Bringing Baby Home

So you've decided to add a bird - or two- to your life...awesome (:>}=

Things to Consider:

Cage:  Get the biggest one that you have space for and can afford. Your little fellow will appreciate it. You need lots of room for toys,perches,swing, and food dishes. Be sure to pay attention to bar spacing. Budgies need their bars closer together than lovebirds do. Also, something to think about is the ease of cleaning of the cage. I've regreted more than one cage purchase due to difficulty to keep clean.  Usually the basic rectangle shape is the easiest to deal with.

Food:

 A good seed mix that has dried fruits and pellets in it is good.  Or you can purchase pellets separately and add them to the seed mix.

 Spray millet is essential to your new bird's diet. Some birds are nervous to eat in their new environment until they feel comfortable.  Since spray millet is hard for most birds to resist it helps them transition into their new home.

Oat Goats is a very good thing to add to the diet. It can be purchased at pet stores in small jars for around $5.00 or at bulk barn(in the human food section) for less. I have been getting it from an organic farmer(Castor River Farm) at the farmer's market but that is shut down for the season so when I run out it will be Bulk Barn again. If you can't find oat groats-steel cut oats is good as well.

Other additions that are nutritious and interesting for your little feathered friends are: Avicakes, Nutriberries, and Pellet Berries- all from Lafaber and readily available in pet stores.  A cuttle bone and or mineral block in the cage is good too.

Fresh food is necessary as well but we'll go into that in another entry(check older posts for ideas too).

Toys:
 Toys are a must as your bird needs to entertain him/herself. In the wild birds spend a considerable amount of time foraging for food. In their cage-they go to their dish....so....
what to do with the rest of the day???

A swing is pretty much a necessity. A bird will spend a great deal of time on his swing. My birds love to swing when there is music playing. Ladders, bells,beads etc. etc. etc.  Some human baby toys such as rattles,teething rings, and linking loops are good in the bird cage.
Google how to make free bird toys for loads more ideas.

Perches: 
 VERY important.  To have a variety of perches is important. You really don't want your bird sitting on the same little wooden perch day in day out. It would be very hard on his feet. One wooden perch-OK. Then a nice soft rope perch is good. The best perch is a natural branch. Maybe you or someone you know has a tree that needs pruning-or you can purchase branch perches in the pet store. Irregularity of shape is very good too-like a branch-not a uniformly shaped dowel. Place the branch at an angle -just like in nature.  Be sure the branches you use are not sprayed with anything nasty.Birds are very sensitive to those things. A little sand perch is good to wear down pointy/sharp nails.

A cover for your cage is necessary-especially in the colder months. It can be an old blanket or you can purchase a fancy one specifically for this purpose in the pet store.

Having everything ready ahead of time makes for an easier transition for your new baby :o)