HELP! New Budgie- I'm afraid he/she will starve

[Alfie]

I got a new (and my first) Budgie today, and I took him/her home and he hasn't moved since coming out of the box (and only when it was tilted on its side). I put him in the cage around 5:00 and it is now 11:00 and he hasn't moved, even though he was alone for quite a long time with some budgie chirp sounds playing in the background (Should I have done that? I thought it might calm him). I moved treats and then some water right beside him and he wouldn't even try to eat/drink. I'm really worried

[Wolf]

It sounds to me that he is terrified of something in the room. But I can't tell as there is not enough information. He could also be sick, could you post a picture.

[Pajarita]

No, not terrified (budgies are daring little things), the bird sounds sick

[Wolf]

I read this one first, but when I read the second post I realized that the bird is probably sick.

[Alfie]

Throughout last night and the entire day today he moved about two inches, and I'm sure he hasn't had anything to drink (though he may have been able to reach up high enough off the cage floor to get some food, still not much). If he/she is sick, what can I do? Should I return him to the pet store and tell them I think he may be sick, or try to get him better? I don't think my family plans on spending more than the cost of the actual bird on vet bills How should a normal budgie be behaving during its first few days at a new home?

[Alfie]

Just walked in on him/her eating he's standing on the bottom of the cage munching on food, with one foot stuck up on the perch. Still hasn't perched, tweeted, fluttered, or anything like that, but I'm trying to be hopeful. Will research sicknesses tonight, but there are a few things that could have attributed to his daytime sleepiness. Last night I left the fish aquarium light on by his cage as his "night light" (as advised by various websites), and it was his first night in a strange home. The workers at Petco said he was new there, so maybe he hasn't figured out to use perches yet? And would be tired from traveling. How do I attach pictures? (sry very new here)

[Wolf]

Don't leave the light on as that interferes with their sleeping, birds are photoperiodic and the skull is so thin that the light reaches their brain even with their eyes closed. Budgies are very active unless they are sick. I don't understand why anyone would get an animal and not be willing to give it proper medical attention. These birds are extremely intelligent as well as social. The bird is without a doubt stressed out to the max and with birds if they have been exposed to any disease this amount of stress may weaken their immune system enough to make them sick. This Budgie may be little but it is as intelligent as the larger and more expensive parrots as illustrated by the fact that the world record for the umber of words that are spoken by a bird is currently held by a budgie.
Take the bird and place it in a box with a heating pad wrapped in a heavy towel to keep from burning the bird and use a thermometer to bring the temperature up to about 90 degrees F. inside the box. Make certain to put some water in the box in such a manner that it cannot spill, use a shallow dish for this.
This should help but the bird should see a vet right away and even if it were not sick this is the normal procedure for a new bird to make sure that it is healthy. But in any case the bird should see the vet.

[Alfie]

Ok, thank you for being so detailed! I followed your instructions about heating the Budgie, but we will be returning him to Petco today where they have assured us he will be cared for and taken to the vet if needed. If he was an older bird I had bonded with, we would gladly have paid the pet bills, but with a new one who came home sick, I haven't bonded with, and I haven't seen the behavior of, I thought it would be best to just exchange him for a healthy bird.

[Wolf]

I understand this choice and for you it is probably about the best that one can hope for as you would have chosen differently had you known more. When you exchange the bird look for one that has a bluish color on the fleshy part of its beak where its nostrils are and then also pick the liveliest one of those that you see. This will give you the best Budgie for you that they have.

[Alfie]

Ok, thanks again. Doesn't a bit of blue in the cere of a baby usually mean it's a female? Or is it just a sign of good health?