Noisy Female Ecky 5 months old

Regor · Apr 14, 2017

I have hand reared my female Eclectus parrot from day one, and am having problems weaning her off the paswells hand rearing mix.
She is still receiving 30mls of mix in the morning via feeding by crop needle and then receives a mixture of soaked seed, a bowl of mixed parrot mix and an assortment of chopped mixed fruit and vegetables.
I have started cutting out the night feed as she picks at a variety of the other offerings during the day and she seems to have accepted this.
My question is,how do I get her off this morning feed, as she screams non stop until she is fed, then after about 10 to 15 minutes will eventually shutup and settle down.
I have a problem distinguishing whether she is always hungry or just seeking attention when she sees me.
I believe that every ecky is different and takes time to wean but 5 months must be getting close to getting independent.:red:
Can someone please offer some constructive advise.

SilverSage · Apr 14, 2017

Well fortunately, your problem is easy to identify, and thus easy to fix.

You are practicing what is called "force weaning." This means you are reducing the formula and leaving the baby to feed herself and fill in the cracks.

I know it SEEMS convenient, but force weaning is actually a very cruel and damaging practice that will leave you with a very insecure bird who will likely have behavior problems for her whole life.

The fix is simple. Stop force weaning, and begin abundance weaning, which is the only humane way to do it anyway. Feed her full formula feedings morning and night for as long as she wants them. When she begins refusing feedings, cut out the morning feedings and continue feeding full evening feedings until she rejects all formula for 5 days in a row.

Force weaning does major emotional and mental damage to a baby parrot. This might surprise you because she knows how to eat solid food, so why keep feeding formula? The answer is keep feeding her for her mental and emotional health. At this point the formula isn't about nutrition, it's about security. About her knowing that she can explore her world and all the new things in it (including new foods) without worrying about starving.

I'm not talking out my rear here; I am a breeder and have not only done the relevant research, but have witnessed the difference in parrot chicks with my own eyes. Please do the right thing for your parrot and feed her until SHE is ready to wean.

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Anansi · Apr 23, 2017

SilverSage said:
Well fortunately, your problem is easy to identify, and thus easy to fix.

You are practicing what is called "force weaning." This means you are reducing the formula and leaving the baby to feed herself and fill in the cracks.

I know it SEEMS convenient, but force weaning is actually a very cruel and damaging practice that will leave you with a very insecure bird who will likely have behavior problems for her whole life.

The fix is simple. Stop force weaning, and begin abundance weaning, which is the only humane way to do it anyway. Feed her full formula feedings morning and night for as long as she wants them. When she begins refusing feedings, cut out the morning feedings and continue feeding full evening feedings until she rejects all formula for 5 days in a row.

Force weaning does major emotional and mental damage to a baby parrot. This might surprise you because she knows how to eat solid food, so why keep feeding formula? The answer is keep feeding her for her mental and emotional health. At this point the formula isn't about nutrition, it's about security. About her knowing that she can explore her world and all the new things in it (including new foods) without worrying about starving.

I'm not talking out my rear here; I am a breeder and have not only done the relevant research, but have witnessed the difference in parrot chicks with my own eyes. Please do the right thing for your parrot and feed her until SHE is ready to wean.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Excellent post, Dani. Years ago, before I dd the proper research, I thought force weaning was just the way it was done. Abundance feeding simply never occurred to me, especially since no one really ever talked about it. But I read up on it just before getting Bixby and was surprised at the effect forced weaning could have.

This mirrored the surprise I felt when I learned the psychological effect clipping wings before a bird is fully fledged can have. There are just certain commonly accepted practices that turn out to be flat wrong when you really look into them.

Noisy Female Ecky 5 months old

Regor

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New Cage Day, quick question though...

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