Poll results: how many budgies do you own?

A month ago, I set up a new poll to find out how big a typical "budgie family" is, when it comes to budgies that are kept as pets.
First of all, I want to thank everyone who voted, I didn't expect to get such a wide response so I really appreciate it! Here are the results:

30% voted they only own one budgerigar.
24% voted they have two budgies.
17% voted they have three to four budgies (a cozy, small family)
10% voted they have five to ten budgies
5% has 10 - 20 budgies, another 5% has 20 - 50 budgies and I was surprised to find a good number of people (5%) who own over 100 budgies. Wow!
Only 1% owns 50 - 100 budgies.

I was glad to learn about this, but please keep in mind that keeping only one budgie can cause a series of problems: your bird becomes bored, frustrated and lonely and may have nightmares more frequently than budgies who sleep together in a group. It also leads to a reduced lifespan. I recommend every budgie owner to have at least two birds together. Thumbs up for the ones who keep over 100 budgies, as long as your aviary is roomy enough :)

As from today, I will set up a new poll, to find out which budgie color is more "attractive" to people than other colors. I will compare this result to the actual "beauty norm" among budgerigars (just like humans, budgies prefer a certain kind of budgie) with a word of explanation. Can't wait to see how it turns out :)

Have a nice Sunday and take good care of your feathered friends!

Outcasts are welcome

Did you know that budgerigars make excellent foster parents for baby budgies from another nest? Lost baby budgies will always find a warm home in other budgie families.

Image of this very cute baby budgie © http://kookaburrasinourbackyard.blogspot.com/

In the next post, we will hear the story of a very special outcast budgie. He was rejected twice by his mother, because of his very unusual appearance...

Baby budgies: here comes the sun!

It's Springtime, the Earth comes back to life after a long sleep. All over the world, baby budgies are born. In this video, you can see how they grow a little more every day. Thanks to Zeena for uploading this!

Him or her?

 A male and female budgie go best together. Photo (c) kellynguyen67

You're standing in front of the budgie cage in the pet store, pondering over which budgie you should buy. That lovely blue-white pied female or the pretty seafoam green male with the yellow head. Tough choice!

The best answer is: him AND her!

Budgies are the happiest when a male and female can form a pair. But take it easy, you can't have baby budgies without a good nest box!
Did you know that coconuts were used for nest boxes when budgies were first imported in the UK? Read the full story here.

Budgies can't be kept alone. Budgies in the wild live in huge flocks, and that's the way domesticated budgies want it as well. The more budgies, the merrier! If you want to buy just one budgie, you will have to give it all your attention, but it still won't do. Your bird will always miss a companion of the same kind and will never be really happy as long as there is none. Therefore, a minimum of two budgies is strongly advised.

• If you have a pair of budgies, you will find it a lot easier to study the behaviour of the little parrots. You will discover how the male and female budgie spend their days together, cuddling and flirting and playing. It's a lot more fun for your budgies, but also for you!
• Male budgies can also live together. But it's not very exciting for the birds nor for you. You won't see as much of their true personality, compared to when you have a pair of budgies of the opposite sex (or a whole aviary of them)
• It's wiser not to keep two female budgies together. There is often hostility between females, and you don't want to see them fighting.

See How They Grow!

The "See How They Grow" (Pets) series was released in 1995. The video focusses on the lives of 4 pets: kids can see how goldfish, kittens, budgies and puppies play, grow up and learn about the world around them. I picked the budgie episode ^^ See how the little feathered friends grow!

More info: http://www.answers.com/topic/see-how-they-grow-pets