# Cere Problem - Is my budgie okay?



## bmack98 (10 mo ago)

Hi, new to the forum and this is my first post, so sorry if I’m in the wrong area! Toby is a 9 month old male (I think?) and I have noticed a change in the colour/texture of his cere. It seems to be turning red and crusty/dry at the bottom. He seems fine otherwise but it has concerned me 😭. Any help/advice offered would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks


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## StarlingWings (Mar 15, 2013)

Hello and welcome to the forums! 

Toby is an adorable girl  Her cere is normal as she is coming into condition and it can turn reddish crusty brown during this time. Some female budgies keep their brown cere their whole life regardless of if they are in condition or not. There does appear to be some discoloration above the cere, however, does she have a toy she's rubbing her head on which may have stained her feathers, or something similar? 

Meanwhile, you've come to the best place to learn about the best practices for budgie care. Please be sure to read through the forums' many budgie articles and "stickies" to ensure you're up to date on the best of budgie care practices. If you have any questions after doing so, please do ask as we'd love to help! 

Hope to see more of you and Toby around here  

Cheers 👋


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

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

*Toby is a pretty little girl. Make sure you never put any items in her cage that could be used as a nesting site as those will stimulate broody behavior and can result in egg binding or clocal prolapse. Even females that have no males with them can end up laying eggs.
Limit her amount of daylight when she is in condition, rearrange her cage frequently and limit the amount of protein in her diet.*

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

*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.
(Stickies are threads “stuck” at the top of each forum sub-section)
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*
*Posting on the Forums*
*Let's Talk Budgies!*
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*A Heartfelt Plea to All Members*
*Tips For Discouraging Breeding*
*Before You Ever Consider Breeding Your Budgies*
*Guidance for Breeding Advice Threads*
*Cage sizes.*
*Essentials to a Great Cage*
*Dangers to Pet Birds*
*Resource Directory*


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## bmack98 (10 mo ago)

StarlingWings said:


> Hello and welcome to the forums!
> 
> Toby is an adorable girl  Her cere is normal as she is coming into condition and it can turn reddish crusty brown during this time. Some female budgies keep their brown cere their whole life regardless of if they are in condition or not. There does appear to be some discoloration above the cere, however, does she have a toy she's rubbing her head on which may have stained her feathers, or something similar?
> 
> ...


Thank you so much for getting back to me and putting my mind at rest! Wow, Toby will hereby be known as Tobi 🤣🤣! The small orange marks usually appear above her cere after a bath, you can see in the pictures she’s soaked lol she had just came out of her bird bath. Should I be worried about this?

Thanks so much again! Greatly appreciated


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

*Don't worry about the small orange marks above her cere if they only appear after her baths.
Tobi is adorable.*


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