they assess them as a budgerigar first? Both are important. Size shape and deportment is asked for by the BS, so should we be looking for a budgerigar that equals the more mainstream colours from a size issue? Or a good example of the variety? Is it possible to combine the two? I think it is, but not easy when breeding recessive varieties.

Thinking back to Miss Kirby Masons lutinos from years gone by, these carried wonderful hot body colour, probably not so common on today's lutino's, is this because breeders are trying to breed for size to the detriment of body colour? Should we place a hot body coloured lutino in front of a paler coloured, superior example of a budgerigar?

I can certainly see the frustrations facing the breeders who are trying to retain the beauty of some of the variety birds, and I can sympathies with then. I feel the biggest problem is consistency, some judges will select for a budgerigar, and others will go for the variety content first, resulting in different placeings each week. It can be very infuriating for the exhibitors of these varieties.

The above situation can apply to Albino's, clearwings, recessive pied, spangles, and many more varieties, and I know for a fact many exhibitors get quite annoyed when one of their birds has not done as well as they feel it should have done.

I would like to point out to them though that it is not only the breeders of variety birds who suffer these frustrations. The breeders of Normal varieties as they are known, light green, blues, greys, cinnamons, etc, can have similar frustrations. Lets look at the old chestnut the spangle as an example. For years a bone of contention with breeders of normals, yes spangles are a variety bird, and subsequently will face the problems already considered above, i.e., variety content etc, but there is one area that really is a cause for concern, the spots!

For some unknown reason these seem to be ignored in a lot of cases. What I am alluding to here is many a time a spangle has won without a full compliment of spots, in some instances no spots at all, so how can this be?

Again If the judge is faced with a class of very poor small spangle exhibits carrying spots, but up against a good example of a spangle budgerigar without spots, he will assess this fault of no spots (and it is a fault) but may still consider the overall quality to be far better than the poorer birds and place it first, I would think that most judges who have judged spangles in recent years will have been faced with this type of situation. How we have got to this state of affairs with the spangle variety I'm not sure, if we as judges continue to put them first the situation will perpetuate. Why can't we consistently breed spots on the spangle variety?

The point I am trying to make here is it is not always the variety breeders who are penalised, the normal carrying a full compliment of spots can be beaten by a spangle carrying no spots, so as you can see it happens both ways.

I have been guilty of the above on many occasions; it is difficult to place a pet above a quality exhibit.

CONCLUSION

How can we overcome the issues raised above, this is a difficult one. I believe flecking will always be with us, we can argue exhibitors could help here by not showing flecked birds, but unless they are banned from the show bench (I am not advocating banning flecking) we will continue to see them.

Variety breeders have to try and get the size into their birds without loosing the beautiful variety content if they are to compete for major awards.

Condition will continue to be an issue; again exhibitors can help the judges by trying to show birds that are only in condition, judges can help by not awarding them first if they are too far out of condition. I accept it is sometimes a numbers thing, showing as many birds as possible at your own show to keep the numbers up.

I would ask all exhibitors who criticise judges to try and put themselves in the judges position, take into account some of my comments mentioned, and believe me there are many more issues faced by judges before the final decisions are made.

I hope this article will have provoked some thought, and I would welcome any comments on the issues raised, please make them to the BS secretary in either letter or article form, this may help us all to understand better some of the issues raised, and hopefully make interesting reading in our magazine. Don't leave it to others, do it now.

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Budgies in A Mixed Aviary Environment

Budgies in A Mixed Aviary Environment

UPLOADED  BY MASTER LOFT

 

Lots of people ask about housing their budgies with other birds such as finches or cockatiels. I have tried both and here are my experiences.

Food.

Some things to consider when thinking about having a mixed aviary is food and eating habits. Do they have different food? Do they eat each others food?

What I have always done is provide the aviary with a mixed seed diet suitable for all the birds. Birds will only eat what they want or like so if you provide finch seed, cockatiel mix and budgie seed they will only eat what they want. Yes, they do share each others food but I have never heard of anyones' birds being ill or having problems in a mixed aviary that has been linked to food sharing. I also know some people have more than 2 species sharing with budgies so that's more food being introduced too.

Nesting/breeding.

Ok, so you want to breed your birds. I can only give advice on colony breeding finches inside a mixed aviary as I have never had the experience of colony breeding cockatiels or budgies. I separate my budgies into breeding cages and have not bred the cockatiels as they are not old enough quite yet.

