First clutch of IRN babies - Any extra food needed?

[WesselG]

Hi everyone

My breeding pair had their first two chicks 2 or 3 days ago with a third as yet unhatched egg. Since I'm in a wheelchair and can't get into their aviary and check the eggs/babies the neighbor's son volunteered so I'm not exactly sure when they hatched but from the picture he took yesterday it seems like they are at most a day or two old.

My question is: does the mother need any extra supplements, fruits, veggies etc besides her usual diet?

Kind regards,

Wessel

 

[SilverSage]

Yes. She should have been started on at least a calcium supplement, fresh food, and eggs or egg food before breeding at all to get her in condition to handle the stress of breeding. What is her usual diet now? And she will need more food, as in addition to the stress to her, much of her food will be passed on to her chicks.

 

[weco]

Cooked eggs, scrambled or boiled and not left in the shell, so the parents don't associate fresh laid eggs with food, though crushed egg shells age are a good calcium source for your birds.....

 

[WesselG]

Her usual diet is what's know as a tropical mix in South Africa: sunflower seeds, pellets, peanuts and some other seeds and stuff I don't know the names of. She also gets fresh fruit in season, currently apples etc. A shredded mix of carrots and apples seems to be a firm favorite.

I have tried to get her to eat boiled egg but she barely touched it so I'm thinking of chopping it into smaller pieces and "hiding" it in her other food.

Thanks for the replies. As we speak she seems to be diligently wanting to hatch the remaining egg so I'll keep a close eye on her and what she consumes.

 

[SilverSage]

Feeding a mainly seed diet is not recommended at all. A diet consisting of sprouted seeds and mostly chopped and shredded veggies, with a lot of variety, is the healthiest diet. A breeding hen should recieve some dry seeds, but not many. The egg should be chopped up fine and mixed with the chopped veggies. Ideally pieces should not be larger than peas. Mix this with her dry seed. You will need to start off with a mixture that has plenty of dry seeds, so that she does not lose nutrition during this time. Make sure she is not emptying her dish each day, that means you are not feeding enough for a breeding hen. Also, she NEEDS cuttlebone. If she ignores it, grind it up and mix it with her food. Be sure to feed lots of Kale leaf. Avoid onions, tomatoes, and never ever feed avocado. Fruits can be fed, especially when transitioning to a fresh food diet, it should in general be a small part of the diet, as they are very high in sugar. I know this is a lot of effort, but breeding birds is a huge responsibility and should not be undertaken if you are not committed to the highest level of care for the birds. You will need to be sure not to let the food spoil, which can be a daunting task, but is vital.

 

[SilverSage]

Although pellets are processed food and thus not a favorite of mine, a breeding hen should be offered them, especially when she is feedi. Offering many types of food in many dishes is idea, as it allows her to vary the nutrients she is passing along to her chicks. Pellets break down in such a way as to be easy for her to feed to her babies. Of course, above all, she needs a constant source of clean water. When feeding pellets is gets a little tricky, but it is again necessary. A breeding hen should have her food and water attended to at LEAST twice a say, to keep her food fresh and her water clean. Please note, it is not advisable to mix pellets with fresh food, as the whole lot spoils much faster that way. You can also offer things like whole grain toast,whole grain pasta, etc. as for which pellets are best, I recommend Harrison's High Potency.

I know it is a lot, but good nutrition is the foundation of healthy babies, and is not to be overlooked when breeding. I also wanted to ask, are you keeping the babies or will you be selling them? If you sell them, will they be aviary birds? Is this common in South Africa?

 

[WesselG]

Silversage,

Thanks for all the excellent advice.

As for the babies: I promised one to my neighbor's son that helps me a lot with looking after the birds and he took quite a liking to IRN's despite the fact that he called the babies "ugly little monsters", lol. So at least that one is going to a good home. I haven't made up my mind about the other one or two (if the third egg hatched by now). Any advice on that?

Wessel

 

[SilverSage]

Well the babies are not nearly what I would call 'pretty' I asked because I wondered at your reason for letting them breed? Many people are led to believe they need a nest box to be happy, and that is simply not the case. It will most likely be difficult to find good homes for the babies if they are not handled well and often at a young age, but that can be tricky with the nest being outside. How old is the neighbor, and do you think he would be willing to spend time wih the chicks she their eyes open? It is a delicate process, but wild parrots often lead tragic lives in captivity, and IRNs are often on the difficult side to tame as adults.

