PikaLina
New member
- Jan 22, 2013
- 9
- 0
- Parrots
-
Blue-Naped: Jackie
Cockatiels: Birdie, Kat, Pika & Lina
Budgies: Skye, Snowy, Nico & Kiko
Lovebirds: Mimi, Rina, Mickey, Danny, Paco, Kira
Myna: Cara, Collared Dove: Daffy
Hi guys,
I have a pair of cockatiels nesting with 5 eggs. Although I've had cockatiels in the past and have had experience hand rearing baby parrots, this is my first experience with eggs and breeding. I intend on hand rearing the chicks starting at 2 weeks of age. I have a brooder prepared using an infrared 14-watt heating pad. The brooder has remained stable at my target temperature of 85 degrees Fahrenheit with minimal outside insulation. I need a new hygrometer since ours seems to be stuck at 70 and is likely broken.
The parents, Pika and Lina, are not hand tame. I'm still working on getting them hand tame but taking it slow, especially since they've decided to start nesting. They're familiar with hands in that they don't panic when I bring them food or water, but they tend to avoid hands in general. I try to catch them when they're out of the nest box to check on the eggs quickly, but it's difficult to do so since sometimes both just hop in the nest box and switch turns that way. Given that this is Pika & Lina's first time making a family, I'm worried that with them as first-time parents, all may not go as planned.
Also, since neither Pika and Lina are fond of baths, I've hung a wet but not soaking sponge inside their nest box to help with the humidity for the eggs which I check periodically and soak again as needed.
A few questions:
1. How can I check on the eggs without panicking the parents too much?
2. Will they still sit on eggs if they are infertile or is candling my only reliable way of knowing?
3. Any suggestions on how I can take the chicks from their parents without traumatizing the parents too much?
4. Is it best to leave some of the chicks with their parents and only hand rear a few and attempt to hand tame the ones left with their parents simply by handling them often?
5. I know that parents usually develop their own egg turning pattern. If at any given time my birds stop sitting on their eggs for some reason, will it be detrimental to the unhatched chicks if I turn the eggs in the incubator with a new turning pattern since I have no idea what the current turning pattern is now?
Any advice and answers will be greatly appreciated!
I have a pair of cockatiels nesting with 5 eggs. Although I've had cockatiels in the past and have had experience hand rearing baby parrots, this is my first experience with eggs and breeding. I intend on hand rearing the chicks starting at 2 weeks of age. I have a brooder prepared using an infrared 14-watt heating pad. The brooder has remained stable at my target temperature of 85 degrees Fahrenheit with minimal outside insulation. I need a new hygrometer since ours seems to be stuck at 70 and is likely broken.
The parents, Pika and Lina, are not hand tame. I'm still working on getting them hand tame but taking it slow, especially since they've decided to start nesting. They're familiar with hands in that they don't panic when I bring them food or water, but they tend to avoid hands in general. I try to catch them when they're out of the nest box to check on the eggs quickly, but it's difficult to do so since sometimes both just hop in the nest box and switch turns that way. Given that this is Pika & Lina's first time making a family, I'm worried that with them as first-time parents, all may not go as planned.
Also, since neither Pika and Lina are fond of baths, I've hung a wet but not soaking sponge inside their nest box to help with the humidity for the eggs which I check periodically and soak again as needed.
A few questions:
1. How can I check on the eggs without panicking the parents too much?
2. Will they still sit on eggs if they are infertile or is candling my only reliable way of knowing?
3. Any suggestions on how I can take the chicks from their parents without traumatizing the parents too much?
4. Is it best to leave some of the chicks with their parents and only hand rear a few and attempt to hand tame the ones left with their parents simply by handling them often?
5. I know that parents usually develop their own egg turning pattern. If at any given time my birds stop sitting on their eggs for some reason, will it be detrimental to the unhatched chicks if I turn the eggs in the incubator with a new turning pattern since I have no idea what the current turning pattern is now?
Any advice and answers will be greatly appreciated!