Hand-fed budgies
Hand-Fed Parakeets for Sale in Maryland
We hand-feed a small number of baby parakeets — budgies — at a time, in our home in
Kensington, Maryland. A hand-fed parakeet is fed by us from a few weeks old and handled every
single day, the same way we raise our hand-fed cockatiels, so it is already used to people by the time it goes
home. Each one is priced individually.
Families come to us from Maryland, Washington DC and Northern Virginia. Every bird is collected in person — we do not ship.
Hand-fed parakeets available now
Each bird is listed with its own price, hatch date and colour. Sex is usually Unknown on a young budgie — the cere only colours up with age, and we would rather say so than guess.
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Prices are for the bird only. Maryland sales tax applies; a 3% processing surcharge applies to credit-card payments.
Also available: parent-raised parakeets
Alongside the hand-fed babies we usually keep parent-raised parakeets too. They are raised by their parents
rather than by us, so they are not hand-tame and need patient, gradual taming at home — a good
choice for an aviary or a first pair, not for someone who wants a bird that steps up on day one.
$501 parakeet
$902 parakeets
$1103 parakeets
$1204 parakeets
Prices are for the birds only. Maryland sales tax applies; a 3% processing surcharge applies to credit-card payments. Availability of parent-raised birds varies through the year.
What hand-fed means here
From a few weeks old we feed each baby by hand, several times a day, until it weans itself onto seed, pellets
and vegetables. Every one of those feeds is time spent in a person's hands. That is the whole difference between a
hand-fed parakeet and a parent-raised one: the bird has no reason to be afraid of you before it arrives.
We do not raise them continuously — they come in small batches, a few at a time, which is why the list
above is sometimes empty.
Hand-fed parakeet or hand-fed cockatiel?
A budgie is about half the size, needs less room and is quieter — worth thinking about in an apartment or
with a shared wall. Budgies are also the better talkers of the two, though the voice is quick and small.
A cockatiel is bigger, calmer in the hand, whistles rather than chatters, and tends to be the more openly
affectionate. See our hand-fed cockatiels →
Common questions about hand-fed parakeets
Do you have hand-fed parakeets for sale in Maryland?
Yes. We hand-feed a small number of baby parakeets (budgies) at a time in our home aviary in Kensington, Maryland, and list each one individually with its price, hatch date and colour. Because we raise them in small batches rather than continuously, availability comes and goes — the list on this page is always current.
What is the difference between a hand-fed and a parent-raised parakeet?
A hand-fed budgie was fed by people from a few weeks old and handled every day, so it is already used to hands when it goes home. A parent-raised budgie was raised by its parents and needs patient, gradual taming instead. Both make good pets; the hand-fed bird simply starts out tame.
How much does a hand-fed parakeet cost?
Our hand-fed parakeets are priced individually, because each one takes weeks of daily feeding and handling. Parent-raised parakeets are much less — $50 for one, with lower per-bird prices for two or more.
Are your hand-fed budgies tame?
They are used to being handled, because we handle them every day while they are being fed. A young budgie is still a young budgie, though: it needs a calm first week in its new home, and the bond grows with the time you spend on it.
Can you tell the sex of a baby parakeet?
Usually not at the age they go home. A budgie's sex shows in the colour of the cere, the fleshy band above the beak, and that only develops with age. We list sex as Unknown rather than guessing. Cockatiels are different — those we DNA-sex individually.
Where are you, and do you ship?
We are in Kensington, Maryland, minutes from Bethesda, Silver Spring and Washington DC, and families come to us from Maryland, DC and Northern Virginia. We do not ship birds — every bird is collected in person, so you meet it before deciding.
How old are your hand-fed parakeets when they go home?
They leave once they are fully weaned and eating on their own, usually around eight to ten weeks. We do not send a bird home while it still needs feeding, and we will not rush a bird that is weaning slowly — they finish in their own time.
Do hand-fed parakeets talk?
Often, yes. Budgies are the better talkers of the two species we raise: many pick up words and short phrases, in a quick, small voice. Males tend to talk more than females. A bird that is already used to people has a head start, but nothing is guaranteed — some never talk and are lovely anyway.
How long does a parakeet live?
Seven to ten years is normal for a well-kept budgie, and fifteen is not unheard of. It is a real commitment, shorter than a cockatiel's fifteen to twenty years but long enough to think about properly before deciding.
Should I get one parakeet or two?
One hand-fed budgie that gets daily attention will bond hard to you. Two will keep each other company and are the kinder choice if the cage is alone for most of the day, though a pair usually stays more interested in each other than in people. Decide by how much time you actually have, not by which sounds nicer.
Can a parakeet share a cage with a cockatiel?
We do not recommend it. A cockatiel is more than twice the size, and even a friendly one can injure a budgie by accident; budgies are also quick enough to pester a calmer bird. They can live in the same room in separate cages.
More on housing them together →
