How to Determine Gender of Parakeets

Determining the gender of a young parakeet can be very difficult. However, once the parakeet has reached sexual maturity (six months to a year), there are a few ways to determine parakeet gender fairly accurately.

1. Step1
   Look at your parakeet's cere (the colored band at the top of the parakeet's beak where the nostrils are). The ceres of sexually mature males are usually blue or purple, while female ceres are typically a pinkish-tan or brown.
   
2. Step2
   Observe your parakeet's behavior. Females tend to be more aggressive, and typically gnaw and try to nest. Males will sing and learn to whistle and talk more readily. Often, males are more physically active than females as well.
   
3. Step3
   Check your parakeet's cage regularly for eggs once the bird has reached maturity, especially if it also has a pink-to-brown colored cere. Eggs obviously confirm that you have a female.
   
4. Step4
   Contact your veterinarian and ask about DNA testing if you want to be positive about the gender of your parakeet.
   
   source:http://www.ehow.com/how_2123975_determine-gender-parakeets.html
   

Parakeet Care – How to Keep Your Pet Parakeet Happy And Healthy

Parakeets are beautiful and intelligent pets, but before buying one, it helps to learn a bit about good parakeet care. This will help ensure that you and your pet bird enjoy a long, happy relationship.

Parakeet Cages

Parakeets, also called budgies, require the proper cage. Make sure it’s a cage designed for small birds, with narrow gaps between the cage bars. Get the largest cage you can afford – it should have enough space for your parakeet to open his wings fully. The cage should have a swing, and at least two perches. Attach a cuttlebone to the side of the cage so your parakeet can keep his beak trim.

Make sure the cage has a pull out bottom drawer so you can easily keep the floor clean. Place newspapers or bird paper down on the bottom to absorb the droppings. You can sometimes find parakeet cages with a grated floor above the bottom of the cage – this will keep your parakeet off the dirty bottom.

Position the cage off the floor in a draft–free area. If you’re concerned about drafts, cover the sides or parts of the cage with towels to be on the safe side.

Parakeet Feeding

Give your parakeet fresh food and water daily. Buy a good seed mixture designed for parakeets and supplement their diet with vitamin drops and bird gravel (available in most pet stores). Whenever opening their cage, use caution and make sure all the doors and windows are closed – because a parakeet can escape in a flash. Also make sure no household predators are around (dogs, cats, etc.).

Parakeet Handling

Parakeets frighten easily, so try to avoid any noisy or sudden movements towards them. Take your time and be gentle whenever you’re around them, this will gradually gain their trust. You should immediately begin the process of getting them used to you and your hand. You can do this by placing your hand in their cage and leaving it there for 5 – 10 minutes, as often as you can. While your hand is in their cage, sing and talk soothingly to your parakeet and this will help establish a bond of trust. After a period of time, you’ll be able to place your forefinger under your budgie’s chest and he’ll hop right on your finger and stay there for longer and longer periods of time.

Parakeet Exercise

To stay healthy, a parakeet needs exercise – and this means flight. You should let your parakeet out of his cage to fly every day. Start out slowly, because a bird that’s been caged for a long time will be very weak in the beginning and have problems flying. Take his cage into a small room, such as a bathroom, and open the door to his cage. He’ll eventually get out and try to fly. There will be some crashes and frustration, but in a small room such as a bathroom, you won’t have to worry about him getting stuck behind a bookcase. After a week or so, he should be in flight–shape and then you can begin letting him out to fly in larger rooms.

Parakeet Health Care

Parakeets are susceptible to a variety of diseases, but the most common and potentially fatal is diarrhea. Keep an eye on her stools – they should be round and solid. If they are consistently runny, then she could have diarrhea. Think about any changes you might have made to your parakeet. Have you given her table food? Many table foods can be harmful to a parakeet and give them diarrhea, even seemingly harmless foods such as iceberg lettuce. Stick to seed and treats designed for parakeets and go to the pet store or call your veterinarian for an anti–diarrhea medicine designed for parakeets.

