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Hand rearing?

Arin

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Hello all! I have a nest full of 5 little chirping budgies and I was wondering if I took them out when they were fully feathered and hand fed them (or wean them) to make them hand tame. Do you think the mother would go into a state of depression or loss? I am so scared to do that because she may be so sad to lose them. Or should I take 3 budgies out and leave the 2 for her?
 

AussieBird

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Zara

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to make them hand tame.
The other option is to wait´til the chicks are feathered, then take them out and interact with them daily before putting them back. You will have to watch that the parents are ok with this.

Or should I take 3 budgies out and leave the 2 for her?
No. Unless there is a reason, the chicks stay together.

If you are wanting to handfeed, take the whole clutch at 3 weeks and put them into a brooder.
 

Arin

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The other option is to wait´til the chicks are feathered, then take them out and interact with them daily before putting them back. You will have to watch that the parents are ok with this.


No. Unless there is a reason, the chicks stay together.

If you are wanting to handfeed, take the whole clutch at 3 weeks and put them into a brooder.
Alright but if I choose to hand rear them at 3 weeks wouldn’t the parents be sad?
 

Zara

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wouldn’t the parents be sad?
Have you done this before? Do you have any breeding experience?
Also, what are you doing with these chicks? If your intention is to sell them, then they will leave sooner or later...
 

Arin

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Have you done this before? Do you have any breeding experience?
Also, what are you doing with these chicks? If your intention is to sell them, then they will leave sooner or later...
Yes I do have breeding experience, but I haven’t hand reared chicks much maybe two to three times. I don’t want to sell them :)
 

PoukieBear

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If you don't have any experience, then don't remove the chicks. It's not as fun or as easy as people make it seem. It's time consuming, and you need to be prepared to not have a life for 4-6 weeks while you are feeding them every few hours.

It can be very dangerous, especially if you don't know what you are doing. You can easily aspirate a chick, accidentally killing it. If formula is too hot, or has hot spots, you can scald the crop. If formula is too cold, you can end up with sour crop. If you have a low grade formula it will not provide the proper vitamins, minerals and nutrients that babies need to grow healthy.

You should only hand feed in an emergency situation. For you, there is absolutely no reason to remove the chicks from the parents.
I work full time, so don't have time to hand feed (Unless I take time off or work from home for a few months). ALL of my chicks are fully hand tame when they go to new homes, all without hand feeding them.

When the chicks start to feather up, you can remove them one at a time from the nest and spend 15-20 minutes snuggling and handling them. As they grow and feather up some more, you can handle them for longer periods of time. Do this every day, several times a day and you will have lovely little hand tame babies at the end.
 

budgieluv3

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Good Luck!
 

Arin

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Arin
If you don't have any experience, then don't remove the chicks. It's not as fun or as easy as people make it seem. It's time consuming, and you need to be prepared to not have a life for 4-6 weeks while you are feeding them every few hours.

It can be very dangerous, especially if you don't know what you are doing. You can easily aspirate a chick, accidentally killing it. If formula is too hot, or has hot spots, you can scald the crop. If formula is too cold, you can end up with sour crop. If you have a low grade formula it will not provide the proper vitamins, minerals and nutrients that babies need to grow healthy.

You should only hand feed in an emergency situation. For you, there is absolutely no reason to remove the chicks from the parents.
I work full time, so don't have time to hand feed (Unless I take time off or work from home for a few months). ALL of my chicks are fully hand tame when they go to new homes, all without hand feeding them.

When the chicks start to feather up, you can remove them one at a time from the nest and spend 15-20 minutes snuggling and handling them. As they grow and feather up some more, you can handle them for longer periods of time. Do this every day, several times a day and you will have lovely little hand tame babies at the end.
Alright! Thanks a lot for this detailed answer. Decided I am not going to take the chance of potential death and just handle them a lot like you said :)
 
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Zara

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Alright! Thanks a lot for this detailed answer. Decided I am not going to take the chance of potential death and just handle them a lot like you said :)
That´s a good choice ;)
 
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