Budgie BreedingBefore breeding any species, it is important to learn as much about the animals, their personalities and the best practices to follow for responsible and ethical breeding prior to making the commitment to take on the responsibility.
The purpose of Talk Budgies is to promote the best practices for the care, health and well-being of budgies and we welcome those who truly want to learn.
Learning must always begin with a strong foundation on which additional knowledge and experience is then added.
Ideally, our learning should never end as new information becomes available and best practices change over time.
I'm posting this thread because I find myself saddened and quite concerned as I read many threads in the Breeding Section of the forum.
I find it hard to understand why anyone with little or no knowledge of basic budgie care and limited experience in interacting with budgies thinks it is OK to jump right into breeding.
Whenever I see threads by such individuals who join the forum, indicate they just bought a pair of budgies and then proceed to ask multiple questions about breeding, my heart sinks.
The health and well-being of the budgies should always come first.
Budgies are living creatures and thus are valuable and precious. When we bring budgies into our lives, we are taking responsibility for them. It then becomes our duty to provide the very best in their daily care, housing, diet and love in addition to any Avian Vet care necessary to give those budgies healthy, happy and long lives.
Too many people seem to think it's OK to get a male and female - put them in a tiny cage, stick in a nestbox and hope the pair will breed because it would be fun to see all the tiny babies.
This is neither a mature nor responsible way to approach something which should be taken seriously.
Budgies are not toys, they are not playthings and they are not "disposable pets".
In my opinion, if a person does not have a good strong foundation in budgie knowledge (how to identify gender, what signs indicate the health of a bird, what size cages are recommended, essentials for diet, optimum heath, how to help prevent bumblefoot, how to introduce new foods, signs of budgie illnesses, etc.) the individual should not even be thinking about breeding. Acquiring the basic foundation of knowledge regarding budgies and their care is the first step. Only after that knowledge is acquired should one begin to build on the foundation by engaging in extensive personal research to learn the best practices in budgie breeding.
Anyone considering breeding birds that are too young or too old, are related, have health problems, or are aggressive is not putting the health and well-being of the adult birds nor the potential offspring first nor are they observing responsible breeding practices.
My plea is that ALL members of this forum take the time to seriously consider the health and well-being of their budgies.
Doing so should always be our primary concern.
If you think you want to breed budgies, then learn the basics. Take the time to read the stickies and learn about budgies, their health and their care.
Don't expect staff and other members to spoon-feed you the information.
Be responsible and take the initiative to the read and learn from the information already available on the forum.
Use the links provided and read the Budgie Articles and Stickies at the top of every section of the forum.
You'll be amazed at what you can learn.
Take the time to get to know your birds, their personalities, temperaments and health for a minimum of six months before considering whether or not to make the decision to accept the responsibility and commitment necessary to breed following the best practices.
When you've reached that point, then begin your research by reviewing stickies at the top of the breeding section of the forum again.
Take the time to really study and learn the information; read the breeding journals of others and become aware of the problems others have encountered.
Recognize that unexpected challenges can and do arise.
Have an Avian Vet or an experienced breeder you can depend on for help.
Assemble everything necessary for hand-feeding should something unforeseen happen where you need to step in to assist the parents with the clutch.
Please take the steps to learn the basics, do the necessary reading and research on your own and make a mature commitment to breeding responsibly before posting
questions on the topic.
Recognize the goals of the forum and respect them.
Always put the health and well being of your budgies first.
This is wonderful information Deb for those who breed birds... I hope those members take notice of this information on breeding there is a lot of work in it...
As Deb said budgies are not toys they need to be cared for so they don't get any diseases.... If you don't know a lot about breeding before you go Into it you should do research on it....
It also takes a lot of money to care for breeding budgies... If people aren't going to care for there loved birds they shouldn't have them....
I hope everyone reads this well researched information that Deb has provided....
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INDIGO.
Last edited by LynandIndigo; 12-18-2015 at 12:15 AM.
Reason: Left out a word
I'm so happy you posted this because this very thought occurs to me when I read some of the postings! I've had several budgies throughout my life and would never consider just jumping into something so serious without extensive knowledge of breeding!
I also feel very strongly on this subject. Any responsible pet owner and in this case a true bird lover should always have their beloved birds' best interests at heart.
The primary goal should be to give a loving and safe home for their birds to thrive, to promote a happy, healthy and stress free environment for the pet birds to truly flourish and to actually enjoy all the advantages that come with pet bird ownership. To get to know their personalities, to watch them play and interact with us and their mates, to teach our birdies to trust on us and to see the bond and friendship develop between pet bird and owner.
This is the true joy of pet ownership, to have the friendship, comfort and unconditional love from a much beloved pet.
All of my birds, breeding pairs included are first and foremost my much treasured pets and integral part of my family, just like they accept me in their flock.
We all share a connection of mutual trust and love. This also facilitates the breeding process for obvious reasons.
