I just brought home a parakeet about one week ago.. he has…

I am August Abbott, certified avian specialist specializing in parrots (your parakeet is a parrot in case you didn't know)

Please give me a few moments to compose your answer. By the way, congratulations on your new family member!

I believe you're right in associating the spattering of blood to the wing trim. Likely a bit over-enthusiastic groomer. It could also be a blood feather that has plugged itself up. Not all blood feather events are the stuff of a horror movie (blood everywhere!). You'll want to monitor for any additional drops though, just in case you need to come to the rescue with a healthy dose of corn starch on the end of a broken feather or even toenail.

Now, let's make sure you start out right with this new family member (this is my hand out sheet)

New Bird

When a bird is new to a home you have to be very patient and very careful. It's easy to let them get the upper hand and never come out of their cage (which is 'cage bound') or even end up with a problem biter and screamer if the right input isn't maintained.

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At first I’ll let them be in their cage for a day with a plain sheet or blanket (it’s important to not have any designs on it which might be frightening to them) draped over two sides and the top.

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Every now and then approach the cage slowly and talk nicely – reassuring them and telling them how good they are. It’s the tone of your voice and the sound of your voice that is important and is being established at this early bonding time.

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Once the bird has tried some of their food or taken a drink of water, they’re relaxing a bit. Offer them a treat from your fingers by holding it over the food bowl from outside the cage bars and if they’ll come over and take it, excellent! It may be an especially human oriented bird that you can start taking out and handling right now. Otherwise, don’t expect too much right now, you’ll probably have to drop the treat into the bowl.

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You might want to establish a separate nighttime cage. Bird mental health (and thus, overall health) relies strongly on regulated day and night hours.

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When they’re in their nighttime cage, covered on all sides with just about ¼ of the front open so they can see out and feel secure, go up and start whispering. Nice, reassuring comments. When the bird stretches their wing, stretch your arm. Only a few minutes at a time and then backing away, letting them get a good night’s sleep in a darkened, quiet room makes a huge difference.
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In the morning, at the same time every day (no matter what), slowly pull the cover away while talking nicely, in a soft voice and telling them what you’re going to do. Slowly opening the door and reaching in with a smooth motion, flat hand (or closed and tucked under fist) a firm “step up” instruction – no matter what, don’t hesitate or withdraw, take your companion out.

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After feeding breakfast in the day cage (I like offering whole grain oatmeal with cut up fruits of the season) - a couple hours to enjoy their chewy toys and the view outside.

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Come afternoon it’s time to come out and be with the human flock. With portable perches and spiral rope perches hung securely from the ceiling - these will be the bird’s goals, but they should interact with you first.

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Most parrots will need no less than 2 hours out of cage every day; many will get an average of 4 hours and ours always get 7 hours.

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Cooing, chortling, even a sort of purring noise can be expected when your bird is relaxed and next to you. Requesting head ‘scritches’ by lowering their head and enjoying gentle petting with a finger at the back of their head is a show of trust and further bonding.
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When it comes to discipline for a bird, well, there’s no such thing. Beware of people who suggest hitting, swatting or yelling. These are extremely counterproductive - they only encourage aggressiveness and problem screaming behavior.

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http://www.4AnimalCare.org/birds for more about behavior modification and pics too!

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It’s generally recommended that most of today’s companion birds have a predominantly pelleted diet. Pellets have been continually updated since being introduced to the market years ago and today’s formulas are better than ever.
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Supplementing this diet with fresh foods every day is ideal and many owners find they can re-introduce seeds - in limited amounts (perhaps once or twice a week) without the bird refusing the pellets overall.

Whole grains, dark leafy vegetables, fruits and legumes. Include the colors orange, yellow , green, plus reds too! Think sweet potatoes/yams, squash, melons, oranges, peas, chard, beets and others.

Brown rice, quinoa, whole wheat couscous and natural, whole grain pastas are great choices.

