How to keep cloud-pattern budgerigars? Key points for care and how to tell males from females
Parrots not only have beautiful feathers but are also very intelligent. If birds could be kept as pets, most people would probably choose to keep a parrot. There are many kinds of parrots, and the cloud-pattern budgerigar is one of them. So do you know how to keep cloud-pattern budgerigars? How do you tell males from females?
How to keep cloud-pattern budgerigars
1. Overfeeding out of worry that the young bird is hungry. In nature, the parent birds must take turns going out to forage to feed the chicks, so the chicks cannot be fed until the crop is completely full. Therefore, chicks should be fed in a pattern of small amounts and frequent meals, and before feeding, you should first confirm that the food from the previous feeding has been fully digested, to avoid old food remaining, fermenting and causing ingluvitis.
2. Generally speaking, cloud-pattern budgerigars all enjoy sunflower seeds, but many bird keepers use them as their only food, not realizing that this behavior reduces the parrot's pleasure and ability in foraging for food, and feeding only sunflower seeds easily leads to nutritional imbalance. In addition, sunflower seeds are rich in lipids and easily lead to obesity-related diseases.
3. Improper storage of feed leads to food spoilage, or even the production of toxins, and the bird keeper continues feeding without noticing, so of course the beloved bird will have problems. Therefore, it is recommended to choose feed according to the number you keep. Large packages are of course cheaper, but the shelf life of feed is not long, and considering only this point may mean losing more than you gain. Besides storing the feed in a dry, or even refrigerated, environment, inviting a few fellow hobbyists to share it is a good method: not only is the cost lower, the risk is also lower, and you can also try many kinds of products.
How to tell male from female cloud-pattern budgerigars
1. Method for identification when young
Male bird: the entire area around the cere is pink.
Female bird: a ring of white appears around the nostrils.
2. Method for identifying middle-aged males and females
Male bird: depending on the variety, the cere is peach red or blue.
Female bird: the area around the nostrils is blue, with a lighter blue on the outside.
3. Method for identifying adult males and females
Male bird: depending on the variety, the cere is peach red or blue.
Female bird: depending on the variety, the cere is white, and some are wrinkled and appear tea-brown.
4. During the mating season from June to December each year, the male bird's plumage color becomes more vivid
Only the male bird will produce a series of calls with rich variations in sound.
If it is a group of birds, the male bird will from time to time place its foot on the female bird's back.
How cloud-pattern budgerigars breed
Cloud-pattern budgerigars breed the same as ordinary budgerigars. Place a suitable nest box inside the cage of an already paired cloud-pattern budgerigar, and after a period of time the parrots can breed little parrots by themselves, with no need for human intervention and no need for surrogate incubation. Budgerigars generally will not easily go and incubate the eggs of other parrots.
Choice of breeding nest box: generally a wooden nest box is used, and the size should be suitable for two adult birds to enter and exit freely. The nest box should be made with inner and outer compartments; the inner compartment is the place where the female bird lays eggs and incubates them, and it must be kept dark (that is, with no obvious gaps). During the incubation and brooding period of budgerigars, occasionally opening the nest box will not affect the female bird's incubation and brooding, but inspection must not be too frequent; therefore, the nest box can be fitted with a sliding drawer door so that the conditions inside the box can be checked at any time.
During the period when the parrot lays eggs and broods, nutrition must be supplemented. Washed cuttlebone can be given for it to gnaw on to supplement calcium. During the brooding period, cooked egg yolk, green vegetables, fruit, etc. should be added regularly to help the chicks grow.
Strain inheritance: as mentioned above, among the several common types of cloud-pattern budgerigars, apart from the dominant pied and the spangle type, their plumage color types are all recessive mutations. Therefore, to obtain young cloud-pattern budgerigars through breeding, you should as far as possible choose cloud-pattern budgerigars of the same variety for mating and breeding.
How to choose a healthy cloud-pattern budgerigar
1. The parrot's feathers should be clean and glossy.
2. The feathers should be held close to the body, not puffed up.
3. The parrot should remain lively. It must not always be in one place with its head drawn in and eyes closed.
4. Any abnormal behavior such as drawing in the head and closing the eyes, loose and ruffled feathers, dull gaze, lethargy, drooping wings, soiling around the vent, diarrhea, etc. is a sign of illness, and you should not buy it.
5. Choose a parrot that is strong and has a loud call. A parrot with messy plumage colors is not necessarily one you cannot buy.
In summary, cloud-pattern budgerigars are also very beautiful and attractive parrots, so they are deeply loved by consumers. However, when buying a parrot, everyone must be sure to choose a healthy one, and at the same time must not keep it blindly; you need to master certain care techniques!