Finches are easily bred at the best of times. I supplied 2 wicker basket nests last year as I only had 2 pairs at the time. Overall it went well BUT what I did notice was that the budgies chewed the top off the basket and left a wide open area. I had to modify the nest until the finches had finished their clutch, but to prevent this from happening this year I am buying plastic finch boxes. This means the hole is small enough for the finches to get in but not the budgies and the budgies cannot chew it to the extent they did the wicker ones. As long as the hole is small enough the babies are protected from the other birds sharing the aviary as they cannot access the box.

How well do they get along if none are breeding/Bullying.

I have had my fair share of fighting and squabbling in the aviary but have learn a valuable lesson. I tend to find the problems are not with the different species picking on eachother but the same species!

A prime example I can give was when my finches were becoming battered and had bald patched on their necks. I wrongly assumed that it was the cockatiels as it had only happened since I introduced them to the aviary. I removed the cockatiels from the aviary and put them in a cage until I could see if it made a difference. I have a window in my aviary so one night when I was going out to do my last check I thought I'd have a look through very still and see what I could see.

The result shocked me. I saw a few finches hammering each other, really going at it and pulling bits from each others necks, that was my problem, not the cockatiels. I am by no means saying that the different species won't fight or pick on one another but sometimes the answer is not in the different species, but the same.

Aviary Size.

Sizing is crutial if you are considering a mixed aviary. If it is not big enough, they will fight, simple. There has to be room for each species to hide if the going gets tough. If not, bullying will take place and it won't be nice as there's no space for them all to have their own "bit". It would be very irresponsible to mix them when you know their isn't enough space.

Keeping mixed species in cages together.

I have never done this simply because of the space issue. There are exceptions to the rule and I'm sure some people have done without problems but I have not. If you were to do this I would say keep the soft billed together (canaries/finches) and the hard billed together (tiels and budgies) but contrary to popular believe budgies bully cockatiels and not the other way around! I would have no qualms in housing finches and canaries together at any age but would be very wary of budgies and tiels.

Soft billed versus hard billed.

As I said before there are exceptions to every rule. I housed 2 diamond doves in my aviary and they didn't even last a week before I had to remove them as the budgies were bullying them. If I had left them they would have certainly faced death.

How fast can they fly is also important. Finches are ok as they are super quick so most of the time, the budgies can't get near them. Canaries however are very slow so I wouldn't feel happy putting them into a mixed aviary unless it was absolutely massive and even then I would worry. Same with the diamond doves, they are not quick enough to move if they see a beak coming towards them!

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Recognize A Healthy Budgie

Recognize A Healthy Budgie

UPLOADED  BY MASTER LOFT

Whether you are looking to buy a budgie, already have a budgie or even own multiple budgies, health is of utmost importance. A budgie can go downhill really quickly if it gets ill, so it is really important to know what a healthy budgie looks like and to watch for any signs that may be pointing to the bird being slightly unwell or even very ill.

A healthy budgerigar is easily seen by it being active and chirpy, with bright, clear eyes and well preened feathers. He (or she) will also have a healthy appetite, so always check to see that the bird is eating and drinking well. The bird should also have a clean vent, with no fecal matter (poop) sticking to it and his breathing should be quick and quiet.

Now that we've determined what a healthy budgerigar should be like, let's see what signs there are that your budgie might be feeling under the weather or unwell.

Your bird may become unusually quiet, sit fluffed up at the bottom of the cage, stop eating and drinking. Its eyes could become sore, his feet can get swollen. The breathing could become noisy and seem like it's a lot of hard work for the budgie. It could develop a visible lump (possible tumour), or it's legs and beak could get crusty and sore (possible scaly face).

Other things to watch for are scruffy looking feathers, major loss of feathers or a dirty vent. Do note that budgies are very good at hiding illness so they really need to be watched closely.

If you should at any time find that your bird is exhibiting symptoms like this, please always try to get advice from an avian vet if possible, or even a breeder if you can find one as they will usually be able to help you decide which steps to take to help get the bird better again.

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(watch it this is very important for budgie breeders)Keeping Budgies: Sexing Your Budgerigar

Keeping Budgies: Sexing Your Budgerigar

UPLOADED  BY MASTER LOFT

The simplest way to tell if your budgie is male or female is to look at the cere (the bit above it's beak) and see what colour it is.

Most of the time, a young female will have a pale blue cere with white rings around the nostrils whereas a young males will be a purple-pinkish colour.

Adults are a little different. An adult male budgerigar will have a blue cere and the female will have an almost white cere with a hint of blue.

Then of course there's the ones that are in breeding condition. Here a females cere will start going brown when she's coming into season, and dark dark brown just as she's coming out of it, whilst a male budgies cere will get a vibrant royal blue for the whole breeding season.

