Lovebirds and budgies - hanging out?

[Pureblood]

Hey guys,

I have 3 lovebirds and just recently acquired 1 young budgie (an old man was rehoming her, so we adopted her).

I know that the two species are not to be caged together, so they have separate cages. The info I couldn't find much online is - how would they be when outside? Is it safe to let them out to fly together? The cages are pretty big (lovies 70cm tall, 70cm long and 45 deep, budgie the same except it's 50cm long) so I cannot move them to prevent perching on other's cage or contact through the bars. And I can already see the lovies sitting on her cage or them getting absolutely bonkers seeing the budgie ouy while they're being kept in haha

Any experiences and tips?

 

[LordTriggs]

firstly the budgie needs to be placed in quarantine in a different room for a month just in case she is sick. When it comes to introducing the birds I would be wary about having all out at once, if any of them decide they don't like each other you could end up with a brawl. when introducing only do so supervised in a neutral area away from the cages. If they get on then you can move on to the next lovebird and hopefully all will go well. Do always keep an eye out for any fighting, they would need to be broken up if it does happen

 

[reeb]

Yes I agree to quarantine your new budgie first.

The trouble with both budgies and lovebirds is that they can both be quite aggressive depending on the circumstances. A lot of the time, there is a very high chance that they will fight - and unfortunately for a budgie, a lovebird's beak is much bigger and can do a lot more damage. Lovebirds are also known to be very territorial, so they might feel threatened by a budgie being in their space - this is why introduction may be very risky, considering that the budgie is the new gal on the block.

As well as this, budgies can also be a bit hostile whether provoked or not. My cockatiel is the most chill bird in the world and both of my budgies tend to bully her when they are all out of the cage. Luckily, because she is so mild-mannered she never reacts more than a hiss. If your birds are flighted, the budgie could fly away from any aggression, but may still be overwhelmed by your other birdies and get hurt, just because she is outnumbered by them.

Unfortunately, the species are not known to get along well, although there are always exceptions. If I were you, I would have their cages close to each other and watch very closely how your lovebirds and budgies interact within their cages through the bars (after the quarantine period of course). If they show no real aggression, you could try introduce your lovebirds to the budgie one by one. All three might be very overwhelming for the budgie. Try to do this in a completely neutral area (not in their usual room) just so that you can curb the territorial behaviour if it may arise. Be extra careful though - because you don't want your new baby, or your old babies, to get hurt in any way!

I wish you my luck. I really hope they get along well!