Confused. is my 10 week old weaning?

[TP89]

Hi there, to sum up i assume my bird is ready to wean, but she is only 10 weeks old, i thought this happens a few weeks from now, like 12-14 weeks old.

So my alex Frankie is approaching 10 weeks old now, and I've been handfeeding since i purchased it (I was taught how to handfeed by a professional and that process has been very smooth).
From about 6 weeks i was offering a small dish of chopped fruit and Frankie was picking at it with no problems. And i was still giving a handfeeding every morning and night. She's been in a cage for at least 3 weeks now and is confidently moving around on perches and playing with toys. Sometimes I even let her out to play on the floor and her behavior is fine.

Within the last few days Frankie has been doing this thing where she begs for food with cries and then eats maybe one mouthful before scurrying away. I can't get her to eat anything like bits of grape and banana and pear (usually her favourite!) and she doesn't want to be spoon fed formula either.
I leave all of these bits and pieces of fruit and soaked pellets in a dish in her cage, along with a dish of water. And i see her sometimes nibbling from the bowl and lapping at the water from time to time, which stops me from worrying too much that she's actually sick.

Ok, so, I assumed she was ready to start weaning as this is the behavior they seem to exhibit. But she is only 10 weeks old, isnt it too early? Most websites say Alexandrines wean at 12-14 weeks. Frankie is nearly a month too early to wean!
Not only that but i'm not sure about her behavior, every morning when i come in to do the usual stuff with her she's absolutely desperate to get out of the cage and onto my head or somewhere high. She even flies off through the house, usually ending up at a window. This usually ends by mid-morning. There's no way she could be scared, she's had plenty of time to see the whole house and not much changes around here. Her screeches sound like the usual alex baby cry, but they are much more louder and rough now. She even has this growling cry when she's annoyed. But she's not actually bit me yet which is nice. She does love to get aggressive with the toys though.

So yeah, i was just looking for some advice, is it ok if she weans early? I know they have to loose weight before they can fly, and i'm not clipping her wings yet because I know that messes with the flying and makes them loose more weight... I just worry because i read forcing them to wean early really messes with their heads and i'd hate for that to happen!

 

[MonicaMc]

If she's choosing to wean, then allow her to do so!

But if you are only feeding her twice a day, try removing the morning feed and only do the night time feed. If she begs for food, make up a small batch for her to eat!


It would be great if you could wait until she is 6+ months old prior to clipping, if that's the route you plan on going.

 

[TP89]

You think she is actually weaning then? and it's ok if they do it earlier than normal? Thanks for letting me know, it's a relief, and i can stop the handfeeding which will be nice.

Yeah i really dont want to clip the wings yet. But i feel bad that she's crashing into windows and walls, there's not much i can do to stop her. I'll wait until the 6 month mark. I'd actually love to leave her unclipped but if she's going to hurt herself in the house it may be my only choice.

Thanks alot for putting my mind at ease, i just want to be sure i'm doing it right!

 

[MonicaMc]

Birds wean at different ages and it's a process that usually takes a few days to a few weeks. It's rarely instant. It's just a good idea to keep offering her food, weigh her every morning before she eats but after the "big bomb". Make sure she isn't losing too much weight but continues eating on her own.

A parrot learning to fly is like a child learning to run. There are going to be some bumps and bruises! You can try to help out by covering mirrors and windows, making sure that anything open (i.e. toilets, pots/pans, trash cans) is closed/covered, etc. Also, give her plenty of safe areas to land! Maybe put something in front of the walls to either deter her or something for her to land on.


Also, since she's flighted, teach her to fly to you on command! You might even want to work with her on stationing (aka "stay"), so she stays put when you need her to.

 

[Ian]

Hi,

Your experience sounds exactly the same as mine. Congratulations on completing hand rearing - its very hard work.

I had hand feeding, him eating formula and fruit mush and shelled seeds going on for a couple of weeks. The baby food gulping slowly replaced with him picking food off a spoon. I 'showed' him how to shell seeds for 10 seconds toward the end and then that was that. Some sites say you should prolong it to extend the bond and because it makes hand feeding (including medicine stuff) easier later. I extended it also because the formula is just such a good food.

