Hello!

 

i have no idea where do i post this so i decide to post it in this section. hope you all can help me out.

 

i recently "inherited" a baby budgie. (long story as my friend needs go overseas for an emergency)

 

he left me the budgie to take care for no idea how long. he left me some hand feeding formula, syringe, a cardboard box with shredded paper and a small cage.

the budgie i think is about 15 or 16 days old. He taught me a little on how to feed it.

 

it seems that the budgie was eating quite little. about 2 to 2.5ml of the formula. before closing its beak and eyes indicating it doesn't want to eat anymore.

i don't know if that is too little for it. feeding at 4hrs interval and not feeding it after 11. is this okay?

 

He(i hope so ) is frequently sleeping, straight after eating. closes its eyes. i wonder if thats okay?

 

also its scratches/cleans? itself using it beaks often. flaky stuffs drop out usually. is this common?

 

please do help me as its my first time taking care of a baby bird and no one around me take care of birds.

 

below are a few pictures of him

 

 

 

 

 

please do leave ur comments below. thank you so much!

Edited May 7, 201114 yr by ericsonfe

Hi ericsonfe,

 

I'm no expert, but I can help you out with a few of your questions, and I'm sure other people will follow with more advice.

 

At that age, I think your feeding schedule you have written is good. He shouldn't need to eat during the night.

 

Ideally, you would want his crop to be full after he eats. Here is a photo of a chick with a full crop. I circled the crop, to show you where it is located.

 

 

 

In your photos, that area of your chick appears to be flat. Does it bulge out after he eats? If not, he may not be eating enough. You may need to get a crop needle, which you put down his throat to squeeze the food directly into the crop.

 

One thing I would suggest is to put seeds into his box, because he is at an age when he can practice nibbling on things, and he can learn to crack seed if it is available. A spray of millet would be good, too.

 

I don't think you need to have that shredded paper in his box. The seed will fall to the bottom, and the paper shreds may block him from finding it. Oats make a good bedding, and he can pick around in them to find the seeds, and also, he can eat the oats, too.

 

Do you have some way to keep him warm? He seems a little young to be in a cool temperature.

 

I think sleeping a lot is normal at this age.

 

As to the flaky stuff that falls off, that is normal too. His feathers are coming in, and they start out coated by a sheath. He grooms himself and picks the sheath off, so that his feathers can fluff out. Until all of his feathers are in and fully fluffed out, he will drop those flakes continually. To me it always looks like my hands have been sprinkled with some pepper after I play with my chicks.

 

You could also try feeding him his formula from a small measuring spoon. Sometimes they just prefer to eat from that than from a syringe, especially as they get older.

 

 

 

I'm sure I've left a lot out. And there are lots of ways of doing things, so I'm sure other people will have more to add. Welcome to the forum, and good luck with him.

Edited May 10, 201114 yr by **KAZ**

hi thanks so much! i now got a better idea already.

 

and i wanna ask. how come my budgie doesn't beg for food during feeding time like the videos i see in youtube and such. my budgie just quietly sit there, eyes close even though he hasn't ate for the past 9hrs. (9pm till 6am.)

 

 

today i tried your method using crop feeding. it was quite hard as he keep pushing the tube out alot of times. finally i managed to get in there to push the syringe.

 

 

is this considered full?

 

 

this is what i use to feed him.

 

 

 

also regarding temperature. i keep him in my room. its around 29-31 degrees Celsius/87.8 degrees Fahrenheit?

alot of his feathers are coming out already. its so exciting to watch him grow.

 

 

thanks so much for reading.

Edited May 7, 201114 yr by ericsonfe

I've not hand feed but others have and will answer.

 

just wanted to say you look to be doing a great job as a first timer - and as a last minute deal to help a friend.

you baby looks contented to me

hes crop you filled perfect you can over fill so be bit careful as you can aspirate them

if you have him in that heat and hes preening and snuggling into you pooing normal and regularly (normal as in not blocked is pooing regularly )

and you leave as suggested seed in floor of where ever you have him to nibble at or millet i think he will make a great pal hes not begging as your not letting him get hungry or as hes just secure that he will be getting fed on time looks like hes smiling to me

make sure the tube is to left hand side if your facing him toward you like the picture of bubby above with the full crop someone shared as right hand side is lungs

if you put it down until you thumb can feel it in that exact position of picture you are safe to go

 

looks like you know what your doing though

lots of loves hugs talking to him and sitting him next to you now will save training latter he will just do it as routine

The temp your keeping him at is good I pull mine at 23 days old and I keep them temp in the brooder at no lower than 85 from that time until they're fully or almost fully feathered(almost as in more than 80% feathered)

 

Babies do sleep alot just like human babies

 

You can put a small stuffed animal in with him to help keep him warm and they snuggle against it like they would in a nest box with their siblings - I use one no matter how many babies I have

 

