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New budgie scared, breathing fast, tail twitching. Is he sick?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Bird | Parakeet | Male | unneutered | 1 year and 1 month old | 0.0661 lbs

Hello, so today i got two new budgies, the female seems fine and isnt scared at all but the male keeps flying around all the time and is scared, when he calmed down and i got a little closer i started to notice that he was breathing fast with his mouth open, his tail was twitching up and down as well, i asked the pet store and they said it is just scared but that doesnt seem normal from what i know since i had other birds before and never seen them do that when scared, could it be sickness?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Jessica Desrosiers

Veterinary Technician

Published on November 5th, 2019

If you just got him today he is likely very frightened, and if he's flying around that will tire him out and make him pant/exhausted. I would keep his cage in a quiet, low traffic area and give him some alone time for a day in order to settle in and be able to relax.

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    Answered By Dr. Strydom, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on August 1st, 2018

    Hopefully he is just scared and shook up. I know you posted this question a while ago and I apologize that no one responded sooner. There may not have been any bird experts online at the time of the posting. Regardless, in these situations it is best to do what you did. Put him back in his cage and then keep him as calm and quiet as possible. I suggest putting him in a quiet room and covering the cage with a sheet. If no improvement in his condition within a few hours then he needs to see a vet. He surely would be back to normal in that amount of time if it was just stress related. Hopefully he did not get injured or ingest something toxic. That would be my worry. Any time you are worried about your pets you should take them into your local vet for an exam. It is much easier for us to give advice after examining a patient in person. Best wishes!

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