Good parakeet care doesn’t have to be complicated. Just take the time to give him attention and care on a daily basis. And it’s a good idea to invest in a good parakeet or budgie care handbook.
Learn more about Taking Care of Parakeets and other informative Pet Care Articles at http://www.petcarejournal.com – a website designed to provide you with information and resources that will help you get the most out of your pet keeping experience, no matter what type of pet you own.

Train a Parakeet – Train Your Parakeet to Talk

Parakeets are small, vibrant and lively birds that can be a wonderful addition to your family. While some parakeets learn to talk without coaching or training, some will require encouragement to get their beaks speaking. Some parakeets only start talking when their owners let them hear specific phrases, words and sounds. If you successfully train a parakeet to talk, you and your family will love your pet even more.

A nourished and well cared pet will more likely demonstrate an interest in repeating sounds as well as talking. A parakeet that is watered, well-fed, and has a mirror and other plaything in his cage is the best aspirant for speech training. This is for the reason that loved pets will want to gain knowledge on how they can communicate effectively with their master and provider.

It’s important to note that the male parakeets are distinguished as good talkers. So if you want to have an outspoken pet, it’s best to adopt a male parakeet. This doesn’t mean that female parakeets just make sounds and do not talk, but in general the female birds are slower in adapting new words and training a female bird might not give you the results you are looking for.

Remember, even if you choose to train a parakeet that is a male, it doesn’t give you a guarantee that it will talk. Some parakeets only become skillful in whistling, but talking is not a talent every bird of this kind desires to learn. You should be patient enough to see results. Some breeds of parakeets that are more likely to utter words are the Alexandrine, Australian, English, Plum-head and Ring-necked parakeets. They are also known for having the ability to distinguish individual objects and even people.
Parakeets find it easier to repeat or reiterate words exhibiting hard syllables. You should examine what words are more difficult to speak than others. One of the common phrases parakeets speak is “pretty birdie”. This specific phrase encloses hard syllables that make it effortless for talking birds like parakeets to repeat or mimic. You should think of words and phrases containing hard syllables and say them to your bird frequently.

Birds respond well with a dark surrounding. So when you start your training session, you should darken the room to get your parakeet’s full attention. Begin saying a phrase or word and repeat it several times. Teach your bird three times a day for about fifteen minutes each. Don’t get disappointed if your bird didn’t talk immediately. Put in mind that most birds take several days or even weeks before it speak the phrase or word you’re teaching.

If you go to work during weekdays, consider making speech training sessions on a recorded tape and leave it to someone who stays in your house. This will not only save you time and effort but the training will be more consistent with this strategy.

If you follow these steps to train a parakeet, your pet will start repeating sounds and words in no time. This will also make your pet the center of attention in your home, making you the proudest mentor ever.
To get free tips on Train a Parakeet please visit us at Parrot and Bird Training.

Parakeet Diet

Parakeets are very active, acrobatic little birds and as such they require a good balanced healthy diet! But why leave it there? If you were forced to eat the same meal day in day out you would slowly grow insane! Budgies enjoy a varied diet, fruits, nuts, seeds and vegetables are all great examples of what can make up a great Parakeet Diet!

Your parakeet will love sharing all different types of fruits with you. Apples, mandarins and pears are often met with loving looks and affectionate nibbles! It’s very easy to help your little feathered friend out too, simply place a slice of pear, or whatever fruit you like, into your parakeets cage and they will do the rest!
Why not spice up feeding time as well! Turn this time into a bonding session with your parakeet where you can gain more trust and have some fun at the same time! Hand feed seeds and share pieces of mandarin or apple. You can even combine some greens with bathing if you offer your parakeet a wet lettuce leaf he or she can nibble and have a splash at the same time!