Not all babies will Give the static cry to tell you they're hungry, Some take longer to figure out you the human is feeding them some just don't do it at all but readily take the food

 

When I pull mine at 23 days old I feed them every 6 hrs From the time I get up usually at 7 am but I let them tell me when they're hungry but since your lil one isn't doing that or at least not yet If I went by a actual schedule I'd feed at 7 am , 1 pm, 7 pm and again at 1 am (usually I make it around midnight if they want it so I can get to bed I do have 2 young kids to so I try not to stay up on weekdays past midnight)

they don't always want the last feed of the night But if they do then they get it, If they're fine and not wanting it then I wait til they wake up in the A.m. and tell me

 

also make sure the crop is emptied at least 1 time every 24 hrs to avoid Sour Crop, Compacted crop etc.

thanks so much for the valuable valuable input. i will update with pictures of its status. he now keeps chirping chirping when his awake.

 

i made the edible bedding like FINNIE told me too. Using raw rolled oats i bought from some health shop.

When i put him in he keeps nibbling on them. i scattered some millet around too so he can eat them if he is sick of oats.

 

his now eating alot too! i see the crop being full but it keeps asking for food!

and i think i don't have to do crop feeding again. YAY! its scary enough trying to force the tube in his small little body.

 

Do i need to put a small dish of water in the box? Cuz i he keeps eating the seed and oat, he might get thirsty?

 

(will update later of pictures of him. )

just after feeding his getting to be a naughty fellow. keeps biting and biting and wanting more food.

 

 

check out his new box-house!

he got a new stitch doll as a toy!

.

 

thanks so much everyone for your help. sorry that i keep bother you all with lots and lots of questions. you are a super helpful community!

You're doing such a good job, Ericson. It must be a bit daunting for a first timer by yourself like that. Good feeling though, I'm sure.

 

Your pictures are just great, too. He's like a cute little dinosaur in your photos.

 

Hope it all goes well for you and your unexpected baby.

 

When is your friend back?

just after feeding his getting to be a naughty fellow. keeps biting and biting and wanting more food.

 

 

 

Well, then, he sounds like he's doing just perfectly!

 

You don't need to worry about water while you are feeding him hand formula. That has enough moisture in it. You can give him a regular water drinker when he's old enough to climb and fly up to the cage bars.

Hello And just a quick bit of help.

 

The little one looks really healthy it's good to see you are cleaning it after each feed because if you didn't there would be a build up of old food which can go sour and make the little one sick.

Looking at the bird I suggest you go to a local supermarket and buy some alfalfa (<------ I dought if that is spelt right) sprouts and then give them a good wash in cool water and put them in the box with the chick. It's a good way to start a little one off when it's starting to nibble food and it has moisture in it and they love it but remember to take it out every day and give it new sprouts the next day.

 

If it is nibbling your hand when it is hungry there is a very good chance that the bird is a girl as this is common with young female chicks but not always..

thanks so much everyone. very very helpful indeed.

 

anyway it has been 7days since i last got it. seems like my friend will be there for quite sometime.

 

it has been a rather eventful week. waking up to the budgie screams for food. (i just realise i haven't properly named my budgie yet. any suggestion? )

 

i got a few questions today!

 

Most important question!!

I let my brother feed it when i'm not able to be at home and he sometime forgets to clean him after eating. the hand feeding formula dried up on the feather below his beaks and on his crop feathers. i read somewhere that this was harmful as the feather will not be able to grow properly. i need urgent help on how to clean away the dried up formula. it makes the feather bunch up together and hardens up. i already tried some warm water to try and dissolve/soften it but its not helping much. help please?

 

when will it be able to stand on the perch? or learn how to use its wings properly?

 

how do you all usually spend time with the baby budgie? usually, after feeding, i let it rest for 1hr before taking it out to play. but mostly it just stands there staring at me or chirping away.

 

thanks everyone again for ur help!

keep doing the warm water, I take a paper towel get it as hot as I can stand it (which I can't stand very hot water) and I use my forefinger and thumb and using the warm damp paper towel i gently rub the hard food between my fingers, it usually takes a few tries to get it all off, and once the baby starts stressing over it - I stop and do it again a little later

oh alright. i finally made it almost back to normal already.

i did it like you said. and also use a Q tip for those hard to reach areas with my fingers.

 

anyway, during cleaning him i notice him quite dirty, do baby budgies need to bath? if so how do i do it?

Hi there,

 

I found these. They might help you on the crop feeding.

 

 

http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/index.php?showtopic=18640

http://www.drrossperry.com.au/videos/birds...-croptubing.ph

urmm. is this bad? i dunno but the feathers on his crop arent growing like it suppose to i think.

 

 

 

here's the link to a bigger picture.

 

http://i168.photobuc.../IMG_0796-1.jpg

http://i168.photobuc.../IMG_0794-1.jpg

I think he looks Okay. I think it's just cuz he's wet.

 

Did you ever give him a name yet?