Hand-feeding Lovebird Babies?

Shannae22

New member
Sep 22, 2014
3
0
Parrots
I have One budgie called Sam who I hand-fed.
I have 3 Fischer Lovebirds called Jake, Sonny and Olive
I have 3 Masked Lovebirds called Toby, Minion and Ralph
And i have 5 Peach face Lovebirds called M
Hi there! I'm New to Parrot forums so I'm unsure i'f i'm doing this right >.<
But Here's my question.
My Lovebirds laid eggs and only one out of the 5 hatched, I Named him ''Louie'' and he is doing really well and is now 2 weeks old (He was hatched on Fathers day this year!)
I've been trying to decide whether of not to Hand raise him.
I have hand-raised birds before and both have survived (and are now very Spoilt birdies!) I already have hand-feeding formula that i bought as a precaution in case i ever needed to hand feed the babies or if i ever wanted too.
If i wanted to hand-raise him i was thinking around 3-4 weeks old (I know people say 2 weeks but he just looks so small and Fragile!) When he has more feathers. but would he refuse to take food from a syringe or spoon at this age?
And would he need some warmth? like a brooder, heatlamp or pad?
Like I said i'm still deciding, and i know hand taming is an option but It's a little hard because i have two aviaries outside and i'm afraid that the parents will get a little iffy with me taking him away every day.
I Know the feeding schedule as well and i know it's very time consuming
Thank-you in advance! :rainbow1:
 

MikeyTN

New member
Feb 1, 2011
13,296
17
Antioch, TN
Parrots
"Willie"&"Lola"B&G Macaw,
"Dixie"LSC2, and "Nico" Scarlet Macaw.
Hand feeding at 3 weeks old is fine! If you've done it before didn't you had them in a brooder? You need to keep them warm at a certain temperature as if you don't it can cause the crop to slow down and can cause more problems then you expect. It might be wise for you to remove the nest boxes if you don't intend on having more.
 
OP
S

Shannae22

New member
Sep 22, 2014
3
0
Parrots
I have One budgie called Sam who I hand-fed.
I have 3 Fischer Lovebirds called Jake, Sonny and Olive
I have 3 Masked Lovebirds called Toby, Minion and Ralph
And i have 5 Peach face Lovebirds called M
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #3
The one's i hand-fed before were old enough they didn't need much warmth at all.
I've seen video's of people using Critter-keepers and just using a Heat pad or heat lamp? would this be alright as well? I want to make sure I know everything before i even think about taking Louie out.
I'm planning on taking away the nest box for awhile after Louie is old enough to leave or if
i decide to take him out to Hand raise myself.
 

MikeyTN

New member
Feb 1, 2011
13,296
17
Antioch, TN
Parrots
"Willie"&"Lola"B&G Macaw,
"Dixie"LSC2, and "Nico" Scarlet Macaw.
You can make a home brooder using a clamp on fixture, 60w bulbs, and a 10g tank. But I've known people using heat pads that work just fine.
 
OP
S

Shannae22

New member
Sep 22, 2014
3
0
Parrots
I have One budgie called Sam who I hand-fed.
I have 3 Fischer Lovebirds called Jake, Sonny and Olive
I have 3 Masked Lovebirds called Toby, Minion and Ralph
And i have 5 Peach face Lovebirds called M
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #5
Thank-you so much for your Help! ^-^
 

MikeyTN

New member
Feb 1, 2011
13,296
17
Antioch, TN
Parrots
"Willie"&"Lola"B&G Macaw,
"Dixie"LSC2, and "Nico" Scarlet Macaw.
Your quite welcome!

I raised Lovebirds many years ago.....
 

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