Rearing Baby Birds

 

1. AIR/ENVIRONMENTAL TEMPERATURE RANGES FOR BABY PARROTS  (A general guide only)

Age

Temperature (degrees Celsius)

Recent hatchlings

33-34

Unfeathered chicks

32-33

Chicks with some pin feathers

29.5-32

Fully feathered chicks

24-29.5

Weaned chicks

20-24

●         To obtain these temperatures (especially the higher temperatures above 30C) without dehydrating the chicks, you may need to purchase a specially designed brooder.

 

 

2.  FEEDING FREQUENCY

Age

Number of Feeds per Day

1-5 days old

6-10

Chicks with eyes closed

6

Chicks with eyes opened

3-4

Chicks with feathers emerging

2-3

●         Chicks less than 1 week of age require around-the-clock feeding, but it is not necessary to do so in older chicks. Generally speaking, the last feed in older chicks can be given at 10pm-12am, and the first at 6am-7am.

●         When weaning (moving to solid food) chicks, always have fresh food such as seeds/pellets and vegetables available to them. Reduce the number of hand feeds gradually until only once a day. Cease feeding once the bird is regularly eating solid food well.

●         10% weight loss is acceptable in a healthy bird during weaning. Any more than this is abnormal.

 

 

3. FOOD TEMPERATURE FOR HAND REARING

Food temperature should be between 38-400 C.

Overheating can cause burns to the delicate crop and intestinal lining. Food that is too cold can cause slow crop emptying and crop disease. Use a thermometer to measure the temperature and heated water to obtain warmth. Do not warm food using a microwave (microwaves cause super heated spots that can burn chicks).

A good quality commercially prepared hand rearing mix should be used.

 

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