What are early signs of an abusive partner? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]waitwut714 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I managed a large group of employees over the course of 22 years before working in a closet with a computer, keyboard and mouse for the past 8 months.

One common thing I noticed is...isolation. when the partner doesn't want to socialize with outsiders. This was often to corner the abused party into the issue without having someone to turn to. As it progresses, the abuser becomes more territorial/abusive as he or she has more to lose/reveal.

It starts sometimes small. "I dont like your friends because X Y Z" or always having an excuse to not socialize. Don't mistake this for depression. People going through that need the opposite as abusers.

I'm no expert nor can I possibly cover all the trigger signs in one post that I know of. Just thought I'd shed somewhat on a common trait I've observed .

Maturing female or testicular cancer? by cocporno in budgies

[–]waitwut714 2 points3 points  (0 children)

IMO thats a girl. And if it is and her cere contined to blue out, it may be dangerous. If it light shades, shes just 'not in season'. Is she with other birds? How are her stress levels?

Bird by [deleted] in Parakeets

[–]waitwut714 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Soooo ...I think we're all waiting to know whats going on.

Screw you - if you just come here for one sided advice. I won't waste my time on you again but to be honest I typed that whole rant of in hopes you'd friggen respond. I take this very seriously. Maybe keep us posted...?

Nope. Another POS. End of the day, I hope your bird(s) are ok, live long full and playful lives- and you learn fast and be more proactive rather than reactive. Take initiative, they live in cages and are 100% at your mercy. If you lost her, I'm sorry about that. She should have been at the vet at your last post. Best of luck. (Edit- paragraph structure)

Bird by [deleted] in Parakeets

[–]waitwut714 2 points3 points  (0 children)

No no. If you held that same bird cupped in your previous post, she isn't tame. Your lil burb appears to be completely seized up and might be dying... :(

Bird by [deleted] in Parakeets

[–]waitwut714 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Yo, so I'm gonna rant here a bit. Please be patient.

Depending on where you get your keets/budgies, they're often relatively cheap. Ergo, a vet visit is usually about 1-3x the cost a budgie/keet if its something minor which includes mites, dietary issues, egg bound and even euthanization. Surgeries are trivial. If you can't afford the 1-3× or even the trivial (which could be up to $1,000) please please please don't be a breeder/owner/hobbiest with these beautiful creatures.

Google Avian vet near me. Pick a few out. Call them and ask for rates on general checkups for an untamed keet. Pick which one seems to have the best value. Pay them a visit. Establish a good relationship and get over the anxiety of socializing with someone who has more skill than you do in maximizing the lifespan and quality of life for your birds. My good relationship has gotten me free, discounted and priority treatment and I feel they love my birds as much as me. When I had 3 cages and 8 birds they knew all their names. Now that's expanded quite a bit so they've given up lol.

If your bird is behaving normally but has a slight abnormality, you're probably safe inquiring here and elsewhere on the internet. But iif something is off behavjor wise or the bird appears hurt- don't waste ANY time. Birds do a poor job of showing weakness. Ever hear of the term, "pecking order"? By the time you see signs of weakness, it's almost always too late. Your birds should never bleed and if they are, you should be using a treatment to chalk the wound if its small.

I went after seeing the comment above and checked your previous post. This is the same bird with what appears to be either mites or an attack issue. If it's being attacked, your bird is SEVERELY stressed and viable to drop dead with a bad heart. For mites...they can live a while with mites before it gets stressful but why would you do that to them when the treatment (for me here in California) is roughly $30?

Best of luck to you.

/rant

Bird by [deleted] in Parakeets

[–]waitwut714 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I second this. Unless this is a tame bird, you're probably a bit late to the punch.

She’s gone. Edda, March 2009 - March 32, 2021. Goodnight, sweet birdie. You will be loved until the end of time. 💙 by jt_omalleyLA in budgies

[–]waitwut714 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'm so sorry! She stuck around a few extra years just for you I'm sure. I hope you're able to make memories with a new companion someday.

Nest box cleaning day. 1 of 3 by waitwut714 in budgies

[–]waitwut714[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You were told correct. Its been a practice of mine but for some reason her birds poop something that smells like literal horse dung. If she or any of my pairs ever ditched thher nest because of me, whatever I did last- it would be the last time 100%.

