You can co-parent as Garet suggested, or you can pull them. It’s up to you whether you pull each one or some or all. Here are my thoughts.....
I just talked with a breeder who pulled each one as it reached 3 weeks so hers are all feeding on separate ‘schedules’ as far as timing, duration, and weaning. That’s the way she has always done it.
That sounds way too complicated to me. Pulling 2 now and 3 later makes more sense as far as your own scheduling, how much they eat and how often etc. you’re only juggling 2 different schedules instead of 5. I don’t think I personally would pull them all at once because if then hen is already showing signs of exhaustion she might stress herself too much worrying about them.
Co-parenting is probably the best of both worlds. 5 babies is a lot to handle for a bird, and by co-parenting you give the hen a break and the babies get used to being handled. Also, you run a greater risk of losing babies by hand feeding than you would if they were parent raised. So by keeping the parent involved you’re increasing the likelihood of survival. I don’t consider what I do co-parenting, but when I have a hen with more than 4 babies I give them formula twice a day just to help out.
Will the male help at all? I don’t do budgies, with my finches and canaries the males are better parents than the hens most of the time.
Please give your hen a calcium supplement during this time. They make powdered ones, or you can get liquid calcium at the farm supply store and use that. There may also be other vitamins she is missing depending on her diet.
