Average Size: 7 inches

Lifespan: 10-20 years

Hygiene and Health: Budgies need plenty of out-of-cage time to fly around in order to stay healthy and fit.

Budgies need to be supplied with a cuttle bone and mineral block at all times. These provide important minerals and calcium. Some budgies prefer one over the other, some like to tear them apart, and some like to use them as perches. No matter what, they should always be available, even if your budgie doesn't even touch them. Your budgie's body will tell him (or her) if and when it is in need.

Behavior: Every budgie has its own unique personality, but all budgies are naturally curious and playful little birds. Your budgie's antics will entertain you for sure. It is important to foster your budgie's curiosity and playfulness by making sure you provide various toys in the cage and different healthy foods daily.

Budgies are social flock birds. The flock is a very important part of a budgie's life. Almost everything a budgie does is normally flock oriented. Preening, eating, napping, socializing are all done as a flock. It is important to make sure your pet budgie is part of a flock. If your budgie is lone and is not tame and does not have much interaction with anyone in the household, he will be missing a vital aspect of his life. In this case, it is best to provide your budgie with a flock-mate, another budgie, in an appropriately sized cage for two. If your budgie is tame, you must make him feel like your family is his flock. Your budgie needs daily time out of the cage, with plenty of interaction. Have your budgie on your shoulder to watch TV with you. Have him sit down for a meal and give him some healthy tid-bits off your plate. Make sure you get some one-on-one time with him and talk to him like you guys are friends. You and your household can be a sufficient substitution for a budgie flock as long as you provide him the interaction and inclusiveness that a budgie flock would. You will find the friendship that grows between you and your budgie very rewarding.

All budgies have individual preferences when it comes to bathing. Some don't bathe at all, and others like to often. Budgies who do bathe should take a bath about once every week or two. Some budgies will bathe on their own, using the water dish provided in their cage to splash water on themselves with their beak. You can also provide a bath for your budgie by filling a shallow container with water and putting it in the cage once a week. If your budgie wants to, he'll go down and splash about in the water. Some budgies enjoy bathing by rubbing on wet greens you put in the cage for them to eat. You can also bathe your budgie by spritzing or misting him gently with a spray bottle (one that has never had cleaners in it). If your budgie wants to bathe, he'll show it by puffing up his feathers. If he doesn't, he'll try to get away from the spray, and you should stop.

Budgies sometimes poof up and shake their feathers in order to straighten them out. After preening or some other activity which may have ruffled their feathers, budgies will poof up, do a quick shake, and then maybe wag their tail real fast. This gets all their feathers into proper position. Budgies also poof up their feathers (without shaking) when they get really comfortable, such as before a nap. A budgie may poof up for a few seconds when they get happy or excited. Also, when a budgie is showing off for another budgie, he may puff up certain areas, usually head feathers, and display the tail feathers.

Diet: Every budgie's diet staple should be a fortified seed mix. This should include (but doesn't have to be limited to) millet, canary seed, and oat groats. Some seed mixes come with extra additives such as dried fruits/veggies and small pellets. These are all fine, but don't be surprised if your budgie doesn't eat them. Some seed mixes add colors to the seeds. Avoid any mixes that use artificial colors. Only buy those that use natural colorants, such as beat juice. Keep the seed fresh by keeping it sealed in an air-tight container. To avoid seed moth problems, you can freeze the seed mix overnight after bringing it home.

Many people don't realize that seed is not the only thing a budgie should eat. In fact, budgies on a seed-only diet will suffer from malnutrition and related complications and will live much shorter lives than those on healthy diets which include fresh foods every day. Budgies on seed-only diets can be expected to live only 4-6 years, while budgies can actually live to be 10 years or more. So it is very important to provide your budgie with a healthy, varied diet which includes fresh fruits and vegetables. Every budgie has individual tastes, and you will learn what your budgie(s) like and dislike. In general though, budgies like crispy things, such as crisp lettuces and greens. They also enjoy their fresh foods wet, so be sure to rinse first and put greens into the cage while they are still dripping wet. Some fresh foods that budgies often enjoy include carrot tops, sprouts, strawberries, kale, apples, brocolli, and most dark, leafy greens. When you feed lettuces to your budgie(s) avoid those that are mostly water, such as iceberg and cabbage. These light colored, watery greens don't offer much in the way of nutrition. Stick with the dark green/purple lettuces which are full of nutrients. Also, always take any left-overs of fresh foods out of the cage after a few hours so that it does not go bad inside the cage.

When offering fresh foods to your budgie, go for variety in choices and presentation and experiment to see what your budgie likes. In other words, try many different kinds of fresh foods, and offer them in different ways. You can clip chunks (ie melon, corn-on-the-cob, apple, etc) in the cage, or pierce them with a skewer made for pet birds. You can clip wet greens to the side of the cage, hang them from or twist them through a favorite toy, or just hang them from the top of the cage. You can offer sprouts in a treat cup or on top of the seeds. You can chop up/shred different foods (ie brocolli, cauliflower, carrot, bell peppers, etc.) to make a birdy salad and put it in a treat cup or bowl in the cage. You can even offer favorite foods from your hand. Variety in choices will ensure your budgie receives complete and balanced nutrition, and variety in choice and presentation will keep him interested in fresh foods and in trying new fresh foods.

Habitat: Medium-sized cages with bar spacing of less than a half inch. Budgies do not require too much space in order to be happy. They should have plenty of toys such hanging things, little ropes, and perches. One of their favorite toys is one with a mirror. They can spend hours talking to themselves.

Loner or Groupies: Budgies can be housed together, male & female, but the more budgies you have, the more space you'll need for them.

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