 

[WesselG]

I am breeding them as a hobby.

The neighbor is 12 years old so he's busy with school etc. I can however ask him to drop in on them regularly and to handle them (given the fact that I have mobility issues as explained in the first post I would also love to handle them from a young age).

The only factor we have to consider here is the reaction from the mother: the first time he ever entered the cage (before there was eggs) she repeatedly dive-bombed him so he's understandably cautious of her. However when he was in the cage to check on the babies she only came close to him once to warn him off and there-after left him to inspect the nest. So it seems her reaction the first time was due to her wanting to get busy with the business of laying eggs and he disturbed her.

Unfortunately I don't have formula to handraise the babies and I'm in a small town so will have to travel at least 50 miles to get to a store that sells formula. In hindsight I should have stocked up when we went grocery shopping but I moved the parents to a larger aviary in mid-July so I wasn't really expecting babies.

 

[SilverSage]

So the nest box is located inside the cage, not hanging from the outside? That does complicate safety. I always suggest he king the box at least once a day starting as soon as the box is given, because it allows the parents to get used to the idea before chicks are involved.

 

[WesselG]

You do have a point there but I have had Sun Conures before that thought nothing of chewing/clawing their way through a nestbox during breeding season so I prefer my nestboxes inside to prevent birds escaping.

 

[SilverSage]

That is wise, it would be ideal to have the nest boxes in a separate enclosed area, like a second small aviary attached to the first to prevent just such escapes. However me wishing it were constructed differently doesn't do you any good right now, does it?

So back to how to find homes for the new babies. It looks like it is not likely that the babies are going to be properly socialized due to time limits, physical limitations, the construction of the aviary, etc. this is very sad, because parrots sold who are not tame usually lead horrible lives. I am going to be very blunt here, but I do not want to sound rude, so please understand that I am in no way trying to be malicious or disrespectful, but it sounds like this is not the right hobby for you. There are many things that have stood out to me during our conversation, but the breaking point is that the babies need to be tame in order to have the best shot in life. You seem to be a good person who cares about his birds, so I don't think you would want to continue producing birds that could not find a good life.

Trust me, I know how enchanting it is to watch the whole process, but as a breeder I beseech you, do not add unwanted parrots to. The system. There is so very much that goes into being a responsible, ethical breeder, and while I believe your heart is in the right place, the truth of your actions shows that at this time, you are not doing what it takes. If you are truly desirous of continuing to breed, I would be more than willing to come along side you and help you figure it out, but it would be time consuming, very expensive, and very difficult, especially considering the physical challenges you face.

But don't think I want you to give up birds! IRNs are EXTREMELY smart and trainable, and can learn to talk and do all sorts of tricks. I suggest that perhaps taking one or two tame birds (maybe more nice you are on a roll) and making your hobby to train them to do clever tricks and behaviors, rather than breeding them, might be the way to go. Training birds is loads of fun, challenging, extremely rewarding, and builds a much closer bond with the animals than breeding does.

 

[WesselG]

Silversage,

I appreciate your honesty and not for a single moment do I take what you said personally because you clearly care about the future of the babies (be it yours or mine).

Wessel

 

[SilverSage]

I appreciate your understanding. Like I said, if you are dead set on it, I would love to give any help I can.

 

[WesselG]

Just a quick update: I left both chicks with the mother to raise (figuring nature knows best) but something clearly went wrong since we discovered both chicks dead in the nest today.

As sad as this is I try to look at it as a very hard lesson learnt: sometimes human intervention is indeed needed.

 

[SilverSage]

I am sorry to hear that if you intend to breed again you need to do your best to identify what caused the death in order to avoid it. I am very sorry for your loss, losing chicks is always a kick in the gut.

 

[WesselG]

Thanks Silversage.

I had a good look at the babies after retrieving them and on close inspection there was no external wounds (so the parents didn't attack them) but both their crops was empty so it seems like the mother fed them up to a certain point and then simply stopped.

Based on that my best course of action seems to be hand-rearing for all her chicks. I do have regular contact with a breeder and someone else who has raised many chicks in the past so if I'm uncertain I can ask them for advice on that. Plus I am sure that members like you would be able to give excellent advice as well.

To address your concern raised in a previous post about time limitations on my side: I am medically unfit for work so I have a lot of time to devote to raising chicks if that is required.

Wessel