Having budgies in life makes the day delightful and the surroundings cheerful. But, these little mates of ours might leave us confused when they are continuously bobbing their heads. I can bet that the question must have hit your head “Why do budgies bob their head?” Are they happy or feeling any kind of pain, are they enjoying music or showing aggression? So, today in this article, we will discuss the whole story behind the budgies bobbing their heads. Let’s begin.
Is Head Bobbing Normal in Budgies? 🐦
First of all, you need not be stressed out if your budgies are bobbing their head as it is as normal as a dog wagging his tail. So, there can be multiple reasons, some of which can be positive while others might seek your special care and attention. For example, bobbing their head is majorly the trait of male budgies as an act to impress and attract female ones. Also, it can be the medium of communication, showing sorrow, understanding, or even enjoying the rhythm of their favorite music. Thus, most of the time, it is a normal thing for budgies to bob their heads, however, we are going to discuss all the reasons for the action to make you more caring toward your pair.
Head Bobbing in Nature 🐦
Not particularly the budgies, but the head bobbing is the nature observed among most of the bird species. The nature of head bobbing differs in the budgies according to their age and condition. For example, adult budgies bob their heads to attract and impress their partner while baby budgies bob to seek food and nourishment from their parents.
Reasons Why Your Budgies Might Be Bobbing Their Heads 🐦
As we said, there are numerous reasons for budgies to bob their heads. Let’s discuss some of the reasons behind the act so that the next time you see your bird bobbing their head, you can do the right thing instead of just standing and wondering.
1. Budgies May Be Happy or Excited
One of the main reasons that your budgies are bobbing their head is to express the happiness of excitement. Similarly, there can be reasons for their happiness and excitement as well. They might be feeling good because of your presence, they might be feeling good after having their meal, and at the same time, the weather of the day might be making them happy. Fortunately, they don’t need a big reason to be happy like a human.
2. Budgies Bob To Seek Your Attention
You might be busy with your work or might be stressed out about something. So, budgies often bob their head to seek your attention. At the same time, if you have got more than one bird, the chances of this reason even increase as one bird might be feeling jealous and seeking attention from you because of another. So, make sure you are interacting with these little friends timely.
3. Budgies Might Be Hungry or Craving a Treat
One big reason might be the hunger and craving for food if your budgies are continuously bobbing their heads. After all, they don’t know human languages to ask for food. If you have not fed them for hours, chances are that it is time for their meal. So, just give them a good treat like leafy greens, Millet, etc.
4. Budgies Looking for A Mate/Courtship
In both male as well as female budgies, looking for a mate or courtship is a big reason for head bobbing. It is the act to attract and impress the opposite member to have a conversation and then mate.
5. Budgies Might Get Aggressive
Budgies like to be in their own space and might get aggressive when they experience any interference from another bird in their territorial regions. So, your budgies especially the males might be bobbing their heads to show the intruder that they are ready to protect their territory.
6. Budgies May Be Bored
It resembles a human, shaking its head violently when there is nothing to do. Budgies are considered active and social birds and so, when they have run out of things to do, bobbing is the only thing they are left with. You might prefer to play with them when they are bored.
Another good cure for their boredom can be getting them toys to play with. Budgies like to play with shredding toys and it helps to keep them engaged. After all, you cannot sit and play with them every time they feel bored.
7. Budgie Might Like Dancing
Not only for interactions but bobbing their head might be their favorite dance step as well. Budgies have a good sense of rhythm, tempos, and beats which make them shake their head at music. Moreover, they might be inspired by you too when you were dancing to your favorite song in front of them.
8. Budgie Might Be Regurgitating Its Food
Regurgitating the food is a big reason that the budgies bob their head. It might sound gross to you but budgies regurgitate their food to feed it to their partners. This is more like a gesture of love between the couple. Here the love is not limited to partners only as one might regurgitate on mirrors, toys, babies, and even owner.
9. Budgies Might Be Under Stress
Stress is also on the list of reasons that budgies bob their heads for. These little friends of the owner might be stressed over a range of things, such as changing environment, a new bird in their cage, loud noises, an uncomfortable environment, or conflict with their mate. After all, they also have feelings.
10. May Be Budgie Is Not Well
Just as bobbing represents their happiness, it also represents their illness. If your budgies are involuntarily bobbing their head, chances are that they are not feeling well. The chances of this happening are even more if they close their eyes. So, refer an avian veterinarian for a regular check-up if you notice symptoms.
11. Budgie Might Be Bouncing with Eagerness or Rage
The head bobbing by budgies is a symbol of their rage and eagerness as well. It represents their defending mode and shows that they are the most powerful in the territory. Along with other birds, even your interference in their territories might trigger their rage. So, ensure to maintain a distance in such a situation.
12. Budgies Do It for Stabilization
If your budgies are walking on perch and bobbing their head continuously, the best thing for you to do is sit and enjoy the scene. It is because they are trying stabilization by head bobbing while walking on perch.
13. Budgies Do It When They Eat or Drink
Budgies sometimes bob their heads when they are eating or drinking. This helps them to swallow their food or water more easily.
Do Budgies Bob Their Head to Music? 🐦
The answer is Yes. Budgies not only bob their head to music but even have a great understanding of rhythm, tempos, and frequencies. As per Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience, budgies can be trained to tap in rhythm with different tempos and frequencies. Having mastered the task, they can even control the speed of their head bobbing according to music.
Do Budgies Bob Their Heads to Show Aggression? 🐦
Yes, budgies bob their head to show aggression. They might be aggressive for a lot of reasons such as jealousy, rage, attention seeking, preventing the interference of other birds in the cage, as well as showing territory power.
Long Story Short
So, if your budgies are bobbing their head, it is not something that you should be tensed for. In fact, most of the time they are just trying to communicate to you about how they are feeling. Just try to read their expressions and offer them the right thing.
🐦Questions You Might Have🐦
Bobbing the head is something that budgies do to convey that they are feeling sick. If your budgie is sick and is bobbing his head, take them to a veterinarian for a regular check-up.
How you can stop the bobbing of your budgie’s head entirely depends on the reason for their actions. Try to understand them and provide them with the right care to make them stop bobbing their head.
The majority of chances are that they are attracting their partner for mating. Other reasons can be regurgitating their food to feed it to their male partner, or babies, or showing love for their adored things.