Budgie not eating/drinking

[ashoenut]

Our new budgie just came to our home yesterday and hasn't eaten/drank for almost 24 hours now. What can I do? Thanks.

[Budgiekin]

Not to worry! Many new budgies don't eat for a little while after first coming home. They will usually begin eating within a couple of days.

Where does your new little additon like to sit in the cage? I encourage you to put a small dish or cup of seeds right next to where the little guy seems to like to perch (which is probably up fairly high in the cage).

Have you tried offering some millet in the cage as well? Many budgies cannot resist millet!

Do you have the cage exposed on all sides or is it against a wall? If all sides of the cage the sides are exposed, I would recommend that you drape a cloth over part of the cage (like the back 1/4 or so) so that your budgie doesn't feel vulnerable from all sides. This can help offer them some security.

Congratulations on the new little guy! I hope he adjusts soon! If you have any more questions, please feel free to post them! ;)

[ashoenut]

Sunny started to eat from his (we're referring to him as a boy for now) food dish at 2pm today, although we have to hold it to his beak. But at least he is eating and he has a good appetite. His droppings are now solid (yay!).

He is in a large Vision cage, so I did drape the one side for secure feeling. We've been interacting with his most of the day and he's already learned "step up" and "step down". He lets us rub his tummy and tail, which is a fantastic feeling. We've been moving him to different sections of his cage, because he is not exploring. Guess this will take time.

Thanks again for the quick feedback and good words of advice.

[ashoenut]

Question: We have an appointment at the aviary vet in two weeks that will be about a 1 hour car ride each way. This is the closest aviary vet to our city. Should he be transported in a small box or in a starter cage that we already have? Should it be darkened so he doesn't know what's happening? Any other words of advice on travelling would be great.

[cute_coco]

coco didnt eat at first either give him some time and he'll eat soon!!

[Budgiekin]

The starter cage is a great idea! I would recommend using that cage for the vet visit as your little sweety won't be left in the dark from being couped up in a box. When we travel with our budgies in the car, we uncover most of it so they can see a bit outside. If it is night time, I keep the cage covered as all the lights from the other cars and the street lights can scare them...

Also, I recommend putting the cage in the back seat, especially if your car has air bags. You can put the seatbelt around the cage too (not so much to protect your little sweety in the event of an accident, but rather to keep the cage from acting as a projectile and hitting you in the event that you are in an accident).

Be sure to take bumps and turns slowly too, and keep only a small amount of food and water in the cage. I usually leave a toy or two (not the hanging ones since they can swing and hit them, but the ones that attach to the side of the cage) so they have something to play with if they feel like it.

I hope this helps! ;)

[Sabine]

Don't worry, I'm almost 100% sure your little birdy is eating while you are not there to watch him/her. Skittle seemed to not eat at all for the first few days when he was by himself, however when checking the seeds at the end of the day or after a night's time they were definitely pecked at.

Just give It time to get used to its new environment.

[AndreaFahy]

Our new budgie just came to our home yesterday and hasn't eaten/drank for almost 24 hours now. What can I do? Thanks.

It looks like things got better, but please know that a small bird like this can DIE if they do not eat or drink for 24 hours. (more aimed towards any other readers that might not know this)

Unless your bird is well adjusted and already travels well I suggest a smaller cozy travel cage. The larger it is the more likely they will flail and hurt themselves.

The Cozy Parrot makes really nice travel cage covers that are PERFECT for this sort of thing. Even has a water bottle pocket so your bird has plenty to drink on the ride!
www.thecozyparrot.com

We use these almost regularly.