# First budgie concerns



## Daisy443 (Jun 25, 2021)

Hello! 

I recently joined this forum, as i have just gotten a young budgie, and being a first-time budgie owner, want to make sure i do everything correctly. My budgie is fairly young. We belive she is about nine weeks old. I have never kept birds before, so i have been doing extensive research on giving them the care and love they deserve. We purchased a large cage, perhaps larger than most parakeet cages, but she seems very happy in it. We have rearranged the toys and perches a couple times, so she has plenty of flying room. She seems very happy and healthy, though she is still skittish around me and my family. I am hoping to transition her to pellets soon, but she is currently eating the seed/pellet mix that the pet store was feeding her. I have seen her eat and drink regularly, and she makes lots of adroable noises. We are not planning to get her a partner, and aspire to be good human friends for her. I have read that mirrors can cause them unessecary stress, however, i do have a very small lantern toy with mirrored sides. It has a small bell hanging from the bottom, and she loves to grab the bell, or bonk it with her beak. I have not seen her looking intensly at the mirror, or seemingly attempting to interact with it, so i think i'll leave it in there. Does that seem alright? 

In my research, i had read in some places that feeding dairy and meat to your budgie can be very good, but other places said that you should never feed those things to them. I have not fed her any meat, eggs, or dairy yet, as i was still unsure. Are those things safe? I have been providing her with fresh fruits and vegetables, and she seemed to like carrots and lettuce best, though she hardly ate any. Is that normal? Additionally, I was wondering about food quantity. I read that about 2 tablespoons per day is a good amout, but that much does not fill up my feed dish very far, and i worry that she could hurt herself if the food is too far down, so i have been filling it higher. She never eats all or even half of the food in one day, so it seems to be working...

Also, my dad (well, my whole family, really) likes her a lot, and he said he could possibly build her an outdoor aviary. She would not live there, but it would be a place we could take her out to on nice days, so she could stretch her wings and 'experience the great outdoors'. (we plan to let her fly around our living room as well, so she would be able to fly around one not-so-nice days too) We would, of course, always have someone monitoring her, playing with her, and just generally being there, but would an aviary be too large a space for one bird?

I apologize for asking so many questions. 

Thanks! 
-Daisy


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

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

I know the lantern toy you are talking about. Unless Daisy becomes obsessed with the mirrored part of it (unlikely as she probably loves the bell!) then its just fine for her.

The following links will answer your questions regarding Daisy's diet. You don't need to worry about her hurting herself in the food dish unless it has sharp sides.
You can give Daisy egg food or boiled egg once a week. (More often when she's molting). Do not feed her meat or other dairy products.*

*A Healthy Diet for your Budgie*
*Quality Seed Mix*
*CuttleBones, Mineral Blocks and Manu Clay Roses*
*Safe Foods for Budgies

It can take several weeks (or even months) for budgies to decide to try a new food.
Fruit is high in sugar content so vegetables are actually healthier for your budgies with fruits given only occasionally (once or twice a week) 

With regard to an outdoor aviary, I'd be more inclined to just put her into a large cage that you can transport outdoors safely and then stay with her the entire time.

If your Dad wants to build an aviary, please have him look at these links:
Cage wire/Aviary Mesh*
*Safe Natural Wood for Budgies*
*Dangers to Pet Birds*

*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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## StarlingWings (Mar 15, 2013)

Hi there and welcome to the forums!

Congratulations on your new little friend! You've been given great advice above by FaeryBee and I completely agree with her.

You've come to a great place to learn even more about the best of budgie care practices, so please be sure to read through all the links provided above, which include the forums' many articles and "stickies" (threads "stuck" to the top of each subforum for easy reference) to ensure you're up to date on everything! 

If you have any questions after doing so, please be sure to ask as we'd love to help. We'd love to meet her when you get a chance, too!

Please keep us posted on how things are going!

Cheers 👋


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## Daisy443 (Jun 25, 2021)

Thank you both for your advice! 

I have read most of the stickies, and I hope to learn many more things from this forum. 

My budgie, Sammy, is doing very well, and we are making progress on training, and she is eating and drinking well, so I am very happy.


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

*We'd love to see pictures of Sammy if you'd like to start an ongoing picture thread for her in the Budgie Pictures section of the forum!*


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## Daisy443 (Jun 25, 2021)

oh, sure! i can do that


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