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Baby Cockatiel Trouble

Corrin

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I just purchased a “hand fed” baby cockatiel from a breeder. He said he has been hand feeding but the bird is extremely scared of me and my hands. Hissing and rocking back and fourth. This did not seem normal for a hand fed baby. He said it needs another week of hand feeding before it can be weaned, however this baby doesn’t want me to go near it let alone feed it. Any tips? Does it sound like it wasn’t hand fed or is the scared/defensive behavior normal even when hand fed? Any advice and tips would be very welcome. I have many birds in an aviary but I really wanted a bird that could be a companion.
 

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budgieluv3

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Bump. Hope it all works out!
 

Corriew

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I would get in touch with the breeder and see if they can continue handfeeding until it is weened. I have no experience with handfeeding and can't offer advice but the people on here know there stuff. I do know the bird has to eat frequently though
 

Zara

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He said he has been hand feeding but the bird is extremely scared of me and my hands
This is because you are not the ¨mum¨ (the breeder who raised this bird).
Your bird has their eyes open and can see you are a stranger. Stranger danger.
Keep offering the food, but do not force feed. Be sure to use the same formula (same brand) at the same temp. Use a spoon to feed the bird to avoid accidental aspiration. You can try leaving a small chunk of millet (cut an inch or two from the spray) near the bird - you will know if they eat because there will be empty hulls around.
If the bird doesn´t eat within 24 hours of you picking them up, take them back to the breeder urgently so they can finish the weaning process.
 

sunnysmom

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I think you should ask the breeder to finish weaning the baby. That baby looks young to me. Tiels don't wean until 8-12 weeks at the earliest. It really upsets me when breeders sell unweaned babies.
 

Corrin

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I think you should ask the breeder to finish weaning the baby. That baby looks young to me. Tiels don't wean until 8-12 weeks at the earliest. It really upsets me when breeders sell unweaned babies.

what if the breeder is ignoring my attempts to reach out? I have texted the person butno response still.
 

Corrin

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Not on his own. I am currently putting the syringe down his throat making sure its ontop of his tongue so he is not aspirating. He is still scared of me and my hands and sometimes tries to bite and he also hisses, but he is a lot less afraid than when i first brought him home. I feel horrible because i think he took him from his parents and labeled him as hand fed. Ive hand fed wild birds that were more friendly than this. I have a lot of experience working with soft bill species and hand raising them. I had cockatiels growing up as a kid and they had babies once, and both of the babies were super friendly despite not being hand fed. Of course both the parents were tamed, the male being moody sometimes, and the female very sweet and loving. I now feel like crap because i cant imagine how scared this little guy is. He just stared pooping solid poops.
 

Corrin

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Try the advice Zara gave. Is the baby eating?
I definitely want to take her advice, but not feeding him isn't going to cut it at this point. Im afraid to let him starve and the breeder isn't responding, probably on purpose. Im definitely going to try giving him some millet as he has been chewing on some small boxes i put with him and exploring more with his mouth. The breeder told me that he needs one more week of hand feeding.
 

camelotshadow

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That baby is much to young & needs to stay with the breeder. ITs not even fully feathered. Please have them take the baby back. That is not 1 more week. That baby need a few weeks. I ;d guess its 5 weeks old. Its too young!
 

Corriew

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I don't know how breeders do this and sleep at night...that poor baby. I would use a spoon so there is less risk but if he won't eat from spoon keep a very close eye on his crop . I saw a heart breaking baby that got sick on fb tonight (food got stuck and rotted)
 

Zara

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I am currently putting the syringe down his throat making sure its ontop of his tongue so he is not aspirating.
That doesn´t mean the chick won´t aspirate. If you press the syringe to release food while the chick isn´t gulping/begging, you can aspirate him accidentally.

The breeder told me that he needs one more week of hand feeding.
It could be more than this. Not all birds wean like clockwork, less when there´s disruptions to the weaning process.

I´m very sorry you are in this position.

Spend time together with the little one to gain some trust to make the feeding easier. Talking to him.
Offer some mashed veggies right after the formula.
Weight the little one daily, morning (before the first feed) and night (before the last feed). Keep a diary. If he loses a significant amount of weight, he will need gavage feeding at the vet.
 

sunnysmom

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I'm so sorry you're going through this. I don't have baby experience to offer. Is there any place you can report the breeder? I think what she did is heartless and cruel. It's wrong to sell babies that young and then to not take your calls is even worse.
 
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