upatsix.com - Your Source For Pet Bird Information

Mfids, that is so interesting and helpful to hear all about how you live with your birds. I admire you and others on this site being such dedicated bird lovers. I'm not sure that I could handle that many pets of any sort, but since we found Raisin, the wonderful world of birds has really opened its doors to us. I can see how the bird room works well for the caged and cage free if only because at Petland all of the birds are cage free and are in sort of open glass aquariums with perches and toys, but they do fly around the store a bit and Amy says they are often all over the place when she gets there in the morning.

The only other experience we have had with birds were the two little parakeets/budgies that we got about six years ago. They were not hand fed, so were not as tame as Raisin is and we probably didn't spend enough time playing with them to make them tamer. We didn't know anything about birds at the time and we probably weren't the best owners, but they were fed (only on seed and had clean water and a relatively clean cage (although not as clean as Raisin's is going to be!). Unfortunately, they both had very sad endings. We came home one day (about two years ago) and found the cage all messy and things knocked about and one of the birds was dead in the food dish. We think that the other bird killed it, but we really don't know. We never took them to a vet and the other one lived for at least a couple of years after this, so it may not have been a disease. The one that was left attached itself to a mirror toy and would just sit next to that all day, or it would knock it down and we would put it back up for it. We kept it in a central area of the house to be around us and when we moved (which was just a month ago) to this rental house where we are now (while waiting for our new house to be built), my daughter decided she wanted the bird in her room and was going to start playing with him more. We were planning on going to get his wings clipped because he seemed to be enjoying spending time out in her room and letting her handle him.

Well, we have a small poodle dog in the house who never bothered the birds in the cages and my husband also has a black labrador that stays outside mostly. This old house we are renting temporarily is not in the best shape and one thing among others that broke was the door knob from the house to the garage.......well, to cut a long story short, the lab was in the garage and got into the house while we were gone and knocked the budgie cage over and somehow the top came off and she killed the little budgie. It was quite heartbreaking and I feel terrible that the poor little thing came to such a tragic, and what must have been such a frightening end. That was how we ended up at Petland the day that we found Raisin. I was not planning on getting anymore birds, (and as I think I've mentioned before, my daughter's big plans for the basement of our new house was to get a chinchilla), but my daughter just wanted to go and look at the birds and there she found Raisin and fell in love. She spent all her chinchilla money (that she had saved for two years) on Raisin. And, we will definitely be vigilant about making sure there is no possibility of the lab getting in the house ever again.

So, I guess the reason why I brought up the budgies was because last week at the pet store I was thinking that perhaps we should bring another little budgie home with Raisin. I know this is just as big of a deal as another cockatiel now and I would certainly expect to take just as good care of the budgie as we would with Raisin and take him to the vet etc..... I guess my thought is that we have a cage already for the budgie and it would be company for Raisin if we are ever not around for periods of time. There are a lot of little budgies at Petland and they are alwasy flying over into where Raisin is and they all seem to co exist peacefully. Even if we left them in the same room in separate cages, they would probably serve as company for one another and possibly they could even be in the same cage if they got along? I know that we haven't had Raisin home yet to see how that goes, but I'm thinking that it might be a good idea to bring them home together since they may even know each other already! I am confident that Raisin is going to be spoiled and pampered and well taken care of by my 14 year old who is a lover of all animals. And I think that I'm probably just as much in love with Raisin as she is. The budgie would be my 11 year old's, but she is really the dog's best friend, so I'm not sure that she would always keep up with the budgie. So, I'm weighing how much responsibility it will be and if we all can handle it. My 14 year old (Raisin's little mama) says she will take care of the budgie too, but ofcourse, with children, I know that I have to ultimately be prepared to make sure it all happens. Anyway, this is what we are thinking about and considering for next Thursday when we go to pick up Raisin.

Thanks for the good advice on the poop matter! I do agree, that it doesn't smell and does dry up and doesn't seem to stain anything. I guess we just didn't have the parakeets out and about in the house much, so I really had not thought about it. My daughter won't care, but I may be the one with a "bird shirt" on when I'm working at home some days and have him out with me.

Sorry this is so long. I think I'm more obsessed with Raisin than my daughter is. So, I shall stop here and post a few pics of Raisin that I took on my cell phone on our visit with Raisin yesterday. You can see how grown up he is now. Nice clean beak and bright eyes!

What an adorable pic of raisen!
OMG keep that lab OUT of the house away from the bird. Labs are hunters! They will not stop until they get the bird.
Back to the story about the budgies. It is very possible the one budgie killed the other one. They can be pals one day and the next day attack the other one especially if there is a mate, nest or even a mirror involved. This happened to me when I was on vacation and my mother was minding the birds. I would not house a budgie with the cockatiel either unless you know 100% for sure they get along. Budgies can be bullies to cockatiels!If you get a budgie make sure he/she has their own cage.