I had marble floors when he learnt to fly, I covered the whole room in old duvets, covered sharp spikes and put tape crosses on the windows. As my lights were mysteriously perch shaped and 20ft in the air I put balloons on them so there was no space to land.

Don't let her out after dusk or he'll go as high as she can to roost and if you try and put her back you'll be the bad guy.

Clipping is the topic of the century. Read everything and make the choice that suits you. I wouldn't tell the forum haha or the fanatics will be out with their pitch forks.

 

[lene1949]

Max fledged, when he was 9 weeks old, and from there refused any hand feedings...

Your bird will lose weight during weaning and fledgeing, but that's normal..

I offered Max a hand feed twice a day for 3 days, and then just left him to it... He had already been introduced to various foods, when I got him at 6 weeks...

 

[leomacaw]

It all depends on your birdie's will. Milk in the morning and night, but feed it some dry food in-between the day.

 

[lene1949]

If you don't know when your bird is weaning then perhaps you should not have one

Be nice I don't want you to leave.. We are a minority on here...

 

[Midori]

i am glad that your baby is a few weeks older than mine, so i will know what to expect! i was wondering what age do they start to fly? Midori is 4 weeks and has been fluttering her/his (finding out this week what sex!!!) alot lately, and i was googling trying to find info regarding when alexs start to try to fly, but couldnt find anything. and yes well done with handrearing! it is hard work but so so worth it. there isnt alot of info on the websites regarding weaning, flying etc, just basic stuff, so if anyone has a good website that they know of i would love it if you can share. clipping wings - yes it is a big debate isnt it! i dont intend to clip Midoris wings but would love to teach him/her to wear a harness so we can go outside. anyone have any advice on this?

 

[Ian]

I tried an Aviator harness when he was 2 and had mixed success. At first he didnt notice it and it was really effective and felt very safe. They can't really 'fly' much but it is novel and exciting for eveyone (its extremely nerve racking when you first walk outside - I kind of failed the test to be honest). Soon he started noticing it and obsessing and then panicking. Its in the drawer for the time being. I really wish it is something I had done when the bird was a baby.

Alexandrines are powerful but quite light and so they don't build up massive momentum at the 'end' the harness travel so they are quite suitable. I hate to think what a macaw at full speed does....boing!! He was in full hover at the end of the leash in the lounge during training. Be careful, they overdo it at first and tire themselves too much to control the landing.

<whispers> I know you aren't supposed to talk about clipping but whatever your choice I'd probably wait until hes quite a bit older, someone will probably know the right age, or you may permanently affect his muscle/body growth.

 

[Midori]

i am now going thru the same thing with my baby, but hes only 5 weeks old. i popped into the bird vet this arvo, and asked if maybe hes weaning himself off the formula, so i now have protein packed pellets to offer to him. he ate one or two, or was happy crunching them up, but that was it. then i softened them for him in his formula. he was asking for food, but didnt eat much from the spoon. he kind of helped himself to what was in the bowl, but again not much. so i have no idea what is going on! he seems content and happy. i will try another formula meal abit later on, and see how he goes. i am just used to him pigging out till his crop is full! anyone else had any experiences regarding early weaning?

 

[nibbler]

Hello there, new member here, came across your post while googling the same situation with my Alexandrine...
to be honest the reason i joined was to show my dissaproval regarding an inconsiderate members comment
regarding your post...LMAO not a nice way for me to say hello to you all, so i appologise in advance but the comment

"If you dont know when your bird is weaning perhaps you should not have one"..
this comment i find highly offensive and all to common from bird breeders. While i may have experience
hand raising cockatiels and budgies, and i have owned an alex previously, this is my first Alexandrine iv hand reared,
and in my experience from what i can remember (as i raised birds throughout my childhood) each species AND
individual of parrots have proven to show different signs of behaviours all through-out the hand rearing process.
Just because someone is hand rearing a particular species and requests advice does not mean they are inexperienced,
uneducated, or incapable of hand rearing a bird. Infact to anyone who reads this who is a bird breeder or hand rearer
and judges those who ask questions or for advise, keep in mind some of these people may have more experience than
you do in raising other breeds. Instead of critising people, or telling people its simply not possible and they should not be
hand rearing we should encourage people to become more educated in what they are doing, and the fact someone has
asked for advice or re-assurance means the person is more than willing to learn.

