Baby galah

[jill]

I picked up my new galah yesterday, he's so cute and very young (8 weeks) and very tame .I was very impressed with the owner, who was quite young, (in his late teens) and very much loved his birds. another guy turned up to pick up a cockatoo. He made us both hold our birds for a good 15 to 20 minutes, so they could adjust to us, went through all the do's and don'ts, then repeated them again, then again, then again before we left. A couple of questions. He said not to feed a young galah fresh fruit or greens as it's too acidic for them, only dry seed until he's older, is this correct. Last night I put fresh corn cob and some sprouted seed in his cage. I don't feel dry seed is enough. Now I have think of a name...

[AussieBirds]

Hi Jill,
Congratulations on your new bird, it sounds to me like you have found an excellent breeder and i would agree with him regarding the fruit to a certain extent.

I would suggest that apple would be okay to give the little one but stay away from the citrus fruit such as orange,grapes and the like for a little while as they could be a little too acid for it as yet.

The corn is fine as it is a vegatable as are the sprouted seed, good luck with the name choosing and we look forward to many happy stories from you about your new friend.

John

[jill]

Thanks Aussie Bird..
I've just upset one person on another chat site..I put his pic on Tooz chat (An american site) They like to see pics, especially of Australian birds and Galahs are quite expensive over there..She toled me to take him back as 8 weeks is too young to wean a bird also because of his age and that teenagers aren't responsible enough to breed or sell birds..She got a few bites back and will probably get more....This guy is eating fine...Can anyone verify that 8 weeks is ok to wean a bird..

[pollyparrot]

id say ignore the person on the other chat site if you know what u are doing and baby is eating well there is no reason to worry mabe some people cant cope with a baby so young but iam sure u are doing a wonderfull job congratulations on your new baby he is adoreable

[lovemytiels]

Hi Jill, what a great looking & healthy bird you have. As for the person on chat saying he was too young, well different birds wean at different times. I am no expert on galahs as to when they should or should not be weaned but I do h/rear tiels & indian ringnecks & as far as I'm concered my birds wean themselves when they are good & ready. I never force the issue. Some of my tiels wean themselves at 6 weeks, others at 8 weeks. It is the same with my ringnecks. Some peolple say 10 weeks others 12 weeks. It all depends on each individual bird. They do let you know when they no longer want the spoon or syringe & if your bird is weaned & eating by itself then it shouldn't be a problem. Cheers for now & the best of wishes for your new pet bird. May you both have many happy times together. Anna Olive

[AussieBirds]

Just stick to AussieBirds ;D and ignore the other site 8 weeks is fine as long as the bird is eating by itself and from what I can tell by your first post the breeder is doing a fine job. I know a lot of teenagers that breed birds and they are doing just fine.

John

[jill]

This is a great site..
Everyone has different oppinions..My other hand reared birds were very young when I got them..My Alexanders still love to be hand fed with the spoon..and there 12 months old..

[lovemytiels]

Hi Jill glad you are taking the advise from this site. My first h/reared tiel called maxieboy is going on 5 years old & he insists of having food from the syringe when I am feeding my babies. He is so funny he even makes baby sounds till he gets some & he is very gentle with the babies, but he cracks me up begging for food from the syringe. Cheers for now Anna Olive

[jill]

That sounds so cute, he wants to be part of it all..It's great if you need to give them meds or anything..I mash up some sweet potatoe, carrot, peas and corn and feed them from a spoon, and it's great when I worm them, I just add it in..but the food has to be warm, they wont eat it if it's cold or out of a dish only off the spoon...

[SunConure]

i would also say ignor the people on that other chat site. Every bird is different some wean earlier then others. THat person was probably jealous for some reason.

[suecc]

Hi Jill,
Unfortunately I have found that some of the american Lists consist of what someone descibed as "Bird Nazis"
They dont have any airfreasheners, teflon/nonstick cookwear, sented candles, anything non organic, non sterile, anywhere near their homes let alone their birds.

The birds get distilled water & pellets, finely diced and washed organic veges and friut. I really dont know or understand where they think birds originate from, certainly not outside in the wild eating dirt or drinking muddy water.

I'm sure they love their birds but,....

