How to choose a healthy budgie from a pet store [4 Best Tips]

When you visit the pet store to get a budgie you want to pick a good one. However, there is no such thing as a good or bad budgie. All budgies are good. There is a healthy and unhealthy budgies. If you’re a beginner or if you already have a flock at home then you will want to pick a healthy budgie because it will be much easier to care for and it won’t infect your flock with diseases. But if you care so much about budgies that you are willing to bring back a sick or disabled budgie to your home then you are a very good person. But in this article, we’ll focus on how to choose a healthy budgie.

Tips to choose a healthy budgie from a pet store

1. Find a clean and caring pet store

When you’re getting a budgie you want to make sure that the pet store you’re going to get it from is taking good care of its budgies.

Look for clean cages, clean water bottles, and not an overcrowded cage.

2. Find a healthy-looking budgie

When looking at budgies inside a pet store they will all look colorful but the same. But when you start looking into their details you’ll find out that some are healthy and some are not.

To choose a healthy budgie, check out their eyes, beak, and feet. These are the most prone areas to show signs of disease.

Look for any crusted or watery points around the budgie’s eyes, make sure that it’s wide open and clean.

Same for the beaks area. It should not have any discharge coming out of their nostrils. It shouldn’t have blood, cots, or a crusted appearance surrounding it.

And the beak should not appear in the form such as being too long or having a funny shape to it.

A healthy budgie’s feet should be smooth and soft and sometimes when budgies are older their feet may be more scaly but not excessively soft.

If you notice a strange layer of thick-crusted skin over the budgie’s feet or if a budgie messes with its feet for too long then it may have scaly mites.

3. Check the feathers to choose a healthy budgie

One of the main signs that a budgie is healthy is when it’s keeping its feathers clean and shiny without having frayed ends or dirty spots such as having a dirty vent.

Some young birds may have a dirt event because they’re not skilled enough to clean that area yet. But all of the other feathers should be sparkling clean.

4. Look for an active budgie

Most of the day budgies are very playful and active and when it’s time to nap they would do it together, just like they play together.

So a good way to identify a healthy budgie is if the budgie is interested in its surroundings.

A sick budgie will usually be sleepy and puffed up. It won’t be active and it will not play or hang out with other budgies in its block.

It may even rest at the bottom of the cage which is a red signal that something is not right about it.

More tips to choose the right budgie

When people want to get a budgie the first thing they will usually consider is the caller. But it’s much more important to consider its health, age, and gender.

You already know how to pick a healthy budgie but how to pick a young budgie, which is what most people are looking for.

For a young budgie will be much easier to tame and will bump quicker. So look for black white eyes with no white circles, a fluffy barred head, and small black dots under the chicks, if you’re looking to get a young budgie that is.

Gender is also the main factor in choosing the budgie. If you want a female you should look for a pale white ear when they’re young and a brown or nudes ear when they’re adults.

A young male’s ear will be pink or purple and an adult male’s ear will be royal blue.

How old should a budgie be when you buy it?

Getting a budgie too young might lead to illness and personality problems. When a pet budgie is 10-12 weeks old, it is the greatest time to get one. It will be mature and ready to leave its parents at this age, but it will still be young enough to bond and train.

Is it better to have 2 budgies or 1?

It’s best to keep them in pairs in a cage so they can socialize. A pair of budgies are often happier than a single budgie. In the wild, they reside in big groups and are friendly birds. More than two birds can imitate the flock’s sound or touch.

I hope with all these tips you will be able to choose a healthy and good budgie from a pet store. You can also check out other insightful blogs on animal care on our website.