While I have been breeding budgies for over 20 years, I still consider myself primarily a true bird lover/enthusiast and will always feel this way in my heart.
The heart has to be in the right place when it comes to being a good pet owner and responsible breeder.
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RIP sweet Tito (Summer 2008 - January 17th 2013).
You are missed and never will be forgotten.
Very well put, Deb. As many of you know, I want so badly to breed my birds. I am ready, and know what I should know, and have an avian vet on staff so to speak. I am ready. That doesn't mean my girls are. You all know how badly I want little pinkies in my house, but I would NEVER put them through the exhausting stress that breeding brings when they are not ready.
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Thank you for my wonderful signature Deb!!!
RIP Pepper, Peatri, Holly, Mini, and Quarty
I wholeheartedly agree with this. While I do not breed my budgies I do breed my pair of tiels. My pair (all my birds) are fed a good diet, not just when breeding, but thruout the year. They have big flight cages and plenty of free flight time in the bird room. They are handled daily and are my pets, not my breeders. I allow 1- 2 clutches a year and have a long rest period between clutches. I do not allow them to double clutch. I pull my babies when they are around 3 weeks, however I allow my pair access to the babies when I feed and they actually feed alongside of me... It is funny to see the parents come and eat the formula off of my spoon and then go feed a baby. Handfeeding is not really what I would call fun, although I do very much enjoy it. It is messy and time consuming, and that is when everything goes well... When things go bad it can be heartbreaking. I spend at least 4 hours a day feeding and interacting with my babies when they are smaller, and that does not include cleaning brooders and or cages, dishes or looking after the parents.
Last edited by ParrotletsRock; 12-18-2015 at 01:05 PM.
No truer word's can be spoken, or firmer fact's given on this very important topic. Thank you Deborah, and thank you for putting
it at the top of the breeding forum so it can be easily found for future use...
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Member of the Year 2016//Exceptional Service Award August 2016//MOTM May 2013
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A Heartfelt Plea
What a profound Christmas Message. Thank you Deborah.
When after several years of being budgie parents, you decide to "try" breeding: STOP! please. Take a deep breath and make a list of all that is needed to start a breeding program.
Anyone considering this process should at a minimum, have a full year as an assistant working under the guidance of a Champion breeder with a minimum of five years experience or more would be great. Learn to :muck out the flights and all of the not so glorious parts of the program. What happens when you feel under the weather? Who will be your back up team in the future? Purchase a book on avian embryology and pretend that you need to make an A in a college course on the subject. Really great preparation Would be a college degree in Biological Sciences or perhaps training as a Vet tech. with experience working under a vet that is certified in avian care. Maybe work in a avian rescue as a volunteer. The point is to see how you function in a hands on situation. Can you give CPR to a bird? Do you have and can you use a basic first aid kit for birds? Do you have the necessary funds for supplies and vet care. You can not wake up one morning hearing the clutch in the breeding cage calling for food and you have nothing to feed the parents. You have to be ready to think out of the box when facing an emergency that you have never experienced before. Be able to apply your intelligence in new ways and stick to the process till the birds in question are safe. These are just some of the impossible to predict issues a good breeder must face and find solutions for. I was blessed to see a bird die during an AI procedure and watch as it received CPR and Lazarus lived another 5 years and fathered several regular healthy clutches, If you do not know what AI is you need to do a bit more study before you decide to be a breeder.
What Deborah, And Ana have indicated above are absolutely critical. Have you read and committed to memory the text of the Challenge and The Budgerigar? Can you face stumbling blocks and keep moving toward your goal?
Any Good breeder faces these emotional doubts and challenges. Can you pass the test of emotional maturity which is an intrinsic part of becoming a good breeder. This is serious and no one on the Staff of TB is laughing!!
Some times we cry and our hearts ache. Please heed Deborah's concerns.
Blessings, Jo Ann
Thank you,Deb! I think a lot of people who want to breed budgies are not aware that breeding also can cause problems. What if the hen doesn't feed her chicks? What if one of the chicks has a splayed leg? That are some problems the most people who want to breed budgies don't think about.
I think a lot of people who want to breed their budgies do so because they like babies. But much like with kittens, no one plans what the heck they are going to DO with said babies once they grow up. Babies don't stay babies forever, and unlike kittens you can't just get a budgie spayed/neutered. I don't breed my two because I don't have a solid proper plan for the chicks; goodness knows I'm crazy when it comes to the care of my animals and I wouldn't be able to part with any animal of mine without knowing they were going into a home that wouldn't have the same level or higher of care, and no one I know personally can/would do that.
It's as great a responsibility as having a human child in my opinion. Greater as human children at least grow up and can take care of themselves.
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A heartfelt plea to forum members new and old
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State: 
A Heartfelt Plea
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I think a lot of people who want to breed budgies are not aware that breeding also can cause problems. What if the hen doesn't feed her chicks? What if one of the chicks has a splayed leg? That are some problems the most people who want to breed budgies don't think about.
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