AIBU to take budgies on holiday....?

[mybabyweightiseightyearsold]

We are going to a family cottage in the back of beyond. Think rain sodden, wind swept and midge infested for two glorious weeks...sheesh.

We've had four budgies for about a month, taming and training has been going pretty well - and we just love them.

They are perch trained and know the room now, so the cage door is open when we are in for them to come and go as they like.

I have an offer for a foster home for the two weeks of misery holiday - but, I'm keen to take them with us so we can keep taming them.

Have bought a travel cage and a zip up nylon indoor run for rabbits/kittens that has a lid - like this folds flat and big enough to put free standing perches made out of wooden sticks in

Now, is that a stupid idea? Have I turned into the crazy budgie lady?

[Debeezandbirds]

YANBU.

If they're still young and you're training it's probably in both your interests.

Not a crazy budgie lady, just someone who cares about her pets.

I'm working out how we'd take our bearded dragon with us.....

[oiwheresthecoffee]

I rememeber you getting them ! How are they doing ? Any talkers yet ?

Id take mine. But hes very stupidly tame and loves being with people and doesnt mind the car journey as hes so daft placid.

Have they already had a go in the run thingy ?
Or even the travel cage , might be an idea to get them used to it.

[oiwheresthecoffee]

Oh have just found your other update.
I have just the one , a male and i adore him. No kids or DP just now just me and the bird. Hes with me now lying on the laptop sleeping.

He was amazing , i knew the second i saw him he would make a good pet as he was trying to chew my finger through the bars and investigate my hand.
I was right too , he was finger tame in days , days !

Same as your birds when he first came out of the cage he fell everwhere , flew in to walls the lot. He used to try and hop from perch to perch in his cage too but couldnt quite make it yet just kept on throwing himself across the cage trying to do it the daft sod.

Before him i had a female , also on her own. I know a lot of people keep them together/in groups but ive always had so much time for them i dont think they were ever lonely. Whenever im home hes with me , unless im sleeping. He just follows me everywhere.

I would love more but i live in a flat and dont have the space. I would keep lots of them in a house though if i could. Maybe a bird room or something. They are so so intelligent and people dont realise and think all they do is sit on a perch.

Ive been very lucky , picking out birds that were easy to tame both times. I miss my girl for a long time i thought i would never have another as i thought i wouldnt be able to love it as much. Then i got him and i love him so much it hurts. I couldnt stand it if anything happened to him , hes like my child.

Im hoping you understand as a fellow crazy budgie lady what its like to love a ball of feathers so much and dont think im insane !

:)

[mybabyweightiseightyearsold]

Oh, that's very encouraging! I have persuaded blokie (who's not overly keen on their squawking and mess) and we're off tomorrow!

There's no talkers, I think that because they are a group they won't ever talk. One is very enquisitive and confident and will come up to you for a tickle or a chew of your finger. Two will hop onto the perch and sit on an arm, but are wary - and one's happy to be out and about, happy to have us near but won't go anywhere near a hand unless it's festooned in millet. To be fair to her, she's had a bit of a cold (well, I think so, she's been sneezing and the feathers above her cere were dirty looking for a few days. Back to normal again now) so maybe she's not been feeling up to it.

The run thingie only came a couple of days ago. I opened it up next to their cage, and have put the small travel cage on top of their giant one with food in it. So, they've hopped in and out of it - should be ok.

They are really funny, and smart. It's amazing to see distinct wee personalities in such small birds. I'm at home with the kids, so they get lots of company - but, I guess it'll take a while to get them tamed seeing as they are a flock of their own already.

Of course, I'm mentally sectioning off a bit of the garden for an aviary for sunny days (ha ha ha) and have found myself reading up on african grey parrots that need rescuing...

Portable bearded dragon - brilliant. My daughter's keen on reptiles and I wouldn't mind having one of those (we were lucky enough to stumble on some wild ones in Oz whilst lost in a rainforest. Lucky that was all we came across too!) Suppose they are pretty transportable as long as you can keep him warm? Hot water bottle for the journey? How hard are they to keep? Do you need to watch humidity levels etc?

Her first choice would be a chameleon - but they seem to be quite tricky for a novice. The only reptiles I've ever kept were old boyfriends, ha ha ha.

So, I'm looking at an aviary of budgies - and breeding them for temperament until we get a skateboarding budgie which is the epitome of cool in my son's book. An elderly parrot in need of a loving home. And a lizard. I can see a small zoo set up coming my way...

[Schrodingershamster]

Glad they re making progress with the taming ! Its hard with just one no idea how you are managing with four !
I'm also impressed by the one that comes for a tickle - none of mine have ever wanted to be touched. Oddly though they both love kisses. As in proper nuzzle beak plant a kiss on their beak kisses. Why they don't mind a massive face near them I don't know.
Maybe you could try that ? Mine now begs for kisses and comes and rests his beak on my face if I cont comply.

[mybabyweightiseightyearsold]

Went well! The car journey was a bit squabblesome, but that was for everybody whether feathered or no...

We didn't let them out whilst we were there, but the big run thingie had lots of space so they did a bit of flapping in it.

They loved all the grasses and leaves we foraged for them, they went wild and crazy for grass sead heads...I'm now eyeing up my neighbour's pampas grass...

I've got fairly low expectations as far as the taming goes - they are a wee flock and don't need me for company. But, they do like having their cheeks tickled - there's a bent bar on the cage and they sit there until some sucker stuffs a finger in there to scratch their itch. Cute, they fluff up their cheek feathers so you get the right spot.
#
And, ours like a face next to them, though only if they are perching on something. Weird. I read somewhere about squinting at them, that's what they do when they like each other - so, I'm now winking and squinting like a nutter.

I totally love them

[Schrodingershamster]

Hello ! Im the same poster btw just namechanged. (Im Oi.)

Good to know you had a good time. I think you are right over the taming , they have each other so probably will not end up as tame as a lone budgie.

Thats so cute about the tickles - you know ive heard the blinking thing before. No idea if its true or not though.
I trained mine to take a millet seed off my lip which progressed into giving me kisses. Which he can now mimic as well as saying i love you ! But he wont let me tickle him. I am sometimes allowed to nuzze his head with my face if hes moulting and itchy but not very often.

Other than that i cant get rid of him , hes always following me around. I love the little fluff ball so much its unreal. Budgies eh ?