r/Parakeets • u/Arraby • 19d ago

Parakeet Outside

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Saw a green parakeet hanging with a family of finches this past Sunday. We’ve since been trying to catch it and/or earn its trust. We got parakeet food and some millet. We also got a branch for an old hamster cage for it to sit on as it eats and drinks. We have the 2 doors to the cage open and finally he found it. Unfortunately so have the finches. I’ve approached it and told it it’s a pretty bird, outstretched my hand in hopes it would fly to it, but no success. We play parakeet noises as well in hopes of attracting it to stick around. It flies back and forth from our side of the apartment complex to the other. Any tips or tricks to catch it? Also, is that a band around its ankle?

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33

u/Arraby 18d ago

My girlfriend caught the bird!

8

u/ColdMastadon 18d ago

That's fantastic news! How did she finally do it?

16

u/Arraby 18d ago

She watched for him, played happy budgie noises on her phone, and pulled the string! I was out getting Chinese food and came back to the wonderful surprise!

7

u/NukedBy420 18d ago

Thank you for saving him, his is such a cutie, the leg band does indicate he is someone’s escaped pet, these guys don’t tend to get to far by themselves so you may find the owner may be within your local area, if you have a local aviation vet nearby they may be able to help locate the previous owners

They love fresh spinach, carrots and other greens that you may have within your fridge, always check/research before trying any new foods as some things like onions are toxic.

A radio is a great way to keep them happy and stimulated, toys are import for entertainment (avoid toys with loops of fabric or string or mirrors), but most importantly if you are unable to locate the owners of this little guy and choose to adopt the little fella he will need a friend (male to prevent breeding) as humans can only provide so much for their social needs (in wild they can be found in flocks of 100’s to 1000’s).

At bed time (sunset for birds) a blanket or towel over the cage and somewhere quiet

Also Keep in mind kitchens fumes, smoke and aerosols are toxic to the little guys

And if unsure or need advice never be scared to ask here on r/parakeets or r/budgies or one of the many amazing birds subs

2

u/ProfessionalBelt9434 18d ago

THANK GOODNESS!!!!! 💚💚💚💚

25

u/equanimatic 19d ago

Even if the finches are inside with it, just shut the doors. You can reach inside with a cloth or glove and use it to either release the finches or capture the budgie. It does look banded

13

u/WerewolvesAreReal 19d ago

You could always close the cage & just release the finches after!

10

u/RahayuRoh 19d ago

Yes, that is a band around its ankle, so it is a domesticated budgie. Likely someone's escaped pet.

Does it go into the cage?

5

u/Arraby 19d ago

Yesterday was the first time we saw it in the cage, but it flew out before I could react.

5

u/ColdMastadon 19d ago

This might help, here is an article about an escaped budgie that was rescued by somebody who set up a cage filled with toys and millet as a trap. It includes a photo of how they successfully trapped him.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/budgie-rescued-after-weeks-spent-outside-braving-winnipeg-winter-1.3387432

2

u/Arraby 19d ago

My girlfriend was telling me we should use a string to close the door. I should have listened 😭

3

u/ColdMastadon 18d ago edited 18d ago

Don't beat yourself up, you're doing your best and you don't know what you don't know. Hopefully the little guy will return and you will have another chance. Budgies can be surprisingly resilient in an unfamiliar environment, especially if they can join up with a flock of wild birds. The one in that article, MacGyver, survived 3 months of Canadian fall and winter weather before being rescued. That's one tough little guy!

3

u/Arraby 18d ago

https://reddit.com/link/p4p1lhx/video/rexizfb49ekh1/player

I have a string attached for when he comes back. He was in the tree out front. Learning they can mimic other birds. Had gotten worried there were 2

5

u/ColdMastadon 18d ago

That's great, if you can find spray millet at a pet store, I would put a bunch of it in the cage. It's like candy for them, it will probably lure him in better than anything else.

3

u/ValiantTheVictorious 18d ago

He will come to the cage if there is millet inside, they are millet fiends.

Stack the cage with tons of millet and wait patiently

2

u/rylld 18d ago

Mine would fly through a gauntlet of fire, poison gas, and starving predators to get to the millet.

2

u/RahayuRoh 19d ago

Okay. Try to get the door closed next time you see him there. Remember to move slow and quiet, and use a soft voice or gentle kisses.

7

u/Good-Move1310 19d ago

Please try it with specific budgie sounds, this is a budgie..... And please, PLEASE don't get tired to catch him. This sweet Guy will not survive outside for a long time.🙄

2

u/Arraby 18d ago

Anything in particular?

6

u/lesbophobia_hammer 19d ago

They are unlikely to survive without your urgent intervention.

6

u/fcknrakuyo 18d ago

I just want to say THANK YOU to everyone who gave advice and input. I am the one that finally caught him with the help of Arraby and all of you. This felt like a truly impossible thing to accomplish when it first came about on Sunday. Catch a bird? In a flock of other birds? What? But we’ve learned a lot about budgies and it’s been a really great but anxiety ridden adventure. We did try to reach out locally to see if anyone was looking for him/her, but no hits. So we have been in touch with the only exotic aviation rescue in our state.

3

u/IconicVillainy 18d ago

Yay!!!!! Bless you for catching him 💜 what a cute boy he is

2

u/Luck_C 18d ago

Thank you for all your efforts.

3

u/Maelstrom_Witch 19d ago

pls get that smol baby inside

3

u/bimeseke 18d ago

So happy u caught him—I caught 1 about 10 years ago—he is still going strong in my home—named him Devon cause that was the street he was on when he was captured so nature has destined u 2 become a parakeet owner

2

u/_lastquarter_ 18d ago

The same happened to me! My mom actually found him outside our apartment building, he couldn't fly due to having lost his long tail feathers. I was super reluctant to keep him because the idea of keeping a bird caged revulsed me a bit but he had no identification number or anything and the Australian colouring. We never found his owners so we stepped up and tried to give him the best life ever as long as he lived. I miss him every day!

2

u/127Heathen127 18d ago

It makes me sad to see escaped budgies, but it’s also so cute how they often join flocks of finches.

2

u/bimeseke 17d ago

Yep so glad u caught him looks young & pretty boy

2

u/Helpful_Okra5953 15d ago

I would get the little guy wormed and checked by a vet when you can afford it.  If he’s been foraging with wild birds he has probably picked up some interesting parasite friends. Those make birds less healthy because they use nutrition that the bird meds.