Beautiful Budgies Bred By New Lenox Man

From the residential street of Joliet Highway, one would never guess what lies behind the simple façade of Joe Brousil’s home in New Lenox.

A garden of hostas, ivy, plants and water features span the back of the home and provide the perfect setting for the colorful parakeets he raises as a hobby. For 15 years, Brousil has happily tended to his birds and even created a small side business, Budgies by Joe, when he has too many.

The term "budgie" is the shortened nickname of the bird name Budgerigar, also known as the common pet parakeet or shell parakeet. The birds at Brousil's home are separated by sex to inhibit unwanted mating. You can differentiate between the male and female birds by the color of the cere (the area above the beak): In males it's blue and in females it's brown or white.

A large cage serves as a playground for the birds, and the outdoor enclosure is connected to a converted garage and a small opening makes for a doorway to allow free movement indoors and out.

"The female birds are not as playful and kind of keep to themselves," Brousil said. "The male birds are much more social and have a better time."

Brousil's affinity for the birds began when his five children
were young and wanted birds as pets. He built a small flight (an enlarged cage area) in his basement that was about 4x4 and had a few birds.This ignited a passion for the birds that has since grown into a beloved hobby.

One of only two known budgie breeders in the Chicago area,
Brousil said it is a dying hobby and the new generation has little interest in breeding parakeets. 

"The younger generation thinks it takes a lot of time, but I am in and out of here in 15 minutes a day," he said.

The parakeets display a rainbow of bright colors, whites and pastels.  The rare spangle budgie has white wings with black tips. The albino budgie is snow white with red eyes. When two green spangle birds mate, the result is a yellow lutino, one of Brousil’s favorites.

Brousil has a few cages inside to house more birds who have mated and are rearing their chicks. Some chicks were just a few days old when we visited. A small light on a bendable wand is used to “candle” the eggs to see if they're fertilized or not.

Although Brousil’s breeds the birds as a hobby, he sometimes has so many that he's unable to care for all of them. At this point he offers them for sale. He attends shows to sell them to collectors
for about $25 to $40, depending on the rarity of the bird and its age.

Besides breeding budgies, Brousil also authors a garden club newsletter. His love for plants and gardening is apparent by the beautiful landscape surrounding his home.

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