Do parakeets need grit and gravel? And how can you tame a parakeet ?

Question

My friend gave me a keet and said it was hand fed but this bird acts like it's not tame at all. She is letting me pet her with a feather and she eats out of her cup when I hold it up to her. I thought that was pretty good considering she won't let me pet her with my finger and won't take food from my hand. She seems sad and lonely. There were other parakeets where she lived before just not in the same cage. Should I try to tame her and/or get another parakeet? I got her 8-4-06 in the night time. Thanks for your help :)

Answer 1

I have 4 parakeets, 2 pionus parrots, and a green cheek conure and I volunteer at a vet clinic with a board certified avian veterinarian and so I'll try to give you some advice.

First off, if it's the kind of parakeet I have it's one of the small ones that are sold commonly at pet stores and their really called Budgerigars or budgies to bird people. A parakeet is actually a group of species of birds with similar qualities, such as long tails and feathers that come all the way to the eye rather than having a skin ring around the eye. That is the major differences between parakeets and parrots.

You said she is a girl, you can tell this with budgies if the cere (the nose above the beak) is brown or whiteish, if its blue it's a male, if it's pink it's a baby and will eventually turn one of the colors.

Parakeets don't need grit and gravel, that is commonly feed to chickens and doves, I believe b/c there sollow seeds whole and the grit helps break down the food in their stomachs, but parakeets shuck the seeds and eat some or store it in their crop (which the empty by reguritating and then eating.

To tame your parakeet will take some time. If you can get her out and hold her without biting you, hold her close to you and pet her and talk sweetly to her and try to get her to perch on your finger. Do this in a room, like maybe a bedroom on your bed where there isn't anything for her to fly into. Also female budgies can be a little more bitey and less friendly than males, but that doesn't mean she can't become a tame pet.

If you don't already I recommend you to have her wings clipped, it's painless and then she wont be able to fly out a window or fly into a wall and hurt or even kill herself, and remember the feathers grow back so be sure if you do have her clipped to watch when the grow back, They also can flutter around when the have clipped wings and aren't completly safe from flying away b/c the wind can carry their small bodies.

If you can't hold her, wrap her gently in a small towel, so that her head is sticking out of the top and don't squeeze her too tight especially around her stomach b/c that can prevent breathing. Hold her in the towel and speak softly to her and pet her head. She probably wont like this at first, but once she is used to being held, you can teach her to perch on your finger and she'll enjoy being able to come out of her cage.

You asked if you should get another parakeet. If you get another one and put them in the same cage, they probably will be more happy with their own company rather than being out with you, although it is possible to teach them to still come out and perch on you, but it's more difficult. And you have a female, so the best match is to get a male, which they might breed and lay eggs. 2 female budgies don't get along as well, in the same cage. 2 males get along really well though. Also if you want to teach your little bird to talk (budgies are actually one of the best talking birds) it's best to just have the one.

Hope this helps and good luck.

Answer 2

It will be harder to tame your keet if you buy another one. She'll look to the other bird for company and ignore you. Take your time with a bird, the last thing you want to do is become impatient and scare it. Maybe your next step would be to get it to eat out of your actual hand, instead of from the cup. That way she'll get used to being close to and touching your hand and still relate it to a good thing (food).

After your bird is used to eating directly from your hand, you can practice a 'step up' command by holding your finger in front of it's lower breast and then gently push it against the bird while saying the command "step up" or "up". This will make the bird step onto your finger unless it wants to lose it's perch. I only suggest doing this when the bird has become comfortable with you, i.e... it doesn't flutter around when you start to stick your hand in the cage. I've trained two happy budgies this way, both of whom were 'wild' when I bought them. They went on to make excellant and entertaining pets. You just have to be very patient.

As for grit and gravel, they are a complete waste of money for a parakeet. Some birds do need a certain amount of rock to help digest their food, but parakeets are not one of them. It's likely to do more harm than good.

Answer 3

Do NOT give your parakeet grit and gravel! They are not necessary and could potentially be dangerous for the bird.

The purpose of grit is to break the shells off of seeds. For birds who swallow their seeds whole, such as doves, they NEED the grit in order to properly digest their food. In hookbills, including parakeets, the shell their seeds prior to eating them, so that is not necessary.

Hand-fed does not mean that the bird was fed out of a person's hand. Hand-fed means that the breeder pulls the babies out of the nest box, usually around the age of 10-14 days, and feeds them baby bird formula through a syringe, pipette, or spoon until they learn how to eat on their own, which is generally around the age of 7 weeks for parakeets.

They do not automatically become tame through this process. What they automatically gain is no fear. In order to tame them while a breeder is hand-feeding them, they should handle the babies frequently and get them accustomed to being petted and touched.

If you want a tame pet, you need to keep this as a single bird. If you are looking for a non-handleable bird, then you should get another one to keep it company.

What happens when you put more than one in the same cage, is they spend all of their time bonding to each other and not to you. But if you want this bird to be a nice companion to you, you should start working with it. Take it out of the cage and the first thing you can teach it is "step up." Once they learn that, the rest is "all downhill" as they say!

Best of luck -- I raise keets and the hand-fed babies can make really nice pets!

Answer 4

Parakeets and other parrot like birds do not need grit. Your parakeet probably hasn't had much experience with people, but if she's letting you pet her with a feather, that's a sign that she trusts you at least a little. I have cockatiels that will only let me touch them with a feather and will only get on my hand if they are away from their cages, they trust me, they just don't like to be touched. Depending on the age of your 'keet it might never get tamer than this. Either way, unless you are planning on spending a lot of time with her, you might get another bird. A younger one would be best. Also female 'keets can be territorial about their cages so you should introduce them both into a larger new cage at the same time.

Answer 5

Sounds like it is an older bird to me. Or has been a long time since someone hand fed it. But still and older bird.

You need to keep bringing the bird treats and feeding it by hand as much as you can. Make it relate to you as a good thing. I have a Conure and a Teil and I don't give them grit but have noticed that when they are out side they will get down on the ground and eat a few small rocks or a little dirt. I think this depends on what you feed them aswell. Not too many seeds or mix it with a prossessed food. Or just buy a mix. Kay Tee brand is your buddie.

Answer 6

Get another parakeet, they're social animals and the bird will be a lot happier if it has company. Also make sure it gets time outside the cage in a safe environment to fly around in, this will prevent depression and other health problems.
Don't feed it grit, it's a myth that they need it, and it could actually cause serious health problems if used.
buy a book about parakeets, research it on the internet. Also take the birds to the vet regularly to make sure there aren't any health problems causing this behavior.

Answer 7

She needs time, it will take up to three weeks for her to adjust to your home. Just keep working with her. Don't let her know you are afraid of her. Put the back of your hand cupped tight up against her mouth. She won't be able to bite you. She won't be able to get ahold of the skin. If she doesn't bite you can them move twards petting her. After she is used to your hand take your hand and steadily without hesitation push up against her and she will step on your hand. Then after a while take her out of cage, but away from cage, because if she sees it she will want to go right back to it. Just keep working with her.

Answer 8

All you need is newspaper on the bottom of a bird cage. If you want to tame the thing just wear a glove and stroke it if it bites let it bite it'll notice that you wont hurt it after a while. : )

Answer 9

they don't need grit - they deshell their food with their beak.
A dustbath might be good for her, though
As for tameing - the fact that the bird was tame for your friend doesn't mean she is tame for you, she just found out that your friend was nice, she don't know you.
go to clickertraining.com - there are great ways of taming, training and enriching life for birds!

Answer 10

Yes they need grit and yes you can tame yourbird with lots of hard work.