Hello. Mumma of a pair of expecting Ekkies

Hello. Found this forum on the web and seen there were alot if knowledgeable people here.
We got our Ekkies about 6 weeks ago and I guess they're happy as they have decided to lay 2 eggs.
We have had birds in the past but not Ekkies so doing as much home work as I can before the babies are born .

Parents are on a chop mix diet which they seem to love. They are not fond of showers so get a misting every few days which they seem to enjoy . .
I have been reading up and asking around and appreciate and advice from experienced breeders.
I would like the babies to be partially hand raised. I have been told best to leave them with their parents till they're 2-4 weeks so I was thinking of hand raising them from 3 weeks of age. That gives me 5 weeks to learn everything I need to know.
I have hand raised other birds before but I know Ekkies are in a completely different class.

Thank you and looking forward to hearing from you all

Hello and welcome

I’ll tell you know we don’t really have anyone here who has handraised ekkies, oddly enough, though we have a strong Ekkie community.

The primary challenge with Ekkie babies is that they don’t have nearly as strong feeding reflex as other birds, so you’ll have to work around that.

This challenge is closely followed by a strict need for the formula to be JUST the right temperature. Too warm or too cold and the bird will reject it.

Also, be prepared for screaming. Young ekkies go through a bit of a screaming phase between 6 months and just over a year. Only thing you can do is wear earplugs

The best advice I can give you here is find a mentor who works with eclectus chicks. We have a wide breadth of knowledge here, but Ekkie handraising is unfortunately lacking. One person you might reach out to is laurella desborough (google her name, she has a website) a renounced eclectus breeder. I understand she is usually very generous in advising people in your circumstance.

Best of luck!

Thank you so much. I will check out her web site tomorrow.

I have already invested in ear plugs. Ours can get pretty noisy at times lol ��
I'm looking forward to this new experience and love learning new information.
I have also joined a few fb breeders groups which I will also hen Peck ��

Welcome aboard!

Welcome to you and your ekkies!

They have not been with you very long...just so you know, they can live perfectly happy lives without reproducing. Even if they lay eggs, you do not have to let them incubate to hatch -- you can always replace with dummy eggs while you either freeze or boil the fertile eggs and then toss them. I only say it because you haven't had them for very long and ekkie babies are EXTREMELY difficult to raise to weaning.

Hopefully these birds are mature enough to breed (2-3 years plus) and have been thoroughly checked out by an avian vet to ensure they don't have any underlying health issues. Assuming their ages and health are in order only then should you attempt breeding.

Welcome to you and your amorous Ekkies!

You might consider posting in the Breeding/Raising Parrots forum.

I'd respectfully recommend this thread, written by one of our talented and dedicated members: http://www.parrotforums.com/breeding-raising-parrots/54987-before-i-start-breed.html

EkkieJo said:

Hello. Found this forum on the web and seen there were alot if knowledgeable people here.
We got our Ekkies about 6 weeks ago and I guess they're happy as they have decided to lay 2 eggs.
We have had birds in the past but not Ekkies so doing as much home work as I can before the babies are born .

Parents are on a chop mix diet which they seem to love. They are not fond of showers so get a misting every few days which they seem to enjoy . .
I have been reading up and asking around and appreciate and advice from experienced breeders.
I would like the babies to be partially hand raised. I have been told best to leave them with their parents till they're 2-4 weeks so I was thinking of hand raising them from 3 weeks of age. That gives me 5 weeks to learn everything I need to know.
I have hand raised other birds before but I know Ekkies are in a completely different class.

Thank you and looking forward to hearing from you all

Click to expand...

Welcome to the forum EkkieJo. A ton of questions came to mind as soon as I read your intro but let's save most of them for later. How old is this pair? Have they bred previously? Primarily, is the 'breeding' by accident or design? What is the intention of 'breeding'? Are you sure that the eggs are fertile? etc....

If the eggs are fertile, then you will be very busy with the babies as chris-md intimated. Being in Victoria, you will have access to a CAV, so perhaps initiate the contact in advance of the need and apprise the CAV of your 'expected babies'. Also, we have no shortage of qualified Eclectus breeders in Australia from whom you could seek mentor-ship. By choosing support from Australia you will not have to fret about time zones as you may not have time for the delayed response in emergencies. Keep your 'urgent' resources close at hand. All the best.

Thank you for your replies .
From what I understand from their previous owner. They had 2 successful clutches which were healthy. After that she ( the previous owner) started throwing the eggs away. This caused much distress for the female Ekkie and she started turning on her owner and biting her. So I don't want to remove the eggs as this may cause our girl some distress.
I place their age at around 4 from what I have gathered from their history. No way I can know for sure as I didn't raise them.
We did get them intending on breeding but was not expecting it to be so fast as I had read that they can take upto a year to settle into their new home.
Their cage is opened most days after dinner for flying time and we are currently building a flight aviary outside for them for when the weather is nice ( freezing here at the moment)
They're on a fresh food diet and appear happy and healthy. The girl still accepts treats out of our hand where as when her previous owner tried it she would get bitten so I'm thinking they're relaxed here.
I will look up CAV and the other forums.

All the best EkkieJo. I hope the babies do fine. Please keep us apprised of your progress....and we would love photos please.