Breeding budgies is a rewarding and interesting hobby. You can experiment with colours, breed birds for your own aviary, or even breed hand-raised birds that you can train.
There is a great volume of information available on breeding budgies on the web or ask our experts in the Kellyville Pets birdroom for advice on breeding healthy and beautiful budgies. To get you started you need to answer these 5 questions.
- Do you have a suitable breeding cabinet?
A suitable breeding cabinet where the breeding birds will feel safe and will not be disturbed too much is critical. Good breeding cabinets mimic the nesting hollows that budgies use in the wild. Breeding cabinets give the adult birds easy access to food, water and exercise while preventing the chicks from falling out of the nest. Remember to give your breeding birds access to unfiltered sunlight. Breeding cabinets are a short term solution while the birds are breeding, and are not suitable as permanent habitation for your budgies.
- Do you have a flight cage ready for when the babies leave the nest?
Breeding does not stop when the eggs hatch. Once your baby budgies are fledged they will need to strengthen their muscles by flying. For this you will need a flight cage that is big enough for your baby budgies. Choose a cage that is wider than it is high as budgies fly horizontally.
- Are your budgies the right breeding age?
You should not breed with budgies until they are at least one year old. Budgies that are more than 4 years old are not ideal breeding birds. The breeding pair you choose will have to bond first. This is often easier if they know each other already. Give your budgies a break after two clutches. Laying eggs and caring for babies can take a lot out of a female bird.
- Have you got the right diet and supplements for your breeding birds?
Laying eggs can deplete the female bird’s calcium reserves. The parents also need to provide the growing chicks with calcium for strong bones and feathers and well as a host of other vitamins and minerals that may not be present in the normal budgie seed mix. Products like Vetafarm’s Calcivet are excellent for breeding budgies. You can also add green leaf veggies to their diet.
- Are your budgies in breeding condition?
Normal budgie mix contains mostly fat and carbohydrates. To breed successfully your budgies will need protein, calcium and vitamins. Supplement your normal budgie seed with a 100% complete nutritional solution like Vetafarm’s Finch and Budgie Crumble.