Unexpected hatching - help!

[biophiliac]

@biophiliac Do you have any tips for feeding a baby bird?

Not this kind of bird, sooooo cool btw! A bit of egg yolk might be good for it.

I believe @biophiliac makes a feeding contraption with a plastic glove that works fabulous.

See vid posted by @WVduckchick , #62. That's like mine.

 

[Theblackpukeko]

@WVduckchick how did you make the thing that you feed them with in the video? It looks great! Right now my baby is feeding fine on some mealworms but I'll have to use the mash as well (I currently try making it into a paste, but she doesn't take it very well from my fingers or the tweezers) as she goes through them like crazy.

 

[Theblackpukeko]

Not this kind of bird, sooooo cool btw! A bit of egg yolk might be good for it.

I'll try that. How much would you suggest?

 

[Theblackpukeko]

Stepped out and came back to this beautiful picture: finally asleep in the brooder. She's taken a few naps there today but would always wake up if I moved or even just made a sound. Now she's sleeping dead silent, didn't even wake up by me opening and closing the door etc. So I guess she's happy with her new home! Just very lonely, that's why I'm keeping her with me until the others hatch

 

[Kiwibird]

Kia ora, Tahi!
Chopped hard-boiled egg is quite commonly given to baby pūkeko. Just be aware that adult pūkeko often eat the chicks of domestic poultry, so if Tahi decides to stay with your flock once he/she matures, take even more care than usual to keep young birds separate.

 

[WVduckchick]

@WVduckchick how did you make the thing that you feed them with in the video? It looks great! Right now my baby is feeding fine on some mealworms but I'll have to use the mash as well (I currently try making it into a paste, but she doesn't take it very well from my fingers or the tweezers) as she goes through them like crazy.

It’s a small plastic squeeze bottle, I used warm water, sprinkled in some chick crumbles, and some grit, and mixed it up. Covered the top with a section of rubber glove, and tied off with a rubber band. Then cut a tiny slit in the opening. The first few times, I actually had to stick its beak thru the hole, but once they get the hang of it, they understand quickly.

I’ve also used the syringe method, with rubber tubing on the end, inserted down the throat to fill the crop. I think I made a video of it too. I’ll look.

 

[WVduckchick]

I can’t find a video using the syringe, but I think @Pyxis has one, feeding a tiny baby chick.

there are lots of YouTube videos on tube feeding, @casportpony has several saved too. I think getting it to eat on its own is the best option, but when that fails, or when they don’t get enough on their own, they still need to be sustained until they can learn.

 

[Pyxis]

I can’t find a video using the syringe, but I think @Pyxis has one, feeding a tiny baby chick.

there are lots of YouTube videos on tube feeding, @casportpony has several saved too. I think getting it to eat on its own is the best option, but when that fails, or when they don’t get enough on their own, they still need to be sustained until they can learn.

Yep, I've got a tube feeding video of a bantam chick if you want to see it Do you know if these guys can be fed like parrots? If yes, you can use a syringe without a tube, or a bent spoon.

 

[WVduckchick]

Yep, I've got a tube feeding video of a bantam chick if you want to see it Do you know if these guys can be fed like parrots? If yes, you can use a syringe without a tube, or a bent spoon.

I’d say your guess would be much better than mine.
How do baby parrots feed?

 

[Pyxis]

I’d say your guess would be much better than mine.
How do baby parrots feed?

Their parents feed them, but differently than pigeons do, a little bit. So people who handfeed them do so by either sliding a syringe into their beaks, or the end of a bent spoon, and give parrot formula that way.