Green vegetables are another fantastic way of adding variety to your parakeet’s diet. Believe it or not, some parakeets will enjoy kelp, mustard leaves, cabbage leaves, dandelion leaves, broccoli leaves, cauliflower leaves and even Bok-Choi! There are some greens that can have a negative impact on your parakeets though! So if you are in doubt it is best to consult a vet as some greens can cause liver problems and calcium deficiencies.

If you are thinking about breeding parakeets diet is something to seriously consider! When hens are in breeding condition it is important to have a mineral block and also a piece of cuttlebone somewhere in the parakeet’s cage. A proper diet can mean the difference between unhealthy and healthy chicks.
Lentils, almonds, tofu, sesame seeds, and beans! No I’m not talking about last nights special at the Thair restaurant! Parakeets also enjoy these different nuts and grains and they can offer some more variety and nutrients to your feathered friend’s existence!

Parakeets are quite clever animals and that means they need more stimulation and excitement than they are probably given credit for! Seeds are a great staple for budgies and parakeets, but don’t forget to add some millet, nuts, grains, fruits and vegetables now and then to give your feathered friends some variety and stimulation. Your parakeet will thank you for their new exciting diet!
Timothy Augst is the owner of The Budgie Cage and has been a budgie enthusiast for some years.

Parakeet Care – How to Keep a Healthy and Happy Parakeet

As the happy new surrogate parent of your new pet, having a basic experience of some key points will make you very experienced on Parakeet care in almost no time flat.

There are plenty of things to take under consideration that you can at this time take for granted, that have to be considered when you have a parakeet living in the home. A healthy and chuffed parakeet will live for between 12 and 15 years with correct parakeet care.

However many birds succumb at a particularly early age due to preventable sicknesses, and scenarios. By learning to realise a few of these scenarios, you can increase the likelihood of sharing a long and excellent life along with your new pet.

When you have your parakeet home with you, it’s a smart idea to order him (or her) into the vet for a check up. Making this appointment inside the first week gives the bird an opportunity to settle into his new environment, and better to handle.

The vet will be in a position to evaluate your pet and supply any info you could need, and it is getting your new relationship with the vet, active. After the first visit, you need to take your parakeet to the vet for a check up at least annually. Naturally at any trace of difficulty take him straight away.

Good parakeet care isn’t different from caring for any other pet. Just like humans, parakeets can be afflicted by stress.

This can end up in many health issues and should be evaded as much as humanly possible. As an example, a parakeet living in a tiny cage and in a draft, will endure plenty of stress. The bird will become noticeably sad. An absence of exercise will also stress the bird, or cause obesity, which isn’t an indication of good parakeet care.

These situations are easy to avoid, by providing a spacious cage out of any draft, and taking your pet out of the cage every day for some exercise. A particularly crucial thing to think about is your use of chemicals round the home. Remember that your pet won’t only be in his cage, but when he’s exercising, there’s a chance he’ll be rambling, flying and examining other household areas.

Ensure that all cleaning items, like soap, cleaners, washing detergent, etc are all packed away out of reach. These chemicals and cleaning agents can be tragic when they come into contact with something as frail as a parakeet.

Be careful of other pets in your house. Letting your bird out to exercise as part of your parakeet care program, can be lethal if you’re not mindful of where any other pets are. Also tell other folk in the house that you are letting your bird out, so they can be aware too. A tiny nip from a dog can be fatal to your bird in seconds, and a pussycat, well we do not have to explain how a cat would react to see the family parakeet out and free.

The bacteria in a cats claws or saliva is sufficient to kill a bird with one little scratch, it does not have to bite.

Another often unconsidered fact that you need to consider before bringing a parakeet into your house (or any bird actually), is your use of non-stick (Teflon) cookware. Most of the people haven’t any idea that when heated, non-stick cookware offloads toxic smoke and these are very threatening for birds. The release of these poisons into the atmosphere in close vicinity to your bird could turn out to be lethal in moments.
Stephen Branch is a parakeets expert. Do You Want To Quickly and Easily Have the Perfect Parakeets: Healthy, Happy, and Thriving For Years to Come?
Discover more information about Parakeet Care, visit http://www.parakeetscaresecrets.com.