Limit fats, especially the kind from animals. Good fats are most plant fats like soy, olive and canola oils. No fried anything

Another thing you can try is all natural, human baby food. Stick to the orange colors.

They can be mixed with tiny pasta or rice, whole grain bread or toast - remember, be more creative than the bird is stubborn.

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When it comes to vitamins, never use pet store or internet products and also stay away from any of those mite sprays, cage add ons or worse than anything, the so called medications. More and more birdy deaths have been directly related to these things, no matter what they say, no matter what they promise. Keep in mind that animals are considered nothing more than a piece of property with a value assigned. No big multi-million dollar company behind these pet products will miss what they may have to pay to ‘buy you another bird’ - and that’s only if you can find a lawyer to take the case and have enough money to spend prosecuting it. Most people don’t - and so, these products are still out there and still a very bad idea.

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All vitamins and minerals should come from a bird’s food sources. They don’t need much, if any vitamin C. It is a water soluble vitamin which means it passes out of the body after the body takes what it needs and C is available in a wide variety of both fresh and processed foods given to birds.

Vitamin A/Beta Carotene, on the other hand, is frequently found to be deficient in birds. This is a fat soluble vitamin which means it gets stored in the fat cells of the body, so it’s possible to overdose on it. With our companion birds though, too little is the situation most often encountered.

The symptoms a bird will show when deficient are increased allergic reactions, respiratory/sinus infections, reproductive problems, skin and feather disorders, even cysts and tumors, as well as various intestinal complications.

Vitamin A is most ideally received from natural foods like sweet potatoes, yams, carrots, squash and other dark colored vegetables. If your bird doesn’t care for fresh vegetables, a ½ teaspoon of natural baby food (human baby food) of any of these vegetables. Again, it must be all natural and nothing but the vegetable with water sufficient for processing.

http://www.parrotsociety.org.au/articles/art_021.htm Nutritional Overview

Also www.4AnimalCare.org/birds for details that include three homemade recipes you can also eat along with your bird.

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Even though this is put out by a cockatiel site, it’s applicable to all hook bills from budgies/parakeets to conures, greys and macaws.

http://www.cockatiels.org/articles/nutrition/diet.html

cites feeding both seed and pellets, but only after weaning the bird from a mostly seed diet.

http://www.letstalkbirds.com/cockatiels.htm

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Remember, diet is only part of the needs of our companions. Interaction, proper cage/environment, perches, grooming facilities (including cuttlebone and mineral blocks) as well as ‘toys’ to keep them occupied, challenged, their beak in condition and more is also required.

Always have an avian vet or a facility familiar with bird treatment see your bird to begin with and give a general check up including genetic blood panel to rule out as many diseases as possible (they can also tell you for sure if it’s a boy or a girl!). Once you do this, you’ll also have a doctor you know and who knows your bird - that you can call in case of emergency or when you need advice. There is nothing more valuable than this when you and your bird are in need.

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Find an avian vet near you http://aav.org/vet-lookup

http://www.parrotpro.com/avlist.php

and

http://veccs.org/hospital_directory.php

These days, with birds growing fast in popularity as in home companions, many DVM’s are quite experienced and able to see and treat many birds. If you have a pet store that sells birds or know of any bird breeders – ask them who they use for their bird care.

If you have a Pet Smart in town you may have a vet for your bird. Most Pet Smart’s now have a veterinary clinic inside and many of them will see birds (open 7 days a week too).

To be sure the vet is a good one, make sure you’re there for the exam. This should include hands on, feeling the chest area, peering into the mouth with a well placed flashlight and lifting the tail feathers to examine the vent.

If the examining vet doesn’t perform a hands on exam, or worse, leaves your bird in their cage or carrier, leave immediately. This is not the vet for you or your bird.

It’s really not difficult to establish a feeding and care pattern to insure a long, healthy life together - which I sincerely ***** ***** you. Keep up the great efforts! .