It is easy to get worried when you see your budgies get fluffy. You might think they are sick and dying. Budgies get fluffy when they are sick, but there are other reasons budgies get fluffy. So, I did some research to learn why do budgies get fluffy. I’m going to share everything I learned in this article.
Why Does My Budgie Fluff Up?
Why do budgies get fluffy? Budgies get fluffy to keep warm, relax for sleep, straighten their feathers, and when they are excited and sick.
It is normal for budgies to fluff up.
However, sometimes fluffing up can mean the bird is in trouble and seriously sick. If you spend more time with your birds, you will know when something is wrong with the bird. Take action immediately if you do not want your birds to die.
Here are some of the reasons budgies get fluffy:
Keep Warm
During cold months, budgies get cold, so they do everything they can to keep themselves warm. They fluff their feathers to themselves. You will see your budgies get fluffy if you do not provide an external heat source. If the days are cold, keep your budgies warm. Cold can be life threatening to budgies.
Before Sleeping
We cover ourselves with blankets before sleeping. Why? Blankets keep us warm. Budgies, however, do not cover themselves with anything. So, they get fluffy to keep themselves warm when sleeping. If your birds fluffing up before bed, just know it is their normal behavior.
Sick Budgies
Sick budgies usually get fluffy, and they do not fly around, so they just sit at the bottom of the cage. If your bird is always active and suddenly gets fluffy and motionless, there is something wrong with the bird. Take your bird to a local avian vet for a checkup. A budgie can die suddenly from several diseases.
How do I know my budgie is sick? A healthy bird responds when you try to handle it. However, a sick bird becomes lethargic and does not respond when you try to handle it.
Additionally, a sick bird usually has diarrhea, a runny nose, runny eyes, and it bobs its tail.
Excited Budgies
You have been away for several hours, so you have not spent time with your birds. You arrive home, and you see your birds get fluffy. Do you know why? They are excited to see you.
Budgies do miss their owners. So, they get excited and happy when they see their human friend. You might even see them shaking their tail feathers.
Straighten Out their Feathers
Budgies spend most of their time preening. They love keeping themselves clean. If you put bath water in their cage, they will take a bath and groom themselves.
Once they complete preening, they shake and some get fluffy to straighten out their feathers. Do not worry if your see your birds are fluffy when grooming.
Mating
Animals usually do several things to attract a mate.
When it comes to budgies, male budgies usually puff up their feathers to attract a female budgie. If you have several budgies, a female budgie may want to begin laying eggs. So, male budgies will try to attract the female.
Female budgies choose the male they mate with.
Knowing why do budgies get fluffy can help you know when your bird is sick. That is why you must know the behavior of your birds. A sudden change in behavior can mean trouble for your birds.
If you do not want your budgies to die suddenly, I highly recommend keep an eye on them and make sure they are always healthy.
Why Does My Budgie Puffs Up When I Talk to Him?
It is easy to enjoy budgies. Why? Bonding with these birds is easy. You just have to spend more time with them, and they will bond with you. Once they bond with you, they become your close pals. And you will have more fun playing with your birds. You will teach them new tricks easily.
Show Me Some Love
Budgies are affectionate birds, and they love their human owners. They can do several things to show that they love you, and they want you to show them you love them. If you talk to your bird, your bird might fluff up its feathers to ask you to show him some love. Cuddle your bird when this happens.
Happy to See You
Budgies get excited and happy when they see their human owners. If you have been away for even a couple of hours, your budgie will get excited and fluff up its feathers when it hears your voice.
Excited budgies usually fluff up their feathers for a few seconds, and happy budgies usually fluff up their head feathers.
Single budgies can get lonely if their human owners are not around. Spend every free minute you have with your bird if you have a single budgie. You can let the bird hang out with you as do something else like cleaning. The bird will be happy to keep you company.
If the bird trusts you, it can sit on your shoulders. The bird gets the cuddles it deserves, and you get to spend time with your feathery friend.
Why Did My Budgie Puff Up and Die?
It takes time to know when a budgie is sick. You may see your bird puffed up, so you might think the bird is just cold. A few hours later, the bird dies. You will feel bad, and you will wish you had done something. Budgies can die in a few hours if you are not careful with them.
Budgie puffing up is one of the signs the bird is sick, and most budgies usually die suddenly from illnesses.
A budgie might puff up and die if …
It Stops Eating
A budgie might puff up and stops eating. Remember that a healthy bird can last less than 72 hours without eating. If your budgie puffs up and eats a little bit or does not want to eat, take the bird to your local avian vet.
Do this immediately! Why? A sick budgie can die in a few hours if it does not receive proper treatment.
Budgie needs food and water to stay alive. If your sick budgie does not eat, the bird becomes weak and dies suddenly.
A sick budgie is delicate, so do not force food into the bird. It is much better and safer to let a professional avian vet handle the bird.
It Gets Too Cold
Even though budgies can tolerate low temperatures, they can still die if they get too cold. They usually fluff their feathers to keep themselves warm.
However, if they fail to keep themselves warm, they can die from the cold. If the night gets very cold, you might wake up the bird is dead.
Do not let your budgies sit there in the cold. They can keep themselves warm by fluffing their feathers. But that is all they can do. That is why you must help keep your budgies warm during cold winter months. You don’t know how low the temperature will go.
If you don’t keep them warm, they can stop eating. Your healthy budgies can die in less than 72 hours if they do not eat.
Therefore, monitor the temperature when it is cold. Do not rely on your air conditioner to maintain the temperature required to keep your budgies warm and happy. Invest in a good external heat source for your birds.
There are Human Errors
Some human owners have killed their birds accidentally. Some pet bird owners see their birds get fluffy, so they assume their bird is cold, especially if the bird has been fluffy for several hours. They decide to keep their birds warm using an external heat source. So, they end up overheating the bird, and the bird dies from heat stroke.
If you decide to keep your budge warm using direct sunlight or an external heat source, make sure the bird does not overheat. To avoid overheating your birds, monitor the temperature. Budgies do well that 65 degrees Fahrenheit. So, keep the temperatures at 65 degrees Fahrenheit.
Additionally, some pet bird owners can make mistakes and kill their birds when trying to feed them. As a new bird owner, do not force feed your bird if it stops eating. And please do not use a syringe.
Budgies are small birds, so it is hard to handle them. You might squeeze them to death while trying to feed them.
If your budgie refuses to eat, take it an avian vet. An avian vet can show you how to properly feed your bird.
Some people might kill their birds accidentally, so they think their bird died due to other reasons.
Did your budgie die suddenly? I’m sorry for the loss, and I highly encourage you to read this article. You will know what to do with your dead budgie.
In Conclusion
I wrote this article to help you know why do budgies get fluffy. I hope by now you know some of the reasons your budgies fluff up. If you see your budgie gets fluffy, do not rush the bird to an avian pet if the bird is active and responds to you. However, if the bird stops eating and just sits there, it needs the attention of an avian vet.
You must keep an eye on your birds. If their behavior change suddenly, you must know the cause of the change in behavior. Monitoring your birds can help you stop your budgies from dying suddenly.
