Breeding Budgies

[MegTheFish]

At the moment I have 4 budgies and a friendly cockatiel in a large cage that is apparently suitable for 8+ budgies. Two of them still have pink ceres, they are too young to tell they're gender, but my other two are old enough to tell. One is defently a male, and the other one I THOUGHT was a male, but then its cere turned brown, then blue again, and now its stayed at brown, so I'm assuming it is a female? So I would love to breed my budgies, and have done some research in the past but never got around to doing it. Anybody have any information that they would care to share?

 

[Cat]

At the moment I have 4 budgies and a friendly cockatiel in a large cage that is apparently suitable for 8+ budgies. Two of them still have pink ceres, they are too young to tell they're gender, but my other two are old enough to tell. One is defently a male, and the other one I THOUGHT was a male, but then its cere turned brown, then blue again, and now its stayed at brown, so I'm assuming it is a female? So I would love to breed my budgies, and have done some research in the past but never got around to doing it. Anybody have any information that they would care to share?

my dad used breed them,you will have to put a pair on their own in a cage ,fit a nest box to the outside so u can open it to clean it out, and leave it to nature,i can remember my dad cleaning out the nest boxes he took the tiny just hatched birds out and put them in my hand,while he cleaned it out.

 

[MegTheFish]

Can't I just put the nesting box in the main cage? Because I don't know who is a "pair" so I wouldn't be able to seperate them.

 

[b.c.f.c]

just a couple of things id like to add, if your going to have more then 1 nest box which i would advise, you have to put them at the same hight. plus more nest boxs will mean more choice for the pair of budgies, just think of it as a human moving house and they want a house or in a budgies case a nest box to suit them.

 

[Cat]

If you can't sex them yet they may be to young to breed,its better when u can sex a pair and put them on their own in a cage .Itsusually better with a nest box on the outside with a slide up panel so u don't have to move it for cleaning,they are easy to fit.

 

[MegTheFish]

I was just talking to some people on a budgie forum and they said that if I wasn't willing to hand feed the babies if something went wrong then I shouldn't breed. So I'm not going to breed them, as I wouldn't be able to handfeed (I can't stay up all night, I have school to go to). I just never thought of that.

 

[Jessica13]

I've never bred any of my birds, so couldn't advise you on how to do it, but thought i should mention a couple of things..

Firstly, i've always been led to believe that if they're in a cage, rather than an aviary its important to make sure its just one pair, or they could fight. I dont know how true that is but i wouldn't want to risk it.

Also, before you do breed them, please make sure you have homes for any chicks you get. You wouldn't believe the number of budgies and smaller birds that are in rescues needing homes! Even if its just a pet shop who will buy them off you, the last thing you want is to be stuck with some birds you cant rehome and have no room for!

And also, im assuming you're not planning to hand rear them, but if you are, really dont lol! I was just told about someone who tried to hand rear one of their cockatiel chicks and burnt the poor things crop and it couldn't eat and eventually just starved to death The best thing to do would be let the parents raise them and sell as aviary/breeding birds, or pay someone to handrear for you, or teach you how to do it