u/FrozenBr33ze

I've not bred a Clearwing since 2012, and my excitement to see him in the nest this month was unmeasurable. I was only expecting Clearwing splits from the clutch considering there was only a 50% chance that his mother was split Clearwing. It's taken 4 generations since the first Clearwing I purchased in the US. He resembles his great grandmother Helena quite a bit, but the violet is stronger here.

He is a Clearwing Violet male, 23 days of age, and he got to meet his great grandmother today. Helena was less than impressed, but didn't mind him as much. With Helena being old and unable to fly, they got to enjoy the warmth of the sun for a few minutes.

Genetics are fun because they can either disappoint or surprise you, and in this case, the surprise was very much appreciated. Now I hope that Dreamfyre will develop into a nice show bird so he can join my team for 2028; if not, he'll remain a pet like the others.

^(l am an experienced aviculturist who specialises in budgerigars. I show these birds competitively in the United States. A lot of knowledge and specialised skillset are required to safely navigate through the breeding process. As always, I strongly advise against breeding without mentorship and veterinary technical skills. I document and share the good and the challenges with utmost transparency. I share our stories on) ^(Reddit)^(,) ^(TikTok) ^(and) ^(Facebook)^(.)

Documenting the transformation of hatchlings to full fledged birds via photography is a task I enjoy immensely, and sharing my work with our audience is a privilege I consider very rewarding.

Getting parents and all chicks to cooperate after setting the scene for the shoot is no easy feat, but Salt and Vera did phenomenally, as did their son and their 5 foster kids.

My budgies bring me immense joy and I hope they bring smile to many faces too.

^(l am an experienced aviculturist who specialises in budgerigars. I show these birds competitively in the United States. A lot of knowledge and specialised skillset are required to safely navigate through the breeding process. As always, I strongly advise against breeding without mentorship and veterinary technical skills. I document and share the good and the challenges with utmost transparency. I share our stories on) ^(Reddit)^(,) ^(TikTok) ^(and) ^(Facebook)^(.)

Excited to have our first yellow Lacewing fly into the chaos here. He's probably the tiniest exhibition budgie I've got, and he's just shy of 8 months of age. He's incredibly handsome.

Excited to have our first yellow Lacewing fly into the chaos here. He's probably the tiniest exhibition budgie I've got, and he's just shy of 8 months of age. He's incredibly handsome.

How did Vera become a supermom today?

For the current phase, I've had 5 pairs set to breed, where 3 pairs were chosen to be primary breeders, and 2 pairs were selected to prepare to be foster parents to the chicks of the primary 3, distributing the workload for all. Things rarely ever go as planned with breeding. I expect complications, and am rarely disappointed.

Vera had 8 fertile eggs with Salt, but only two made it through hatch, and her youngest was a case of failure to thrive and sadly, met her end shortly.

Similarly, Fairy Dust hatched one chick out of 10 eggs laid, and due to her anxiety about the others not arriving, I've given her a break to recharge. Meanwhile, Ador hatched 4 out of 11 eggs laid. Unfortunately, not one of Mariska's 10 eggs hatched, and she too, was given time off. All these numbers meet my typical expectation of 25% hatch rate with exhibition budgerigars.

But the complication arose from one of my foster pairs having domestic dispute and refusal to coparent, so Vera adopted their chicks. And then, the other foster mother decided to pick the middle child as her favourite, and wanted to punish the other two for being too hungry, so she was also returned to the flight cage. While the foster dad was willing to care for his charges, the chicks at this age need constant warmth which cocks don't typically provide as guardians of the nest. And thus, Vera ended up adopting those chicks as well. A mother's touch does wonders for adequate development. Sorry dads, y'all are special too, but in different ways.

As it stands, at this time, Vera has 5 adoptees along with her only child (the eldest one, the poser, who will magically resemble her too). And she is taking care of them all as her own, and fiercely protecting them from me too if I take too long with my nest checks. This is her first ever clutch, but she's already demonstrating motherly instincts that I've seen in her grandmother Helena, and her mother Dove.