If you want a second bird, please don't base your decision on the fact that you already have a budgie cage Cages are so cheap and the quality of these birds' lives is so much more important than the cost of a cage. Besides, you can always use a spare cage for vacation trips, etc. It won't go to waste. Give it to a shelter and take a tax deduction. If it's too small for a 'tiel, it's probably too small for a budgie too. The cages sold as budgie cages are criminal

Were I in your shoes, I would want a second male 'tiel for Raisin to play with. That is, IF you're certain Raisin is male. And you're VERY wise to get both from the same place at the same time in order to avoid the extreme difficulties of quarantine, which is a necessity if the second bird comes at a different time or from a different place (of exposure). If the birds haven't yet been DNA sexed, Petland's vet may be able to do it for you at a low cost, or Petland staff might be willing to snip a toenail on both birds and let you catch a drop of blood onto the little slides a mail-in sexing service will provide. Costs $20 per bird. Less than dinner for you and the 2 girls! But it's important for the second 'tiel to be the same sex as Raisin, who I hope is male so you won't have egg-laying issues to worry you for the next 15 years.

Having 2 'tiels rather than a budgie and 'tiel not only makes the playmate factor much more meaningful for the birds, but makes them safer together and will eventually mean they could share a cage. Nicer for them and you. While you're getting to know the second 'tiel, you'll have much better luck if you put his cage into a room separate from Raisin's so he gets to know and trust you as Raisin already does. They will be calling to each other and eager to meet as soon as the second baby has gotten fully bonded with you.

I'm a firm believer that birds as social as 'tiels should be in pairs, so I'm very happy that you're thinking of this

Well, I know that bringing them home at the same time is the best idea because of the quarantine issue which was another reason I was considering a budgie because there aren't any other cockatiels right now. All of Raisin's clutch have found homes. If I wanted one, I should have got the one that I liked before someone else did! Amy is still handfeeding the new babies away from the public eye and I'm not sure when they will be ready to move into the main area or be ready to go home. So, that was another issue in deciding on a budgie. Even if they can't share a cage, I thought that perhaps just being in separate cages in the same room might be helpful for them while we are away (?). In any case, I was planning on using the budgie cage for travel or for times perhaps when we're cleaning Raisin's cage and need to put him somewhere. (I always say "him", but I really have no idea whether he is male or female) I guess overall, my thinking is that if we have a budgie and we get the Budgie and Raisin out together to play and be out of the cages with us, but have them in separate cages in the same room while we are gone that it would be a better situation (if not the best) than just leaving Raisin alone? I think that after the budgie killing stories and the fact that budgies can be little bullies to cockatiels, I may never trust putting them in a cage together. I just wonder how long it is okay to leave a cockatiel alone for?

For example, I often visit my best friend or my parents who live about 45 minute drive away. I always take my poodle with us because I sometimes stay overnight, and am almost always gone the entire day. Could I take a smaller cage and would Raisin be okay traveling with us, staying in a smaller cage in my friends or parents house with us there for a day or overnight? Having the budgie too makes things more complicated......so, I don't know. But in general, do you find it is okay for cockatiels to travel in the car and be in new environments if you are with them? Or is this just too traumatic?

I have taken my birds with me traveling around the NE area.
I also hire a professional pet sitter too if I travel abroad. I have the pet sitter come twice a day. I personally do not like to leave my birds alone for more than a few hours but that is me

Yes, I'll definitely never have mirrors again. I even seem to think that the death of the first budgie was after we bought the mirror which could have somehow caused the other one to kill it. Then seeing the other budgie that was left obsessed over the mirror definitely didn't seem healthy or normal. It was quite sad really.

If we do decide to get a budgie on Thursday with Raisin, my plan will be to keep them in separate cages (in each of my daughter's rooms) bring them together for supervised play time and then possibly put the cages in the same room together if we are out of the house for a long period of time.

As for Raisin being vocal -- well, all he did when we first met him and before being weaned, was cry and cry. We used to think it was so cute, because he was just this dirty little messy beaked thing just crying away, yet so tame and friendly and wanting to be with us. I really can't say that I've noticed him make much noise now, although my daughter hogs all his time when we visit. I am planning on going there this evening by myself while she is away, so I will take note of any chirps or noise. I was there yesterday and I don't remember if he made any noise at all, though I may not have been paying attention and when we are in the petstore there is quite a bit of noise, so I'm just used to it all and may tune things in or out! I imagine he may become more or less vocal or display his true vocal character when we have had him home a while. Does this say anything about whether he/she is male or female?

Males are usually more vocal, thrilling us with more extended "songs," while the females are content to chirp and whistle in shorter bursts.

What a little cutie!