Parrot Chat

[Pyxis]

Yes. He nibbles pellets, apples, broccoli, millet, boiled egg and "nutriberries" parrot food. He's still on two formula feeds a day, one small in the afternoon and one big one to last the night later. He eats really well in the morning and by the end of the day he just wants to be a baby again. But every day he is a little more independent.

I had to finish handfeeding Fizz and I did not like it, lol. Luckily he decided he was done and ready to be weaned after I fed him twice.

I don't mind tube feeding poultry, but using just a syringe makes me nervous and I was just overly worried Fizz was going to aspirate. It was pretty irrational, haha.

 

[Serin]

I had to finish handfeeding Fizz and I did not like it, lol. Luckily he decided he was done and ready to be weaned after I fed him twice.

I don't mind tube feeding poultry, but using just a syringe makes me nervous and I was just overly worried Fizz was going to aspirate. It was pretty irrational, haha.

I've hand-fed baby canaries and cockatiels. Nemo was initially MUCH worse because he was so big when I got him he knew I wasn't his parent and didn't open up. He still doesn't beg for food at all from me (he begged the parakeet initially but stopped after a few days) but after 3 weeks of extremely tedious force feeding where I was constantly worried about him choking, and it took 30 minutes to get anything down him, he figured it out and now when I pick him up and hold him upright with his back on my chest, I can pop his beak open with one finger and he guzzles down the formula.

 

[Pyxis]

I've hand-fed baby canaries and cockatiels. Nemo was initially MUCH worse because he was so big when I got him he knew I wasn't his parent and didn't open up. He still doesn't beg for food at all from me (he begged the parakeet initially but stopped after a few days) but after 3 weeks of extremely tedious force feeding where I was constantly worried about him choking, and it took 30 minutes to get anything down him, he figured it out and now when I pick him up and hold him upright with his back on my chest, I can pop his beak open with one finger and he guzzles down the formula.

That sounds like a nightmare! I definitely prefer tube feeding poultry, lol. I've had to do it a couple times with injured or sick birds, and have had to do it to get water and nutri-drench into shipped chicks that are on the verge of dying, and it's much less nerve-wrecking. Just pop open the beak, line up the tube, and slide it down into the crop. And then away you go, no worry about aspiration.

Luckily Fizz was a handfed baby so while I wasn't the person who had been feeding him, he recognized humans in general as a food source, so he took the syringe easily.

I'm toying with the idea of getting Cricket a girlfriend at some point in the future, but if I did I'd want to handfeed the babies, so it's something I'm thinking about if I would want to deal with or have the time to do.

 

[Serin]

That sounds like a nightmare! I definitely prefer tube feeding poultry, lol. I've had to do it a couple times with injured or sick birds, and have had to do it to get water and nutri-drench into shipped chicks that are on the verge of dying, and it's much less nerve-wrecking. Just pop open the beak, line up the tube, and slide it down into the crop. And then away you go, no worry about aspiration.

Luckily Fizz was a handfed baby so while I wasn't the person who had been feeding him, he recognized humans in general as a food source, so he took the syringe easily.

I'm toying with the idea of getting Cricket a girlfriend at some point in the future, but if I did I'd want to handfeed the babies, so it's something I'm thinking about if I would want to deal with or have the time to do.

You don't have to hand feed cockatiels to tame them. I did both hand raising and parent reared with daily handling and there was no difference when they weaned. They were all sociable and stepped up. The store I was selling them to said they had never seen such tame babies. And I gave them the parent reared ones. They also wean about 3 weeks sooner with the parents.

 

[Pyxis]

You don't have to hand feed cockatiels to tame them. I did both hand raising and parent reared with daily handling and there was no difference when they weaned. They were all sociable and stepped up. The store I was selling them to said they had never seen such tame babies. And I gave them the parent reared ones. They also wean about 3 weeks sooner with the parents.

That's awesome! What sort of handling did you do to get them so tame?

 

[Serin]

Every day from the time their eyes opened I would take them out of the box and just keep them on my lap and pet them for a while. A few minutes building up to an hour or more at a time when they were feathered. I left two babies at all times with the parents so they didn't panic at the nest being empty but handled them all over all. The patents were tame so once the babies all had feathers I took them all out together and they saw how mom and dad trusted me too.

 

[Pyxis]

Well, I say I might get Cricket a friend and then I go on Craigslist and tada, another cockatiel needing a home. This one is a young whiteface pearl, so young it hasn't had its first molt so gender is not known yet. I've sent the owner a message.

 

[Serin]

I lurk my Craigslist too much too..

Someone is selling a pair of tame cockatiels for $80 cage included... White male and grey female both friendly. Owner has allergies. I wasn't looking for tiels but I am tempted to respond anyway...

 

[Pyxis]

I lurk my Craigslist too much too..

Someone is selling a pair of tame cockatiels for $80 cage included... White male and grey female both friendly. Owner has allergies. I wasn't looking for tiels but I am tempted to respond anyway...

I bet Nemo would like them for company

 

[Serin]

I bet Nemo would like them for company

I doubt that very much! The only bird nemo likes is his parakeet. Not the other parakeets... And definitely not the pigeon! He seems to be okay with the canary though.