Handfed Parakeets Spring 2010
This is a “baby page” — we put one of these together for each season’s babies so adopters can ooh and aah over all the cuteness while they wait to bring their feathered friend home. These chicks have been adopted already so after you are done drooling, click here to see the parakeets who are currently available.
"Peanut": normal green parakeet (split for white-base, opaline and greywing) male, 4 wks old on Easter.
"Goldy": light green dominant pied (split for white-base, opaline and greywing) male, 4 wks
"Kiwi": green dominant pied (split for white-base, opaline and greywing) male; "Blue Belle": opaline dilute violet-skyblue greywing female, "Right Wing": skyblue dominant pied (split for greywing) female; "Paisley": opaline skyblue clearflight (split for greywing) female
"Blue Belle": opaline dilute violet-skyblue greywing female
"Blue Belle": opaline dilute violet-skyblue greywing female
"Left Wing" (male) and "Rain" (female): skyblue dominant pieds (split for greywing)
"Tuxedo": dark green dominant pied (split for white base, opaline and greywing) male
Sopping wet after a bath! Hand-feeding formula is messy stuff and needs to be washed off occasionally. The babies enjoy a fine mist of warm water from a spray bottle and/or a warm trickle of water in the sink to splash around in.
Perch training the parakeets as they dry off in a warm room after their bath.
"Are you talking to me?" "Tuxedo": dark green dominant pied (split for white base, opaline and greywing) male.
"Nimbus": skyblue dominant pied (split for greywing) male
"Right Wing": skyblue dominant pied (split for greywing) female
Sleeping "Nimbus": skyblue dominant pied (split for greywing) male
"Paisley": opaline skyblue clearflight (split for greywing) female
"Paisley": opaline skyblue clearflight (split for greywing) female. Very relaxed and comfortable upside down in my hand -- evidence of trust and bonding!
Handfed babies LOVE people! The babies are curious, exploring my husband's shoulders and preening his hair.
Handfeeding parakeets starts at 10-14 days of age but we start handling the chicks in the nest even before then.
Handfeeding parakeet babies is a HUGE time commitment. By the time they've weaned, we've fed them by syringe at least 112 times!
A bowl full of budgie babies! When they were younger, after each hand-feeding, they enjoyed snuggling up with a full belly (crop) to keep warm.
"Mostly Cloudy", Mom to the 4 skyblue pied babies, is a double-factor dominant pied. "Mellow Yellow" (below) is the proud poppa.
"Mellow Yellow", a full-body-color light-green greywing (split for white-base), was paired with "Mostly Cloudy" above.
Pictured here is Dad "Skylar" (a violet-skyblue clearflight opaline, split for greywing) and Mom "Mountain Dew" (light-green greywing, split for white-base). They hatched 6 babies: 2 male dark-green dominant pieds split for white-base, opaline and greywing; 1 male light-green dominant pied split for white-base, opaline and greywing; 1 female opaline dilute violet-skyblue greywing; 1 female opaline skyblue clearflight pied split for greywing; 1 male green normal split for white-base, opaline and greywing.
Learn More About Budgie Parakeets:
About Our Hand-Fed Budgie Parakeet Breeding and Training Program
Budgie Parakeet Nutrition and Food Recommendations
Playgyms, Stands and Perches: How to Order — or Build One of Your Own
Budgie Parakeet Care: Tips, Articles and Links
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi,
I am wondering if you have any parakeets available for purchase now or in the nex few weeks? We would be interested in two.
Looking forward to hearing back from you! Thanks very much,
Connie Lewis
Dillon, CO
Good morning! I am trying to find out of you still have any of the baby budgies left. I am looking to secure two birds that are well socialized and used to human contact. Please email me and let me know if you have any left. I have family that is close to Estes Park, so pick up would not be an issue.
Thanks so much,
Robin K
Pagosa Springs, CO
Connie and Robin — These babies have all gone home to their new families. We do have a very pretty breeding pair set up right now and I can put you on the waiting list for two from them if you’d like. Hopefully we’ll see eggs soon — then they incubate them for 3 wks, then feed them for 2 wks, then we pull them from the nest and handfeed for about 4 wks. (So hopefully in 9 wks, we’ll have babies ready for new homes again.) The hen is a gorgeous yellow-faced cobalt blue (might have violet factor in her) clearflight opaline. She has an excellent temperament. The male is a yellow-faced turquoise blue with normal wing markings. He is a bit larger and also has a great temperament.
