Whipper the Budgie

There are thousands of possible colour mutations amongst budgies. It's impossible to count all of them. Still, this budgie is a bit different from the others. Meet Whipper the budgie!

Whipper the Budgie. Image © The Budgie Cage

He looks cute, but also kind of sad, doesn't he? From the moment of his birth, Whipper was rejected by his mother. He was thrown out of the cage twice, but luckily he was rescued by his owner Julie Hayward, who has been taking personal care of him ever since. His unusual appearance, long curly plumage, and vocalisations, which were caused by a genetic mutation made him famous in its home country New Zealand.

Whipper's vet declared him a mutant. Instead of the usual straight feathers on a budgie, Whipper has long, soft, curly plumage as you can see clearly on the picture above.
A young girl who used to take care of Whipper claims that "it's so cute how he's got really fluffy, curly bits…". Not only does Whippers plumage set him apart from other budgies, but his owner also states that "he doesn't make the same sound as a budgie." But it's really sweet, you can check it out in the video below.



Whipper is actually classed as a “Feather duster” variety of budgie (a mutation which causes unrestricted feather growth), and is actually the 4th ever of his kind. He is slightly different to other feather dusters in the sense that the other 3 feather dusters have been known to merely sit and stare at the floor of their cage. Whipper, however, seems to be quite normal; he eats well, sings, is very social and does normal Budgie things; however he is unable to fly and it is also believed that he is blind.

Whipper and his owner © the Whipper Fan Page

 Information and pictures are © The Budgie Cage & Whipper's Official Fan Page