[Blossom]

Hi all,

My budgies are settling in nicely after being with us for about 3 weeks now. I have two questions regarding their health if I may:-

1. One of my birds is starting to get chips on the outside of her beak. At the bottom of our cage there is a small bowl of water with rocks in it, and surrounding that are some old logs which I found down the river. I washed them well, and she spends (literally) hours every day down there hopping over the wood and pecking chips off it. She has a chunk of cuttlebone as well as a calcium perch, but she loves the log. Will her beak be ok? Is it normal for parts of it to chip off the side?

2. I noticed yesterday evening that she was on her perch leaning forward. Her head was not drooping, but her whole body was almost in the lying down position! This was on the top perch. Today she seems full of beans and is chirruping and flapping about - and working on her log project! Is this something to be concerned about? We normally cover them at night so I don't really know what position they sleep in at night normally. We have had extremes of temperature here though. Yesterday it was 37c (95F) and in the evening it dropped to around 20c (68F.) She is eating and drinking, and her poop looks normal.

Thanks in advance! Loving getting to know these two, they have such personality!


Blossom

 

[FaeryBee]

Do you know what kind of wood the old logs are?

Not all wood is safe for budgies so it's important you choose carefully.
After determining a wood is safe, all wood you gather for use in your budgie's cage should be disinfected as indicated in the link below:

Bird; Birds: Safe, Toxic Trees, Woods. Safe Tree Wood. Parrots. Parrot cages.

Budgies like to chew and chewing safe woods good for them.
If you post a close-up in-focus picture of your budgie's beak, we will be better able to tell if the chipping on her beak is normal.

What sort of diet is your budgie on at this time?
Are the logs in her cage something she could potentially use as a nesting site?
It is not recommended you put anything in the cage that she might choose to nest in.

I have male budgies and two of them like to practically lie on their tummies when they rest.
In fact, I have a woven palm leaf platform which I call their hammock and one loves lying on his tummy on it. The other was lying on his tummy on the patio the hammock hangs from.
As long as your budgie is active, not fluffed up and is eating, drinking and pooping normally - I would not be overly concerned because she sometimes chooses to perch in a "tummy-resting" position.

 

[Blossom]

Hi

The chunk of wood and all of their perches are Eucalyptus wood, so from the safe list. I will try and get picture of her beak in due course, but being that she is not tame I don't like my chances of getting a clear shot!

They are fed a seed mix which I buy from the pet store. They get a spray of millet every 2-3 days. Most days they get either 2 vegies (today it's corn and cucumber) and every few days they get fruit (usually apples, pears or peaches.)

I'm glad sleeping the way she does is not an issue. She certainly seems to be a picture of health at the moment - she's busy scaling the side of the cage!

Thanks for your advice,

Blossom

 

[FaeryBee]

Hi

The chunk of wood and all of their perches are Eucalyptus wood, so from the safe list. I will try and get picture of her beak in due course, but being that she is not tame I don't like my chances of getting a clear shot!

They are fed a seed mix which I buy from the pet store. They get a spray of millet every 2-3 days. Most days they get either 2 vegies (today it's corn and cucumber) and every few days they get fruit (usually apples, pears or peaches.)

I'm glad sleeping the way she does is not an issue. She certainly seems to be a picture of health at the moment - she's busy scaling the side of the cage!

Thanks for your advice,

Blossom

Wonderful!
I'm glad to hear the wood is from the safe list. :2thumbs:

My guess (without seeing pictures) is that the area you are concerned with on her beak is normal wear of the beak from chewing. When you are able to post a picture we'll be able to make a better assessment.

 

[StarlingWings]

I agree completely with Deb! She sounds like a happy, active budgie

As mentioned, the chips off her beak could be "beak moulting" where the beak peels off a little to make for new growth. I hope to see pictures of her soon!