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Bitten by the bug

Bitten by the bug
UPLOADED  BY MASTER LOFT

 

My wife Claire gave me a pair of budgies in July 2007, as she adopted them through a friend of friend of a work collegue. One was rung so decided to find out some info on the bird after contacting the Budgerigar Society to get the contact details of the breeder. After speaking to him to find out more on the hen, I then searched the Internet to find out about the care and upkeep of the birds, one had a case of scaly face and both birds weren't in very good condition, so were treated and cured.

This led my to www.budgergars.co.uk in turn onto the forum site, after joining i spent a lot of my time reading up on the care of birds, the forum is crammed pack full of useful information on the care and health breeding etc of budgies and all the members are extremely helpful with any questions that anyone has. After a while I tried unsuccessfully to breed with the pair, let's say him being around 6-7years old, she was not interested. After reading through the exhibition side of the forum, following links to various exhibition breeders' websites up and down the country, I decided that this was something I would like to take up.

I arranged a visit to the Crag stud an exhibitor quite close to me, The visit opened my eyes as what was there to be had, I was bitten by the bug so decided to join the BS and become a member. I went to the world show at Doncaster 2007 and got to see the culmination of the hard work of all the exhibitors and everyone involved in the show, taken aback by the scale of the show further fuelling my growing enthusiasm to become involved.

In the summer of 2008 I set about converting my 6 x 8 foot shed, tiling the floor, insulating the walls boarding it out, built a indoor flight fitted four double breeding cages that could be used also as stock cages. Then came an 8x3 foot outside flight, concrete base, double galvanised mesh, this was topped off with a PVC opaque roof to protect the birds, this was furnished with a few branches.

I was given some birds along with the purchase of the breeding cages and decided that these birds alone would be used solely for experience in caring for and breeding birds. I paired a few together in the September 2008 with some success also encountered some of the problems many of those who keep birds do each year. I had clear eggs, lost hens so had to foster chicks out, lost cocks etc. As a member of the forum all my many questions were answered by many of the members assisting me in my successes and failures, to which I am grateful.

As a result of visiting a few open shows during 2008 and again the Club show in Doncaster, I decided to purchase some better birds, realising what I had was not up to the job of being the foundation of my stud. I purchased related birds from 2 studs one being Kev at the Crag stud and Jim Pearson whose birds were from the Crag stud. I now have some chicks with my 2009 rings on this will lead me onto the next chapter, of the hobby exhibiting another steep learning curve to take on in preparation and showing, also trying to create my own related stud.

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Keeping Budgerigars; One Of Each Sex

Keeping Budgerigars; One Of Each Sex

UPLOADED  BY MASTER LOFT

Keeping 2 budgies is always beneficial to the birds themselves, although it may make it harder for you to tame them. If you want to tame them and you have 2, then it's best to have 2 males. If you really want to keep 2 birds then 2 males are the best option, as they will rarely bicker and fight, whereas 2 females will spend most of their time doing just that. 

It's also totally possible to keep a male and a female in a cage together. There's one thing you need to be aware of when keeping a male and female though, and that is if they're given the right opportunities they WILL mate and breed. I suggest you think very hard about what your plans are for your birds before deciding on one of each sex.

Do you want her to have chicks? If you do, then provide her with a nestbox (you can buy them pretty cheap at pet stores) and put a handful of wood shavings inside it (also available at pet stores)

If they've mated successfully, then she'll start showing an interest in the nestbox, possibly within the next few days, possibly later. It usually takes about 10 days from a successful mating to when the first egg is laid. The hen should then lay an egg every other day, and the clutch of eggs can be anywhere between 1-8 eggs (sometimes even more).

Ask the petstore for eggfood and millet, as the birds will need extra strength to help them rear any chicks they might have. If the eggs are fertile they will start hatching between 18-23 days of being laid.

You don't need to feed the chicks at all, the father will feed the mother, and she will regurgitate the food for the chicks when they get a bit bigger. At first they will be fed by her with something called 'crop-milk' basically the same as mothers milk, but in bird form ;)

The chicks will start getting ready to leave the nestbox somewhere around the age of 28-35 days old, the father will feed them for a little while longer and they'll eventually start feeding themselves. Provide the extras (eggfood and millet) all through the period of mating, laying and rearing, and also while the chicks are learning to become independent. 

If you don't want the hen to lay another round after the first chicks have hatched, then remove the nestbox as soon as the chicks leave the nest.

If you just want to keep one of each sex and not have them mate and breed, the solution is pretty simple; Don't give them a nestbox. Budgies will seldom mate without a nest to lay eggs in. I'm not saying it never happens, sometimes it does, and sometimes it even results in a bunch of lovely, healthy chicks. So the choice is down to you which sexes you think you can manage best. Good luck!

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