I have recently been given (by a fellow breeder)a mother and her single baby which is fully feathered and around 4 weeks old. They are both in a cage but with no nest box-the baby lives on the cage floor with a small, open nest. The cage is kept in a well heated room.

 

However, upon closely monitoring them it seems that the mother is not feeding the chick when it calls for her. It also seems that she is ignoring him as I have not seen her being 'motherly' at all. Is this normal behaviour? The chick seems to be in good health so do you think the mum could be feeding it whilst Im not looking? or should I rear it untill it can feed itself?

The mother is fully matured and around 2 years of age.

Please help!

Clarkey_20

Is the baby eating on it's own?

At that age it should be capable of eating itself. If you have had it more than 24 hours & it still looks healthy, either it’s being fed or it’s feeding itself. To help it make sure the feed is obvious to it, at first it may be helpful to spread some feed on the floor of the cage.

Mum has finally decided to pay attention to baby. She is feeding it well and all is fine. Thanks anyway

Clarkey20

a tip on knowing if a chick is full is budgies and most parrots have a crop on there chest its like a bubble on its chest if its hard when you feel its crop its full if its empty it has no food in there.

 

good luck with your baby

 

regards Joel

You should feel seeds in the crop ( gritty ) Norm is spot on about sprinkle seed on the floor you should see her eat by herself

Edited August 17, 200817 yr by Neat