Once you decide to get a pair of budgies, do not rush to get them. It is time to find out if you have enough space, funds, and free time to keep two budgies happy and fulfilled. Can male and female budgies live together? I know it is hard to decide whether to get either two male budgies, two female budgies, or male and female budgies.
I wrote this article to help you make an informed decision.
Can Male and Female Budgies Live Together?
Yes, male and female budgies can live together. It is easy for male and female budgies to bond with each other. This means your budgies will keep each other happy as they will devote more attention to one another. However, your budgies may ignore you and you may feel ignored.
Can I Keep a Male and Female Budgie Together?
Yes, you can keep a male and female budgie together. It is easy to keep them happy. However, keeping male and female budgies together comes with a lot of challenges. Some bird owners might not be able to deal with some of these challenges.
Here are some of these challenges:
They Can Lay Eggs
Male and female budgies can mate and lay eggs. If you do not mind your budgies laying eggs, you can keep male and female budgies together. Your budgies will spend time together, so they may mate at night. You will be surprised one day to see an egg inside the cage.
They Can Fight
Females budgies are more territorial, so they always fight male budgies. You might see your budgies attacking each other. If you do not keep an eye on your birds, they can kill each other, especially if their fights get intense. You will always worry about the safety of your birds.
Getting Rid of the Eggs
I wouldn’t want to freeze, shake, heat, or dispose of eggs of my birds. It is uncomfortable and I would hate to do that. If you keep male and female budgies together, this is what you have to deal with in the future if you do not want to breed budgies. If you are comfortable disposing of eggs, keep male and female budgies together.
Taking Care of Baby Budgies
A male and female budgie will mate and have chicks if you keep them together. I know it is uncomfortable to heat, freeze, or dispose of eggs, so you may decide to keep the eggs. The eggs will hatch.
However, if you want your budgies to breed, provide them with a comfortable nest box, where your budgie will lay eggs. If you do not want to take care of baby budgies, get rid of the eggs, or avoid keeping male and female budgies together.
Can a Female and a Male Budgie Live Together Without Breeding?
It is hard to keep a female and a male budgie together without breeding. But you can stop your budgies from breeding.
However, if they mate and lay an egg, destroy the embryo of the egg by freezing, heating, or shaking the egg. This is one of the best ways of stopping your budgies from breeding. Once you destroy the embryo, return the egg to your budgies.
Provide your budgies with a comfortable nest box. Your female budgie will sit on the eggs for several days. It only abandons the eggs if they do not hatch. Once your budgie abandons the eggs for more than 3 days, you can now throw them away.
How Do I Stop My Budgies from Mating?
I know it is uncomfortable to destroy the embryo of your bird’s eggs. I prefer to stop the budgies from mating. Why? It stops the birds from laying eggs, so I don’t have to destroy the embryos of the eggs. And it is easy to stop your budgies from mating.
Discourage Breeding Behavior
Do you know breeding behaviors in budgies? It is important to know these behaviors, which include regurgitating food, tail lifting, or vent-rubbing.
Once your female budgie displays some of the breeding behaviors, put your birds in different cages. This can stop your birds from mating. Keeping your birds away from each other can help discourage breeding behavior by turning off her hormones.
Do Not Keep Your Budgies in Dark, Enclosed Spaces
Budgies lay their eggs in enclosed spaces. That is why they do not build a nest out. If your bird’s cage is in enclosed space, remove it immediately. Why? They will think the cage is a great place to lay their eggs.
Additionally, your female budgie can look for a dark, enclosed space in your home to lay their eggs. Your bird can lay eggs under the couch, under the bed, inside empty boxes, and other enclosed spaces. So, keep an eye on your female budgie, especially when they are out of their cage.
Get Rid of their Nest Box
You may provide a nest box for your budgies when it is cold, especially during winter months. If you are not careful, your budgies will mate and lay eggs on the nest egg. Getting rid of their nest box can stop your budgies from mating.
Worried about your birds getting cold? Use an external heat source to keep your birds warm during winter. Make sure the heat source is in a safe distance to avoid overheating your birds.
Let Your Budgies Sleep Early
Budgies usually mate in spring and summer because the days are very long. So, keeping your birds awake late into the night can make them think it is time to breed. If your budgies sleep early, their breeding hormones get turned off. Make sure the cage is completely dark when getting your birds to sleep, so cover the cage and let your birds sleep.
Why Do My Male and Female Budgies Fight?
You will see your male and female budgies fight, which is normal by the way. As I mentioned above, these fights can get intense, especially if you do not stop them. Some budgies have killed each other during fights.
Do not assume your budgies are happy and they are just fighting for fun. Here are some of the reasons your male and female budgies fight”
Fighting for Space
Female budgies are more territorial, so they can fight male budgies and other budgies for personal space in the cage. The female protects their territory. If your budgies fight all the time inside the cage, put them in separate cages. They can kill themselves while you are sleeping.
Protect their Eggs
Any mother will fight anyone to protect their babies. So, female budgies also fight to protect their eggs. If the eggs are inside a nest box and the male budgie gets near the nest box, the female budgie will attack the male budgie. If the male budgie does not get back, your birds will fight. This usually happens when the female bird is sitting on the egg and does not need the attention of the male.
Jealousy
Male budgies can become jealous of the eggs. This is because female budgies are so protective of their eggs. Once the female stops laying eggs, it spends more time sitting on the eggs. The male budgie feels ignored and neglected. That is why the male bird will try to break the eggs. The female bird will fight back to protect the eggs.
Why is My Male Budgie Feeding the Female?
It is normal for budgies to feed each other once they bond with each other. Feeding each other is one of the ways budgies their love for each other. They also preen each other. Once your budgies bond with each other, you will see them feeding each other.
Can Two Male Budgies Live Together?
Yes, two male budgies can live together. They usually live peacefully, especially after they bond with each other. Male budgies rarely fight with each other. They can get along well. If you bring a new male budgie, the other males will accept him into the flock.
This does not mean you put the new male in the same cage with your current bird. They can still fight. You should introduce the new bird gradually.
Can Two Female Budgies Live Together?
Yes, two female budgies can live together. But it can take time for females to bond with each other because they are more territorial. Do not put new females in the same cage. Put them in different cages and keep the cages beside each other. This helps them to know each other.
Even though females are more territorial, they can still live with other females peacefully. Once your female birds bond with each other, they can preen each other, hang out together, and enjoy each other’s company.
Final Thoughts
Can male and female budgies live together? Yes, they can live together. Once you decide to get two budgies, I know it is difficult to decide whether to keep male and female budgies together. If you do not mind dealing with eggs and young budgies, you can keep a male and a female budgie together.
However, they can fight with each other, especially when your female bird starts laying eggs. Keep your male bird away from the eggs. It can break the eggs. Why? It does not want the female bird to spend more time with the eggs. It can be difficult to keep female and male budgies together.