Let me know if you’d like to be put on the waiting list!
Hi
your pictures are so cute! id loved to be on the waiting list for the next availible male that looks like skylar!! how soon!?
Steven,
I provide updates on our available parakeets on this page:
http://puppiesareprozac.com/budgie-parakeet/colorado-breeder/
I will email you more info and our pre-adoption questionnaire.
Hi, your birds are beautiful! We are looking for a hand raised parakeet. Do you have any coming available? Thanks..
I keep the adoption page on our website updated regularly — bookmark it to keep tabs on what we have available: http://puppiesareprozac.com/budgie-parakeet/colorado-breeder/
We’ll put 3 pairs together later this week. Babies are ready for homes about 9 weeks after eggs are laid. Try to be patient — the handfed babies are worth the wait! So sweet and loving; you’ll have a great family pet for up to 15 years!
In the meantime, check out our care information, resources and links on our website: http://puppiesareprozac.com/budgie-parakeet/care-articles-links/. Also, please respond to the pre-adoption questionnaire, below. Thanks!
~Jen
Parakeet Pre-Adoption Questionnaire
If you are interested in adopting one (or more) of our handfed parakeet babies when they become available, please fill out the following questionnaire. Don’t worry about answering all of the questions “correctly” because I am more than happy to discuss any of them with you; view this as a conversation starter so that together, we can ensure that your feathered friend enjoys a long, healthy life with you and your family.
Once I receive your returned questionnaire, I will put you on our waiting list. When we have chicks in the nest, I will notify you and ask you to mail a non-refundable deposit ($15 per bird) that will apply towards your final purchase. You can also check our website periodically for updates: http://puppiesareprozac.com/budgie-parakeet/colorado-breeder/
Thanks!
~Jen
Questionnaire:
Name:
Email:
Phone:
City and State (please note: we don’t ship our birds):
How (or where) did you learn about our handfed parakeets?
Are you 18 years or older? If not I will need your legal guardian’s permission:
Is this parakeet(s) intended for children under age 18? If yes, how old are your children?
Who will be responsible for daily cage cleaning? Daily feeding? Daily play time, love and attention? Who will purchase the cage, toys and food? Pay for veterinary care if needed?
What, specifically, are you interested in adopting (adult / baby in current clutch / be added to the wait list for a future clutch)? How many?
Describe the parakeet(s) you are most interested in. Please be specific with color, gender, age, and personality wishes:
Do you have any other pet birds at this time?
If yes, what species? Gender? From where did you obtain them?
If no, are you new to pet birds?
If for some unknown reason you could no longer keep the parakeet(s), where would the bird(s) go?
Do you plan to breed your parakeet(s)? If you are a breeder, what are your goals and how can I help you reach your goals?
What type of cage will you use? What are the dimensions (H x W x L)? How far apart are the bars spaced? (Please note that I would be happy to provide suggestions before you purchase a cage.)
Where do you intend to keep your bird’s cage?
Do you plan to keep your bird(s) flighted or to clip their flight feathers? (I’m happy to discuss these options with you.)
Parakeets are like curious 2-4 year old children. They love to play and explore. Please describe how you plan to keep your bird(s) safe whenever they spend time outside of their cage.
Do you have any other thoughts you’d like to share?
Do you have any questions you’d like to ask?
Hi Jen,
I was wondering if you could help me with our parakeet female 3 years old, she is having laborous breathing, bobbing tail, no energy, but still eating and no loss of appetite or discharge, I don’t want to treat with an antiobiotic if there is a natural remedy is there something you could recommend I purchase or something natural from the health food store?
Thanks so much!!
Norma Kwiatkowski
Whenever I notice a bird acting sluggish, I put it immediately into a brooder/hospital cage where it can stay warm and I can keep an eagle-eye on it. If she acts this way for more than half-a-day with no improvement, I would take her to an avian vet specialist. Birds go downhill very quickly!
I create a hospital cage by placing a ventilated plastic tote w/ perch over a heating pad wrapped in a towel. Put food and water in there, too.
Best wishes!