# need help with feeding baby bird!



## contos (Oct 27, 2011)

hi everyone

just wondering if this is a big problem or not. my sister recently bought a cockatiel chick and it still needs to be feed formula through a syringe, and some of it has blocked up one of her nostrils and now its breathing sounds weazy. is this a problem? and if so, how do you fix it? thank you


----------



## FAY (Oct 27, 2011)

Not sure abut that but to my knowledge, selling a baby bird that is not yet eating seed is against the law. 
I will ask my partner when he gets up, he has hand reared baby birds for years.'


----------



## notechistiger (Oct 27, 2011)

That's what I thought too, Fay.


----------



## kat2005dodi (Oct 27, 2011)

Try dampening a cotton bud and very gently and carefully pry the build up away! I find it easiest to clean the little ones face after every feed, that way the food doesn't build up! Hope this helps!


----------



## snakeynewbie (Oct 27, 2011)

Yes, it is illegal to sell a bird that is still requiring parental feeding, that said they are advertised for sale all the time and we all know how useful the wildlife authorities are at following stuff up 

Do as kat did and try to gently soften it and remove it but if it's wheezing there is a possibility it's got food into it's lungs which is not good. This is one of the major reasons I crop feed.


----------



## mysnakesau (Oct 27, 2011)

Yeah, moisten it with a cotton bud, and gently use your fingernails to scratch the gunk away.


----------



## ingie (Oct 27, 2011)

It might be worthwhile calling a bird vet to ask immediately, and finding someone with a lot of experience hand raising birds who can mentor you. There is an art to feeding baby birds. If you leave bits of food around their beak and in their nostrils it can encourage yeast infections in the crop (sour crop), and lung infections if they breath it in.


----------



## Pythoninfinite (Oct 27, 2011)

snakeynewbie said:


> Yes, it is illegal to sell a bird that is still requiring parental feeding, that said they are advertised for sale all the time and we all know how useful the wildlife authorities are at following stuff up
> 
> Do as kat did and try to gently soften it and remove it but if it's wheezing there is a possibility it's got food into it's lungs which is not good. This is one of the major reasons I crop feed.



Ahhh I hate this problem... if you don't have experience, NEVER take this task on - it probably ends up with more deaths than successes. I would take it to a bird vet immediately in case it has aspirated food into the lungs, which can often result in death in seconds, or the development of pneumonia, and assist in the development of Candida, all of which can kill your bird. There are SO MANY problems that can arise if you have no experience and don't know the warning signs.

Quite apart from it being illegal, it's unnecessary and unethical - good breeders would NEVER onsell an unweaned bird to a novice hand raiser.

Jamie


----------



## FAY (Oct 27, 2011)

I had a girl here the other day buying a python off me. She had bought a baby lorikeet that needed feeding. Told the breeder she had no experience, she said that is fine...doesn't need heat (what the...)...of course the baby bird died. Her family and brother were devastated. Didn't want a hatchling off me and bought an older one. Of course, I gave her all the info she needed and am always here to ask questions etc.
That is what responsible sellers do.


----------



## ScalyMung (Oct 27, 2011)

It,s only illegal to sell native birds that arent eating for themselves any other bird you can buy eggs or just hatched so you can hand rear yourself
Cheers Deano


----------



## reaver (Oct 27, 2011)

I had a baby rainbow lorikeet that was booted out of the nest by mynas, did the responsible thing and called wires but they just told me to leave it outside and see if the mother would take it back but probably wouldn't and would most likely die. Long story short I raised it myself successfully using a metal spoon bent in a vice so it curved like a beak and used another spoon to pour food down it straight into its mouth. Don't know if the same would work for you but I found it very easy to do.


----------



## Radar (Oct 27, 2011)

Spoon feeding as you have described is much much easier than syringe or crop feeding for the unexperienced. It's easy enough to heat up a plastic spoon in very hot water and bend it to the desired shape. It's also a much more natural method for the bird, which generally take to it without a fuss.


----------



## Bec (Oct 27, 2011)

As some other members have mentioned you can try the cotton bud trick but because the bird would be so small i can't see it really working. I personally would take the bird to a vet asap as this isnt a normal thing to have happen and it could lead to other complications. Ive been breeding and raising birds for 10yrs now and the best thing to feed chicks on is passwell hand rairing mix heated according to the packaging. After each feed you should get a damp tissue and wipe away any food that has gone down the bird. And yes always keep your bird on heat when a chick. 
As for the selling of young birds it can be done when there on hand rairing mixture but it's not an ideal thing to do. I've never done it and i wouldn't even think of doing it. There is so much time and effort needed to be put into raising up birds and if you dont know what your doing theres so much at stake.