Asking questions from fellow breeders/parrot owners is how we all learn. To act as though you have never had to ask
a question to ANYONE throughout your experience or when you first started handrearing is ignorant, and your
negativity and rude comment does nothing to help educate those who wish to learn. My point is, we all have to
learn and start somewhere, so instead of condeming someone, perhaps consider they may have more experience than yourself
but with other breeds of birds.


ANYWAY now that my rant is out of the way, my little nibbler which we have had since 4 weeks has always been a good
feeder, but latley while we introduce him to solids and huskless seeds, dried fruits and nuts hes crying to be
fed and i make him his feed, he will have one mouthful of it and walks off (well actually until today he would walk
off, but today he flew to me for the first time) he started doing this everyday, and i still havent witnessed
him drink water. he chews food appart but im just hoping he is actually eating it, as he began losing LOTS of weight...
he still does his hunger cry, but getting him to eat formula seems impossible.Im glad to read it seems rather common,
Its very interesting to read how common it is for the Alex to do this during weaning (as mentioned our cockatiels and
budgies remained the same weight during fledging/flight).

Also this may seem like an odd question, and i feel strange for asking, but with the other birds iv raised it was obvious
to determine the gender, however my cuddly "nibbler" prunes my hair and is very loving, but the other day while
i held him in my hand i felt something kind of "throbbing/pulsating" near the vent area, is it possible i might
be able to determine the gender by looking at the vent before the 10-18 month mark (when the ring might form?)or would
this "pulsing" i felt on my hand be his/her vent. Also can anyone advise around what age the eye starts to form the
white/grey ring?

Thanks for your time folks.

 

[JerseyWendy]

Hi there nibbler, and a warm welcome to the forums.

Hello there, new member here, came across your post while googling the same situation with my Alexandrine...
to be honest the reason i joined was to show my dissaproval regarding an inconsiderate members comment
regarding your post...LMAO not a nice way for me to say hello to you all, so i appologise in advance but the comment

"If you dont know when your bird is weaning perhaps you should not have one"..
this comment i find highly offensive and all to common from bird breeders. .......

Just wanted to let you know that the 'original' remark you found offensive was removed by a moderator a long time ago. The only reason it's still in this thread is because someone else had quoted her and reminded her to be nice.

Since I have zero experience with Alex's, I'll leave your questions pertaining to the vent pulsating and the eye-ring to more experiences parronts.

 

[SilverSage]

Sorry I haven't chimed in sooner, but I have to say, I'm surprised no one has mentioned the TEMP of the formula yet, as that is the biggest reason many birds seem to "wean" early while still begging for food, especially from a first time hand feeder. Please be SURE that your formula is between 102 and 108 degrees F, this is critical to the health of your bird. As chicks get older they get more likely to refuse formula that is the wrong temp. Feeding formula too hot can burn a hole in the crop, and feeding it too cool can cause the crop to slow, the food to spoil, and poison the baby. Please be sure the formula is the right temp.

 

[SilverSage]

Ok I just realized this is an old thread with a new post. Asiatics like Alex's and IRNs can go through a tough stage before weaning where they act like they want to wean, but they still need to be fed all the way through the fledging process. Similar to fussy toddlers who would rather run around than eat, just because they can't pay attention for the full feeding like before doesn't mean they don't need it. It's a very frustrating time, but sticking it out is important for their long term physical, mental, and emotional health. As for the vent, birds do not have the same sorts of genitelia that humans do, so anything you felt pulsing isn't going to let you know gender. An experienced person can feel the pelvic bones and let you know in most cases, or you can do an inexpensive and easy DNA test through companies like Avian BioTech for less than $20.

 

[nibbler]

Hi there nibbler, and a warm welcome to the forums.

Hello there, new member here, came across your post while googling the same situation with my Alexandrine...
to be honest the reason i joined was to show my dissaproval regarding an inconsiderate members comment
regarding your post...LMAO not a nice way for me to say hello to you all, so i appologise in advance but the comment

"If you dont know when your bird is weaning perhaps you should not have one"..
this comment i find highly offensive and all to common from bird breeders. .......

Just wanted to let you know that the 'original' remark you found offensive was removed by a moderator a long time ago. The only reason it's still in this thread is because someone else had quoted her and reminded her to be nice.

Since I have zero experience with Alex's, I'll leave your questions pertaining to the vent pulsating and the eye-ring to more experiences parronts.

Thank you Wendy. It is a very old comment and im glad it was removed by a moderator a long time ago, actually its nice to see a bunch of parrot enthusiasts who don't feel the need to criticize those who ask questions, In Australia you can spend MONTHS searching for bird breeders who are willing to sell unweaned birds (although i understand if you don't have much experience its probably best to start with a young weaned parrot) but even having experienced hand rearing doesn't seem to help in convincing breeders in Australia to allow someone the privilege of hand rearing, and they tend to become rude, and remain very "short" and impolite in communication, almost as though they have already determined your abilities to not be adequate. Adverts in classifieds and requests get removed from websites, forums, and buy/sell forums and people try to report those who sell unweaned birds, despite their not being certification requirements, its a very odd grey area.

I finally found a breeder willing to sell me a 4 week old after i wrote about my previous experiences with other birds and how keen and willing i was. But sadly not many people are given the chance, even if they are willing to educate themselves 100% before hand, it seems the only way to hand rear is to breed parrots yourself, but this means animals are being used simply for a one off purpose, and if you dont plan on breeding as a hobby it seems cruel.

Anyway enough with all that, as after reading more posts and threads, this forum seems more about helping and giving advice rather than judging, so its great and im glad to be here.

 

[nibbler]

Ok I just realized this is an old thread with a new post. Asiatics like Alex's and IRNs can go through a tough stage before weaning where they act like they want to wean, but they still need to be fed all the way through the fledging process. Similar to fussy toddlers who would rather run around than eat, just because they can't pay attention for the full feeding like before doesn't mean they don't need it. It's a very frustrating time, but sticking it out is important for their long term physical, mental, and emotional health. As for the vent, birds do not have the same sorts of genitelia that humans do, so anything you felt pulsing isn't going to let you know gender. An experienced person can feel the pelvic bones and let you know in most cases, or you can do an inexpensive and easy DNA test through companies like Avian BioTech for less than $20.

Hi Silversage, thanks for your response. Do you think i should gently force, or is it more of a routine/comfort thing? i have a daughter with severe autism, shes 3 and she doesnt drink any other fluids other than her milk, but she often just wants the bottle for comfort, so im thinking it may be a comfort thing. Ill keep offering it, and as you mentioned earlier pay closer attention to the temperature of the mixture. I also thought the fact he/she no longer uses the heat mat under nibblers bed perhaps this could be the reason? nibbler seems to be eating lots today though, i showed nibbler how to open the seed as he/she watched intently and after just crushing 60 seeds into powder nibbler finally seems to have the hang of actually eating them now. Its kind of sad, now that nibbler is able to fly, he/she isnt as snuggly, and is a little more edgy than usual. Nibbler flies to me when hes called, but not to anyone else... also he has suddenly decided in the last two days that my 3 yr old autistic child, 'who keeps to herself, reads books and sometimes rocks for comfort ' must be attacked... its so odd, he will even stop playing with his toys just so he can go and bite her. Its amazing how the personality and behaviors change within a day or two....still very facinating. Also thanks for the info about the genitalia...it was never sometime i noticed or inspected when i hand reared birds as a child lol.... it it must of being the digestion tract near the vent i felt at the time then.

 

[SilverSage]

Never use force, it is far to easy to kill a bird by aspirating (which I unfortunately know from heartbreaking experience). Instead I would offer food more often, especially when NOTHING INTERESTING is going on, and when he has had plenty of time to fly. Try feeding in different places, etc. I have a friend who breeds Asiatics, and she jokes that she just follows babies around the house with a syringe for a month

And yes, a developing baby bird sometimes seems a whole different creature in the morning than he was the day before.