Feeding babies?

[Kattie]

Hi all,

I am awaiting a few love bird babies to hatch in a few days (will send you all some pics)
I have bought all the tools and hand-feeding formula in case I will need it. But I also learnt that hand-fed love birds are friendlier. I am wondering if it is okay to hand-feed the babies without separating them from the parents? As in is it okay if the parents feed them and I also feed them so they get used to my hands?

Thanks!

 

[bug_n_flock]

Yes that is fine, but do not start immediately. Wait until they are a couple of weeks old or they will be far too tiny and delicate.



However, if you have not been taught how to feed them in person by someone with experience, I *strongly* advise you NOT to hand feed unless there is a problem and the parents cannot or will not feed them. If all you do is handle them gently and kindly starting when they are a couple of weeks old, they should be very friendly just like hand fed babies, but overall much healthier. I very higjly reccommend this course of action. It is how I raise the babies in my own flock to sell as pets, or to keep as pets ourselves. I think the babies turn out wonderfully when raised by mom and dad, but played with by grandma/grandpa(you! ).



Please do share photos! I adore lovebirds. And have fun.

 

[Kattie]

Thank you so much! I was really worried.

Also could you help me with another dilemma?

Our love bird has nested in a coconut shell and I feel it might be too small for her when the babies come out. Also it would be very hard to clean it because it is tied to the cage. I am not sure how often I would need to clean it? Would it be okay if I move her and the eggs to another nest before they hatch??? Or should I wait until they hatch???

 

[abababa]

It's risky to move or interfere with the eggs. There's an absolute chance it would be fine, but there's a significant risk it wouldn't be. The female has used her judgement, and I'd suggest you try to avoid second-guessing her as she, you'd hope, has a highly evolved grasp of what is/isn't an appropriate nest.

This might not look sensible or logical to you, but unless the babies are eminently at risk of falling or getting stuck in something, I'd go with momma's judgement - this might mean cleaning is a royal pain-in-the-ass, but the alternative is you risk abandonment (though it's not a *huge* risk, it's a possibility) for the sake of a more convenient nest for cleaning. In the wild, nobody would be there to clean the nest; it's obviously a better thing for birds if the poop is cleared out, but it's not really a priority over excessively disturbing the nest. Particularly since, as captive birds, their poop may not be pleasant, but it's unlikely to be very bacteria-ridden.

The general thing, as with the excellent feeding advice, is - let nature take its course. Often you stand to do more harm than good, the more you get involved. If a chick is really struggling, or being ignored by it's parents, then intervening can be the difference between life-and-death, but you need to carefully watch and make sure you're not being heavy-handed, and wherever possible let the parents do their innate thing of rearing the chicks.

 

[noodles123]

see my 3rd post down on this thread link:
http://www.parrotforums.com/eclectus/87040-new-breeding-purchased-my-first-breeding-pair.html

 

[abababa]

It's risky to move or interfere with the eggs. There's an absolute chance it would be fine, but there's a significant risk it wouldn't be. The female has used her judgement, and I'd suggest you try to avoid second-guessing her as she, you'd hope, has a highly evolved grasp of what is/isn't an appropriate nest.

This might not look sensible or logical to you, but unless the babies are eminently at risk of falling or getting stuck in something, I'd go with momma's judgement - this might mean cleaning is a royal pain-in-the-ass, but the alternative is you risk abandonment (though it's not a *huge* risk, it's a possibility) for the sake of a more convenient nest for cleaning. In the wild, nobody would be there to clean the nest; it's obviously a better thing for birds if the poop is cleared out, but it's not really a priority over excessively disturbing the nest. Particularly since, as captive birds, their poop may not be pleasant, but it's unlikely to be very bacteria-ridden.

The general thing, as with the excellent feeding advice, is - let nature take its course. Often you stand to do more harm than good, the more you get involved. If a chick is really struggling, or being ignored by it's parents, then intervening can be the difference between life-and-death, but you need to carefully watch and make sure you're not being heavy-handed, and wherever possible let the parents do their innate thing of rearing the chicks.

[Edit - do read Noodles post above - breeding is not something to enter into lightly and whilst my OP was based on the fact this is a thing, that's going to happen, you need to consider a lot more than this if it's your first time breeding].