Someone contacted me as she wanted me to take in her 2 babies budgies, 4 weeks old. The mom dont want to care for them anymore. She has lay new eggs and she pick feathers on the babies, she throw them out of nest and she dont feed them anymore. The male is more interested by his female than by the babies and dont feed them no more too.

 

What she can do?

these babies are way too yoiung to leave the parents if they are separated then the person who takes on the responsibility for them will have to hand feed like the parents do.

 

I am not an expert but I will see if there is anyone on who can help you better as many of our breeders are sleeping because they are in AU.

I don’t hand feed young birds so I have no experience with that & I would think that to try handfeeding birds that old, would probably be very difficult. In my experience if you’re sure that they are 4 weeks old, they may struggle for a few days, but should be able to feed themselves. If they were my birds I would place them in a cage by themselves, as if the parents are attacking them that is dangerous to leave them with them. Usually I would put young birds like that in a cage preferably with an older bird, make sure there is plenty of seed on the floor of the cage, as young chicks will start nibbling on the floor if they get hungry. Also place their water on the floor also. If possible I would keep them in a warm place until they are feeding well. Give them small amounts of Green food also. They will nibble a bit at food then usually sleep lots at that age, but in a few days should feed themselves quite well.

I have had a chick or two wean as early as 4 weeks on their own, but usually it's between 5-7 weeks old. As long as none are younger than 30 days old, you can put them in a small nursery cage (low perches with food dishes on the ground) with plenty of soft fresh foods and millet sprays as well as a water feeder that's easy to get to. Then just try to supliment feed them twice a day (usually takes about 2 days for them to accept handfeeding), or they may wean themselves and not accept handfeeding. I would recommend putting the chicks with an older male who is not agressive to help feed the chicks until they are weaned.

There is only 2 babies. The oldest is 34 days old, the other one is 2 days younger. They were allready looking out of the nest, but didnt want to leave it of course. But the mother was very bad with them. THe younger one miss lost of feathers. You see the skin on the head and neck. So they have been place in another cage...in fact it's more like a plastic tank. I will forward the info you give me to the woman who own these birds.

 

So if I understand right, she should try to have them eat by themself. What should be given to them? moist food? handfeeding paste? moist crumbles? moist seeds? all of that? I just want to be sure. did she needs to warm the food? how many time she needs to feed if she do needs to hand feed?

 

And with water...if she put a water bowl at the bottom of the cage, there is no danger for drowning at that age? would it be necessary to give them water in other way too to be sure they drink?

Edited April 15, 200817 yr by Karoube

I give my babies just out of the nest a dish of seed and a little dish with a mix of grated carrot, grated apple, soaked dried legumes (peas, lentils, barley, chickpeas, etc get as soup mix from the supermarket), corn kernels and some egg and biscuit mixed in. At this age it might even be worth using seed in the bottom of the cage in order to ensure they start picking at it. If she doesn't see them drinking she could try to give them the idea by holding the babies gently around the body and gently dipping the very tip of their beaks in the water dish but make sure she doesn't put their nostrils in and only dip for just a second so that they understand, she may see them kind of lapping with their tongue as they realise that it's water. I have done this with babies and aso with sick or inured adult birds and sometimes it just gives them the gist of what you want and they are fine after that. I would only use a very shallow dish initially so that if they manage to get in there they don't drown.

How are you breeding them? In a breeding cabinet or out in the flight.

If you have them in a breeding cabinet leave the chciks with the parents in the cabinet not the nest box, give them plenty of millet sprays and seed but also put a small cecream container upside down with a side cut out so they can go into it if the parents tries to be rough with them.

 

When they look like they are feeding them selves and get to about 42 days old they can both be taken and placed in a cage by themselves with plenty of millet sprays, seed and water.

Here are the two types of igloos I use for my fledged babies to have warmth and shelter on the breeder cage floor.

One I make from an icecream container.....cut an arch out, attach the lid, turn it upside down and put nesting material in it...wood shavings. I let the newly fledged babies use it for the night, and turn it over and remove the lid for the daytime. They can get in and out and be seen by Dad for feeds during the day.

 

 

This other one is a little mouse or hamster igloo available at most large pet supply places. It costs AUS $2.88 where I buy it from. It does the same job as the other one I make from icecream containers but is marginally smaller.

 

 

cool igloo Kaz!

I dont breed budgies. the info is for someone who contact me (I was looking for a budgie and that woman offer me to take these two babies as she didnt know what to do with them)

 

they are in a cage indoor. Dont know anything about the cages measures as it's not my birds. But I know that she allready take the babies out of the cage and place them in a small tank. would it be better for them to go back with their parents with that kind of igloo? she noticed that the parents are not feeding them anymore and that's the thing that worry her the most. That's why she take them out of the cage. Rigth now I have no news but I gave her the previous advices about handfeeding and giving them plenty of different food on the cage floor.

 

I will keep you update if she give me any news. I have not accept her offer and take them home because I was afray they wouldnt make it with no parent at that age.

at this point they are better where they are so there is less stress if she can get them to eat on their own for a good 2 weeks then it should be okay for you to accept the offer as long as they look healthy, when you move birds especially babies out of their surrounds they can go into shock and go down hill quickly.

I dont breed budgies. the info is for someone who contact me (I was looking for a budgie and that woman offer me to take these two babies as she didnt know what to do with them)

 

they are in a cage indoor. Dont know anything about the cages measures as it's not my birds. But I know that she allready take the babies out of the cage and place them in a small tank. would it be better for them to go back with their parents with that kind of igloo? she noticed that the parents are not feeding them anymore and that's the thing that worry her the most. That's why she take them out of the cage. Rigth now I have no news but I gave her the previous advices about handfeeding and giving them plenty of different food on the cage floor.

 

I will keep you update if she give me any news. I have not accept her offer and take them home because I was afray they wouldnt make it with no parent at that age.

 

Now that they have been removed, putting them back in with parents would be a bad move. The parents wont recognise them as there responsibilty and would just attack them as intruders in their cage or space. Do you know if the babies are eating at all, as 4 week olds usually try to eat something on their own. I put millet sprays in the nestboxes at 3 weeks of age so the chicks learn to feed themselves before they come out of a nestbox.