budgie sleeping habits

[budgielove]

hello! newbie here to ask a lot of random questions: so here is the first!

;)

i just got my first two budgies a few days ago, and i know that they are still adjusting to my home to my husband and me, but i am worried that they are not getting nearly enough sleep. at least that seems to be how they are behaving. a few hours after i wake up and i open the blinds and turn on lights, they are still acting very sleepy and lethargic, closing their eyes and not wanting to do anything. for a few hours before we go to bed and turn out all the lights it is the same. they act mostly normal in the middle of the day, with a few good hours of happy activity and singing, and they seem fine and perfectly healthy. but they just keep acting so sleepy!

i tried to put a blanket over their cage last night a few hours before we went to bed so they could get some more sleep, but one of them started getting really aggitated all of a sudden bouncing around and flying and flapping it's wings like mad. it really freaked me out so i just took the blanket off and turned out all the lights in the house. they went to sleep right away.

do you think they are not getting enough sleep? or are they just bored? why did my bird react to the blanket that way? what can i do to help them get all the sleep they need?

:S

thanks for your time!

erin

[shannon]

HI, the bird freaking out when you place a blanket over the cage is not good. If your house is at a normal temp that wont make them cold. Just leave a night light on in there room. I've been told by others that when a bird hear a noise in the middle of the night and can not see where they are at they can bounce around the cage and harm them selfes or have a heart attack. I have 14 birds and leave a BRIGHT night light in there and they do just fine. If there sleeping all the time. I would check there poop to see if its runny or solid. Runny can show signs of stress or illness, same with fluffing for long periods of the day and not eating. There should be a swing, toy ect in the cage for them to play with. If there is two, they should be checking each other out and entertain each other threw out the day. If you have had them only for 2 or 3 days and dont show signs of any illness or there cere (nose holes) being runny. You should be fine. There just getting use to there new surroundings. Just make sure there not in a hight traffic area of the house, breeze and give them some time alone to adjust for the 1st 2 - 4 days if there that stressed. Good luck and keep us updated on there progress.

[budgielove]

thanks for the advice shannon!

extra info: their droppings are normal - not runny at all, they like each other very much and are bonding well, they have toys and have plany of room for flying and moving around. they don't seem too interested in the toys yet, but they have fun preening each other and kissing/feeding each other. i also do not think they are too cold or too hot.

i have noticed that snow is pretty fluffed up most of the time and looks like she could be molting... there are little feathers around the floor and when she fluffs herself little fuzzy feathers come flying out, and her face looks kind of messy. i don't know much about molting and i don't know how it would affect her behavior, but she is the more lethargic out of the two. she closes her eyes a lot of the time. she is constantly fluffing herself. do budgies ever get sleepy when they molt? or could she be sick?

oh... i know they are probably just getting used to everything, i am just a worrier i guess... although i didn't expect that i would worry so much about them before i brought them home! i don't know why: i just love them so!

:rolleyes:

i wish i could just ask them what's going on and they could tell me! hehe...

erin

[shannon]

When they are fluffed threw out the day for long periods. That usally is a sign of stress, sickness. Hopefully your birds are very new and this will fade. My birds molt. Seems like all year round. They dont usally act different when there not molting. Now as for my females. When there cere (nose) is really brown than they act very moody. The cere being really brown than other times, mean the female is in mateing mode. I'm going to be away from my computer for a week or so. So hopefully when ever I get back on you'll post there progress that there doing fine now. Have fun with your new pets. They are the best and can even teach you new things.

[budgielove]

update: they are getting much more sleep now. i am sure that the new conditions were just a little stressful for them. they are not as fluffed up nor do they fluff up as often when they are still or resting. they have also been a lot more active and friendly with me.

i was able to get a cover for them and they have been getting pretty used to it. it makes a big difference because my husband and i are night owls for at least three days out of the week, and i know that they need a steady sleeping schedule: i've read about 10/11 hours a day. and i think they are getting just about that now.

thanks for the advice!

:)

erin

[Budgiekin]

I'm glad to hear they are sleeping better now. They must be getting used to their environment now. ;)

Keep in mind that part of a budgie's normal sleep rhythm is to also take naps throughout the day, so that time spent in naps counts towards those 10 to 11 hours of sleep time. ;)

I also like the idea of the night light. I use one too as my budgies have been known to have night frights in which they thrash around inside their cages if something scares them. I also use a baby monitor since my budgies sleep in their own room. That way, if they do have a fright, I can respond quickly.

[Bea]

My boys always have a nap in the middle of the day. I've been noticing this more now that it's the school holidays. I'll have them out for play time and about lunch time they'll either go back in their cage or onto their playgym and have a 20-30 min nap.

[Budgiekin]

My little Kiwi loves taking naps. I see him napping several times throughout the day for short periods of time. He's gotta be the laziest budgie I have! It's amazing he is a svelt 31 grams with all the eating and sleeping he does! :p

[budgielove]

oh okay! so naps are normal anyway? that is good! i can rest easy knowing that!

:rolleyes:

erin

[redgirl]

Mine are really active during the day but round about 7pm thye go to sleep xx

[pal0m1n0]

Mine will periodically return to their cages and preen then sit quietly, pretty much all at the same time.

[jamesam16]

Do budgies need a blanket?

[budgiesmum1953]

For Harry I always used to use a lamp at night with a low watt bulb, they are only small around 15w and give a warm red glow. Similar to the kind that you can use in a spider home. It would give enough gentle light for Harry to see by but not bright enough to disturb sleep. I didn't think that pitch dark could be good if something frightened him in the night and felt that this was a good alternative.
Budgiekin, how do you weigh a budgie :) I imagine at the vets? or maybe rig up a special little sling and gently rest it in the sling from those hanging scales that you see fishermen use :eek: just joking, maybe a perch fixed on kitchen scales? :)
Jan. XXX.

[BUUZBEE]

i have bamboo type blinds on the aviary, i roll them down at night. when any are inside i cover with a light blanket, just cuz we are up late, and leave a little open so they can see light.
the conures are covered at night with a heavy dark blanket, but they dont get night frights like the budgies do.
the bourkes i leave uncovered (they freak when a blanket goes near them, and also since they are the "night parakeet" then enjoy chatting in the dark, and singing when they see the moon)

as for weighing, my vet will either put them on a perch on the scale or put them into a tuperware container (holes drilled for air of course!) and then put them on the scale. they calibrate the scale to zero before adding the bird

[Lace]

ooo dont wrry yourself so much dear. What do you do when you get up in the morning? you act sleepy right? cus your still tired, they are just still a little tire is all, no need to be wrried. Animals tend to sleep longer then we do so often animals always seem they are getting to much sleep when really they are getting what they always get.

[Budgiekin]

I get my budgies weighed at the vet since I don't have a scale that is precise enough to weigh such light little birdies! I have seen scales that have a perch built on it and the scale is calibrated so that the with just the perch on the scale, the weight is 0. I have certainly thought about buying my own scale.....:rolleyes: