Handfeeding schedule for baby Princess

[tiki]

Hi, I hope a Princess Parrot is considered in this category-Grass Parrots? I didn't know which forum to use. Anyway, I will be getting a 24 day old Princess this Friday. I would like to know what sort of feeding schedule to use. Also I have Christmas week off work, so what do I do when I go back on 3 Jan, the baby will be 5 weeks old then. Would he be eating millet by then? I am hoping to get away with one feeding in the morning and one in the evening. I have been taught to crop feed by an expert, others have said syrigne feeding is better. How many ml do you give a Princess? My friend is more experienced with cockatiels but a Princess is a little bigger.

At what age does a Princess fledge?

Thanks.

[kim1]

at 24 days, it would be on 4 feeds and beginning to reduce to 3 feeds ( reduce by giveing a bit less each day untill the feed is dropped and slightly increase the other feeds by a couple a mil or two each day) by day 30 you should have it on the 3 feeds. You may be lucky and have it on 2 feeds by Jan 3rd but it depends on the bird, I'd be offering soft foods like boiled rice, wholemeal bread, rice bubbles, sprouted seed etc to encourage this I beleive the maximum crop copacity for a princess parrot is about 15 to 20 mls, of course you would start lower and work up to that, crop feeding is used mainly for aviary birds, if you want this little one to be a pet, spoon or syringe is better and usually produces better pets, unless you make a point of spending a bit of extra time with a crop fed baby, also its very easy to over fill a crop with a tube and this can result in major problems, but its much less likely to happen with a syring or spoon, if the bird is being pulled from the nest just before you get it, make sure the first feed or two is a bit runnier than directed and thicken it to the right consistancy over a couple of feeds, I've found if you feed a newly pulled chick full strength formula straight away, it sometimes slows the crop.

[tiki]

Kim, thanks for all your advice. Yes, this baby will be a pet and regardless of type of feeding, he will get lots of cuddles and loving. I have Passwell handrearing formula for parrots. The main thing that worries me about the spoon or syringe method is that they dribble a lot and I don't know how to measure how much he actually consumes. I have plenty of time to spend with the baby before and after work when I go back in Jan.

I have two options, the breeder pulled 3 babies due to large clutch to handfeed from a few days old, then the parents are rearing the others. I guess my best option is to try to get one of the currently hand fed ones? At what age should I start the soft foods?

[kim1]

if the ones the breeder is feeing are crop fed and you intend to fed the same way then take one of those, however if you decide to syring or spoon feed it may be easier to take onefrom the nest as occasionally a tube fed bird may initially find it harder to eat from a spoon or syringe (thats my experience anyway) you don't need exact measures, just gently palpate the chicks crop it should feel full but still soft like a 3/4 full water bomb.

[kim1]

with my ringnecks I start soft foods at the stage when their covered all over in pin feathers, they are very currios at that age and while they don't eat a lot they play with the food and learn how to eat I guess around 4, 1/2 when the drop to 3 feeds is good. you'll have to judge your baby when you get it as all birds area bit different.

[tiki]

I just rang the breeder, he says the handfed ones have gone up the coast. So I have to take one straight out of the nest. So I guess I can use any method of feeding. But I will be the first one to handfeed the baby, I hope he doesn't freak out at the change.

What should I keep the baby in (24 days old)? I have a cockatiel size nest box, a typical timber show cage or a normal cockatiel cage. Does he need to be kept warm? Will he be OK by himself?

[kim1]

If I have only 1 ringneck and its hot, as it has been lately, I keep it in one of those mini plastic fish tanks with the plastic lids that you get from discount wharehouses, I use Max's pet litter about 2cm thick on the bottom than cover that in paper towel, being on it's own you might like to get a little stuffed toy to put with it as they like to cuddle up to something, it won't need heaps of warmth at this time of the year, but will still need a bit so the cage is a bit drafty and cool. If you can'tget a tank just use a deep plastic lunchbox and throw a tea towel over the top at night, stick your hand in after the tea towel has been on for a while to make sure its not getting too hot, they can generate a bit of body heat in a plastic container.

[tiki]

Thanks, that's a good idea about the plastic container. I have a large storage container with a lid and plenty of stuffed toys for the little one to snuggle with.

Would you know how many hours apart I should do the feedings? At least for that first week starting 23 Dec, I should be picking him up in the evening so the next day, should I feed at like 7am, 12 noon, 5pm or ?

