cross beak- PICS PLEASE HELP!

[dlhunicorn]

I suggest you find some baby parrot hand feeding formula (is a powder you mix with water > you can purchase at a petstore or online) > add that to its age appropriate mash or crumble and serve in a deep feeder (it can scoop it up easier) > the baby parrot formula will concentrate the nutritionally balanced poultry feed > this is truly better for the nutritional quality of the feed as opposed to what you are doing now (protein powder > too much protein will cause kidney damage and that corn is too much energy) > what you are feeding now is not good and nutritional deficiencies will follow. Give three drops of polyvisol in beak once a day for a week and then taper off the next (since it has been eating such a nutritionally imbalanced feed) Offer live culture non-flavored yogurt free choice (in a deep dish) and do not add milk to it (birds lack the enzyme lactase to process the lactose in milk )
I would get that top beak trimmed back some.

 

[California Ducken]

Exact baby bird food. It's for all baby birds.(That's what they say on the label)
I have used it. It's great.I squeeze it out of a syringe with a tube on the end (for tube feeding BUT DON'T TUBE FEED. I killed a chick that way) and they peck it off the end. They think it's a game after awhile. When they see the tube come out, they go crazy and fly over to see me. They start attacking it before I can even attach it. They think it's a worm.
Good Luck!

 

[dlhunicorn]

yes, that is one of the brands you can find at the petstore:
http://www.kaytee.com/products/exact-hand-feeding-baby-bird.php

 

[New adventure]

I lost my lttle EE cross beaked chick a few weeks ago. It (never knew pullet or roo) lasted almost 3 months; ate good as long as food was wet, was the sweetest, most tenacious little thing, but was only about 1/4 the size of hatchmates. It broke my heart and my granddaughter's too; but I'm glad we had Spike as long as we did.

 

[nursecat9]

Quote:
Thank you so much for your suggestion. I'll look for the baby parrot feeding formula today. I did trim the beak 2 days ago, but it didn't really seem to help anything. After giving the yogurt mixture again last night, she is much perkier today! She actually flew up on a stick I have for the little ones to roost! She was at the deep dish feeder and pretty much emptied it on the ground (this is what she was doing up until 3 days ago). Not sure how much she's getting and how much is ending up on the floor of the cage!

Oh well, doesn't matter, she just has so much more energy this morning, and is not just standing around with her head hanging forward. I was really just trying to get some sort of nutrition into her for some energy to try to feed herself! I don't want to be hand feeding her. I don't think that's a great quality of life. I just wanted to see if we could boost her enough to feed herself. I guess we'll see! Thanks again!

 

[pete1]

my cross beak wasent eating eather and i was giving her/him some vitamins and one day i felt her/his food sack under the beak and it was full of air

and i squeezed it soft and gentle and alot of air came out and with some bubbles and as soon as i let her go she ran to the food and ate till she/he couldent walk any more lol

she doing great

i guess with cross beak they cant close there beak right

and alot of air gets into it

 

[nursecat9]

Quote:
Thanks, I'll try this. I moved all but 3 of my girls outside to their big coop last night, and kept this little girl and 2 friends in the house. The 2 friends were starting to get picked on.

 

[SpringChickens]

I have an EE with a severe crossbeak (see pic), and I let her in the house once or twice a day to eat straight out of the feed container, and she does great! I think having a deep container of feed is the most important thing, so they can "force" some feed far enough back in their mouth to make a difference.

Good luck!!

 

[dlhunicorn]

@spring chicken and all those with cross beaks:
Trimming regularly so the beak doesnt become too long (which it will do much quicker than a "normal" beak bird) is very important ... if you are unsure about this (how etc.) then I urge you to go ONCE to an avian vet and explain you wish him to show you the proper way to do it and any other tips they can give you. Don't wait till it is soooo long you cant aovid it but start early and trim as often as needed > my normal birds are able to keep theirs nicely in shape as I feed them on concrete pavement pvers but a cross beak bird is unable to keep theirs in shape by this or any other method and will need you to do this for them.

 

[fourfeathers]

Again, with trimming the beak. Try to get the chick, as a baby, acclimated to this, so that they tolerate it when they get older. Use kitten nail trimmers and ONLY take a tiny bit, file with an emory board while stabilizing the head/neck after trimming. Do in good light so that you can see the shadow of the quick. Have blood stop powder on hand in case you quick her. Separate from other if you do quick her because it will bleed a lot and the other chicks will turn on her and peck that area. You can do it. I had taken mine to the vet and he felt I could do it, he seemed of mind that it would need to bleed in order to get it short enough. got a little goosey when I heard that and decided to try myself. I saw another avian vet quick a parrot once, really bad. Not to say that would happen, and it may happen to you too, but if you just do a little, you should be fine. Fiddle with her a lot so she gets used to the handling.