Hello all,
I have recently brought inside my last budgie, Lanala, from my aviary. Due to lack of time, I stopped breeding, which is why my flock population has slowly fallen until only she was left.
I thought to bring Lanala inside as to ensure she would not get lonely or cold without anyone to cuddle up with, especially during the winter months (the indoor area of the aviary is not heated, but only provides shelter from wind and rain). It is worth mentioning that the aviary had 24h food and water access as well as both indoor and outdoor areas.
Living in an indoor cage, she now has significantly less space than ever before. This is not ideal, but unless I get her more tame, I fear that letting her out of the cage will be harmful/stressful for her rather than enjoyable.
Her cage is placed in my office/bedroom, so she is constantly around me, and I make sure to talk and interact with her several times a day.
After about 4-5 weeks inside now, I still see little progress with her in terms of comfort; she eats, drinks and relieves herself in healthy manners, and has hefty chirping sessions almost every day around noon, so her physical well-being seems just fine, but she does not thrive.
She refuses to eat anything but her common seed mixture.
Apples, berries, bananas, cucumbers and pine needles (which the flock in the aviary always loved to peck) she rejects and ignores. This concerns me, as it obviously is not a varied or healthy diet for her to only consume seed.
My worry is that every time I move around the room, interact with her, touch her cage, etc. she gets upset and frightened, and has a tendency to fly around in her cage, panicked. Despite patient, calm and careful mannerisms, my hand frightens her terribly. I would like her to thrive, of course, my very intention of moving her inside, but I am at a loss as to how to help her. I realise taming her entirely may never be an option due to her age and gender, but at least getting her used to my hand and presence so that she is not so panicked/frightened at all times would be wonderful. For her and for me.
Hoping you have some ideas for me!
Cuddles from Silver and Nala