----------



## Exotic_Doc (Oct 30, 2011)

what formula are you using. is it too thick? i hand raise on a regular basis and am willing to help you with your questions . what mixture are you feeding?how thick is the mix?its not easy. i hope he makes it


----------



## mysnakesau (Oct 31, 2011)

Exotic_Doc said:


> what formula are you using. is it too thick? i hand raise on a regular basis and am willing to help you with your questions . what mixture are you feeding?how thick is the mix?its not easy. i hope he makes it



And also warmth. Keeping it warm is crucial, as cold food can cause sour crop


----------



## Exotic_Doc (Oct 31, 2011)

exactly wat mysnakes said. but be very careful because too hot can cause severe crop burns sometimes burning a hole through it. dont ever use the microwave to heat food as it leaves heat spots and make a fresh mixture every feed.if you need anything plz ask. how is the bird doing?


----------



## Skelhorn (Oct 31, 2011)

We had a cocky that has seeds stuck in its nostriles. if the scratching or cotton bud doesn't work the other option is-the bird may not like it. though get a pair of point nose tweezers and one person restricts the bird the other gets the item out. Be VERY careful however-If you don't feel comfortable don't do it-But I can promise you thats what they will do at the vet but with $$$ attached. If you can safely do it at home I recommend that option


----------



## Firedrake (Nov 1, 2011)

Our friends raised countless pidgeons using heated mushy weetbix of all things and a bent spoon for feeding, don't know how good it is for them but I can bet it's cheaper than bird formula


----------



## Kristy_07 (Nov 1, 2011)

Firedrake, yo mumma could have raised on you mushy weetbix and a bent spoon, but it doesn't mean it would have been good for you!

Buying birds that still need feeding when you don't know what you're doing is just a dumb idea. It's bird season at the moment, and the number of people we have coming in with their new baby birds that have sour crop, bacterial infection, aren't getting enough food, are generally in poor condition and pretty sad is just frightening. It's just unnecessary. The bird will still bond to you, even if you aren't feeding it! 

It's is NOT fun having to tell people that we cannot save their new "toy", either because they have huge amounts of infection, or even worse, because they are doing something like crop feeding without enough experience, and manage to perforate the bird's crop. Not fun. Don't buy unweaned birds.

As for your little one - get it to a bird vet.


----------



## snakeynewbie (Nov 1, 2011)

Personally after raising many birds I came to the conclusion that handraising can sometimes be the worst thing for them. By 'co-raising' where the parents do 90% of the care but I handle the babies in the nest and offer food to them from me as they get older I find they become better pets. I put it down to them learning the important social skills that their parents teach them. Think about it when you get the wild lorikeets, etc landing on you at tourist parks it's VERY unusual for them to bite and I think that's because they have never been forced to be held and they fly to you willingly because the process is rewarding for them.


----------



## viciousred (Nov 1, 2011)

Agreed. Handraised birds can get seriously bad attitudes at times...


snakeynewbie said:


> Personally after raising many birds I came to the conclusion that handraising can sometimes be the worst thing for them. By 'co-raising' where the parents do 90% of the care but I handle the babies in the nest and offer food to them from me as they get older I find they become better pets. I put it down to them learning the important social skills that their parents teach them. Think about it when you get the wild lorikeets, etc landing on you at tourist parks it's VERY unusual for them to bite and I think that's because they have never been forced to be held and they fly to you willingly because the process is rewarding for them.


----------



## mysnakesau (Nov 1, 2011)

Keep your formula powder, air tight, and in the fridge and it will last almost indefinitely. A friend of mine who has a business in breeding exotic birds and selling hand-raised young, told me this. He has macaws, AFrican Greys, Amazons, and a few varieties of conures. I don't think he'd tell me this if he thought it was any risk to birds like these.

My very first experience at hand raising was a cockatoo Mum and DAd bought. He was still eating weetbix when we brought him home. His temper wasn't real good. Wonder if it was due to lack of nutrition as a baby.


----------



## snakeynewbie (Nov 1, 2011)

Kathy I was actually advised to put it in the freezer, this was by a company that makes a very well regarded hand raising formula(amongst other products) so that's what I have done ever since. As long as it's air tight it stays dry and can be used striaght from the freezer as long as you make your water a little warmer to account for how cold the powder is.


----------



## Exotic_Doc (Nov 1, 2011)

so what happened to this little one? this was just a very bad idea. its a live creature not something you can learn on and end up killing.


----------