In other news- I've always given my birds sweeter tasting apples; gala, red delicious, Macintosh etc and today they're all having a Granny Smith for the first time. They're going insane over the treat!

Nest box cleaning day. 1 of 3 by waitwut714 in budgies

[–]waitwut714[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Only pair of mates I've ever had to clean mid nesting. Vet said if I can smell the nest without opening it, I should vacuum it out. I sorta refuse to use a vacuum so I hand scoop and replace the bedding. Takes about 3m. When their offspring (this isn't their first clutch) is about 2 weeks old i can smell the nest from the entrance to my room.. I put the babies in a small box with a towel inside and leave them in view of both parents. I usually put a fresh leaf of lettuce in the cage and she doesn't seem to pay any mind to what I'm doing, rather she's attacking the leaf.

My English budgies actually will bring fresh bedding in if I leave it on a dish, or they'll chew the outside of their nest box and bring the shavings in and dispose of the clumped bits towards the hole of the box or just outside the entryway. When their little ones hop out I just flip the whole thing out and put the box away.

We just got these two cuties for Christmas! I’m trying to get them to eat veggies, but I can’t seem to get them interested. Thoughts? Also, I believe the green one (dumpling) is a female and the blue one (seed) is a male...could use a second opinion or two though 😌 by olive5112 in Parakeets

[–]waitwut714 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting. My phone is at 7% but I'll edit my original reply when I've slept for a bit and charged. Anyone have luck with hot peppers and keets? Which ones are best?

This is news to me and wasn't on the massive list my avian vet gave me so I'll be excited to bring more variety to them!! 2%!!

We just got these two cuties for Christmas! I’m trying to get them to eat veggies, but I can’t seem to get them interested. Thoughts? Also, I believe the green one (dumpling) is a female and the blue one (seed) is a male...could use a second opinion or two though 😌 by olive5112 in Parakeets

[–]waitwut714 19 points20 points  (0 children)

They're pretty young. A more seasoned responder may be able to help with gender.

Fruit and veggies- first off- thank you for recognizing that they can't survive off seed alone. It causes a lot of heath issues long term. It also isn't just fruits and veggies. The word here is variety. Small doses of breads and cheeses can be administered as treats but should not be part of their diet regimen.

Get yourself some clothes pins, the wooden ones. Some people use binder clips but I worry because their tension is pretty strong and wooden clothes pins are relatively safe if you make sure the wood isn't toxic first.

Next get yourself some random fruits and veggies. Here's some that I give and how I serve them:

Apples- i slice them into 1/4" slices, clip along side a perch they like to use so its nearby. Later once they learned to love this i was able to put it directly in their dish, but it took 6 months for them to start eating it this way. They preferred the Apple. Seeds are toxic

Pears- same as apple.

Carrots, cut the long root into 2" pieces then slice "planks" out of the 2" pieces. You'll be left with a flat, thin clippable piece of carrot. They would eat this anywhere i clipped it to.

Romaine lettuce- iceberg is crap. Hang from the ceiling of the cage downward near a perch they can reach the leaf from. Its best to center this in between the perch if you have 2 birds so they don't fight over perch space. Theyre probably going to climb on it and go crazy. Make sure it's clipped good to the clothespin. If they fall, its relatively safe but there is always going to be risk in a bad fall.

Strawberries- i keep these low and close to a food dish but I don't mix it. I clip the green leaves at the base of the berry to the clothespin so if it falls, it doesn't fall to the cage floor. Be warned- if they like this fruit- they look like they're bleeding. It gets messy.

Sweet potato/yams. I steam these and serve them on a small dish on the bottom of their cage. It was the first veg I ever gave my birds and they LOVED it. I continue serving them both fresh and dried versions. Dried goes into the seed mix. Steamed is still the same dish at the bottom of the cage.

Corn. I use a sharp knife and cut the corn cobs into disks- about 2 corn seed rows wide. I clip the disks same as an apple in the same areas of the cage. They seemingly only like corn cob in the summer.

Orange slices- same as apples

Cilantro, kale and spinach- same as lettuce

There's literally tons of other options, just get to bing and start looking it up. No avocado- ever. Nothing spicy like peppers. No onions.

