FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What's the difference between a budgie and a parakeet?

A: A parakeet is a certain family of birds. Actually, parakeets are a part of the parrot family and so is any other bird that has a hooked bill (curved beak). A parakeet is a generic term and there are several bird which are called parakeets usually meaning long-tailed. So the more precise name of the parakeet is the budgerigar. Budgie for short. In otherwords, if you say I want a parakeet and someone really understood birds, they'd wonder which parakeet you really wanted. However, if you ask for a budgie there is no confusion.

Q: How long do they live?

A. Currently, Snoopy is almost 2 years old, Twinkie is almost 1 year old, Ixster is 5 years old, and Salty is 7 years old. The lifespan varies between 6-14 years, but the oldest budgie in the world lived to 23. The better you take care of them, the more likely they are to live longer.

Q: How hard are they to take care of?

A: One must remember that not all birds are the same. The general rule is that the larger the bird, the larger the mess. However, canaries and finches do have smaller poop than a parrot, but are very messy. A budgie poops about one dropping every 12-15 minutes. The poop is usually not watery or slimy. There are exceptions though. If a budgie is stressed they can have diarrehea. For the most part though, if their poop lands on something you can just touch it with a napkin and it sticks to the napkin like a magnet. If poop is on the floor, once it dries, it becomes hard and can be vacuumed up easily. As for food. I bought one $6.00 bag of seed and it lasted about a year. Although I do feed him several other cups of food so he doesn't get bored or eat too much of one thing. He doesn't eat an entire cupful in one week. Budgies generally drink a teaspoon of water a day. Tap water is best because it has minerals in it. A cuttlebone/mineral block is also needed for your budgie to keep his/her beak and nails from over growing. Of course, a cage is needed. They can range from $11.00 for a small cage to $38.00 for a large cage (Snoopy and Ixster have $65.00 cages while Twinkie has a $38.00 one) Of course some toys are necessary for exercise, how many you buy is up to you. To give you an idea that budgies can NEVER be too spoiled, Snoopy has some 50 plus toys. Then you can use paper towels or newspaper for the bottom of the cage. Or you can do what I did and have paper specially cut to fit the bottom of his cage. I change his food and dumped the bottom of his cage once a week. You want to change their water every other day or as often as necessary. TIP: Do NOT put food or water below where your budgie stands a lot or you will be changing it EVERYDAY. That's why budgies are ideal pets. Easy to care for, small mess, interactive, and most apartments don't even consider them as pets because of that.

Q: How big do they get? (American/Australian Budgies)

A: Their length is usually between 7-9 inches long. Their diameter is about the size inside of your index finger and thumb if you make the "OK" sign with your hand.

Q: Do they talk?

A: Some budgie can actually say words, but their tongue cannot curl like ours, so it may be hard to understand them. Most of the time they chatter or make noises that "sound" like they're talking, but you can make it out. They do have ways of communicating with us though. For example, when Ixster is low on food, he'll fly in circles around your head. Snoopy will stretch or lift his wings when I come home from work which is his way of saying, "I'm glad you're back." This is common body language with many budgies. Snoopy also is able to say "stop." I don't know why he say sit. I never say it to him.

Q: How did you get Snoopy so tame?

A: I hear this question quite often. Fact is, it's not all me. Normally, when you first buy a budgie, you give them about 24 hours in a closed cage to get used to their new surroundings before you start to play with them. By the end of the first night I had Snoopy, he already stood on my finger. That is not normal. So I think a big part of Snoopy's tameness is because he already had a pretty tame personality (this is why you spend the time to pick the right budgie...he actually chose me). I encouraged Snoopy by handling him A LOT. I have him on my finger and on my shoulder at least 4-5 times a day. I take him all around the house. I often put him and Twinkie in the travel cage and take them on field trips and I let Snoopy look out the window. I did that since I first got both of them and I still do it. Snoopy is more used to being handled than Twinkie, but he's getting used to it. It is now at the point where Snoopy will follow me or my dad into other rooms or while I'm typing on the computer, he will land on my shoulder. In addition to that, if I'm sleeping Snoopy will walk on me. That is how comfortable he is around me. I am positive it has everything to do with me handling him everyday and talking to him everyday.

Q: Do you let your budgies out of the cage?

A: Personally, I think a budgie needs freedom. As some books have noted once you have purchased them, they are now in "captivity." I hate to think of it that way, so I gave them as much freedom as possible, consistent with safety. For example, I won't let them walk outside without supervision. However, the only time I close their cage is when they go to sleep. Whether I'm at home or not, they're free to roam in my room, but I keep the door and windows closed, so they can't wander out the door and get hurt. When I first got them it was different though. I only let them out while I was at home to make sure they were "ok." Once they got a feel for the area and I was sure they weren't going to destroy anything or anything hurt them, I let them be. I don't think either one of them feel like they're in "captivity." I know some people never let them out of their cages. If you leave them in their cages, they don't get as much exercise and you lose out on one of the best aspects of a budgie: PLAYING WITH THEM!

During Snoopy's many field trips, we both get asked several questions regarding budgies. Here I will do my best to answer many of those questions. If you have another question you need an answer to, you can e-mail Snoopy (his e-mail is on the first page) and together we will come up with an answer and post it here so others can see the answer as well.