At Christmas & New Year’s Eve, there are a few things to consider to ensure that your budgies get through the festive season unscathed and into the New Year well.
Christmas
Christmas tree & fir branches
- Unfortunately, most Christmas trees and thus also the purchased “fir branches” are contaminated with pesticides (insecticides), which can be detected in also the needles of these. So if you have a Christmas tree or coniferous branches in the free-flight room, you should rather go for trees or branches from domestic FSC-certified forestsRecognizable1by the seal of the organic farming associations Bioland, Naturland or Demeter.
- Withfresh trees or branches it is advisable to pay attention to fresh resin, since this does not get along particularly well with feathersAnderslautende2rumors in the Interner can be easily disproved with fancy feathers and e.g. a flypaper…. Anyone who has ever had this on their fingers can certainly relate.
Christmas decorations
Tinsel & Angel Hair
- Tinsel is dangerous not only for budgies, but also for other pets. While these used to be made of leaded tinfoilLead3= highly toxic heavy metal, today people tend to use aluminum and/or PVC, which is also not exactly harmless if swallowed.
- In the case of angel hair, on the other hand, the thin decorative threads are partly made of glass wool. The splinters of glass wool can penetrate the skin or even get into the eyes and digestive tract and cause injury.
- In addition, tinsel and angel hair can cause life-threatening intestinal obstruction in pets if swallowed.
- As with fringes and ribbons, there is always a risk with tinsel that budgies will get tangled in it or wrap it around their necks, strangling them in the worst case.
Christmas baubles and glass ornaments
- When exploring the tree or nibbling on the branches, they can easily fall and break. Especially the splinters of Christmas balls are very sharp and the budgies can injure themselves on them and even bleed to death.
Fairy lights
- Since fairy lights usually have only thin insulation of the cables, there is a risk that budgies not only swallow parts of the insulation, but also expose the live wires, which can be life-threatening not only for them.
Advent wreath & candles
- Burning candles always pose a danger to pets that should not be underestimated, regardless of whether fur or feathers come into contact with the flame. In addition to burns , the candles themselves can also be dangerous for budgies when nibbled on, as they usually contain kerosene, which is toxic to pets. (➔ Candles or open fire ).
- An overturned candle, on the other hand, can be life-threatening not only for birds but also for people.
Christmas decoration
- Budgie owners should also avoid spray snow and glitter from the can, as these usually contain toxic ingredients. But even the spray mist can damage the sensitive respiratory tract of the budgie.
Christmas plants
- Unfortunately, the Christmas plants, such as poinsettia, Christmas cactus, Christmas rose and mistletoe are all poisonous (➔ poisonous plants ).
Christmas scent
- Christmas scents should never be used in the room with budgies, as they are especially harmful to their sensitive respiratory tract. It does not matter whether they are room sprays, fragrance oils or waxes or essential oils. (➔ Sprays & Fragrances ).
New Year’s Eve
Decoration
- There is also a risk with streamers that budgies can wrap them around their necks. In addition, it can be assumed that the dyes used are not particularly healthy if pieces of them are swallowed.
Raclette & Fondue
- Raclette and fondue pose one of the greatest dangers to budgies if they contain a non-stick coating. Many a party has already led to the death of all the budgies in the room, because above a certain temperature a Teflon coating releases the gas “fluorphosgene”, which is extremely toxic to birds. After inhalation of this gas, the birds die in within about 30min.(➔ Non-stick coatings )
Fireworks
Fireworks can easily cause panic flights in skittish budgies and so there are a few things to consider.
- Open the cage door, as the risk of injury is significantly lower in free flight than in the cage.
- Keep the lights on so that they do not fly into obstacles in panic.
- Close curtains or blinds to avoid being frightened by the flashes of light.
Further information
- “Gift im Weihnachtsbaum” (wissenschaft.de)
- “Giftiges Lametta” (VKI)
- “TIERMEDIZIN: Weihnachten birgt Gefahren für Haustiere” (Luzerner Zeitung)
- “Gefahren für Tiere zur Weihnachtszeit: Schokolade, Lametta & Co” (Tierarztpraxis Quelle)
- “Teflonvergiftung bei Ziervögeln” (wir-sind-tierarzt.de)
- “Feste feiern – Weihnachten und Silvester” (WelliPedia)
- “Silvester mit Wellensittichen” (pizpon.de)