Starting to worry =/

I have had Nelson over a month now and upon doing a little reading this afternoon i am starting to worry if he has been weaned properly or not. From day one he has squawked which i was told is "begging" noise. Now i figured he would settle down and it would become less frequent but it hasn't. Whenever he sees or hears me it starts. Also whenever my hands come near him, especially if i have food for him he begins to try and feed like a baby, open mouth shaking on my hand/food i offer him. Now i am not experienced in this field at all, Barry was well and truly weaned when i got him. Like i said i did a little reading although im still not sure if these are signs he should still be on formula? I read that Eckies can be difficult to wean and wean anywhere from 3 months to 6 months. He was nearly 3 months when i got him and is now 4 and a half months. He eats a variety of fruit and vege pretty well with a little seed too though his appetite can be a little up and down at times. He seems happy and healthy otherwise. Should i be worried?
I weighed him for the first time today (will be doing it regularly now) although it is afternoon and he was around 360-370gm (he was wriggling a bit). Is this a normal weight? I am not actually sure what sub species he is if anyone can help me out with that part? I will try to get some clear pics after i post this.

I got Willy at 3 months as well. He definitely was not fully weaned and I continued to feed him the hand feeding formula am and pm until he was 7 months old. I was able to transfer him from the hand feeding formula by giving him a soak and feed feeding (Roudybush). As well, he was fed a 40 ounce bowl of fresh fruit and veggies 2 x a day so that he always had something to feed on. I found that more food was better than not enough. He also got a sprig of Millet as a treat at the end of the day.

dragonlady2 said:

I got Willy at 3 months as well. He definitely was not fully weaned and I continued to feed him the hand feeding formula am and pm until he was 7 months old. I was able to transfer him from the hand feeding formula by giving him a soak and feed feeding (Roudybush). As well, he was fed a 40 ounce bowl of fresh fruit and veggies 2 x a day so that he always had something to feed on. I found that more food was better than not enough. He also got a sprig of Millet as a treat at the end of the day.

Click to expand...

How did you know he was not fully weaned? I saw someone mention on here that they will let you know when they are ready to be weaned. Does it sound like i should put him back on formula and will it be problematic that he was off it for the month and a half i have had him?

The person I got him from said he was refusing feedings...just taking a couple of cc's of hand feeding formula. She gave me some to take home. Once I got him settled, he started with the calling and begging...I gave him some of the formula and he took 6 - 10 cc 's each time I fed him. More research on my part led me to believe that he was just cutting back on his formula in preparation for fledging. Don't know enough about Ekkies yet to give you advice, but maybe he is/was missing his warm feedings? I am guessing someone with more experience can give you better advice, I just know from my experience, you can't feed them enough and Willy, even now at 16 months, just loves a warm feeding of food. I give him mashed sweet potato with cinnamon.

What species is Willy?

Solomon Island.

Hi, Freespin. I don't know much about handling the weaning process or recognizing when it hasn't been done properly, but I can tell you that Nelson's weight does sound good to me. Bixby is maybe a month older than he is and his weight tends to be around 368-371 grams.

Oh, and Bixby (Solomon Island eclectus) came home fully weaned at around 4 months. They told me when I took him that I should watch for any weight-loss as a sign that he was having problems with the weaning. Considering this, I'd take Nelson's weight as a good sign. (Assuming, of course, that it remains relatively steady.)

And if warm food is what he's craving, You might want to try Volkmans Fancy Soak and Simmer. Bixby absolutely loves it!

Yea thats why I wondered about sub species. The si are smaller right?

If he's begging, it won't hurt to give him some formula. We did this with our CAG. The breeder said that he was weaned, when, in actuality, he really wasn't. We fed him formula for another month, at which time we recognized through his behavior that he was ready to move on from syringe supplements.

The SI are indeed supposed to be the smallest of the sub-species, and truth to tell I'm not altogether certain whether Bixby is a pure SI, a hybrid SI, or another sub-species altogether. The breeder labeled him a Solomon Island, though. I'd love to hear from an expert at identifying sub-species. (Hint, hint. Anyone?)

Anyhow, I started looking around for you and a lot of sources say that bird weight tends to be an individual thing, especially considering the degree to which eclectus sub-species have been cross-bred over the years. So a weight drop would be the best indication of any issues.

Also, feeling around the keel bone will give you a very good idea of whether Nelson is underweight. The pectoral muscles (would they be called pectorals in birds? I don't know! Lol) should feel relatively full to either side of the keel bone. Not so full as to give the appearance of cleavage, of course, but firm and healthy. If there is a bit of a depression there, he's likely underweight.

Yea I have kinda always thought his keel bone stuck out a lot though. My partner always said I'm just worried about nothing. He will eat about anything off a spoon so I'm wondering of I just feed him his chop as a mash a bit warm daily if that would help?

Here are some pics if anyone is able to help identify which sub species he is...

He is adorable, Freespin!

Thanks, he is such a goof! He lies straight down as soon as I put him on my chest now haha

That is a beautiful bird, Freespin!

Sometimes it's purely psychological...

And it can't hurt to just sit him down on your lap and spoon feed him a little formula, or mashed sweet potato, or oatmeal every day...

Warm comfort food, and bonding with my person...

And it's a good way to introduce new foods, and expand what he will eat.

He could possibly be a Vosmaeri. His weight sounds pretty darn good, and I agree with Birdman, feeding him some warm, mooshy stuff won't hurt one bit.

GORGEOUS baby you got there!

He has the sweetest face!

Thanks guys! I wasnt sure if it was just a psychological thing that feeding him again would be a step in the wrong direction! He is loving the warm mash feeds though =D

Oh what a cutey pie you have there!!! Absolutely adorable...