[kim1]

the first day or two will be getting the feeding established so you will need to play it by ear, so to speak. The fist couple of feeds should be a bit runnier than normal so you will most likely need 4 feeds at 4 to 5hr intervals, as you thicken the mix over 24 hrs you increase the time between feeds, I feed mine at 7am 1pm and 7pm, others feed every 8 hrs but I like 6 hrly intervals if the crop is empty, by the way you should never feed on a crop that is more than about 20% full as it can lead to the contents of the crop going sour, if the crop is very slow to empty you will need to take other measures fairly quickly, but if that happens jump on line and someone will tell you what to do, I check in 4 times a day to this forum.

[tiki]

I go to pick him up today after work. Thanks for the offer of help. I hope all will go well. I have everything I need on hand. At least I will be home the next 10 days!

[ozquaker]

Hi tiki, don't forget to give us an update and pics of your new baby

[tiki]

I just picked him up this morning, the breeder had to work late last night. I gave him 12ml of runny formula by syringe, actually it was 15 but he dribbled out about 3ml. I just cleaned him up and he is still making the hissing "feed me" noise. Is this normal? His crop looks full. I am somewhat new here, how do I upload a pic? I will stay logged in all day and come back and refresh periodically thorughout the day. Thanks!

[kim1]

12 mls is ok for a start so don't worry too much the first day or two will take some getting used to, just feed him again when the crop is almost empty, it may mean you start on 4 feeds or so for the first day but thats ok untill you gain confidence, a lot of babies will still beg after they are full so just try to ignore it, because the initial formula is a bit runnier it will digest quicker but as you begin to increase the thickness the time between feeds will increase. For uploading Photo's I use photobucket to host mine then cut and paste the image url here, there are other image hosting sites but I don't know what there called, www.photobucket.com
I'll check in a few time a day for the next few days to help if I can.

[tiki]

I will have to reboot before I can even download the pics (only 256mb RAM) so I won't have them up until probably tomorrow. He has quieted down a bit and did a couple poops. Next time, I will use the crop needle because it is neater, then I will leave a bit in his mouth so he can taste it and I will cuddle him a lot too. The dribbling with the syringe made me nervous, I was scared it would go down the wrong way. My friend showed me how to use the crop needle so I actually feel safer with that.

[AussieBirds]

Hi Tiki to post pictures at the forum you can use the image hosting that is available when you are actually making as post. If you look to the left of your post you will see the Image hosting, providing the picture you want to post is on your computer you just click the browse button, select the picture you want to host and Image shack will host it for you. When it hosts it select the the address that says for forums highlight it save it then come back to the forum by closing the image shack page and just paste the address for the image and it will show up.

John

PS don't worry about resizing the picture the forum will do that for you automatically

J

[kim1]

Just do what makes you feel comfortable, if thats the crop needle than so be it, at least you have an idea how much his crop will hold, just give him the 12 or 13 mls he had at the first feed, there is a danger of over streatching the crop with a crop needle, but that only happens if the crop capacity is less than you think and the birds crop has to contend with, say 20 mls when it can only take 12mls. you have a starting point now and you slowly increase that each day untill you reach maximum crop capacity, ie if the bird has an empty crop when its next feed is due increase by 1ml just feel the crop to make sure it isn't too full at each feed, stick to the 12 mls for the next day or two and if you feel there is room in the crop increase to 13 mls the next day and so on untill you reach approx 20mls,the feed times will increase as the volume increases untill the bird is only on two feeds each day .

[tiki]

OK, I am experimenting with the image shack. This photo (if it uploads correctly) was taken 2 weeks ago, mine would be the largest one you see-I went for the eldest when choosing a chick. I will D/L today's pics later tonight.



At 5pm, I fed him 15ml by crop needle-this was easier once I got him used to the idea of having that thing stuck down his crop. I dribbled a little in at the end so he could taste it. He was less than thrilled at first. I held him a while so he learns to associate me with food=Mommy! His crop had pretty well emptied from the first feeding I gave him at 10:30pm-12ml. He is pretty full now, so I will see how long it takes to empty. He isn't begging anymore, just sitting there looking wide-eyed and cute! I put a small toy koala for him to sniggle against.

[tiki]

Here he is right after his 5pm feeding. I hope his crop looks full in the right amount? Or is he overfull?



And here he is snuggling up with his pet koala!



If his crop has empted sufficiently, I will feed him again at 11pm or midnight.

Thanks for your help and Merry Christmas!

[AcaciaWattle]

OHH how cute!
What a beautiful baby
Merry Christmas to you and baby

[ozquaker]

He looks absolutely contented and happy and thanks for sharing your new baby with us. Oh yes, if you're concerned about how much to feed bubs, the general rule is about 10% of the baby's body weight.

Hope you both have a great first Christmas together.