# What did we do wrong?



## soenso (Jun 17, 2021)

We got a pair of budgies from a pet store a few months ago and they died on the third day. I am afraid to try again because I don't know what we did wrong. 

They appeared to be healthy at the store but at our house their droppings were a little green. They were active until shortly before they died, when they both took a nap on the floor of their cage instead of on the roost. They died within half an hour of each other. The pet store claims the other birds were not sick (we called them after the birds died).

We fed them Higgins Sunburst Gourmet Blend Parakeet food. I did wash their food bowl with blue Dawn the day they died, could I have poisoned them? I rinsed it well but I have been thinking about this since then. I bought an air quality monitor to see if it was that but my air is very clean. I do not own any non-stick cookware. They had toys in their cage, but just ones I'd gotten from the pet store.

The cage was not directly next to a window or vent. It was in the same room as my front door but way across the room. It was winter in New England, could it have been too cold when we went in and out?

We have backyard chickens, but use hand sanitizer whenever we come back inside to avoid spreading their germs around. Could we have infected them with something from outside? We also have rabbits and a hamster inside.

I just feel terrible about this. I feel I killed them but I really don't know what went wrong. We did read about budgies before we bought them and we thought we had prepared appropriately. I'm not sure if I should try again with birds from somewhere else (the nearest breeder is 3 hours away) or if I need to change something about my setup first.


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## StarlingWings (Mar 15, 2013)

Hi there and welcome to the forums~

I'm sorry to hear about the sudden loss of your budgies  

Honestly, I don't think that your setup was the problem, since you've indicated that you don't have any nonstick cookware or other hazards, etc. Given that they died so quickly after you brought them back, they were most likely sick when you brought them home. Unfortunately pet stores, especially "big box" pet stores like PetSmart, etc (in the USA), get their birds from "birdie mills", where they breed budgies under terrible conditions and with no regard to interbreeding, which often leads to budgies who are sick and prone to getting sick, as well as having shorter lifespans.

If you do decide to get another budgie, a reputable breeder or a rescue would be a much better choice 

It's great to have you here! Please be sure to read through all the links and other information on the forums in order to stay up to date on the best of budgie care practices! If you have any questions after doing so, please be sure to ask as we'd love to help.

We hope to see you around, and please keep us posted on how things go!

Cheers 👋


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## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

So sorry for your loss, how heartbreaking and shocking that must have been. I agree 100% with what StarlingWings has said. The only way to have known what the issue was would have been to have a necropsy done by an avian vet. I hope you can open your heart and home to try again. Here are a few links to some info regarding hazards https://cdn.ymaws.com/www.aav.org/resource/resmgr/pdf_2019/aav_household_dangers2020.pdf, https://nilesanimalhospital.com/files/2012/05/Be-Afraid1.pdf, https://nilesanimalhospital.com/files/2012/05/Common-Household-Poisons-for-Birds.pdf


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

*Hi, Welcome to Talk Budgies!

I'm sorry you had a bad experience with the budgies from the pet store. 
You will be much better off getting budgies from a reputable and ethical breeder.*

*Why buy from Reputable/Ethical Breeders rather than Big Box pet stores.*

*The purpose of this forum is to promote the BEST PRACTICES in the care of budgies for their optimal Health and Well-Being.

Please take the time to read through the Site Guidelines, the FAQs, the Budgie Articles and all of the Stickies located at the top of each section of the forum.

Truly, the very BEST advice anyone can offer you is to take the time to read ALL of the stickies throughout the various Talk Budgie forums as well as the Budgie Articles we have posted.*

*These are great resources for Talk Budgie members and have a wealth of reliable information which will assist you to learn the best practices in caring for your budgies for their optimal health and well-being.*

*SITE GUIDELINES*

*List of Stickies*

*Posting on the Forums*

*Let's Talk Budgies!*

*FAQ*

*Articles*

*Be Prepared for Veterinary Care Expense*

*Avian First Aid*

*Quarantine IS Necessary!*

*A heartfelt plea to forum members new and old*

*Tips For Discouraging Breeding*

*Before You Ever Consider Breeding Your Budgies*

*Guidance for Breeding Advice Threads*

*Cage sizes.*

*Essentials to a Great Cage*

*Resource Directory*


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