Mating budgies

[tka]

One of the things about bird in general, and babies in particular, is that reading and watching youtube videos cannot truly tell you how something ought to be done. Mentorship is the kind of thing like correcting the syringe position by a fraction of an angle to get it in a better position for handfeeding. It's someone teaching you a hungry cry from a distressed cry. It's someone picking up that something is wrong at the earliest of stages because they have the experience to spot it, and telling you how they knew. It's someone being able to work out what temperature and humidity their babies need, and being able to spot the signs that something needs to be adjusted before it becomes a problem. It's someone showing you exactly how much to feed, what is an acceptable amount to have in the crop before the next feeding, what is too much, and whether the crop is moving too slowly. Experience gives you the ability to anticipate issues and address potential problems before they become actual problems. A mentor passes on what they have learnt, and gives you a solid foundation so you don't make beginner mistakes. You have the advantage of all of their experience and wisdom.

Babies go downhill fast. They're tiny and have almost zero resources to draw on. By the time you've noticed something it's almost too late and you have to act immediately by getting the baby to specialist care. This can cost hundreds of dollars/pounds/euros for a baby who might not survive. You must be in a position to provide veterinary care - not reliant on your parents (who can always say no). The Emergency forum is full of people whose young birds die because they cannot get them to a vet.

I think you're doing the right thing by removing eggs. Eggs are inert until the hen starts incubating them. By removing them, you won't be killing an embryo - there's nothing in them to kill at that stage. It's much easier to remove eggs than allow a chick to suffer because they got sick on a Saturday night and you don't have the money to take them to an emergency vet.

 

[Lady Jane]

I've done lots of research on how to raise young,

This means you have read about the subject on line. In no way does this prepare you for raising baby birds with possibly first time parents. I usually advise for a person to hook up with a respected, experienced breeder to learn. If they do lay eggs just remove them from the cage.

 

[FeatheredM]

@Lady Jane , i already said I would remove the eggs in post 19

 

[Zara]

Excellent post by Tka!

I just wanted to add, when looking at videos online, I know from experience, I tried filming the feeds a few times, but somehow I can´t get a good angle on the camera and when I watch the video, it doesn´t quite look right.
It´s why I always say, for handfeeding, it is a skill you need to learn hands on by someone experienced.

 

[Britnicorn]

If it makes you feel any better, the first couple of days after the eggs are laid they’re just a sack of yolk, throwing them out causes no pain to the chicks at all and the chicks are nonexistent at that time