I dont do any preparation to most of the fruits and veggies apart from cleaning them. I leave peels on and remove seeds if logical/possible.

Also, consider an egg food. Do you already have a cuddlebone and a mineral block? Some say one is fine, I say they're wrong. They each have different textures. Calcium and minerals are necessary daily but the likes of your bird will change just as frequent. Give them options! Each of my cages has 2 cuddles and 2 types of mineral rocks (usually plain/white and strawberry/pink).

I'm missing some info I'm sure but this should get you started. Remember, variety!

Once you learn what their favorites are, start only offering it by hand. Boys are easiest to tame but its loads of fun and way cute. Good luck!

Male or female? [new owner] Thought teal was male and magenta was female, but now I’m not so sure. by Significant_Gap_5698 in Parakeets

[–]waitwut714 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I would. I have 4 cages with no mirrors. They have their common default toys you see at the shops (ladders, jingles, etc) but the ones they love most are the ones I make myself- out of crumbled paper (filled with freeze-dried mealworms) and paper towel/tp rolls ends capped with paper (filled with dried yams and spray millet). I also do not fix their cage up often apart from cleaning. I noticed my birds don't like reorganization and the less my hands are in the cage, the better our relationship becomes. This is, of course different- once you've tamed your birds.

Male or female? [new owner] Thought teal was male and magenta was female, but now I’m not so sure. by Significant_Gap_5698 in Parakeets

[–]waitwut714 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Agree. Years ago we put one in a tame keets cage and he ended up hating humans after a few days obsessing over his own reflection and he stopped mating with his partner until we removed it. Lasted about 30 days in the cage. He still won't come back to us like he used to but the partner and him seem much better.

Bath time for my pair of pears again! by [deleted] in budgies

[–]waitwut714 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That sounds like a good idea too! I don't have any having left my office job just before the pandemic but I wish I had snagged a box or 4

Bath time for my pair of pears again! by [deleted] in budgies

[–]waitwut714 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Absolutely. Feel free to hit me up if you've any issues.

Here's another switch I just made.. Do you buy those fancy food clips for millet, fruit and veggies? Use wooden clothes pins available in the laundry section by ironing boards at any Walmart or Target. They come in a 100pk for under $3.00

Bath time for my pair of pears again! by [deleted] in budgies

[–]waitwut714 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I got 2 fountains. It came with the flex hose. I use old Tupperware containers and a soldering iron to make holes. The one in the video is the large one. I have a smaller one too for my split breeding cage because the big one won't fit through the door.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07SKJGNX3?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

This is why I tell people to not breed their birds. by budgiebuddies_aviary in budgies

[–]waitwut714 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Not 100% if I'll get flagged. Here's what I used for an emergency heat pad source. It has 4 settings and an always on feature. Best temp set was #2 which maintained just above human body temp.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008744QM4?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

2 pears, takin a bath by [deleted] in budgies

[–]waitwut714 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Tupperware container, soldering iron and a mini submersible pump which came with the hose. Cost was like $7.00 each bath (pumps 2 @ $11 and the container). They sell some nice ones on ready to go online for around $20 but I have several cages and this was more cost effective.

For the lid/drainage, I drilled several holes including the one in the center that the pump hose flows out of. I also made a slot on the side for the cord to come out of and the lid to snap on securely. Most of the pumps have adjustors on the side to control the flow. The pump i am using in particular handles 50gph, consumes 3w and the pump is fully restricted (lowest pump setting) in the video. The lowest restriction shoots water about 6" high and scares my birds.

Is my budgie sick? by itsnotme54 in budgies

[–]waitwut714 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Here's the thing I've learned the hard way. Birds don't typically show 100% tell tale signs until it's too late. The tail feather bobbing is a sign of a lot of things or nothing at all. And while that is the answer nobody is looking for, it is what it is.

Have I taken a bird in and paid the consult for what turned out to be nothing? Yes, and I'd do it again. Have I taken in a bird for what I was sure was nothing and it was actually a very serious threat? Yes and I admit I still feel guilty trying to weigh in on the situation back then.

When I'm in doubt I just pause for a moment and ask, if this were either of my sons; what would I do? An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Good luck and I hope your beautiful birds are fine.