Teaching Your Parakeet to Perch on Your Finger

Teaching your pet parakeet to perch on your finger is easier than you think. Here is a step by step method to teach your pet parakeet on how to do this. You will enjoy keeping a parakeet even more if it is able to finger perch. Firstly, extend your index finger out with your thumb pointing upwards. Your index finger will act as a perch for your parakeet.

Speak to your parakeet in a calm manner while you slowly put your hand inside its cage gently. Rest your hand in the cage and remove it after a minute or two. This is to win your parakeet’s trust and confidence.

Find a short perch that is easy to move about and move it slowly towards the parakeet until it touches the bird’s lower abdomen or leg area. Maintain a gentle but constant pressure until the bird steps onto the perch. Hold the perch firmly and move it to another fixed perch in the cage for the parakeet to step off.

Use the same small perch but now lay your index finger lengthwise over the top of this perch. The parakeet thinks it is stepping onto the perch, but is actually stepping onto your finger. Use your finger and slowly move it towards your parakeet and gently press against its legs as you did with the perch exercise. By this time, your parakeet should be willing to step up onto your finger. Hold your hand very still at first, and then move it to a perch for the parakeet to dismount.

Practice this technique with your finger even outside of the cage. Gently withdraw your hand from the cage, allowing the parakeet to perch on your finger. Move to another area away from the cage and let your parakeet stay perched on your finger for a few minutes. With constant practice, your parakeet will mount on your finger without any fear.
Azmi Adnan is a writer and a bird enthusiast. Subscribe to his newsletter for fresh video clips on parrots and other bird species, ezines and interesting bird stories at his website http://www.power-to-live.com/parrot.html

Bird Cages For Parakeets – Choosing the Right One

Your new parakeet will spend most of his time in his cage, so the parakeet cage you choose for your pet is of great importance. Choosing the right bird cage for your parakeet will ensure that he feels comfortable and secure in his new home. Here are some important points to keep in mind while you’re looking for the best cage.

The first thing to consider is the size of the cage. Bigger is better. The cage must be larger than your parakeet’s wingspan. He needs to be able to stretch his wings without touching the sides of the cage. How would you feel if you were confined to a space where you couldn’t even stretch your arms out?

Parakeets tend to be more active than larger parrots. If you plan on keeping your bird in his cage 24/7, then the cage will need to be large enough for your parakeet to exercise. The minimum recommended cage size if you have one bird is 18″ wide x 14″ deep x 22″ high.

You should also take into consideration the shape of the parakeet cage. A rectangular cage is preferable to a round cage. Your parakeet will feel safer in his cage if he has corners to perch in. You should also consider the material the cage is made of. You’ll want a metal cage made of stainless steel or brass. A parakeet will destroy a plastic, wooden, or bamboo cage.

Some cages are painted, and this is not good because paint can chip off and it could be harmful to your parakeet. Powder-coating is okay since this method chemically bonds the color to the metal. Also be sure the cage is free of lead and zinc.

Another consideration for your parakeet cage is the size of the spaces between the bars. The spacing should be no more than 1/2 inch. Anything larger and your parakeet may get his head stuck between the bars and hurt himself. Horizontal bars are also preferable to vertical bars because parakeets like to climb up the sides of their cages.

Try to find a parakeet cage that’s easy to clean. Many cages have a tray in the bottom that can be removed for easy cleaning. A grate above the tray will keep your bird from coming in contact with the droppings at the bottom. Make sure the cage doors are large enough to easily remove food containers and toys for cleaning. The health of your parakeet is dependent on the cleanliness of his cage.
See this website for more information on parakeet cages. Or visit this site for great deals on bird cages.
Happy Shopping!