I plan on assist-raising her army of 6 with minimal interference, while her mate, Mister Salt, is already helping her out as well. It takes a village to raise baby budgies sometimes. I've got my brooder ready just in case they struggle a bit and the chicks need their gramps (me) to take over - which typically is not a concern, but I've got to have Plans A, B, C and D ready for those extremely rare series of unfortunate events.

But for now, I'm extremely proud of how my little Vera went from that floofball to an award winning show girl, to her current role as supermom. She tends to ace everything she does. Her son appears to be taking after her too, as a serial photogenic poser.

^(l am an experienced aviculturist who specialises in budgerigars. I show these birds competitively in the United States. A lot of knowledge and specialised skillset are required to safely navigate through the breeding process. As always, I strongly advise against breeding without mentorship and veterinary technical skills. I document and share the good and the challenges with utmost transparency. I share our stories on) ^(Reddit)^(,) ^(TikTok) ^(and) ^(Facebook)^(.)

And he's the apple who did not fall too far from the tree, that is daddy Goose. I'm hoping to see him develop just as nicely over the next two years.

And he's the apple who did not fall too far from the tree, that is daddy Goose. I'm hoping to see him develop just as nicely over the next two years.

It's been about 3 weeks since we've adopted Maggie. She has fully recovered from her spay and is starting to adjust to her new life in our family. Her being a small sized dog , it's convenient taking her to work with us at a veterinary facility daily.

Her typical day routine includes long car rides, getting cleaned, going on walks, getting her cuddles and belly rubs, and a few naps in my office. Then she comes back home and plays with our other dogs and gets a few pieces of bread at dinner!

These 8 cuties have paired up and are in good health, and nesting incredibly well. Not only do their physical features complement one another, their personalities and temperaments do as well. Very excited to see how their offspring fit with my family, and perhaps, add some light and joy to other families as well!

Hoping to share updates from their clutches over the next 10 weeks! Wish us luck. I'll definitely need it with all the work (and some sleepless nights) I've ahead of me.

What I'm really hoping to get are some nicer Anthracites and Clearwings, along with some really good Normals.

^(l am an experienced aviculturist who specialises in budgerigars. I show these birds competitively in the United States. A lot of knowledge and specialised skillset are required to safely navigate through the breeding process. As always, I strongly advise against breeding without mentorship and veterinary technical skills I document and share the good and the challenges with utmost transparency. I share our stories on) ^(Reddit)^(,) ^(TikTok) ^(and) ^(Facebook)^(.)

These 8 cuties have paired up and are in good health, and nesting incredibly well. Not only do their physical features complement one another, their personalities and temperaments do as well. Very excited to see how their offspring fit with my family, and perhaps, add some light and joy to other families as well!

Hoping to share updates from their clutches over the next 10 weeks! Wish us luck. I'll definitely need it with all the work (and some sleepless nights) I've ahead of me.

What I'm really hoping to get are some nicer Anthracites and Clearwings, along with some really good Normals.

^(l am an experienced aviculturist who specialises in budgerigars. I show these birds competitively in the United States. A lot of knowledge and specialised skillset are required to safely navigate through the breeding process. As always, I strongly advise against breeding without mentorship and veterinary technical skills I document and share the good and the challenges with utmost transparency. I share our stories on) ^(Reddit)^(,) ^(TikTok) ^(and) ^(Facebook)^(.)

No budgie has ever lived a full life as much as Chance ^((click the link for his story)). He's easily covered several thousand miles in vehicles and traversed through Texas like a cowboy, while singing along to country music. We've shamelessly smuggled him into hotel rooms at Dallas during our bar hopping nights away from home. He's gone to work with us at the office every day, and traveled with auntie Robyn during her product delivery days while we were out of town. He's defied all odds through his disability and won many hearts over with his sass and tolerance for manhandling.

Chance was just a month shy of being a year old when he'd finally moved on to the next chapter of whatever lies beyond Earth. We did not see it coming. There's an eerie and uncomfortable silence in my room now. His presence will be missed in body, mind and soul.

Goodbye, little buddy. You were very much loved by your dads, your aunties Robyn and u/caili_west, who have worked together to keep you around as long as we could. Thank you for all the good times, and for being the "perfect bird" who didn't shit all over us (because you couldn't, you silly boy). Daily commute to work won't be the same without you.

- Chance (22 July, 2025 to 28 June, 2026)