Stunned chick, not growing as expected

[Shboulatom83]

Hi everyone,

I have a pair of ring necks, and got one baby hatching; however on day 7; the chick was abandoned, and I have pulled him and started hand rearing him. I assured brooder temperature is 34-35c, and am feeding him formula that is like applesauce thickness; temp is 39-40.

the chick was 10g on age 10; and today is day 14, and his weight is 13. Crop seems fine as it is emptying within 4 hours; and the chick is pooping fine.

Not sure what could be the issue; and could it be having a deficiency; this is why the parent abandoned him?

The chick keeps calling even after I feed him; his swallowing is good, and I feed him through a spoon, his eyes seems wants to start opening

Attached photos are from the past three days,

 

[DonnaBudgie]

Do you have access to an avian vet? I would bring the baby to the vet for a check up and feeding, growth and development advice.
I've hand raised baby budgies from hatching and growth is usually very rapid. A 10 gram baby usually gains a couple grams a day.
What are his poops like?
What formula are you feeding?
Are you feeding on a set schedule or on demand? I recommend feeding on demand round the clock until he shows significant growth.
He can still catch up if you make sure he's healthy and free of infection.

 

[Shboulatom83]

Do you have access to an avian vet? I would bring the baby to the vet for a check up and feeding, growth and development advice.
I've hand raised baby budgies from hatching and growth is usually very rapid. A 10 gram baby usually gains a couple grams a day.
What are his poops like?
What formula are you feeding?
Are you feeding on a set schedule or on demand? I recommend feeding on demand round the clock until he shows significant growth.
He can still catch up if you make sure he's healthy and free of infection.

Thanks

Unfortunately I don’t have access to avian vet. I am feeding as soon as the crop is almost near empty,

I was feeding formula from a company called fly, and today I got VersleLaga A21

Poop looks like a normal bird poop; tiny green

 

[DonnaBudgie]

Are you feeding round the clock? You should be until he gets significant growth. I'd try a new formula but mix it 50 50 with the old formula and slowly transition. I'd don't know 5hese formulas you use where you are. In the US and presumably in the UK there are some excellent commercially available formulas but they aren't available everywhere.
The poops should be quite large and should look a lot like the formula itself, usually brownish and very soft.
Growth is directly related to food intake and the quality of the food.

 

[Shboulatom83]

Are you feeding round the clock? You should be until he gets significant growth. I'd try a new formula but mix it 50 50 with the old formula and slowly transition. I'd don't know 5hese formulas you use where you are. In the US and presumably in the UK there are some excellent commercially available formulas but they aren't available everywhere.
The poops should be quite large and should look a lot like the formula itself, usually brownish and very soft.
Growth is directly related to food intake and the quality of the food.

Yes around the clock as soon as the crop empties…so if I feed him now, I will check the crop every now and then, and as soon as it is near empty, I feed again.

What formula thickness is recommended? More loose or thick at this stage?

 

[DonnaBudgie]

I find that when the formula is too thin they don't get enough nutrition so you could try to thicken it up a bit. As long as he's able to swallow it well it's not too thick. Remember to wash his face well after feeding. Formula dries like concrete and its very hard to get off.
Thank you for using a spoon instead of a syringe. Syringe feeding can be dangerous, causing babies to aspirate formula and die. I feed with a tiny spoon from day one even with my budgie babies that weight 1 to 2 grams at birth.

 

[DonnaBudgie]

How many hours is it taking for his crop to empty? It should be empty enough to feed again within three hours.

 

[Shboulatom83]

How many hours is it taking for his crop to empty? It should be empty enough to feed again within three hours.

It takes around 4-5 hours to near empty, I feed 10% of his weight

 

[DonnaBudgie]

At this age the baby should be fed every 3 hours. I've never fed by body weight. First, feeding is a messy procedure and much of the formula ends up on the baby not in the baby, so preparing and feeding a measured amount will generally not be enough. Second, parent birds feed until the baby is satisfied and dozes off. Even if you were able to get 10% of the baby's weight into him. It's not enough to sustain rapid growth. Baby birds ne3d to eat a lot.
I think if you want the baby to show more rapid growth you will need to feed more aggressively without force feeding or using a syringe. Let him eat as much off the spoon as he can at each feeding. Make sure the formula is between 39C and 41C and stirred extremely well so the temp is uniform.
Until he's covered in down his brooder should be about 35C. When he's developed some soft down over much of his body the temp can drop to about 33C. When he's completely covered in fluffy down the temp should drop to about 30C.
As long as the crop is partially emptying between feedings you should feed again as soon as the baby indicates he's willing to feed and stop when he no longer wants any and pulls away.
Weigh the baby before and after feeding if you want to get a good idea of how much he consumed.
His poops should be soft and frequent and resemble the formula itself in color and texture.
Good luck and enjoy your baby. I found handraising baby budgies and watching them grow into beautiful fully feathered birds in six weeks to be a truly amazing, though exhausting, experience. I have three happy healthy young adult budgies that I raised one at a time and they're wonderful delightful birds.

 

[AMD48]

Hi......My Tiel Baby was abandonded & attacked by his parents. The breeder thought it was a instinct issue because he was so very small. In the wild he never would have ssurvived do to his size. He is WAY smaller than most tiels. As mentioned above she was feeding him every 3-4 hours round the clock. The good news is.....Baby not only survived but this november he will be 18 years old. He is NOW a cranky disabled senior...lol Wishing you the best of luck.