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Post by dreamcatchers on Feb 20, 2011 19:17:05 GMT -5
I have a pair who have been sitting on eggs for a while. They are pretty new parents. They had one clutch previous to this, where only one chick survived. Both birds are just two and a half years old. I believe the reason for the loss of the previous clutch was because the hen laid her eggs really far apart. The first egg hatched, then the second hatched 5 days later and the third 4 days after that. I decided to let them raise the clutch on their own without my interference so they would learn what to do. I lost the two younger chicks. They rested for 6 months and I set them up for a second time. This time, the hen laid 7 eggs over two and a half weeks. The first two babies hatched 13 and then 10 days ago. The next hatched 5 days later and the parents didn't feed it and I lost it within a day. The next chick hatched a day later and is doing well. The most recent chick hatched yesterday but it is so small compared to the others, that it is getting overlooked and trampled in the nest. There is one egg left, due to hatch any time. The two oldest chicks are starting to open their eyes. Every chick has a full crop, even the smallest newborn. The problem is, the bigger chicks are getting way more. I pulled the two biggest today and put them in the brooder in hopes that the two little ones and the one yet to hatch will get more attention. None of my birds has ever had chicks so wildly spaced in age. I believe I need to get some more nutrients into the newly hatched chick as well. I would rather not pull babies at 1 week, but this pair produced one of the most gorgeous babies I have had yet and I don't want to lose this clutch. Has anyone experienced such a huge difference in hatch times between eggs, what did you do to compensate? Any suggestions for taking care of these two bigger ones? I have never pulled babies so young before. I usually wait until they are 3 weeks. Any suggestions would be very appreciated.
Michelle
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Post by Talk About Tiels Admin on Feb 20, 2011 21:29:03 GMT -5
Hi!
What I normally do with pairs like this is to not let them into the nestbox until I see one egg at the bottom of the cage or I see one continuous week of mating. Then, I have a spare pair who is also proven set up to foster babies to. This normally takes care of it. There isn't much you can do for babies that far apart. You can supplement the younger ones with handfeeding formula just in case. The pairs natural instincts tell them to only take care of the oldest ones the best and to forget the youngest. If you take away the oldest, this normally doesn't make the pair feed the younger ones any better (unfortunately). Thus, I pull the younger ones to handfeed. Its a pain when they are such young babies but its the only way to assure they get fed.
Leslie
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Post by dreamcatchers on Feb 20, 2011 23:17:51 GMT -5
Thanks Leslie. I will watch them over the next day or two. Since I pulled the older two, the younger two have bulging crops now. Mom and dad seem to have discovered their littlest babies. This pair is used to me going in and out of the box and they are very tame, so I am going to put the older babies back in for the night and see how they do now that the littlest ones have gotten a full meal. I also pulled some of the nest material and padded it with some paper towel so that the little ones aren't buried under nesting. I really hate to lose any more of this clutch. I may have fallows in this group. SIGH.
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Post by dreamcatchers on Feb 22, 2011 14:27:48 GMT -5
Well, I have discovered that this pair are also not creating "crop milk" very well. They may well have been culling their own babies as the littlest one had an impacted crop. I think I have managed to get it moving with very thin formula and a tiny drop of peanut oil. It had good droppings for the first time since I pulled it yesterday afternoon and I can't see the seed in the crop any more. The question is, is there something wrong with this little one's digestive tract and were the parents not feeding it well because they sensed it is doomed. They stuffed it when I pulled the bigger birds out but when I returned the bigger ones, they have started to ignore it again. So, I have pulled it for good and will see. It is eating at this point and I finally have good droppings. The older babies eyes have started to open. It looks like one may be fallow! Since I have never fed a baby so young before, can someone recommend a weight gain guideline? I want to be sure this baby is growing correctly.
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Post by marieandchirpy on Feb 22, 2011 15:21:59 GMT -5
If you have an avian vet you can them for a weight gain guideline.
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Post by crazy4tiels88 on Feb 13, 2012 21:09:10 GMT -5
How many cc's are you feeding the little one and how old is it? Depending on age if 10-14 days old you should feed at least 6 ccs every 5 hours i will post a weightgain chart for you
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Post by crazy4tiels88 on Feb 13, 2012 21:14:44 GMT -5
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Post by crazy4tiels88 on Feb 13, 2012 21:15:49 GMT -5
I sudgest you buy a gram scale if you dont have one you can get them at walmart in the cooking area
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