Helppppp!!!!!!!

Ally · 7/8/10

hello there, well, my greenwing macaw will be here in the morning, and im freaking out. Hes very young, too young to ship i thought at four weeks old, and i was looking for some tips on hand feeding, and what to keep him in and what-not, ive bought an HUGE cage for when he's grown, but what about now? ill be taking him to the vet when he gets here, so maybe my vet can teach me how to handfeed? well, if you have any tips please let me know, pics to come soon!

Kolkri · 7/8/10

Check out the forum there is a section about raising babies. Right here http://forums.avianavenue.com/nursery-rhyme-drive/

Ally · 7/8/10

ahh, thank you so much. i was really surprised the breeder wasnt more hands on, once he got his money he was like ok its yours, and i bought him out of florida, so its not like he could have taught me anything over the phone.. i was just surprised the lack of interest he had

Kolkri · 7/8/10

Good breeders would never do what this one did. But to late to look for a new breeder. People here well help you out as things go along. It would be helpful if someone could show you in person more then once. Maybe you can find a local club or breeder. They don't have to breed macaws nor do you have to take your macaw to them. But they do need to show you on a bird and let you feed a few on your own to make sure you got it.
Good luck

birdlvr466 · 7/8/10

Oh my gosh Ally four weeks old is SO YOUNG, Macaws arent fully weaned until almost a year old if I am not mistaken. And to be shipping a bird this time of year with the heat...Please let us know how everything goes. We have a lot of experienced Macaw owners here that can help you. Please update us once your baby is with you.

waterfaller1 · 7/8/10

This is a darn shame. :sad8:

I have someone you can talk to over the phone that will help you through this. I will send a pm. How many posts does she have to have to respond to a pm?

suncoast · 7/8/10

That breeder is an cruel idiot and should be reported. Make sure you have hand feeding supplies he is NOT weaned and will need to be hand fed. You need Roudybush handfeeding formula and at least 1/2 dozen syringes.

Roudybush Handfeeding Formula 5lb

O-Ring Syringes

Did you get a health guarantee? He also needs to be vetted ASAP to make sure he's not carrying any diseases.

You also need to put together a first aid kit.

http://forums.avianavenue.com/bird-emergency-highway-911/138-emergency-first-aid-kit.html

Ginger

Kolkri · 7/8/10

Most Macaws are weaned around about 5 to 6 months.
It's some toos that can take as much as a year. I believe.

waterfaller1 · 7/8/10

Not greenwings..

waterfaller1 · 7/8/10

An Aquarium with towels in the bottom, or a rubbermaid container will work to keep him in. You will need a heating pad for one side.

birdlvr466 · 7/8/10

waterfaller1 said:

This is a darn shame. I have someone you can talk to over the phone that will help you through this. I will send a pm. How many posts does she have to have to respond to a pm?

Click to expand...

Carole I believe you can send PM's to Ally but she cant respond back until she has 20 posts. I KNOW we have a lot of people here that can help Ally so PLEASE Ally let us know when you are back with your bird so we can get you some help.

Kolkri · 7/8/10

waterfaller1 said:

Not greenwings..

Click to expand...

That is why I said MOST.

marian · 7/8/10

Hoping everything goes well for you..You have alot of good people here to help you out.

Merlie · 7/8/10

Perhaps your vet might know a local Macaw breeder who can help you. Hand feeding can be challenging, but, hand feeding a large Mac .. is more than challenging from everything I have read. The large Macs are aggressive eaters, and because of this, can aspirate very easily.

Did the breeder know you have no hand feeding experience?
Did you choose to purchase an unweaned bird?

I'm just stunned a breeder would not only ship a bird in this heat .. that's bad, but ship an unweaned bird, at only 4 wk. old, to an inexperienced person?? That's just horrible!! At least he's got to be using Continental Airlines, they have temp. control holding areas for shipping live cargo, Delta doesn't, but won't ship at above or below certain temps.

Here's what I know .. but I've never hand fed a large Mac, I'm not a breeder, I just called a friend who breeds large Macs and got a quickie overview:

At 4 wks. hand feeding should be around 4 - 5 time a day .. each bird is unique, you just have to watch the crop and see how fast it's emptying.

Amount to feed can be anywhere from 60 cc to 110 cc per feeding average, again, this depends on the bird.

Don't forget .. formula temp. is EXTREMELY important!! 104 - 108 degrees is usually where breeders like to be. USE A THERMOMETER - DO NOT GUESS!!

Get the water hot first .. distilled water is preferred I believe .. then mix in the formula. Don't mix cold water and formula together .. then heat. If you're in a time crunch, most "box" pet stores <PetCo, PetSmart> sell the Kaytee Exact Hand Feeding Formula .. it's not the best, but in a pinch it's better than nothing. Your vet might be able to provide you with thy syringes, they're a little harder to come by in regular pet shops.

You'll need syringes .. Macs need larger syringes .. 60 cc is what was suggested at 4 wks, but you may want to get some smaller ones <35 cc> until you are comfortable handling a larger syringe.

Large Rubbermaid containers are great for using as a brooder .. I'd definitely invest in a thermometer to monitor the temp inside the brooder. Depending on how cool/warm you keep your house right now, you may need to supplement the heating source with a heating pad, or heat lamp <please, please, please, be careful using either of these, they can overheat the bird if not monitored .. THERMOMETER!!>

This whole situation has me puzzled to be honest. I know breeders will sell unweaned babies .. but usually they want some kind of reference that the person has experience in it. I don't know any breeders who would sell an unweaned baby to an inexperienced person, that just floors me. Did you tell the breeder you didn't know how to hand feed? Hand feeding large Macaws isn't for a novice from everything I understand.

Hopefully your Avian vet will be able to give a lot of help, or can refer you to a local Macaw breeder that might be willing to lend a hand.

Good luck, keep us updated!!

birdlady · 7/8/10

OH how scary, but you came to the right place to get help...I hope your baby arrives safely and please let us know when he gets here and home safely.

Thugluvgrl187 · 7/8/10

Wow that is definitely a very young bird to ship. I am glad that you have came here to get help.

Brigidt36 · 7/8/10

This is so scary. I hope everything goes well for you. You'll get a lot of help on here, but you really do need someone with experience to show you what to do. If you have other birds, please QT this baby away from your flock. Get him into a certified avian vet right away. The vet may have some experienced techs that can come out and help you. Good luck.

Riley's mom · 7/8/10

If she has never syringe fed before, she would be better off cup feeding this baby to minimize the chance of asperation.

Danita · 7/8/10

I would be taking the baby to an avian vet right away and have them show you how to hand feed and care for him.

Let us know how it goes

birdlvr466 · 7/8/10

Very informative post Merlie, thank you.

Helppppp!!!!!!!

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