Budgie Diet

The nutrition offered to your budgie through their diet, is extremely important if you wish to watch their development and growth. A proper diet should not consist solely on one source (such as seeds) but have a varying mixture of seeds, pellets and fresh foods, however, some foods can be toxic to your budgie, so be careful.

Dried fruits or veggies in a seed mix are no substitute for the fresh foods you should feed your budgie on a day to day basis. Some seed mixes add colors and even flavors to the seeds. Avoid any mixes that use artificial colors or flavors. Keep the seed fresh by keeping it sealed in an air-tight container.

Many people don't realize that seed isn't  the only thing a budgie should consume as a part of their diet. In fact, budgies on a seed-only diet are known to suffer from malnutrition and related complications, such as obesity, and will live far shorter and, not so healthy life. Budgies quite often enjoy fresh foods slightly wet, so be sure to rinse first and put greens into the cage while they are still dripping wet. Some fresh foods that budgies typically enjoy include carrot tops, sprouts, strawberries, apples, broccoli, and most dark, leafy greens. When you feed lettuces to your budgie(s) avoid those that are mostly water, such as iceberg and cabbage, as they are low in nutrition and the high water content which can cause loose stools. After a bit of time you will come to grips with your budgies like and dislikes and will be able to tailor their diet to their needs. Be aware when feeding a budgie that too much of a good thing can be bad, a good rule of thumb when feeding fresh foods to a budgie that you supply a little more than a fingernails worth.

Some hazards, and foods that should be avoided at all costs because they are deadly for birds. Never feed your budgie: chocolate, mushrooms, avocado, fruit seeds and pits, uncooked beans,  tomato leaves and stems, and rhubarb. Many fruit seeds and pits are toxic to birds, so you should always remove fruit seeds or cut away parts of fruit that touched the pit.

Always make sure you change your budgie (s) food daily, and supply fresh fruits and vegetables constantly. I buy seed from a breeder and my budgie loves when I sprout the seed and give him freshly picked sprouts. Never be afraid to try new things either, just do a quick Google search to find out if there OK.

Budgie Hygiene

The health of your budgie is very important, but budgies don't just become immune to illnesses if you feed them ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar) or expose them to vitamin D3, it is also necessary to keep good hygiene practices. 
Simple hygiene practices such as cleaning food and water bowls daily can be the difference between a disease ridden, and healthy budgie. 

Some good hygiene practices include:

• Washing food and water bowls daily
• Cleaning bottom of the cage everyday if possible 
• Scrubbing perches, toys etc. Once a fortnight at least ( or at least wiping with a damp cloth)
• Giving the budgie a bath every week
  
• Keep seed fresh in a sealed container 
• Removing fresh foods after a few hours in the cage

Just by following these simple hygiene practices means that you can decrease the risk of disease.  If you want your budgie to live to a ripe old age hygiene is vital.

Budgie Health

Whether you have just bought a budgie home or you are looking after an old friend, your budgies health should be of the utmost importance to you. Budgies are hard wired to look fit and healthy even though their may be something amiss. This is because in the wild weak, sick budgies will not survive as long because they will be the first in the flock to be picked out by a predator. However these masters of disguise do show some tell tail signs of illness. 

Common signs a budgie is unwell:

• sitting on the bottom of the cage for prolonged periods
• undigested, odd colored feces
• feces stuck to the vent area 
• tail bobbing
• puffed up feathers
• messy un-preened feathers
• lack of energy (not as playful) 
• unusual amount of sleeping (more than 3 hours during the day) 

If you notice that your budgie has some of these symptoms, the first thing you should to is to set up a hospital cage. The general idea of a hospital cage is that it keeps the budgie warm and sung and helps him/her to repair, or keep him/her alive until the little fella can be inspected by an avian vet. The hospital cage can be kept warm by anything from hot water bottles, fire lamps to electric blankets (However, you don't want it to hot otherwise your budgie will cook.) It is a good idea to cover the cage fully so it keeps the warm air in and the cooler air out.

Prevention is better than a cure. Apparently their has been a budgie health breakthrough, were vitamin D3 obtained by sunlight can have amazing effects on a budgies health. Read more on this breakthrough: http://www.burkesbackyard.com.au/factsheets/Birds/Vitamin-D:-A-Sick-Budgie-Breakthrough/6123

Apple cider vinegar (ACV) is also thought to have amazing outcomes on a budgies health. More on the efficacy of ACV: http://www.naturalbird.com/mcwatters/acv_for_birds.htm

As budgie health should be the utmost import aspect of looking after a budgie, it is important to know how to cure and prevent your budgie from becoming ill and at worst passing away. So always keep an active interest in the health of your little budgie.

If you have any budgie health tips that you think should be included in this brief summary of budgie health, please feel free to leave them in the comments!

Buying Your First Budgie

Wether your a newbie, or a seasoned budgie breeder the process for buying a budgie remains relatively similar. First of all have a home ready, for one budgie the cage should be no smaller than 30cm x 30cm x 40cm. If your budgie is by himself all day it is a good idea to get a bigger cage, so that he can move around and can have more toys to play with (general rule of thumb is to get the biggest cage you can afford). Get the cage ready for your budgie, make sure you have a source of seed/pellets, water container, food bowl, toys etc. Also decide beforehand what colors and gender you would prefer. Males are typically the way to go, as they are usually easier to train and faster to start "talking"  (mimicking). When you look at buying a budgie, the first thing to do is to take note of their habitat (state of the cage their in) and the other budgies around.

Look at the state of the cage and birds:

• Is the cage and the surrounding area clean and relatively tidy?
• Is there a good supply of food and clean water?
• If there are a few budgies they should be playfull and chirpy.
• There should not be any budgies that are looking sick ( fluffed up for the duration of your visit, sitting on the bottom of the cage), you do not want to buy any budgies from there if there are sick ones in the flock.

If the budgie breeder/pet shop passes the test above, it is time to look at the budgies individually.

Try to choose a budgie with the following characteristics:

• Is the color and gender you decided previously
• Young (their ususually more playful people friendly, 6-10 weeks is ideal)
• The budgie should be alert and playful 
• Double check for sings of illness

These are typically some signs of a good budgie to buy.

The first place you should look to buy a budgie is from your local breeder, this can be beneficial in many ways:

• Usually breeders will handle their budgies from a young age, which means the budgie wont be as scared of people and will find it easer to adjust to you.
• They usually care more because they specialize in budgie breeding, and have an active interest in the health of their flock. 

Getting a budgie for a breeder usually means having a healthier, friendlier and more entertaining budgie. Some pet shops are better than others, and if they pass this budgie buying guide there is no reason not to buy a bird from one. But it is not ideal.