As long as your bird is doing what you think it should be doing, & you are both happy then you just might be doing something right
sue

[galahguy]

Hi Jill, I noticed that you said that you add worming mixture to your birds warm food. Do you find that they will eat it ok? I have a Galah that I worm(try to) by adding the mixture to her water, but she will usually refuse to drink it, even when she looks like she is dying of thirst! I then usually resort to paying a bird shop to do it by forcing it down her throat with a plastic spoon! I sound like a terrible parent don't I! But i am sure there has to be an easier way. Any help or advise would be greatly appreciated.
Mark

[lovemytiels]

Hi Mark, yes it can be a bit of a problem putting worming medication in their water. They seem to know it too. I have been using a prodect called Ivomectin. It is in concentrated forrm & all I do is use a cotton bud, dip it in the mixture & apply it under their wings where there is more blood vessels & they will preen it off. This product is also used to control mites, lice & for worming, but usually needs to be repeated after 7 days. Hope this helps. Cheers Anna

[galahguy]

Thanks Anna, yes they can certainly taste/smell it in their water and will not go near it. The worming medicine I have is called Worm Rid broad spectrum by Avian Science. I don't know how I will go dabbing it under her wings as she is not so keen about having her wings handled but will give it a go anyway. Thanks for your help Anna.
Mark.

[fischer]

Hi Mark, I think the wormer you have, Worm Rid, is meant for oral use only, if used in the way Anna has suggested, and used undiluted, it could result in poisoning your bird. ( sorry if I'm jumping to the wrong conclusion, but thats how your post reads )

The only wormer suitable for external use is Ivomectin, (the one for sheep) it can be obtained from most vet's in small amounts, 100ml, very cheaply. Ivomectin can be applied to the back of the neck, just above the wing joints of the bird too this method would be mch easier for you, apply it as Anna suggested, with a cotton bud, till you can see that the skin is just wet, and only in a small area.

I use Ivomectin in this manner and hav'nt had a problem with it yet, It's not of any use as a water based wormer anyway, all but one type are oil based and won't mix with water, and the taste is so awfull, most birds would rather die of thirst than drink it ;D.

For worming, useing drinking water as the medium, I use a wormer called Moxidectin Plus, it has an anniseed taste and most birds will take this wormer in thier drinking water without problems, even finches. It does all the major worms includeing gizzard worm. Its available direct from The Australian Pidgeon Company (Dr Colin Walker).

Hope this helps...Cheers Tony

[galahguy]

Thanks for the advice Tony. Any input is greatly appreciated. The medicated water technique of worming seems a bit hit and miss and your never sure how much if any water they have drunk anyway. Will have to look into the Ivomectin.
Mark.

[petiel]

Ivomec is very good for lice and mite and only good for killing round worm. I use Oxfendazole in their drinking water, it taste alright and the birds drink it. Oxfendazole will kill all worms.

[fischer]

Petiel, before you make bold statements like that I suggest you do some research, Ivomectin will kill Gape worm, Gizzzard worm and Round worm, it also kills Scaley and and Airsac mites, the only main problem worm its not too effective against is the Thread worm and since they almost allways only occur in an aviary situation, I dont think it a real threat in this case.

The problem with most wormers in water is that the birds won't touch them. I have tried Oxfendazole in all it's various forms, and my birds won't touch it, It is effective against Round worm and partially effective against Tape worm if given over a 5 day period. It is not effective agaimst all the other worms at all and I know this because I have my birds faecal tested again a short period after worming.

I suggested Ivomectin to Galahguy because it is by far the easiest for him to use, rather than water based wormers over a period of days.

Cheers Tony

[petiel]

Fisher, I am so sorry I have got it wrong. I was only saying what I have been told by the people I buy my wormers from. The bottle states controls roundworm, lice, mite and scalyface mite. When I brought the ivomec thats what they told me, and to use another wormer to kill all other worms. I wont say anything in the future. Sorry again.

[hillcresttiels]

Hi Petiel there is nothing wrong with trying to assist in a post as long as we get the facts right because as the forum is growing sometimes the responses made are not quite correct and believe me even the experienced get it wrong so all we ask is lets get our info right and spread facts cheers

Frank