surprise parakeet chick - now what?

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nolotus said:
Thanks for the helpful info! I'll do better next time. Although what I'm going to do with any more baby parakeets I don't know. :jumpy
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gonna need a bigger cage!! 🤣🤣🤣 mine are actually outside in an aviary but it’s filling up fast! I will post link to my thread
 
25chickens said:
Congrats! Is the bottom of your nest box concave? Like this: View attachment 2449672, this helps against splay foot, as well as making sure their feet are clean. As for bedding, you can use pine shavings or shredded paper, both are fine. I would remove the eggs that haven't hatched by now. If you want more chicks, take out the nesting boxes, wait a few months and give them a break, then put the nest box back in. If you don't want any more chicks, remove the nesting box.
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Do you have a suggestion on where I can get a nesting box with the concave floor? All the ones I've seen so far on Amazon have flat floors and Googling hasn't helped me much. Suggestions welcome!
 
nolotus said:
Should try to put some bedding in there or if there is anything else I should be doing.
Am I supposed to put some sort of little perch on the floor?
Also, what should I put in in case they decide to lay more eggs at some point?
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First of all - Congrats on the new baby!

And here are my suggestions :)

If mum is raising her baby in the cage I'd suggest it would be fine to put some kind of shallow tray just big enough for mum to settle in, and put something soft in there - untreated shavings or shredded paper is fine. That will give mum and baby a comfy place to nestle until baby is more active, at which time it will be fine for baby to move around on the cage floor.

A small perch just up from the floor is a good idea if you can do it without making the cage too cluttered. I find a wee perch about half the height of the regular perch, that they can "hop" onto rather than "fly" onto is a good start - and if they than then "hop" or "climb" from that perch to the main perch that would be perfect. Once they start navigating their way up and down off perches in this fashion - this is a good time to start giving them regular time outside the cage in a place where they can climb and hop and fly larger distances.

If you wish to let your parents breed again then there are many options. You can buy purpose built nesting boxes which, for a budgie, is a simple box with a wee sliding door at the end for viewing and cleaning. It doesn't really matter if it has a concave floor or not, my recommendation is to add a small quantity of bedding regardless. This will provide an appropriate cushion for the egg and help to insulate eggs and babies. I would say though that budgies are NOT fussy about what they will lay in (at this point any box is better than no box hehe) so if you are of the crafty persuasion you could fashion your own nest box to attach to your cage. Google is your friend if you want to see ideas and recommendations.

A word of caution - if you intend to encourage breeding you need to "plan ahead". Unless you plan on removing your babies to another cage for hand rearing - your current cage needs to be big enough to cope with several extra birds. You also should have a plan for how you will rehome or sell these babies if you do not wish to keep them for yourself.
 
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The Kooky Kiwi said:
First of all - Congrats on the new baby!

And here are my suggestions :)

If mum is raising her baby in the cage I'd suggest it would be fine to put some kind of shallow tray just big enough for mum to settle in, and put something soft in there - untreated shavings or shredded paper is fine. That will give mum and baby a comfy place to nestle until baby is more active, at which time it will be fine for baby to move around on the cage floor.

A small perch just up from the floor is a good idea if you can do it without making the cage too cluttered. I find a wee perch about half the height of the regular perch, that they can "hop" onto rather than "fly" onto is a good start - and if they than then "hop" or "climb" from that perch to the main perch that would be perfect. Once they start navigating their way up and down off perches in this fashion - this is a good time to start giving them regular time outside the cage in a place where they can climb and hop and fly larger distances.

If you wish to let your parents breed again then there are many options. You can buy purpose built nesting boxes which, for a budgie, is a simple box with a wee sliding door at the end for viewing and cleaning. It doesn't really matter if it has a concave floor or not, my recommendation is to add a small quantity of bedding regardless. This will provide an appropriate cushion for the egg and help to insulate eggs and babies. I would say though that budgies are NOT fussy about what they will lay in (at this point any box is better than no box hehe) so if you are of the crafty persuasion you could fashion your own nest box to attach to your cage. Google is your friend if you want to see ideas and recommendations.

A word of caution - if you intend to encourage breeding you need to "plan ahead". Unless you plan on removing your babies to another cage for hand rearing - your current cage needs to be big enough to cope with several extra birds. You also should have a plan for how you will rehome or sell these babies if you do not wish to keep them for yourself.
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Thanks for all the good info. I never, ever intended to have parakeet babies and don't want to encourage it. Though I admit it's been fun watching it develop and the interaction between the baby and parents. Again, thanks for the reply. :)
 

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