It's a Christams Miracle!

duckncover

Duck Obsessed
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Well a close to christmas one! I have 2 cockatiels and they laid 5 eggs starting on the last day last day of November with another egg being laid every other day. So I estimated that the eggs were laid on 11/30, 12/1, 12/3, 12/5, 12/7. The first egg just hatched! The babies should hatch a day or two apart. I took a peep at the little guy and he is a pink little blind think with a small amount of yellow fuzz on his back. He is about the size of a nickel. I will get a picture but I don't want to bother mom and dad since they've been dong so good with sitting on them. I can hear them feeding it and the sound is too cute.

They laid the eggs in a nesting box. Not like the ones for chickens though, it's an actual wooden box with a removable lid and a hole to climb into. The mom sits on the eggs just as much as the dad. They take shifts sometimes and occasionally they will both sit on them at the same time. They will both feed the babies though regurgitation but the mom will do it more often than the dad. The dad will actually feed the mom so she could feed the babies without making a bunch of trips. They won't poo in the nest so they hold it all day long until they come out of it to eat. When they do come out to go it's the size of chicken poo which is HUGE compared to the usual. I can't wait to start handling them! They usually are safe to take out once they have a few feathers and their beak hardens. I wish they had babies that were like chicken chicks, it would make everything so much simpler. They won't even leave the nest box until they are 4 weeks old and can't eat by themselves until about 6-8 weeks. I'm excited and can't wait to see what kind of colors I get!

Anyone interested in knowing more? Wish me and them good luck because the first 2 weeks are the most dangerous ones for the babies!
 
Congrats on your babies!!! Chicken chicks are truely the best aren't they so sturdy and strong within a few hours and ready for cuddles and love. Hope the rest of your eggs hatch you are going to have some busy parents.
 
I used to raise cockatiels, it's a wonderful wonderful experience. Got out of it though when I found out how much they were just being passed around because they were cheap birds. Broke my heart to hear about people didn't care about a bird they spend $100 or more on. Good luck, and I miss it... I still have the kids from my last clutch.

are you handfeeding or co-parenting? I learned to handfeed with the tiels because the parents started to pluck them bald when the youngest was 9 days old.
 
Oh, congratulations! Mine had one of theirs live this past year, but he had splayed legs. I took him to the vet and we kept his legs hobbled, but his little feet were kind of mangled looking, so he's my lap bird. He's the best little guy because he was always held since the time when he just looked like a hunched over little old man with a balding yellow head. Now, he's beautiful, friendly, and repeating everything his dad says. Good luck with your babies!
 

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