I HAVE A 10 WEEK OLD BLUE CROWN CONURE DEVELOPMENT ABOUT A 7 WEEK OLD BABY I GOT HER FROM THE BREEDER THIS WAY NOT UNDERSTANDING TILL I SAW HER BROTHER HOW DELAYED SHE IS I BEEN GIVING HER KAYTEE HIGH FAT FORMULA 20 MLS 3 TIMES A DAY SHE HAS BARELY STARTED PLAYING WITH FOOD.SHE STARTED AT 102G NOW SHES A 108 IM SLOWELY TryiNG TO FIX HER UP OTHERWISE SHE IS ACTIVE AND TRUCKING ALONG CAN SHE MAKE A FULL RECOVERY AND BECOME NORMAL SIZE OR IS THAT WISHFUL THINKING WILL SHE EVER ACT LIKE A NORMAL ADULT BIRD OR STILL ACT LIKE A BABY BABY
Stunted growth is it fixable
- Thread starter Lbrooks
- Start date
DonnaBudgie
Well-known member
I've hand raised several budgies from hatching and th
DonnaBudgie
Well-known member
The answer is probably Yes, the chick will catch up and grow into a normal, healthy adult. I've hand raised several budgies from hatching and they all developed normally but there's a member of Parrot Forums who had to take over hand raising two Indian ringneck chicks after the parents rejected them at about a week or two old. The thread started in May 2025 and is titled "Doing it wrong?". The two babies were very behind in development, partly because the formula they were feeding them was too watery and the chicks weren't getting enough nutrition. They were naked, barely growing and at a four weeks old they still looked like hatchings. They thickened the formula and began intensively feeding them more often and the babies rapidly began to grow and develop normally. They posted photos that showed the development over the next four weeks, and the member posted last in June 2025.
I don't think there's any reason to worry that the chick will act like a baby forever. He may end up smaller than average size for his species but he will act like an adult bird just as if he had an ideal start in life. Baby parrots tend to act like babies (begging for food, cuddling a lot, etc) even after weaning but that baby behavior slowly stops over the next few months. A conure like yours will still be acting like a baby to some degree until he's about 6 months old.
I think you need to focus on more frequent smaller feedings and making sure your formula is the right temperature (about 100F or 37C) and thickness. It should be thick enough so it doesn't puddle, sort of like a thick applesauce. I would feed them every four hours starting at 6am until about 10pm. That would be five times a day. If the chick begs for food between scheduled meals, feed him. Parent birds don't follow a feeding schedule- they feed in demand. A baby parrot could grow up insecure about food if you adhere to closely to a feeding schedule.
I never use a syringe when handfeeding baby birds because of the risk of accidentally putting too much formula in their mouths at once. The babies can inhale (aspirate) the excess formula and die within a day or two. I have heard of too many syringe feeding accidents that killed the baby so I feed using a small plastic spoon melted slightly to bend it into a narrower funnel shape. The babies feed at the rate they can swallow without risk of aspiration. Another way is to use very small disposable paper cups, the kind that you put in a dispenser for water. Put the formula in the little cup and fold the cup slightly allowing the chicks to feed from the edge of the cup. Using the paper cups allows you to measure the formula if you want. I never measured the formula when I hand fed- I just fed them until they didn't want any more.
Make sure you wash his face and breast as soon as he's finished his meal because formula quickly dries into rock hard lumps that stick to the facial feathers and are very difficult to remove. I've had to trim the feathers around a babys beak because I couldn't get the dried formula off any other way.
You should weigh the chick at the same time every day or every other day. Morning before the first feeding is best. They should gain weight every day. Have the baby checked by an avian vet if he isn't gaining weight. I read that a blue crowned conure weighs about 200 grams. Normally a chick gets full adult size at weaning age. A baby blue crown should normally start approaching that target weight when he's three months old and weaned but since he's behind in growth I'd make that a four month (16-17 weeks) goal. If he weighs 110 grams now, I would aim for 15-20 grams a week in weight gain over the next four weeks.
Post pictures! And updated pictures! We all love baby pictures and I'd like to see how he looks now and as he grows. Good luck.
I don't think there's any reason to worry that the chick will act like a baby forever. He may end up smaller than average size for his species but he will act like an adult bird just as if he had an ideal start in life. Baby parrots tend to act like babies (begging for food, cuddling a lot, etc) even after weaning but that baby behavior slowly stops over the next few months. A conure like yours will still be acting like a baby to some degree until he's about 6 months old.
I think you need to focus on more frequent smaller feedings and making sure your formula is the right temperature (about 100F or 37C) and thickness. It should be thick enough so it doesn't puddle, sort of like a thick applesauce. I would feed them every four hours starting at 6am until about 10pm. That would be five times a day. If the chick begs for food between scheduled meals, feed him. Parent birds don't follow a feeding schedule- they feed in demand. A baby parrot could grow up insecure about food if you adhere to closely to a feeding schedule.
I never use a syringe when handfeeding baby birds because of the risk of accidentally putting too much formula in their mouths at once. The babies can inhale (aspirate) the excess formula and die within a day or two. I have heard of too many syringe feeding accidents that killed the baby so I feed using a small plastic spoon melted slightly to bend it into a narrower funnel shape. The babies feed at the rate they can swallow without risk of aspiration. Another way is to use very small disposable paper cups, the kind that you put in a dispenser for water. Put the formula in the little cup and fold the cup slightly allowing the chicks to feed from the edge of the cup. Using the paper cups allows you to measure the formula if you want. I never measured the formula when I hand fed- I just fed them until they didn't want any more.
Make sure you wash his face and breast as soon as he's finished his meal because formula quickly dries into rock hard lumps that stick to the facial feathers and are very difficult to remove. I've had to trim the feathers around a babys beak because I couldn't get the dried formula off any other way.
You should weigh the chick at the same time every day or every other day. Morning before the first feeding is best. They should gain weight every day. Have the baby checked by an avian vet if he isn't gaining weight. I read that a blue crowned conure weighs about 200 grams. Normally a chick gets full adult size at weaning age. A baby blue crown should normally start approaching that target weight when he's three months old and weaned but since he's behind in growth I'd make that a four month (16-17 weeks) goal. If he weighs 110 grams now, I would aim for 15-20 grams a week in weight gain over the next four weeks.
Post pictures! And updated pictures! We all love baby pictures and I'd like to see how he looks now and as he grows. Good luck.
